Want to attend the wedding of the century but can’t, due to the fact that you are not a part of the Royal Family?

Well that is no longer a problem. The online massively multiplayer game, the Virtual World Web by Utherverse is hosting the virtual wedding, and you have the opportunity of a lifetime to attend and be a part of history.

Not only are they hosting the Royal Wedding, but they are hosting a post-ceremony reception and after party. Now if a wedding “guest” invests $20, then the ”guest” gets a chance to be one of the five Royal Family members, such as Prince William, Kate Middleton, Queen Elizabeth II, Prince Charles, Camilla Parker-Bowles. And the special guest to make things very interesting? Charlie Sheen of course. He’s going too. (again, virtually)

Event attendees are welcome simply by registering and downloading the required software at: www.princewillswedding.com.

This world is a mix of Second Life and the Sims. So for people who have played these type of games in the past should find this world to their liking.

The VWW has 7 million PC and Mac users that use Utherverse’s downloadable 3D Web browser to navigate a network encompassing 57,000 virtual 3D communities where members interact, socialize and conduct business in ways not possible on the “flat” Internet..

Colleges and Universities around the country are wrapping up and high schools are finishing next month, so what’s a gamer to do in the long, hot, summer months?

Stay indoors and grind away in everyone’s favorite MMORPG of course!

Best Buy made that summer prospect more interesting today, as the national retailer is giving away copies of World of Warcraft expansion The Burning Crusade, with the purchase of the original World of Warcraft.

With the deal, you’ll pay $19.99 for both. Not too shabby, but it won’t get you entirely up to date. WoW‘s latest expansion, Wrath of the Lich King, is out in the wild and Cataclysm is due out this year. The grind starts now.

WoW + Burning Crusade = $20 @ Best Buy

Funcom’s MMORPG, Age of Conan is set to expand next week with the release  of the game’s first proper expansion, Rise of the Godslayer.

But, before the expansion can hit May 11, a launch trailer is in order, is it not?

Thankfully, Funcom provided the trailer and we’ve snagged it from the interwebs for your convenience.

Is the future of the impossibly popular MMO World of Warcraft literally in the palm of your hands?

Game Designer David Perry might argue so.

He snapped a picture of the World of Warcraft login screen on his iPad recently, testing the Gaikai cloud server (similar to Onlive) over a standard Wifi connection.

“We’re really interested to see what works well with streaming and will be trying just about every genre of game, on every device possible as we explore server-side computing,” he wrote on his blog.

Is this the future?

He made no mention of if the game ran, and if so, how well. But just the possibility of taking WoW with you is definitely exciting.

via 1UP

If you signed up for the LEGO: Universe beta last month (when we urged you to!) and were chosen to participate in the trial, invitations, in the form of colorful e-mails, rolled out today.

The e-mail invite contains a link to download the MMO and a beta key to access it.

The beta will only be open for very small windows of time (noted below), but thankfully the bulk of the beta access times runs on the weekends. No mention was made of for how many weeks the beta will continue, so if you’re in, play as much as you can!

Opening Hours

Thursdays     17.00 — 03.00 Europe (CET). 11am — 9 pm US (EST)

Saturdays    20.00 – 02.00 Europe (CET),   2pm – 8pm US (EST)

Sundays      14.00 – 17.00 Europe (CET),   8am – 11am US (EST)

I’ve downloaded the game, took about 35 minutes and cannot wait until tomorrow to play it. Anybody else get in?

Sony today announced its free-to-play MMO “Free Realms” has broken the 9 million registered players mark.

Grounds for celebration

The game has exploded since it released, growing from a very healthy 3 million in June of last year to now this gargantuan figure over three times larger.

“With Free Realms, we’ve been able to reflect the needs and wants of our players by keenly listening to their suggestions and feedback,” said John Smedley, president of SOE.

“We believe the persistent exercise of capturing in-game research inside Free Realms has been a huge contributing factor as to why we’ve attracted over nine million players in less than a year. It truly helps us give our players a game where they can do and be whatever they want.”

SOE chalked the success up to “continuous development of new features and themed in-game events, as well as persistent marketing support” and the advent of Rides.

These Rides are like World of Warcraft’s mounts. They’re available to paying members and include T-Rexes and Dragons that afford the user up to 150 percent speed when riding them.

I played the title only slightly when it released just to see what all the hubbub was about and now my 11-year-old sister plays the Hell out of it. Anybody else?

Patience is a virtue I’m told.

We knew Star Wars: The Old Republic wouldn’t arrive for quite some time, but who knew Spring 2011 would be the launch date?

Electronic Arts boss John Riccitiello, said yesterday that a “major” MMO, one that would be key for driving digital sales, would arrive Spring 2011, yesterday at a corporate meeting.

And clarification (confirmation) of that “major MMO” tease came in the form of a Old Republic message board posting by none other than Bioware’s Sean Dahlberg who confirmed the Spring 2011 release date, but couldn’t say more.

Can we wait? Yes. Do we want to? No.

Dahlberg also promised "exciting updates and reveals" throughout 2010, and noted that anyone interested (and extremely lucky!) can sign up to test the game at the Old Republic’s official Web site.

Source: Destructoid

If you’ve played any of the LEGO-themed spin-offs (Indiana Jones, Star Wars, Rock Band), you’re more than aware at how much fun can be had with the little block men and women, but what if you desire more, more, more?

Then this is exactly what you’re waiting for, as NetDevil is currently building LEGO: Universe, a MMO set in the LEGO world, ready for release some time in 2010.

It’s all about creation in this massively multiplayer online title. From the creation of your avatar to your living space, the choices are plentiful, and they’re all yours.

The game remains shrouded in mystery, but today we’re gifted by this high-energy trailer that’ll likely get you excited for the game, even if you aren’t a 12-year-old boy, the game’s target demographic.

Stick with us for continued coverage of this very ambitious endeavor.

All aboard the rumor train. Today has been quite a doozy in the uncertainty and speculation department in terms of Infinity Ward rumors.

First we hear the team isn’t developing Modern Warfare 2 and is instead building an entirely new game, and now we learned (through rumor) that the game is a massively multiplayer online title, an MMO, like World of Warcraft, if by name only.

According to industry sources leaking information to Destructoid, Infinity Ward is in the process of hiring individuals from Sony Online Entertainment, one of which worked on Everquest II, and are under the watchful eye and trusted resource of one, if not more, Blizzard employee.

No idea if this rumored MMO is of the Call of Duty nature. It’d make sense, but with rumors this wild, really, who knows?

Also, whatever the case, the Call of Duty name, and FPS game series, is more than likely to remain solidly intact, only that Infinity Ward may be building this new title, while another studio heads the Modern Warfare movement.

Source: Destructoid

If you saw the 2009 Hollywood revision of Star Trek over the summer you were graced with young stud Zach Quinto and the famed Leonard Nimoy both playing legendary Trek character Spock.

Well, Cryptic Studios, the team behind the upcoming space-oriented MMO “Star Trek Online” announced today that both actors will lend their voices to the title.

Nimoy will voice the game’s opening cinematic sequence as well as various other “key scenes and events in-game”.

As for Quinto, Cryptic only said the young buck will surrender his voice to the game in one way or another.

Atari president and CEO Jim Wilson said “Mr. Nimoy’s participation in Star Trek Online brings the game to a whole new level. When Star Trek fans hear his voice they will know that Star Trek Online truly is part of the Star Trek universe.”

Looks like you’ll get your fair share of authenticity in this one. Have at it Trekkies!

Source: IGN

Funcom, developer of the MMORPG “Age of Conan: Hyborian Adventures,” today announced that anyone who downloads the title between today and January 1, will be able to play the game, for eternity, for free.

The Unlimited Free Trial isn’t all that it seems though. Players can level their characters only to 20, but that encompasses the entire Island of Tortage experience, so it’s pretty content-rich.

“Our original seven day trial has been very successful so far,” says Morten Larssen, Vice President of Sales and Marketing at Funcom. “But with the holiday season coming up this is the perfect time to shake up our trial offer a bit and try out something new. So everyone who downloads the trial before January 1st will be able to play the first part of the game for free, forever. We are confident that many of those taking advantage of this offer will choose to become permanent players, allowing them to experience all of what the game has to offer including all the additions and improvements introduced since launch.”

In the free trial you can make as many characters as you wish, so actually, this is quite nice. Level a few to 20, see which one you like the most, and maybe pay a subscription fee to level that specific character. It’s up to you.

Start the fun today at Age of Conan’s Web site

Wizard 101, the free-to-play, pay to enjoy further MMO, is primed and ready to grow larger this December with the addition of purchasable houses.

Based on the seven schools of magic, life, death, fire, ice, myth, storm and balance, and decorated appropriately, these homes will be available in-game sometime in mid-December.

Gamers can purchase their favorite school house for 10,000 Crowns or 100,000 in-game Gold, meaning that if you don’t want to fork over $20, the equivalent of 10,000 Crowns, you can still snag the item, you’ll just have to work harder for your reward.

No word on exactly when the update will come to all realms, as today they’re only available in the test realm, but as always, when we know, you’ll be next to hear!

Take a look at the gallery to see the precious new locales. Click each image to embiggen.

As if Middle Earth wasn’t large enough already, Turbine, developer of the MMORPG “Lord of the Rings Online,” released the Siege of Mirkwood today for North American servers bringing about a host of new and intriguing options for enthusiasts.

Gamers who purchase the digital download expansion can enjoy new environments including the treacherous and dark Mirkwood forest, the legendary evil fortress of Dol Guldur, new Legendary items, an increased level cap (65), and Skirmishes.

These Skirmishes are repeatable and randomized instances aimed at helping you train your soldiers for the larger battle at hand.

"Today we unveil LOTRO’s second major expansion and let players enter the legendary forest of Mirkwood and experience the climax and conclusion to Volume II of our epic story," said Jeffrey Steefel, Executive Producer of The Lord of the Rings Online.  "The response from our players and the press has been nothing short of outstanding and serve as a real validation of LOTRO’s position as one of  the world’s premium online games."

I’m a huge believer and fan of MMOs, but the sheer amount of time they take up, to effectively and enjoyably play them, restricts me from partaking.

More information on Lord of the Rings Online and Siege of Mirkwood at its official page.

Star Trek Online is going to be released on Feb 2! The MMO is definitely riding on the energy of the new series while staying faithful to the original series and the expanded universe. Players will get to begin a journey through the Trekverse. The missions will force players through the depths of space, across exotic and mysterious planets and the inside of the coolest starships designed. You can captain your own ship and lead the crew through space. I can’t wait to see how the game turns out, and if I have to wait until February, so be it! If you’re excited let us know. Curious about the game and want to know more about it? Check out the official website here.

Funcom, maker of the MMORPG “Age of Conan: Hyborian Adventures,” today revealed that seasonal items and lots more are inbound with the game’s newest rehash.

Update 5.6, officially dubbed “Nights of Lost Souls,” brings about new themed content including loot such as the Unholy Backscratcher weapon as well as the ability to summon a‚  pet demon.

Additionally, with the update, players can discover a new location in Tarantia, a land where, according to Funcom, “dark and gruesome events are taking place.”

“It being that time of year, we employed a few tricks to provide our players with some special treats,” says Craig Morrison, Game Director and Executive Producer on `Age of Conan’. “In this update we have added new seasonal in-game content where players will have to progress through three brand new quest lines and get to challenge the dark and mysterious ghosts of Hyboria’s fallen warriors in order to collect the seasonal rewards. We are also very excited about introducing the Veteran Points system, which allows us to reward those players who have been sticking with the game for longer periods of time.”

Furthermore, with the update comes the introduction of the Veteran Points system. This point-tracking system lets players who’ve subscribed for more than a month collect goodies including mounts, experience potions, teleportation abilities, special equipment and more, for their determined efforts.

Finally, Funcom detailed plans for discounts to those choosing to subscribe for longer periods of time. According to the publisher, adding three months game time to your account now yields a 20% discount, six months game time yields a 30% discount and if you add 12 months to your account you get a whopping 45% discount. And best of all, if you spring for the 12 months, you’ll earn twelve months worth of veteran points up front. Nice.

Looks like a great time to be an Age of Conan fan. I wish I had more any time to play MMOs.

OGPlanet has announced that its newest free-to-play MMO, Lost Saga, will be entering Closed Beta on October 8th. Lost Saga allows gamers to face off against each other as mystical heroes from all over fantasy and science fiction realms. Players can jump into battle with hundreds of customizable iconic heroes and limitless battle combination. Each heroes has a wide range of stats and styles which allows for a unique combat experience.Heroes can go head to head in Deathmatch or join up for a Team match. To learn more about the game and sign up for the Closed Beta, go to the website to sign up. If you don’t make it, don’t worry: Open Beta begins later in October.

The day has finally come MMO fans. Today, BioWare initiated a closed beta sign-up for the hordes of Star Wars fans to apply for in hopes of getting into the game pre-release.

What you have to do is head over to the sign-up page, drop your name and information, and pray to Palpatine that you’re chosen. BioWare are looking for “active community members” for the closed beta, so don’t think you can simply sign-up and walk away.

Sadly, even if you think you’ve got what it takes to test out the 100% voice-acted MMORPG, you cannot right now. The site, due to a massive influx of traffic, has gone down. But when it returns we’ll let you know. Or simply keep hitting refresh. I know I am.

The Old Republic Closed Beta

Since PAX 2009 is over, Funcom is allowing us to reveal new details about their new game The Secret World. They’ve released the first official screenshots of the real-world MMO on their website, including a list of features which give an overview of the game. Their Initiation Test has been a hit since over 50,000 gamers have gone to the site to find out whether they belong to the Illuminati, the Dragon or the Templars (the three main secret societies in the game). While the Illuminati is clearly the coolest group by far (guess what my initiation result was), membership to any of the groups provides exclusive rewards such as an initiate kit, development updates and a chance to gain access to the upcoming beta test of the game.For those of you who don’t know, the game focuses on players in a modern-day setting traveling real-world locations to stop the forces of darkness along with players from around the globe. Keep checking back here for more information as it gets released.

MMO games are a great way to challenge yourself and play with people you would probably never meet in real life. So it is for the more than 5 million players who have registered for Wizard101. The magic themed MMO game is celebrating its one year anniversary by adding decorations in September as well as a special surprise for all players. Wizard101 offers free game play and is a legitimately exciting game. Additional worlds and in-game items can be purchased through pre-paid cards or a monthly subscription fee. These extra items expand game play and provide more to do and see. The fact that the game has over five million players after a year is a testament to free game play online and I think it should be congratulated. To download the game just go to their website and select their free play version to get a feel for the game.

Fallen Earth LLC, the publisher behind the game of the same name (sans LLC) today announced that the FPS/MMO hybrid will not release today as previously scheduled.

The PC project, which we played and loved, will now hit shelves and digital spaces two weeks later on September 22.

“Our main focus is to make sure that Fallen Earth is easily accessible to as many fans as possible,” said Jessica Orr, product manager for Fallen Earth. “We are working on initiatives that are near fruition and we simply need more time.”

Hmm, another game releases on the 22nd, but what is it? Oh, right, Halo 3: ODST. Good luck Fallen Earth.

SEATTLE — Jumpgate Evolution is a space-combat oriented MMORPG hoping to not only survive, but thrive in the increasingly crowded massively multiplayer online market.

Developed by Netdevil and published by Codemasters, Jumpgate prides itself on accessbility to newcomers, and it’s deep gameplay elements for fans of the genre. But we’ve heard that before.

Netdevil debuted the following screens and concept art at PAX in Seattle today, and in case you missed the showing, we’ve got them in their glory imaged below.

Concept Art

More concept art

Concept Art

Cryptic and Atari today announced that registration for Star Trek Online’s closed beta has begun, and with only a “limited” amount of tokens available, you’ll want to act quickly.

Not only will those who do receive beta keys experience the game before any other Trekkie, they’ll also have the opportunity (and obligation if you ask me) to report noticed bugs to Cryptic, in an effort to make the game as great as any Spock-loving fan could hope for.

“Closed beta registration is an important step in bringing Star Trek Online to the public” said Craig Zinkievich, Executive Producer on Star Trek Online “We are looking toward the launch of our first-of-a-kind MMORPG with anticipation and excitement and we expect Star Trek Online to explode onto the scene, giving fans and gamers a Star Trek experience like no other.”

Like no other eh? I loved this summer’s blockbuster film, but that’s just me.

Anywho, the beta signup page is right over here, and the actual beta commences “sometime” later this year.

Funcom revealed new details on its upcoming modern-day real world MMO game The Secret World. Funcom unveiled three of the secret societies which will be central to the storyline and gameplay of The Secret World. The Illuminati, the Dragon and the Templars take center stage. Players will be forced to pick a side in the conflict.

Funcom has also teamed up with Gamespot to promote the game. By visiting the site, you can check out all-new artwork and a new cinematic trailer for the game.

The official website for the game will also be updated over the next few days with extra content which will reflect the content and information coming out of the Penny Arcade Expo. However, while we wait for the teaser to come out of PAX, Funcom has put up a personality test on their official site so that gamers can go and find out which secret society they belong to!

Comment below with your thoughts and results.

Wizard 101, the family-friendly MMO is recruiting members of the fan site Wizard101 Central to drive enthusiasts to the game’s Facebook page. All members will be rewarded based on the number of new Facebook fans who join between today and September 16.

Exclusive prizes based on the number of new‚ Wizard101 Facebook fans, are:

• 25,000 fans = 2,500 gold
• 50,000 fans = Krokotopia Hammock housing item
• 75,000 fans = Danger Hound that comes with one Infection spell card

If you want to become a fan, join the facebook page here. Comment in the section below

The launch of The Fallen Earth will be delayed until September 15, 2009. The Fallen Earth team is continuing work on their server and client optimizations along with a few graphic improvements. The beta testers have noticed several areas which could be tweaked and the changes will not delay testers in the Open Beta experience. Those who pre-ordered the game will be able to gain early access to the game on September 9^th. Are you curious about our thoughts on the game? Read our preview piece here.

Fallen Earth LLC, the parent company being the game of the same name, today announced that an open beta for the post-apocalyptic and open world MMO/FPS hybrid drops a mere 5 days from now on August 17.

All you must do to secure your pretty little self a spot in the beta is sign up at FilePlanet beginning August 14 at 1PM EST.

The game has been in closed beta for some time now, and our very own Joe G has delved into the chaos and lived to tell the tale of Fallen Earth. Check out his very hands-on preview right here.

“The Open Beta and Pre-Order programs give a much larger group of players the opportunity to experience Fallen Earth,” says Jessica Orr, product manager for Fallen Earth. “We are excited that players want to get a jump on the game, and we are including a little something extra for being among the first to order.”

That “something extra”? That’d be the “Wasteland Runner” mount, a guaranteed spot in the open beta, and access to the full game 5 days before everyone else beginning September 5, but is exclusive to Direcr2Drive pre-orderers.

This weekend only, Fallen Earth,the ambitious FPS/MMO hybrid is hosting a virtual “Dev Hunt” and is awarding headhunters some pretty top notch prizes.

Beginning this Saturday August 8 and running for an extremely limited 3 hours from noon to 3PM EDT gamers can wage war against members of the development team and take home a high end video card, Logitech gaming keyboard, Razer gaming mice, and tons and tons of Fallen Earth swag.

Current testers, including our very own Joe G,who threw you this hands-on preview already, are already signed up for the promo, and everyone else can sign up at this page to enlist in the virtual firefight. Enjoy!

Look for Fallen Earth this September on PC everywhere

Fallen Earth Dev Hunt FAQ

Craig Morrison, game director with FunCom’s MMO Age of Conan: Hyborian Adventures, today nailed down some solid details in regards to update number 6 for the ambitious massively multiplayer game with special emphasis placed on all-things guilds as well as the inclusion of a brand new dungeon.

Straight from FunCom’s mouth: “Guilds will be able to acquire renown points through the actions of their members “" for instance through crafting or questing “" and also through waging war on rivaling guilds.” Sounds to me like more war is a good thing, at least if you belong to a guild!

Furthermore, when the update is applied, guilds will be ranked on ladders based on their level of renown, and said ladders will be visible in-game for all to gawk, scoff, or any other emotion to.

Finally, The House of Crom, a brand new dungeon will find its way into the game when the update goes live, as well as more PvP objectives and raid opportunities.

No date for update #6 has been set by FunCom, but as always, when we know, you’ll be the first to hear!

The dynamic and genre-busting Fallen Earth MMO/FPS hybrid set in a gritty post-apocalyptic setting from publisher FALLEN EARTH LLC (see what they did there?) now has a release date.

What is now becoming a heavy-set September, now has another title among its ranks. On September 9, 2009, Fallen Earth will hit physical shelves and digital warehouses exclusively for PC, and if you’ve had your buttons pushed by our hands-on preview, you just might want to try this one on for size.

If you must have your up-to-the-minute news, beginning today, www.FallenEarth.com features some nifty countdown happenings with gorgeous assets and the like to stare at. ooooh prettttty.

Fallen Earth LLC, the guys behind the MMO of the same name (sans LLC) today announced a partnership with IGN’s Fileplanet download service in preparation of the games’ impending launch.

Beginning June 23 (tomorrow), but available for pre-load now for Fileplanet members, the Fallen Earth official stress test by way of hopeful increased usership will commence and will allow the development team to confirm launch capabilities of the network infrastructure. So what it sounds like to me, is that if all of you screaming MMO fans race to the expanses of the FPS/MMO hybrid and it crashes and burns, we might just be due for a delay of sorts.

Our own Joe Godlewsky was granted early access to the title, and his hands-on preview can (although you really should) be read here.

A note: you have to be a paying member of Fileplanet to enjoy the beta, so either open that wallet, or miss out.

Fallen Earth stress test/beta signup page

Icarus Studio’s new title, Fallen Earth, is set to bring an exciting new twist on the massively-multiplayer online role-playing game genre, taking place at a post-apocalyptic Grand Canyon and drawing from both the RPG and first-person shooter genres. The Fallen Earth universe takes place in the year 2156, after the deadly Shiva Virus has wiped out almost all of the human population and nuclear war has left the Earth as nothing but a desolate wasteland. Of the humans who survived, there are now six factions that dominate the region “" some allied with each other, but many at war. You have the option of aligning yourself with the faction of your choice, at the cost of being attacked on sight by rival factions.

Many unique features are available in this new title, ranging from special abilities to offensive and defensive mutations to exotic weaponry, and I was lucky enough to experience these by gaining access to the game’s closed beta event.

Once the game loaded I was presented with the character creation screen (the beta client lacked an opening cinematic), which is by far one of the most detailed character creation systems I have seen. First you select a sex and name for your character (you also have the option of creating a last name if you so choose), and then are able to manipulate your character’s features in a multitude of ways.

There are twenty-five face shapes alone to choose from, and then you have the option of make you character look progressively older, from a youthful teen to a wrinkly, grandfatherly figure. A large variety of skin tones and hair styles, from liberty spikes to a comb-over, are available as well. The feature I liked most here was the ability to add multiple piercings to the ears, eyebrows, and even the tongue, as well as a variety of tattoos and body paintings to the face. The rest of the body didn’t have as much in-depth customization, which really isn’t a shame since it will be covered in an assortment of armor anyways. However, you do have the option of additional tattoos on the arms and legs, as well as choosing the character’s t-shirt and sneaker styles.

The user interface is pretty advanced and very user friendly. Almost every window you open has the ability to be resized, dragged to another location, and have its opacity changed. At start, the chat box is fairly large, but it is fairly customizable so this provided me an excuse to play with it. The top left of the screen provides information regarding your character: your name, health, stamina, and gamma (used for mutation skills), and experience bar. The top right shows your mini-map, which shows quest icons, non-player characters, gathering locations and an interesting little perk “" a meter that measures the volume of sound you are producing, to help you be stealthy. The action bar is pretty customizable as well. You can elongate it as well as create multiple bars and key-map each of them; however, as of this time you are unable to separate the bars from each other.

You play your character in Fallen Earth mainly in third-person view, including combat, though you do have the option to switch to first-person. This is typical of most RPGs, however, combat draws from the FPS genre and uses a circular reticle “" the first feature I didn’t like. When wielding melee weapons this seems to fit “" no problems so far. Though as soon as you use ranged weapons (for example, your starting crossbow or zipguns) combat gets a little aggravating. I am not at all used to playing an FPS game from the third-person view, so part of this has to do with my gaming history, but it was simply difficult and “clunky.” It’s possible to switch back and forth between views between fights, but this is more of an annoyance than anything. Certain weapons do offer the chance to look down the sights, such as scoped rifles, and this efficiently eliminates the problem.

Though at first this is a minor annoyance, you do get used to it and are able to appreciate the unique qualities of the combat and weapon systems. The types of weapons available to your character are vast, ranging from wooden planks to swords to sub-machine guns and sniper rifles. Many weapons also offer the chance to further customize them, and all of them eventually take durability damage and must be fixed. All of these weapons are able to be crafted and maintained by the player through trade skills, which I will explain in more depth later on, or bought from others.

One of my favorite aspects of the game is the ability to equip not one, but six weapons at once! You have six weapon slots to fill up, which you can cycle through at any point, from the two-handed weapon slot over your back to fitting pistols on either side of your hip. There is nothing like shooting a giant spider with a crossbow and then running up and whacking the bug with a two-by-four. You are able to cycle through weapons by holding the Control key and either pressing the corresponding slot number (1 through 6) or by scrolling your mouse wheel. During the beta test, however, there seemed to be a glitch that would pop up from time to time when using the mouse wheel to select the weapons.

Similar to the advanced weapon selection is the gear selection, which boasts the ability to fill 19 armor slots. There is an incredible variety of armor in Fallen Earth, starting with cargo pants and bandanas, but eventually you’ll find old Kevlar and be able to craft top-end protective equipment. Each piece of gear protects against vulnerabilities to certain types of incoming damage, but no one set protects against everything, so multiple pieces of gear will be needed for different situations. During my testing I was able to craft myself a nice set of starting gear, donning some cargo shorts, a bandana, and some black fingerless gloves “" the regular, post-apocalyptic bandit!

BioWare announced the Trooper as a playable class in the upcoming Star Wars: The Old Republic MMO due out whenever the famed studio damn well pleases.

The official character description from BioWare states:

“The Trooper is an elite combat specialist in the Republic military armed with heavy blaster rifles and nearly impenetrable armor designed by the military’s top engineers.”

These soldiers carry a new generation of heavy blaster weaponry and smoke enemies in close-combat fire-fights.‚  Troopers are most effective in grouped engagements but that is not to say Mr. or Mrs. Trooper can’t handle him or herself without backup.

Keep scrolling down for bea-utiful shots of the Trooper.‚  As always, click to enlarge to full sensory overload.

Bring it!

The varied arsenal of the Trooper

Character Reveal

Be afraid...

Following in the footsteps of Warhammer Online, Funcom, publisher of the ambitious MMO project Age of Conan: Hyborian Adventures today released a free trial for the title giving gamers everywhere a chance to see what they’ve been missing out on.

The action oriented MMO saw strong sales figures at launch, however as the novelty wore off, presumably, many a gamer jumped ship, thus creating quite a lull and cause for server shutdown/merging.

However, Vice President of Sales and Marketing at Funcom, Morten Larssen has other thoughts regarding the hurting MMO.

“The time has finally come for us to open the flood gates, there is a world of gamers out there who have never played ‘Age of Conan’ and we want them to experience what hundreds of thousands of gamers have before them. The game has matured tremendously since launch, and we feel confident that this is the time to launch a trial. ‘Age of Conan’ is simply bigger and better than it ever was, and we want both new and previous players alike to experience that!”

The free 7 day trial is available over at the Age of Conan official site, but a more advisable option would be to start your download at FilePlanet, as you’ll earn 14 days and a free in-game goodie.

Any game that allows me to do this to unsuspecting players succeeds in my book.

via Kotaku

Star Wars the Old Republic, the ambitious MMO set in a pre-Vader universe has had fans giddy with excitement since the day it was officially announced.‚  Details on the project have been released on a weekly basis brimming full of hype and expectation.‚  Some over-excited fans are crying out for a release date or a time frame, but every sign points to a date far, far away.‚  The amount of content BioWare is creating is gargantuan and greater than the amount found in both Knights of the Old Republic titles combined.

Ever wonder how that content is created?‚  How the vast and dynamic world is assembled, from an artistic standpoint?‚  Well, a recent entry on The Old Republic blog, written by Alex Thomas, Senior Environment Artist on the title explains the methodology behind environment creation.‚  The entry is appealing even to me, someone with the artistic proficiency of an 8 year old.

The entry highlights the creation of the polluted world of Hutta.‚  Interestingly, concept art was based on the many swamps found in Florida.‚  Log that fact away for some killer trivia points when the game finally releases.

The entry does not skimp on detail as Alex eloquently describes the creation of Hutta:

“When we began work on Hutta, we knew it was supposed to be a polluted, filthy sewer of a planet, just like the Hutts would like it. Without any movie reference, we gathered a wide variety of real life photos of swamps and wetlands, taking note of common themes and basic shapes that come up again and again, like hanging moss, thin trees and ankle-deep water.”

The article continues to explain the environmental design of Hutta as Alex notes the “unique challenges” a swampy planet contains.‚  He notes how swamps are naturally flat but in terms of gameplay, such a swamp would be quite dull, and having steep hills of swamp would make no sense either.‚  The team of artists found themselves at an impasse until a solution was found in the creation of large metal shoring props. ‚ These props were essential to shaping the mud at different heights thus creating “corroded metal walls with swamp muck oozing out from the cracks.”‚  Sounds like Hutta to me.

The Old Republic will be laden with content upon release.‚  However creating a planet is no easy task and the many planets that make up the universe can take four to eight months, depending on the sheer size of playable terrain, for the team of three to four environmental artists to complete.

As much as I would love to play The Old Republic tomorrow, I would much rather see a content rich, environmentally beautiful universe to explore and interact with.‚  BioWare, take your time, if you build it, they will come.‚  Indeed we will.

Read the full, very detailed blog post here.

Dark Horse Comics in association with BioWare and LucasArts released the first issue of the bi-monthly web comic Star Wars the Old Republic: Threat of Peace today.‚  The comic will narrate the epic series of events leading up to a dramatic conclusion where the player enters the world of The Old Republic.

Star Wars the Old Republic, the very ambitious MMO project currently in development from BioWare promises to redefine the genre and draw fans of the KOTOR series from their consoles to the vastness of online PC gaming.‚  Many fans were crying out for KOTOR 3, but BioWare has wanted an MMO in the Star Wars universe for quite some time now and promises a wealth of content, exceeding the sum of both KOTOR 1 and 2.

BioWare is releasing details on the project each week on their site and what we have seen so far looks amazing and for any Star Wars junkie, absolutely worth the wait.‚  The Old Republic, set thousands of years before the rise of Darth Vader, in the middle of a constant Sith vs. Republic struggle, puts you in the role of a Jedi or Sith and every irrevocable decision you make will ultimately shape your journey.

The comic, written by BioWare’s own Rob Chestney will feature “action packed, character driven episodes,” the first of which, entitled Treaty of Coruscant follows this storyline.

The Sith Empire has scored a series of solid military victories over the Republic, winning control of several critical star systems and seriously damaging the Republic’s logistical supply lines. Overwhelmed but stoic, the Jedi and the Republic Military have succeeded in defending the core worlds and have slowed the Empire’s steady advances. In a surprising turn of events, the Empire has now extended an offer of peace to the Galactic Senate. Wary but desperate, the Republic has agreed to engage in ceasefire talks. A large delegation of prominent Senate and the best and brightest of the Jedi are traveling to the planet Alderaan, where they expect to hunker down for lengthy negotiations on the terms of a treaty with a representative from the Sith Dark Council.

I have long been awaiting an MMO with high caliber storytelling on par with BioWare’s previous console efforts, and from developer commentary and the studios undying enthusiasm for an immersive experience I can’t help but think The Old Republic will be everything everyone is hoping for.

As excited as I am for The Old Republic, I want it done right and given BioWare’s past successes I know they have a winning formula in place, one that undoubtedly takes time and effort.‚  At the same time however, a release date, month, season, anything I can circle on my calendar would be greatly appreciated.

For now, read Treaty of Coruscant here and watch video documentary from BioWare staff here and here.

Infogrames Entertainment, the parent company of Atari, announced Tuesday that will totally acquire Cryptic Studios, a leading publisher of massively multiplayer online (MMO) games.

“This acquisition is a critical step in the implementation of Atari’s strategy to become a leading online game developer and publisher,” said Atari spokeswoman Amy Wisel.

Cryptic is currently developing three unique MMO franchises, planned for release over the next three years on PC and next-generation consoles, including Champions Online to be released in 2009 and Star Trek Online to be released in 2010. A third game currently in development will be announced in the near future.

Cryptic employs about 150 people. Its revenues for the fiscal year ending June 30 totaled $17 million.

The push for Massively Multiplayer Online video games in the past few years has been a strong one. It’s no surprise then, that a few publishers have tried to get the first-person shooter classic Quake to take the plunge. In a recent interview with shacknews.com John Carmack, President of id Software and lead designer behind the Quake FPS series, said that he had passed up many offers to turn Quake into a MMO.

Carmack claimed that he passed up good money and stated that a Quake MMO won’t be coming out anytime soon. Aware of the struggles of MMO development and of the potential to rack in major dough, it’s understandable that the creative mind behind a FPS Classic doesn’t wish to put his reputation on the line just to make bank.

Id Software is currently developing a web-based Quake III port entitled Quake Live. ”We did not have the experience in website development, database management, and all of that web world type stuff,” said Carmack on developing Quake Live. “And honestly, we underestimated the challenge involved in that.” It’s probably a good thing they’re steering clear of the MMO genre for now, considering their current struggle with Quake Live. But, for those of you who wish to hop online and level up your Unnamed Soldier you’ve been daydreaming about since the mid-nineties, your dream may still come to fruition.

OGPlanet announced the start of the US open beta testing period for it’s anticipated online action game, Cabal.

Worldwide, the game already has nearly 1 million players in more than 12 countries throughout Asia and Europe. The beta period will extend from Friday to the official US launch February 21.

Cabal will be free to play, with the option to purchase in-game items and features.

In Cabal Online, players are called upon to protect the people of Nevareth from an evil entity known as CABAL. Centuries ago, the evil Cabal all but destroyed Nevareth, but the land was saved and rebuilt by seven great masters wielding the ancient abilities of Force Power. Nearly a thousand years later, Cabal has returned, and it is up to players to master the intricacies of the Force Power and use them to save Nevareth.

Set in a diverse environment that includes ice temples, forgotten ruins, desert hideaways, mutant forests and volcanic citadels, CABAL engages players with dynamic quests-not just the “collect 10 of something and bring it to me” variety-and more than 300 dungeons to explore. With 170 levels, CABAL is conducive to either hardcore or casual game play.

Game features:

• An interactive combat system that utilizes combination attacks (precision and timing sensitive) to deliver blow after blow with NPC and PvP encounters.
• Six distinctive classes of characters-Warrior, Force Archer, Blader, Force Shielder, Wizard and Force Blader-each offering an entirely unique game play experience within Cabal.
• An in-game downloadable jukebox that allows players to download their own songs to play while they take on Cabal.
• A fluid fighting interface that brings intuitive and elegant motions to players’ fingertips. Different classes bring unique movements and actions to their character both in and out of the battle zone.
• All in-game items can be crafted into new items or enhancement.
• A dynamic character-creation tool with more than 200 options.
• More than 300 dungeons featuring highly original and challenging quest designs to explore.
• Magical and mystical unlockables enhance healing, attacking, crafting and shielding powers.
• Astral cycles and boards allow players to travel great distances in short amounts of time.
• Hundreds of weapon styles, ranging from blade, bow and arrow, guns, and magic, are available.
• Supports multi-player Server-Client.
• A state-of-the-art game engine delivers stunning, high-polygon-count 3D graphics at a sustainable high frame rate, even on low-end machines.
• Unparalleled special effects: dynamic lighting shading, Z-buffering, particle-based effects.
• An engine designed and built by a staff experienced with massive network traffic management to minimize any latency.
• Supports most popular 3D hardware accelerators.

For more information, or to register, visit http://cabal.ogplanet.com/.

Electronic Arts announced Thursday that Warhammer Online: Age of Reckoning (WAR) has passed 500,000 beta participants in North American and Europe.

“It’s fantastic that over half a million players want to help us with the development of WAR,” said Mark Jacobs, vice president and general manager of EA Mythic. “Their feedback will help us take WAR to the next level as we focus on refining gameplay, adding polish, and most importantly, making sure the game is extremely fun. We can’t wait to let them all into the living, breathing Warhammer universe that we’re creating.”

The anticipated massively-multiplayer online role-playing game (MMORPG) from EA Mythic, is due out n mid-2008.

Beta testing resumes next week with a special sneak peek at the new Dark Elf lands and careers portions of the game, EA said in a statement. Developers hope to produce a successful online RPG with few bugs and finely tuned with a beta player pool half a million strong.

About the WAR:

War is everywhere in Warhammer Online: Age of Reckoning (WAR), the new fantasy MMORPG from the creators of Dark Age of Camelot. Based on Games Workshop’s wildly successful Warhammer tabletop fantasy war game, this world provides a rich setting for hundreds of thousands of players to experience the epic nature of war and the glory of battle.Players are thrust into a grim world of perpetual conflict to fight for the Realms of Order (Dwarfs, High Elves, and Empire) or Destruction (Greenskins, Dark Elves, and Chaos). Next generation Realm vs. Realm game play ensures that players are never fighting alone. With an army of allies at their back, players will defend their homeland, invade enemy Realms, and ultimately lead the siege of their enemy’s Capital City. Every aspect of the game — every player, every quest, every encounter, and every battle — can turn the tide of the ongoing war and mean victory for a player’s Realm!

For the first time ever, players can engage in Public Quests – multi-stage, communal quests to be completed by allied players fighting together against overwhelming odds. They can also embark on an epic quest to complete the Tome of Knowledge and unlock Warhammer lore, detailed monster information, new abilities, rewards, and major story plotlines. Drawing from a quarter century of highly detailed source material, Warhammer Online: Age of Reckoning will bring Games Workshop’s fantasy world to life in a way that will allow players to create characters destined for great deeds on the field of battle.

To learn more about the game, please visit www.warhammeronline.com.

Electronic Arts is hoping to turn Warhammer Online into the biggest new MMORPG of 2008. Click here to sign up for the beta.

WAR is based on Games Workshop’s tabletop fantasy war game.