两款运营超十年的日本游戏《World Quest》与《Please Save My Pandemonium!》因 PHP 严重漏洞永久关停，过时基础设施无法修复

Amidst numerous websites and apps going into temporary maintenance to address recently discovered cyber-security vulnerabilities, two Japanese games have permanently terminated services.

On October 21, the developers of World Quest – a virtual travel game with a 15-year history – announced that the game would be shutting down, effective immediately. The game’s servers used PHP, a programming language for which critical security vulnerabilities became publicly known around October 21. Although emergency patches have since become available to address the issue, the developers of World Quest say that due to how outdated the game’s infrastructure had become, it was not possible to adequately address the issue. Prioritizing the security of users, the developers decided to urgently shut down the game.

The news has been met with much shock and disappointment among Japanese users, many of whom have fond memories of the game. Interestingly, World Quest is well known domestically for having once ended services back in 2019, only for the developers to bring the game back in 2020, hoping to give people a way to enjoy virtual travel while they were stuck in their homes during the COVID-19 pandemic. The game had been in operation ever since, but has now met an abrupt end.

World Quest is not the only such case either. On the morning of October 22, JAGS, the developers of mobile fantasy simulation RPG Please Save My Pandemonium!, announced that the game would be shutting down after over 10 years of service. Much like World Quest, Please Save My Pandemonium! had been running on “significantly outdated infrastructure,” making it impossible to address the PHP vulnerabilities safely. Migrating to a modern environment was not a feasible option for the developers either, so they ultimately decided to terminate the game to avoid user data being compromised. The developers apologized for the sudden end and thanked players for sticking with the game for over a decade.

Meanwhile, major Japanese titles that went into emergency maintenance last night over similar concerns, like Umamusume: Pretty Derby and Granblue Fantasy, have gradually been resuming normal operations.