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SEE Virtual Worlds, the company behind the upcoming Michael Jackson and Universal Monsters MMOs, has purchased Planet Calypso from MindArk for $6 million. In the same transaction, SEE Virtual Worlds acquired the assets of First Planet Company, a subsidiary of MindArk.

Planet Calypso is the first planet in the Entropia Universe. The game's been running since 2003 and has almost 1 million registered accounts. Planet Calypso has a real cash economy; in November 2010, an in-game virtual resort sold for a staggering $635,000. To learn more about the game, check out Senior Staff Writer Chris "Pwff" Tom's recent tour of Planet Calypso.

SEE Virtual Worlds announced late last year that it is developing two new planets to add to the Entropia Universe: Planet Michael, which is based on the life of the late King of Pop, and a world that focuses on famous Universal Monsters such as Frankenstein and Dracula. Players can move their Entropia avatars from planet to planet and explore all of the various MMOs in the universe.

For more details on the acquisition, check out Massively's interview with SEE Virtual Worlds President Corey Redmond.

It looks like classic Universal Monsters like Frankenstein and Dracula will be battling Van Helsing in an MMO that's scheduled to launch in late 2011. Publisher See Virtual Worlds announced today that Universal Monsters will be its second themed planet in the Entropia Universe, which is comprised of various MMOs on different worlds.

The press release doesn't provide many details on the Universal Monsters game, but it does state that players will be able to travel to locations such as Dracula's Castle and the Lagoon to complete missions and battle the timeless horror characters. For more details, check out the full release after the jump.

A Michael Jackson MMO will be released in late 2011. No, it's not April 1st. That's really all I have to say.

OK, I suppose a little more detail is in order. SEE Virtual Worlds has partnered with the Michael Jackson Estate to publish Planet Michael, a free-to-play virtual world based on the late King of Pop. The planet "will be an immersive virtual space themed after iconic visuals drawn from Michael’s music, his life, and the global issues that concerned him."

A couple of screenshots have been released that showcase areas of the planet based on "Billy Jean" and "Thriller." You can view them in our screenshots gallery. Keep reading after the jump for more information on the game, including its real cash economy. Sooooo... what do you think? Post your comments below!

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