NCsoft and Cryptic Studios have released the newest expansion to City of Heroes and City of Villains delivering greater depth to players with the inclusion of an innovative crafting system and auction houses. The expansion, "Issue 9: Breakthrough", free to current subscribers, also includes new high-level adventures with the new Statesman Taskforce and an update of the Hamidon Encounter. The City of Heroes franchise recently celebrated its third birthday, during which time the game has seen eight free major content expansions and the addition of the companion game, City of Villains to create one of the most popular and robust, … Continue reading City Of Heroes, Villains Adds Crafting System →

Game publisher Meridian4 and Freegamer are pleased to announce the signing of a North American publishing agreement for their very unique adventure title; Vigil – Episode 1: Blood Bitterness. "We are very excited to have found a cooperation with Meridian4, who follows our development while preserving our artistic independence" said Manuel Ruiz Dupont of Freegamer. "The word ‘unique' is thrown around a lot when describing games, but Vigil is a truly unique title. When we first played it, we were transfixed and then when we learned about the developer and their original point of view to game development, we were … Continue reading Meridian4 To Publish Freegamer's Vigil →

LucasArts and development partner Day 1 Studios today announced Fractureâ„¢, in which players reshape the battlefields in a futuristic conflict with global implications. This epic war fought on American soil pits cybernetically enhanced soldiers against warriors augmented by the benefits of advanced genetic engineering. The company that brought you Star Wars and Indiana Smith, as well as successful new intellectual properties such as Mercenaries (the No. 1 new IP in 2005) and Thrillville (the No. 1 original children's IP of 2006), presents a new franchise full of groundbreaking next-generation gameplay, an intriguing storyline and compelling characters. "Exciting new intellectual properties … Continue reading LucasArts Announces Fracture →

Tournament.com, an innovator in skill-based gaming, announced at last night's pre-launch event that its service will be entering final beta on Wednesday, May 2, 2007. People showed up to play the new service and compete in matches of Half-Life 2: Deathmatch, and the evening's overall winner, Ariel Fradin, walked off with a cool $1,000 in cash. "Last night's pre-launch celebration gave all the attendees the opportunity to play on Tournament.com and experience the thrill of competition," said Cofounder Richard Skelhorn. "Judging by their enthusiastic response, we know that gamers around the world will be just as excited to compete as … Continue reading Tournament.com Ready For Launch →

Acclaim Games announces a major milestone for the multiplayer online robot fighting game BOTS!! with over 1 million registered players. Officially released in November 2006, BOTS!! has a growing fan base of young gamers who are addicted to the intense fighting action and social interaction with others. Over 1 million players have already had the chance to play the game for free by simply registering and downloading the game to their PC. With a loyal community of BOTS!! players that continues to grow as new players experience the exciting gameplay with thousands simultaneously, Acclaim has proven their free to play … Continue reading Acclaim Bots Reaches 1 Million Players →

AOL's teen site, RED (http://www.beRED.com) announced today the debut of "FireChild: Tournament of the Ancients," a 3-D, sci-fi action, multiplayer, console-quality game available for download and online play for free exclusively at www.firechildonred.com. "Tournament of the Ancients" will take place where AOL RED's original FireChild series left off and will introduce gamers to a new battle arena and new characters. The new features will include two clans of young warriors – one led by Lona and the other by her older brother Waken – who must train together in the ruins of a dangerous and ancient arena to prepare for … Continue reading AOL Launches FireChild Teen MMO →

Atari, Inc. (Nasdaq: ATAR), one of the world's most recognized brands and a third-party video game publisher, today announced that the realistic combat simulation, ArmA: Combat Operationsâ„¢ has now shipped to stores nationwide. Developed by Bohemia Interactive, ArmA: Combat Operations is available for the Windows platform for the suggested retail price of $39.95. The game is currently available in Europe under the name ArmA: Armed Assault. In ArmA: Combat Operations, players will be able to engage in the story-driven single-player campaign or take part in huge multiplayer battles with more than 50 players on one battlefield at once. Featuring a … Continue reading Atari Ships ArmA: Combat Operations →

Sandlot Games, a leading developer and publisher of casual and family-friendly games, announced the release of its Macintosh version of Tradewinds Legends, one of the top selling online games of 2006. Now both PC and Mac players can join the more than 7 million people who have downloaded and enjoyed Tradewinds Legends. As part of an overall initiative, Sandlot Games intends to make most of its top selling games available to Mac users by the end of the year. "We are thrilled to offer Mac players the chance to get in on the high seas fun and build their empire … Continue reading Tradewinds Legends Hits Mac →

Colony Studios has joined the list of new MMO developer studios with one significant advantage – the team members have contributed significantly to the successes of the most popular MMOs including World of Warcraft, EVE Online, City of Heroes, Dark Age of Camelot, Lord of the Rings Online, Everquest, and Ultima Online. Veteran MMO developer Michael Wallis, CEO of Colony Studios, believes his team has more per capita experience working on hit MMO titles than any team of its size ever assembled. "Our collective contributions to a significant number of hit MMOs give us a strong advantage," says Wallis. "Most … Continue reading MMO Vets Open Colony Studios →

On April 28, 2005, the Guild Wars franchise was born with the release of the original campaign, Guild Wars Prophecies. In the two years since that date, the game's developer, ArenaNet, and publisher, NCsoft, have launched two additional stand-alone games, Guild Wars Factions and Guild Wars Nightfall. In total, the Guild Wars series has sold more than 3.5 million copies, making it one of the most successful online roleplaying games ever. Much of the success of Guild Wars can be attributed to the challenge that ArenaNet made to the traditional MMO business model when it offered its games without a … Continue reading Guild Wars Turning Two →