After giving us a few details on Warhammer Online’s pricing structure and release date, Mythic Entertainment and EA are now ready to announce that the open beta for their upcoming MMO will begin September 7th, 2008 – a little over a week before the title goes live. Those who wish to participate can do so by pre-ordering the game from select retailers listed on Mythic’s website here. Those who participated in the closed beta will automatically receive an invite as well.

"In just a few weeks, we are going to throw open our doors and invite more players into the game than ever before,” says Mythic Entertainment co-founder and general manager Mark Jacobs. “They will have a chance to delve into the open beta and see for themselves that WAR has arrived and it is glorious!"

Depending on where you pre-order you copy from you’ll also be entitled to different pieces of in-game equipment (and a $5-dollar off coupon if you go with Target). And while all 20 classes will be made available, the beta is not without its restrictions, which include a lvl.20 level cap as well as restrictions on what in-game content you’ll have access to. And remember, Orcs iz da biggest and da strongest!

[via Opposable Thumbs]

Today, EA’s Mythic Entertainment announced that Warhammer Online: Age of Reckoning is going live on September 18th. After three long years in development, and the recent loss of some substantial content, it seems that this gritty, PVP-centric MMO is ready to see the light of day. Along with the date, pricing tiers were also announced at $14.99 a month, $41.97 for three-months, and $77.94 for six-months.

“The countdown has officially begun,” says Mythic Entertainment founder Mark Jackobs. “Mark your calendars! September 18th is the Day of Reckoning. For the last three years, the entire team at Mythic has poured their hearts into making Warhammer Online the next great MMORPG. We are so excited to open up this world and share it with the fans that will live in it, quest in it, go to war in it and make it come alive.”

Now, if you just can’t wait to bash some skulls and you live in North America then EA might have a deal for you. For those who pre-order there will be "special benefits" including an invite to the open beta, some extra gear, and a head start on everyone else. You can check out the details on the official Warhammer Online site here.

[via Kotaku]

Genre(s): Adventure, FPS, Online, Puzzle
Developer: FASA Interactive
Publisher: Microsoft Game Studios
Console(s): PC, Xbox 360
Rated: M for Mature

I've, of course, heard a lot about Shadowrun since its recent release on the Xbox 360 and Games for Windows. It is the first game to play on Microsoft's Live service cross-platform, allowing Xbox 360 and PC players to finally face off and decide: Dual-analog or Keyboard-mouse? More important to the average player, the game uses a number of interesting new ideas, namely mixing FPS features and magic. Before we begin, let me remind those of you who don't know that Shadowrun is multiplayer-only. There is no single-player campaign, so other than some cpu matches, you are playing online pretty much all the time.

Shadowrun is noticeable for its very interesting twist on the FPS genre. Like other games before it, the game utilizes team-based arena shooter mechanics, complete with a safe time in the beginning for players to buy weapons. However, during this safe period, players can also buy magic spells and technology upgrades. These can give a variety of helpful abilities, such as auto-aim, healing, or magic attacks. Then, you simple equip your weapons and magic, and begin the fight.

The controls are the general FPS button set, and they work just fine, once you get the hang of the use of magic. Even so, there are times where your character will get inexplicably stuck on edges of buildings and other structures, an error that can be crippling in the middle of a fierce online game. When you die, you do not respawn until the end of the round. However, allies can revive your dead body, as long as an enemy has not come by to shoot you until you cannot come back. This interesting revival dynamic is able to create a sense of teamwork among your comrades, even during a hectic battle.

The game looks nice, from what I've seen, with the magic effects showing off the most noticeable graphical feats. Trees of Light will grow right in front of your eyes, and spray beads of healing light, characters will burst into smoke and disappear, and crystals will spring up underneath you to damage you and hinder movement.

Shadowrun is an interesting take on the online first-person shooter, with its magic aspects. It also manages to create a sense of teamwork that many online shooters fail to achieve. Even with its strengths, the lack of a single-player mode is disappointing for a game with so much potential.

Pre-Rating:

At Disney's E3 press conference, (yes they do have one) they announced a new social networking system for their DS titles called "Dgamer." The system will allow players to chat with friends, track high scores, and create and customize online avatars. Certain features will only be unlocked by playing certain games or beating certain challenges in said games.

The feature will be usable on DS, but players can also access their Dgamer account through the Dgamer section of Disney.com. The first game to utilize Dgamer will be Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian. Obviously, Dgamer will only be used in Disney-branded games.

Indeed, this does sound a whole lot like Xbox Live. In addition to that, it begs the question: If Disney can do it, why not Nintendo? With all of their other social networking features on the Wii, you would think gamers would get something like this.
[via Joystiq]

The RP Phantom and I just got back late last night from a long day at New Jersey's most popular anime convention: AnimeNEXT. The con was really a lot of fun, and we'll be there for the next two days of the con. (No, we are NOT cosplaying)

Since I'm sure no one is interested in my excursion into the dealer's room, I'll let you know about my panel and event adventures. Definitely the most exciting thing that I did was getting the signatures of and speaking to Gus Sorola (plays Simmons) and Kathleen Zuelch (plays Tex) from the popular web video series Red vs Blue. I also stopped in for a bit to "Introduction to Red vs Blue," in which fans asked questions of the two RvB guests. There was also an interesting and abstract "contour drawing" workshop. By far, the best panel was "Everything About DBZ," in which two Dragonball experts answered questions, which got increasingly insane and nerdy as the panel went on. They also explained the current confirmed details of the very cool Dragonball Online.

As usual for AnimeNEXT, the industry panels come on the next two days, but I doubt they will be giving out any megaton announcements.

There were some very funny occurences at the con, such as some guy turning up cosplaying as Jesus, and his subsequent battle with Lil Slugger. On the really weird side, there was some nerd dressed as the Great Saiyaman, who would refer to Gohan as "I" or "me" during DBZ conversations. Needless to say, he was responsible for most of the crazy arguments that went on at the DBZ panel.

Get ready for today's con report, since there's some major panels going on today. I'll take detailed notes just for you. If you are looking for me today, I'll be wearing a dark blue Rurouni Kenshin shirt, and I pretty much look like this. (I just happen to be wearing the same shirt in the picture as I will be wearing today) Save This Page   Slashdot It!   |Share on Facebook|