Sony Online Entertainment takes down its PC game web site

Sony’s nightmare with hackers expanded in a new direction today as the company’s PC online games division shut down its Station.com online gaming web site.

Already reeling from the hacker attack that shuttered its 77-million-strong PlayStation Network, this new problem means that millions of Sony’s PC gamers are also affected by a shutdown.

The temporary shutdown affects popular games from EverQuest to Free Realms. Sony said in a note on Station.com that its investigation into the intrusion into Sony’s systems has uncovered “an issue that warrants enough concern for us to take the service down effective immediately.”

The systems are evidently separate between the PSN and Station.com, but both are housed at Sony’s online operations in San Diego, Calif.

Here’s the full text of Sony’s note:

“We have had to take the SOE service down temporarily. In the course of our investigation into the intrusion into our systems we have discovered an issue that warrants enough concern for us to take the service down effective immediately. We will provide an update later today (Monday).”