Celebrating 25 Years of WWII Online

Only a handful of online games from the early MMO era remain operational, actively developed, and community-supported twenty-five years later. WWII Online is one of them.

In the spring of 1999, Playnet, Inc. was founded, and its internal development studio, Cornered Rat Software, set out to create one of the most ambitious online games ever conceived. The vision was bold, the technical challenges were immense, and many considered the project impossible.

Yet through determination, innovation, and countless hours of work, WWII Online became a reality. On June 6, 2001, the game officially launched and introduced players to a persistent online battlefield unlike anything the industry had seen before.

Now, in June 2026, WWII Online reaches a remarkable milestone: twenty-five years of continuous operation and active development. Few online games have achieved such longevity, and even fewer continue to evolve while remaining true to their original vision.

WWII Online celebrates 25 years of continued operations, a true milestone in gaming history.

Today, WWII Online stands among the longest-running actively developed online games in the world.

A history this long inevitably includes triumphs, setbacks, and moments of uncertainty. Through it all, the game endured. The result is a one-of-a-kind experience that has created lasting memories, friendships, and a community spanning multiple generations of players.

Playnet, Inc. and Cornered Rat Software extend their deepest gratitude to everyone who helped make this achievement possible. To the original founders and contributors of CRS 1.0, who brought the vision to life. To the members of CRS 2.0, who stepped forward during challenging times and helped secure the game's future. And most importantly, to our players and subscribers—past and present—whose passion, support, and belief in the project kept the war going.

Thank you. This milestone belongs to all of you.

Despite twenty-five years of history, many gamers remain unaware that WWII Online exists, while countless former players are surprised to learn that the game is still online and actively evolving. As we celebrate this anniversary, we encourage our community to help spread the word and let both new and returning players know that the battlefield is alive and well.

One of the most important developments in recent years is the introduction of the Victory Point system.

Victory Points were designed to eliminate the perception of pay-to-win gameplay by creating a true play-to-earn path for free players. With no purchase required, players can earn rank, unlock premium equipment, and expand their access to the game simply by participating in activities that support their side's war effort.

To celebrate our 25th Anniversary, I have directed our team to deposit 5,000 Victory Points into the digital wallet of every active free account—more than 850,000 accounts in total.

This includes both players who have never subscribed and those who subscribed in the past.

Every active Free Player now has 5,000 Victory Points available and waiting.

These Victory Points are a gift to celebrate twenty-five years of WWII Online, and we hope to see as many veterans and new recruits as possible return to the battlefield throughout June.

Over the years, player opinions on subscription gaming have varied, and the industry has largely shifted toward different business models. Yet WWII Online's twenty-five-year history demonstrates that a subscription-supported game can remain sustainable when players believe in the experience and developers remain committed to serving their community.

At the same time, we recognized that players wanted a meaningful way to experience more of the game without subscribing.

That realization led directly to the creation of the Victory Point system, thereby bridging the gap.

Free players can now earn their way into premium equipment through gameplay, creating the most accessible version of WWII Online in the game's history. It is a significant step forward for both new recruits and returning veterans—and one we are proud to share as we celebrate twenty-five years of war.

Our goal of course is to pave the way for returning and new players to jump into the war, populate the battlefield, and engage in what makes this grand scale war game so amazing.

The reward of this VP distribution for our current active player base is just that: more friends, content and memories being generated.

As we look at our 2026 roadmap strong progress is being made on this front and several deliveries have already occurred with more on the way. These are major developments working to better the experience from the bottom-up. And it should be noted that our fundraiser to support this is currently at 87%, a strong signal from our community that we are on the right track. Thanks to all donors over the years, each one is meaningful and helps continue WWII Online developments.

Let’s take a look at WWII Online now over the years and see how things have progressed.

Before diving into the historical timeline, you should watch this video that was created with the purpose of creating awareness of who Playnet/Cornered Rat Software was. It will definitely take you back in time...

2001 — The War Begins

WWII Online launches on June 6, 2001, introducing one of the most ambitious online battlefields ever attempted: a single persistent war across Western Europe with infantry, tanks, aircraft, naval units, logistics, supply, High Command, factories, towns, and player-driven outcomes.

The original WWII Online: Blitzkrieg game box. It included a map, player handbook and game guide. If you still have this, you are a legend.

Here you can see many original founders to Playnet/CRS at the 1900 Central Drive address in Bedford TX. This was where many of the original decisions were made. Here you can see CORN, KANGO, MO, TOTO, SNAIL, DOC, KILLER and others. These guys (and others not mentioned or seen) pulled off the impossible.

2002 — Mac OS X Support Expands The Battlefield

WWII Online expands beyond Windows with its first Mac OS X version, giving more players access to the persistent campaign and strengthening its position as a true cross-platform online war game.

This is the original Barracks in WWII Online. If it blew up, there would be holes at the bottom and you could shoot out of it and kill people who spawned in.

2003 — The Early Campaign Systems Take Shape

The game continues moving beyond simple battles into a deeper strategic war. Mission systems, supply behavior, capture mechanics, brigades, depots, factories, and player coordination become increasingly central to how campaigns are fought and won.

2004 — Attack Objectives And Mobile Warfare Arrive

Attack Objectives are introduced, giving High Command a formal system to focus battles on specific frontline towns. Mission-only spawning, expanded area chat, objective map tools, improved EWS behavior, and early mobile spawning dramatically change how players organize attacks and defenses. The year also brings major additions like the Ju 52 transport, paratroopers for all nations, aircraft autopilot, deployable truck mobile spawns, and offline testing for major vehicles such as the Crusader Mk III, Pz IV G, StuG III G, and Sherman M4A2.

2005 — Battleground Europe And Heavy Equipment Expansion

WWII Online is reintroduced as WWII Online: Battleground Europe. The game receives major equipment additions including the British C-47 transport, Churchill Mk VII, French M10 tank destroyer, German Tiger I, and improved destroyer crew weapon control. The year also adds new grass objects, new 3D buildings, builder statues, memorial names, improved spall behavior, alternative network routing, and major PlayGATE / launcher improvements.

The WWII Online: Battleground Europe box from the re-release.

2006 — Brigade Warfare, Visual Upgrades, And Side Balance

The battlefield receives major strategic and visual improvements. Brigades gain deeper movement and supply rules, off-map training grounds, return/supply logic, oversupply systems, new CPs, and expanded mission-origin behavior. Infantry prediction improves, dynamic water reflections arrive, new city buildings and normal-mapped structures are added, buildings can be destroyed with friendly fire, side-balance information appears on the persona screen, and imbalance delays are introduced to encourage players toward the side needing reinforcements.

2007 — Tables Of Equipment Rewrite The Strategic War

Tables of Equipment fundamentally change supply. Equipment now travels with brigades instead of simply belonging to towns, replacement tickets are introduced, RTB and rescue rules become more meaningful, manual resupply and oversupply arrive, trickle supply is added, factory links affect replacement timing, and brigade/division movement becomes a deeper strategic decision. Infantry also gains mortars, improved resupply, mouse-wheel weapon switching, and new battlefield effects.

2008 — Graphics, Markings, Radar, And Training

The graphics engine is upgraded for better frame rate, reduced stutter, improved terrain loading, reduced memory footprint, improved collision, and better OpenGL handling. Historical-looking vehicle markings are added across ground and air vehicles, including unit markings, personal markings, tank numbers, squadron emblems, and brigade-based identity. The Air Warning System arrives to help pilots find enemy aircraft, while basic training, quick help tutorials, new clouds, new bridges, new buildings, new capture objects, and a new training area improve the new-player experience.

2009 — New Aircraft And Advanced Training

Version 1.30 adds major air and training improvements. The Bf 109F-1, Spitfire IIb, and Bf 110F-B enter the battlefield, giving the air war stronger tier progression. Basic Combat Training becomes required for graduation, advanced infantry, tank, and fighter training is added, instanced combat missions become available for practice, and infantry rank requirements are reworked. Tank kill logic is improved through critical secondary damage rules, EWS becomes more reliable at airfields and factories, and new account-permission systems help prepare the game for broader access models.

2010 — Infantry Reborn

Version 1.33 delivers one of the biggest infantry upgrades in WWII Online history. All third-person infantry avatars and animations are rebuilt, new base infantry and paratroopers are added, kit loadouts become more distinct, infantry receives normal and specular maps, corpses and ragdolls are updated, and performance is improved. The sound engine is upgraded to XAudio2, aircraft gun convergence is standardized, UI text drawing improves performance, and multiple towns receive terrain updates.

Players and staff attend the 2010 Dallas Mini-con. CRS has always been very connected with the community.

2011 — The 1.34 Era Begins

The 1.34 development cycle begins, setting the stage for years of infantry, vehicle, UI, terrain, and gameplay improvements. This era becomes especially important later as Free-to-Play access, new weapons, Sapper changes, and player-placed object improvements begin reshaping how players enter and fight the war.

2012 — Innovation and Uncertainty

Development continued parallel of WWII Online with the in progress project of Rapid Assault where new technologies were created. This was also a critical year where most of the original development team left due to funding issues just as summer hit, and only 5 Rats remained for a period of time.

2013 — Stabilizing, Recovery, and Rebuilding

Once essential systems were stabilized, Playnet started to recover by recruiting community members with technical abilities to restore basic studio functionality. A core objective was to get back to game development, which required reverse engineering and documenting the entire build process.

2014 — Community-Supported Longevity

WWII Online remains online, operational, and community-supported more than a decade after launch. Ongoing updates, player events, volunteer support, squads, High Command, and campaign operations continue carrying the war forward while many games from the same era disappear.

2015 — Official formation of CRS 2.0, Free-To-Play Access And New Infantry Weapons

A major accessibility shift begins. Free players are allowed to rank to Private First Class, a limited SMG class is added for Free-to-Play users, and the Sapper returns with HEAT satchels, HE satchels, smoke grenades, and fragmentation grenades. New infantry weapons include the British Sten Mk II, US/French M3A1 Grease Gun, German MP34, and German FG42. Truck-only mobile spawn deployment also becomes a major live battlefield test, placing more emphasis on logistics and teamwork.

2016 — Player-Placed Warfare Expands

Player-Placed Objects become more important to frontline combat. FRUs can be deployed by the Morris and halftrack, bridge missions receive FRU support, gun emplacement lifetime is increased, and infantry weapon handling improves for the Grease Gun, Sten, and MAS 40. Version 1.35 begins, setting up a multi-year content cycle that will eventually bring Steam support, new mobile spawn systems, new vehicles, new classes, and significant terrain updates.

CRS 2.0 flies to DFW to attend a dev summit to discuss the future plans of WWII Online. Since most of the staff was volunteer and remote, this was the first time for many of us meeting and this shared house was a great way to connect, develop rapport and lay the foundation for the future. From left to right is Company0, KMS (RIP), SNIPER62, PILOTMC, HATCH, Waver25, Shyguy with the pillow (I think Fohdron) and GADGET. XOOM behind the camera.

HATCH leads us to the Gazebo in Grapevine TX where the original founders started planning WWII Online. We paid homage to this area and continued discussing the future and ideas with everyone having an opportunity to communicate perspectives and ideas. Most of these ideas were then executed on in coming years.

2017 — Steam Preparation And New Anti-Air Vehicles

WWII Online prepares for and enters the Steam era. The PlayGATE launcher is rebranded, Steam user guidance is added, and the game begins adapting to a broader audience. New self-propelled anti-air content arrives with the Sd.Kfz. 7/2 AA for Axis forces and Crusader III AA Mk I for Allied forces. Fortified Mobile Spawn reporting icons, PPO cooldown timers, updated translations, and fixes to long-standing issues like unkillable infantry and death lag help stabilize the experience.

GADGET (Left), PILOTMC (Right), and HATCH (Top) and XOOM (Taking the picture) working at colo to stabilize operations in preparation for the Steam release. Significant cleanup duty was required to get a better understanding of the overall infrastructure at large. See the below photo for reference.

With limited documentation remaining, and spaghetti cables, we had to trace ports and start mapping what these systems did. This was the definitive cleanup operation for our team as it relates to infrastructure.

2018 — US Paratroopers, DLC, HE Audit, And Major Content Expansion

US Paratroopers arrive with the C-47 Skytrain, SMG, Sapper, Sniper, Mortarman, Automatic Rifle, and Assault units. Steam DLC packs are added, including Leadership, Paratrooper, Light AA Gun, Light AT, Light Armor, Medium Armor, Combat Fighter, and Reserve packs. New NCO and Ammo Bearer infantry classes arrive, the .factories command is added, training is softened into suggestions, and major KE/HE audits update projectile and explosive behavior across the game. New content includes the StuH 42, Crusader III CS, Churchill V CS, Hurricane IIb Hurribomber, Bf 109E-4/B Jabo, Vickers Mk VIC, Italian infantry, Firefly, Achilles, Churchill VIII CS, Panzer III L, Panzer III N with Schürzen, lend-lease British Shermans, and SPAA / artillery shield improvements.

2019 — Version 1.36 And Terrain Modernization

Version 1.36 launches. The game continues major terrain work, town updates, bridge fixes, spawn list fixes, FMS placement improvements, new airfield layouts, UI updates, translation improvements, and content adjustments. The year helps transition the game into a more modern live-service structure while continuing to clean up years of terrain, facility, AI, and PPO issues across the map.

For the first time ever, in 2019 our colocation was moved from Texas to Oregon for cost savings and better accessibility for XOOM to help facilitate demanding on-site requirements with the helpful guiding from PILOTMC and other technical contributors. It was also an opportunity to modernize our systems, and build the foundation right, with all necessary mapping and documentation supporting it.

2020 — Upgrade to 64-bit, STO Bombs, Content, and Company Acquisition

WWII Online is upgraded to a 64-bit application. Bombs become server-tracked, waypoints show up on the HUD, and several new units arrive, including the armed trawler, truck SPAAs, Bf 109G-2/R1 Jabo, StuG III G with MG34 and side skirts, A-20C, Deuce and a Half, and US M3 37mm ATG. Playnet, Inc. is acquired by longtime player, volunteer and Executive Producer XOOM, securing the future ahead and setting a new course for WWII Online.

2021 — Bomber loadouts, M1 Carbine, New Tracked Vehicles, and Chokepoint

Bombers receive the ability to choose what bomb load they’d like to carry. M1 Carbine introduced to the US Army + Airborne. Added the Universal Carrier, M-3 Halftrack, Lorraine, M-3 Tank Destroyer and Sdkfz 25/10 Ausf B. Chokepoint joins the WWII Online family and offers a pathway to a modernization of WWII Online's infantry system with the potential to release as a standalone game.

Resistance & Liberation is acquired and rebranded to WWII Online: Chokepoint, marking the beginning of CRS developing in Unreal Engine.

2022 — Artillery, MG42, And Motorized Mortars

Artillery is introduced to WWII Online with the Allied M2A1 105mm and Axis 10.5cm leFH 18/40 105mm. This effectively created the longest firing indirect weaponry in an online video game. A new motorized mortar and artillery leveling system is added, along with an updated HUD info window for indirect-fire units and country-specific colored smoke rounds. The German MG42 infantry unit enters the spawn list, 81mm mortar audio is updated, a French Universal Carrier Mortar variant is added, and several new towns are added to the game world.

2023 — Integrated Voice Comms, Full Steam Release, Visual FX, Terrain Expansion

Voice communications are made available directly in-engine. WWII Online moves from Early Access to a “Full” Release on Steam. Several visual effects are upgraded, from bombs to fires and more. A plethora of new towns are added to expand the playable game space. Legacy model conversion plan confirmed and upgrades begin. Spitfire, Fw-190’s and Bf-109’s get their external engine audio upgraded.  Higgins boat is made available.

2024 — Chokepoint In Unreal Engine 5, Rebuilding Models, Improved Audio Quality

WWII Online: Chokepoint becomes functional in Unreal Engine 5. SpeedTree wind gets reactivated, bringing WWII Online’s game world back to life. Several game models are upgraded for the first time since the original release. Quad Anti-Aircraft guns introduced. Major audio upgrades for tanks and aircraft improve immersion and sound quality.

Here you can see the new model rebuilds in Unreal Engine 5, which are built to a high fidelity model with higher poly counts and greater definition in textures.

Here you can see those same models baked down and now usable for WWII Online 1.0. Recent lighting enhancements have occurred beyond these screenshots.

2025 — New Predictor Code, Victory Points, Capturing Upgrade

An all-new, completely re-written prediction code improves calculations and movements between players. Victory Points begin reshaping progression by giving Free Players a play-to-earn path toward premium equipment. Version 1.37 continues adding major improvements, including higher HE damage fidelity, improved bomb effectiveness against ground vehicles, CP “Facility Contested” visibility, aircraft overstress audio warnings, bunker cover improvements, PlayGATE campaign/open beta launch support, updated capture mechanics with “Tug of War,” side lock and spawn queue tools for population balance, reduced free-player upsell frequency, new roads and links between cities.

2026 — Spawn Protection , Mission Target Change, Mass VP distribution and more…

For the 25th Anniversary, WWII Online launches the Welcome Back Soldier program. More than 850,000 active Free Player accounts receive 5,000 Victory Points, giving returning and never-subscribed players immediate access to unlock Army, Air Force, and Navy equipment through gameplay. Combined with RTB-based VP returns and continued VP earning, this becomes the most accessible version of WWII Online ever released.

WWII Online: Chokepoint makes more advances in 2026 showcasing more developments inside of Carentan and the re-introduction of new weapons inside UE5.

Twenty-Five Years Later

Across twenty-five years, WWII Online has added new countries, aircraft, tanks, ships, infantry weapons, artillery, paratroopers, mobile spawns, PPOs, voice communications, Steam support, Free-to-Play access, Victory Points, 64-bit architecture, major graphics and audio upgrades, training systems, new towns, new terrain, and the beginnings of a future in Unreal Engine 5.

The game did not simply stay online - it kept moving.

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Recognizing our active contributors who are moving that ball forward today:

Production:

• Rodney "HATCH" Hodge, Senior Producer

• Neil "CORN" Huntley, Producer

• James "TR6AL" Watson, Terrain Producer

• Megan "Mkw" Walter, 3D Artist

• Bill "Slamen" Janewicz, 3D Modeling

• Tyr "Tyrdaimp" Holland, 3D Modeling

• Joakim "Trx" Andersson, 3D Modeling

Development:

• Matt "XOOM" Callahan, Team Lead

• Dale "HITECH" Addink, Senior Programmer

• Mathew "JAMES10" Hogan, Programmer

• Mike "MIKEMUDD" Cox, Programmer

Community Tools & Web Development:

• Caleb "SNIPER62" Luehrs, Team Lead

• Brian "B2K" Steinke, Developer

Operations Team:

• Mike "PILOTMC" Carter, Lead System Administrator

• Gwynne "GADGET" Raskind, Systems Engineer

Game Management:

• Terry "OHM" Fazekas, Game Manager

• Tom "TMAN" Martin, Assistant Game Manager

• Woody "KARDEHK" Brown, Lead Game Moderator

• John "JCD04" Davison, Asst. Lead Game Moderator

Community Management:

• Hermes "AZANTIS" Silva, Community Manager

• Lonnie "CSM308" Bristol, Asst. Community Manager

• Chris "GOOGS" Gugliotta, Asst. Community Manager

• Kira "IMBRUTUS" Scattolon, HC Recruitment & Training

• Brian "B2K" Steinke, Forum Moderator

• Raul "Euphobone" Escobar, Discord Moderator

Quality Assurance Team:

• John "OLDZEKE" Workman, Team Lead

• Philip "Panda1k" Anderson, Tester

• Adam "Myg" Krock, Tester

• Jesse "Asteroth" Czesnowski, Tester

Business Team:

• Christopher "TEX64" Lord, Team Lead

• Brian "CHIMM" Coutrakis, Asst. Team Lead

• Jimmy "ARRADIN" Stigsjöö, Customer and Technical Support

• Friedhelm "Vanapo" Robben, Live Streams

WWII Online: Chokepoint

• Matt "XOOM" Callahan, Executive Producer

• Neil "CORN" Huntley, Producer

• Bruce "TOTO" Patnaude, Lead Artist

• Simon "Atestrat" Jiang, Programmer

• Eric "BBQ" Laputka, Programmer / Artist

• Ryan "Nos" Smith, Programmer

• Roger "Bebopsaxxx" Escobar, Community Manager

• Triumph "Triumphant" Ogbechie, Environment Artist

• Taylor "Smert" Cook, Artist (Intern)

• Weije "Shala" Ye, Programmer (Intern)

Our gratitude for talent, vision and dedication goes to all former RATS:

Ahwulf, Animal, Bable, Badger, Blkhwk8, Bloo, Bmbm, Caligula, Caveman, Chkicker, Codec, Company0, Crawdad, Dekard, Doc, Dragon, Drloon, Edthehead, Elmo, Fogaban, Fohdron, Fredrik1, Frisbone, Frytiger, Gnache, Gophur, Granik, Greatone, Greni, Gryf, Gvonpaul, Hallpass, Hawkmoon, Hicksey, Heavy265, Hoof, Hoss, Jaeger, Jammyman, Joker007, Jokerzwild, Kango, Kempi, Kfs1, Killer, Kms, Krieger, Kyotee, LadyJ, Latham, Lince, Lindir, Maco, Martini, Maypol, Meat, Mediiic, Minnie, Mo, Monty, Motormouth, Mumbles, Newzguy, Pittpete, Rafter, Ramp, Rickb, Rogue, Sadguy, Salad, Scking, Sgtfury, Shef, Sherman, Shilling, Showkillr, Sicness, Sideout, Snail, Snicker, Soloje, Squirm, Staffel, Stick, Sudz, Tadpole, Tater, Tgunr, TheChosn, Thunder, Tongue, TopD, Tragic, Trevor8, Trips, Troper, Vandal, Victarus, Vixen, Volcol, Vozz, Waver25, Wickett, Wildhund, Xl2rippr, Zach and the others that may have been unintentionally missed.

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Thank you for playing WWII Online and being part of our grand history. There’s much more life ahead and these active developments provide evidence that we our development team remains committed to moving the ball forward.

Please use this opportunity to remind players that we are here and the game has been vastly enhanced to provide more content and fixes to provide a better experience for returning and new players.

Thanks for believing in our game and our team. It has been a real blessing and a tremendous opportunity to serve the fanbase of WWII Online.

Now for some personal notes...

I want to express my deepest gratitude for all of the contributors on the game who I have worked with here at CRS. I am humbled to have worked with so many bright people who have been deeply passionate about the game. They have helped the game and guided me through the darkest moments of our history. I also want to thank the original investors who entrusted me with the continuation of Playnet and helped create a pathway to secure the games future in the 2020 transition. Cuda and Mike, you were instrumental in that process and I appreciate the faith. All of us are extraordinarily grateful, and I hope that faith has paid off with this 25th anniversary celebration.

You know this has been a daunting task, with overwhelming odds at times, some lonely and stressful days. But I still believe in the game's future and its ability to restore the glory days. Sometimes I forget the post I hold and consider myself just one of the guys, and often reflect on the days when I was a 14 year old kid who just picked this game up off the shelf at a local store. Now at 38, I'm learning (finally) to be a bit more graceful and enjoy the fact that we made it here. There's a lot of work to do, but this is an unbelievable milestone worthy of celebration for all of our fans and staff. So please, enjoy it especially this month, with the tumultuous game industry as it has been, we remain standing.

It has been the blessing and possibly the challenge of my lifetime. Thank you all so much.

Onwards!

Matt “XOOM” Callahan

President and CEO

Playnet, Inc.