Chinese online game developer and operator Giant Interactive (NYSE: GA) announced today that it had finished R&D work on a microclient for its MMORPG ZT Online II. Giant CTO Song Shiliang said that the new lightweight client technology used in ZT Online II featured original IP developed by Giant.

In addition to allowing gamers to play ZT Online II while game content downloads, the new lightweight client preserves the graphic detail and smooth gameplay of the original game while keeping the disk footprint of the client small. Internal testing of the lightweight client shows virtually no difference in experience between the lightweight and classic ZT Online II clients.

The technology used in the new lightweight ZT Online II client will also be readily applicable to other Giant games, giving the company a solid platform on which to build lightweight clients for other properties.