If you’ve been listening to the latest podcast to join our network (Ding!) then you’ll be well aware that whilst Rift isn’t perhaps as massively popular as World of Warcraft – but hey, what is? – it is a very well put together MMORPG with a loyal fanbase.

As well as releasing update 1.7: Carnival of the Ascended (more on that in a moment), Trion Worlds have released Rift Lite, a version of the game that allows anyone with a Trion Worlds account to play up to level 20 for free, with no playtime restrictions.

Scott Hartsman, Executive Producer of Rift had this to say: “In the past ten months, Rift has evolved at a breakneck pace, through seven massive updates that set new expectations for live MMOs, in features, in content, and in service, we think a Lite edition with no time limit is the best way for players to see what an amazing experience Rift continues to be.”

So, if you’ve been tempted to try Rift but never actually gotten around to it, now most certainly seems the time. Following this link to try it right now!

The 1.7: Carnival of the Ascended update also brings plenty of new features to the world of Rift:

• PvP Improvements - Smoother advancement and better rewards
• Ascended Weddings - Share eternity with your soulmate, Telara-style
• River of Souls Chronicle - Undead adventure for two
• New Master Mode Dungeon – Caduceus Rise
• Expert Dungeon Overhaul - More options, better loot!
• Better Endgame Equipment - Improved loot for your endgame Ascended

After one of the most successful beta-testing weekends of an MMO to date, gathering over 725,000 unique gamers and 9m hours of play time, Star Wars: The Old Republic is as ready for launch, as an MMO can ever be.

With less than two weeks to go before the servers boot up, here’s a quick recap of those all important SWTOR release dates and prices:

• December 13th Early Access (from 6am CST / 12:00 noon GMT)
• December 15h European Launch
• December 20th US Launch

To gain Early Access you must pre-order the game and redeem your Early Access code. any time before the official launch. It’s not too late to pre-order. If your favourite retailer is sold out, you can pre-order the game via Origin.com – EA’s official digital distribution channel. It should be noted that players are being granted Early Access in order based on the time they redeemed their pre-order codes. So if you haven’t already, you may want to get yours in asap.

BioWare Co-Founder and General Manager BioWare’s MMO Business Unit, Dr. Greg Zeschuk had this to say on SWTOR going ‘gold’:

“Star Wars: The Old Republic is a go for launch on December 20. We are extremely humbled by the surge of players who have joined us on this journey and participated in the Beta Weekend. Their participation has given us the opportunity to stress test the game and allowed us to tune the experience, ensuring that we deliver the smoothest possible MMO launch later this month.”

Every purchase of Star Wars: The Old Republic includes an initial 30 days of game time. After that, the current subscription models are:

• $14.99 / £8.99 per month,
• $41.97 / £25.17 for 3 months ($13.99 /£8.39 per month),
• $77.94 / £46.14 for six months ($12.99 / £7.69 per month).

See you in game!

The collector’s edition of StarWars: The Old Republic has been available for pre-order for quite some time now but now fans of Bioware’s upcoming MMORPG can see the content unboxed and in action.

Unlike traditional unboxing videos the SWTOR collector’s edition needs no person on-screen, the force is used to move the contents around whilst video is employed to show off the in-game, digital items that come bundled with the £130 package.

Star Wars: The old Republic is set for worldwide release on December 20th 2011.

It happens a lot these days, doesn’t it? An MMO that you think would catch on and be succesful, ends up being free-to-play, as it’s simply the only way that it can compete with the behemoth that is World of Warcraft. Well, Star Trek Online is also joining that free-to-play market.

Our Executive Editor, Calvin Robinson, is a big fan of this title; indeed, he even started a forum thread dedicated to it, as well as writing an article about the annual update of the game.

But what do you think? Will the free-to-play change make you consider having a go at the game? Let us know in that forum thread, or in the comments below.

“In addition to seeking out new life and exploring strange new civilizations, part of our continuing mission for Star Trek Online is to expand and improve,” said Jack Emmert, CEO, Cryptic Studios. “Transitioning to a free-to-play model is a natural way to share all we’ve built with a broader community of players and we couldn’t be more excited.”

Later this year, when Star Trek Online free-to-play launches, anyone can download and play the game for free without purchasing a retail copy or subscription. All players will be able to take advantage of Star Trek Online’s many features for free, from customizing avatars, crews and the very ships they command, to exploring a galaxy filled with intrigue and danger.

Players will also be able to access additional features a la carte through a virtual goods store. Current players can become Gold Members by continuing to subscribe to the game for $14.99 a month. New players can also upgrade to Gold status for a set price of $14.99 per month. The differences between paying Gold Members and free Silver Players can be found at: http://www.startrekonline.com/f2p

Star Trek Online free-to-play allows players to get into the game and engage the Star Trek universe in a number of ways:

The Universe is Your Only Limit – Play as much as you like for as long as you like at no cost. No subscription is required, nor is payment of any kind required.

Episodic Gameplay – Experience new weekly episodes that feature story-based gameplay and put your captain’s ability to command to the ultimate test.

Your Captain, Your Crew, Your Destiny – Become a captain, seek out new life and new civilizations and encounter hostile beings as you advance to maximum level for free.

Familiar Places, New Experiences – Travel to Starfleet Academy, Deep Space Nine, The First City of Qo’noS and many other iconic locations and notable worlds from the beloved Star Trek universe.

Engage and Explore Your Way – A web and in-game virtual goods store provides players the option of purchasing gameplay upgrades or additional premium content as they like, when they like.

Taking place in the year 2409, Star Trek Online boasts extraordinary features and lets fans both new and old experience unparalleled adventures within the Star Trek universe. Players have the opportunity to become high-ranking Starfleet officers and participate in missions structured like episodes that take them into the depths of space, across exotic planets and inside other starships. All players are invited to explore strange new worlds and encounter new life in a vast, ever expanding universe!

Star Trek Online is available now for PC. We reviewed the title and scored it a favourable 8/10 here.

Game: Age of Empires Online

Developer: Gas Powered Games

Publisher: Microsoft Studios

Available on: Windows PC

It was almost a year ago to the day at Gamescom 2010, that Microsoft Studios announced that their classic Real Time Strategy franchise Age of Empires would be stepping into the online age with Age of Empires Online. The announcement, complete with trailer revealed that the new “online age” would reboot the series with a free to play model and introduce a host of gaming features, normally associated with massively multi-player online games.

Persistent online worlds, crafting, trading and co-op. Age of Empires Online is certainly ambitious. But does that ambition flourishes or falter in this new age?

STORY: Something that RTS games have done for a long time now is implement story to drag players from battle to battle. Historically cut scenes have been used to portray said story, in-game, pre-rendered or in Command & Conquer’s case, live action scenes have been used to build a believable world around isolated battles and skirmishes. It is here where AoE Online takes its first step towards the MMO side of the coin. Cut-scenes and elaborate mission briefings are out, World of Warcraft style quest briefings are in.

Quest text in the place of cut-scenes may seem like a step backwards, especially when considering that current MMO’s are implementing more and more cinematic moments all the time. Quests and the text they come with do actually feel at home in the new online age. Non-playable characters from around the world map offer quests which build their own story and link to others. You certainly won’t be playing for the story, but you will come to appreciate it as it strings you along whilst building your civilization.

GRAPHICS: It is fair to say that AoE Online is not the most graphically powerful game. Unit models are understandably low on polygons with the expectation of tens of combatants, workers, and buildings on-screen at the same time. Whilst on one hand you can certainly defend the less than spectacular models, on the other, you can point to StarCraft II’s excellently detailed units and wonder why AoE has fallen short. Some models just look a little odd, and perhaps out of place in the vibrant environments. A few quests on the Egyptian side involve taking control of Prince Sesostris, a special, one-of-a-kind unit. The prince is larger than your average combatant and works a little like a hero unit. Whilst tall and powerful, Sesostris is not pretty, and the larger model only provides further evidence that unit models lack detail. The Prince’s head looks more square than round and left me wondering why the unique unit had not been afforded more care and attention.

For what it lacks in graphical power, AoE Online makes up for in visual style. The cartoony visuals are colourful and vibrant. The various environments have some pop, and scream “Explore Me!”, whilst building models and other various three dimensional doodads are pleasing to look at, and even the water whilst basic, has its own unique look. Comical animations compliment the art style rather well. Fish jump out of water to indicate fishing locations, whilst workshops indicate what they are making; the skinner’s shop has animal hides popping up on work benches whilst the logger’s shop shows a cute little axe chopping wood.

Some MMO players say that they play for the fun of the game, the social aspect and not the loot or gear. These players have one thing in common, they are all lying. As you collect and equip new gear you get some visual recognition with units donning their new wares. The better looks are of course reserved for the rare and epic quality items. Nothing instills more fear into an opponent than an army fully equipped with epic gear charging towards them, even if that army is somewhat cute and cartoony.

SOUND: AoE Online keeps things simple in the sound department. Background music is a constant, maintaining an even pace, whilst units, quest givers and buildings all have unique sounds to provide some pleasant feedback. In your capital city, quest givers speak in English with a few different phrases, whilst units in battle adopt their local tongue to acknowledge an order. Egyptians appear to be speaking Arabic and to be quite honest I don’t know if they are accepting my orders with joy or cursing at me.

There is no annoying “Your base is under attack!” sound which is perhaps a double edged sword. On one hand it could do with a quick alert, on the other you can do without the constant whining in our ears.

GAMEPLAY: At the beginning of the review I explained that AoE Online is a an MMO RTS, and that is true but there is a slightly smaller third element at play here which blurs the line between genres even further. That third element is…Farmville! Hardcore RTS gamers are probably not the biggest fans of the Facebook game but even they will come to appreciate the way in which it has been implemented. Crafting is a staple of any good MMO and every craftsmen requires materials. Materials are primarily gathered from workshops which range from wood shops to cloth shops. No manual farming is required, materials can be selected from shops and will automatically be dispensed over time. Common materials such as copper ingots take 15 minutes to prepare whilst rarer resources can take much longer. When you log off, your city does not. Workshops will continue to produce even when players walk away from the keyboard. Work shops will only create 100 of a material before stopping production. Gathering materials into your inventory restarts the farming process and is of course a nice little trick by the developers to keep players logging in to check up on their city and reap what they have sown.

Crafting restores the status quo with a typical system which includes seven crafts, two of which can be used at any one time. The different crafts range from archery to religion and can be used to create armor, weapons, and consumables to name just three. Some of the best items can be obtained from the crafting system, and if you are playing with friends then you will do well to choose a range of crafts between yourselves so that benefits can be shared.

Other, perhaps bigger MMO elements include gaining XP, leveling up, and building your empire. You start off with a small city, just a few buildings and quests available as the game introduces mechanics both MMO and RTS, step-by-step. Buildings come in the form of blueprints and have a number of uses. Warehouses act like bags offering increased inventory space, gear halls manage your civilization’s equipment, whilst the palace is used to configure talent trees. Tens of buildings can be added to player cities with a number of different shops available and even non-functional structures that can be placed for looks alone. All buildings can be moved around the city landscape which appears to be randomised so that player cities are almost guaranteed to differ from one another. It all adds up to create a good amount of customisation, something that other MMO’s have struggled to implement.

Questing in AoE Online is pretty good. Quest lines build on a story and mix things up just enough to keep players interested. The last Age of Empires game was released over five years ago and it is clear that Gas Powered have designed the latest game to teach a new audience and perhaps remind an old one. Early on, once tutorial quests have been completed, challenge type quests are introduced. The goal of these quests is to simply improve your play. Sure, anyone can build a base but can they do it within a certain time frame? These quests are repeated over and over with time allowance reduced with each success. These quests are obviously repetitive and somewhat boring for players well versed in Real Time Strategy but it is good to see that developers are educating players early on, equipping them with essential skills.

Once players get into the meat of the game they will find that quests are both numerous and various. Objectives can range from all out attack to timed defense, with a hint of camel racing thrown in for good measure.

Anyone that has played a massively multi-player online game will tell you that once you have picked a zone clean of its quests the game will move you onto the next location. The same can be said for AoE Online.  New territories offer new major cities, and these cities often contain a number of new shop items unique to that region. The cities themselves act in some ways like an MMO faction, with quest completion often rewarding tokens specific to that faction which can be used to acquire new gear, recipes and consumables.

Age of Empires Online is of course an online game and includes a host of features that allow and encourage players to interact. The chat box is the main link to other players on your server, the general channel is always abuzz with chatter. Players can be found discussing quests, gear, and the latest updates. Player cities can be visited and interacted with, giving players the chance to show off what they have accomplished. If you find someone with a common goal then you may hook up for some co-op action to double the fun. Player vs Player is another (albeit more hostile) interaction which can be made to test one’s metal. The city of Sparta plays host to PvP offering an arena where both 1v1 and 2v2 match-ups can take place. For now at least, there is disappointingly no sign of an auction house. One-to-one trading is the only way to facilitate an exchange between players at this time, there is a mail system in place but its primary purpose is sending items between friends.

The whole thing is tied together by Games for Windows LIVE, and when you add a friend, you add them to your LIVE list which is most commonly found on the Xbox. The upside is that most of your friends will already be on your list – the downside is that any one added inside the game will know that all you do is play FIFA!

Whilst AoE Online does offer a number of ways to interact with other players, it certainly does not force you to be social. An internet connection is required to play but nonetheless the whole experience can be quite solitary. Missions offer co-op but never require it, chat boxes can be closed and other player cities ignored. It is not a play style that I would choose but it is available.

Massively multiplayer features and Farmville style gathering are good elements but they can perhaps be considered secondary. At its core, Age of Empires Online is still a Real Time Strategy game and will live or die by the quality of the RTS gameplay. Fans of the series will be glad to hear that the best RTS elements have been preserved for this new age. The gathering system is still complex with a wide range of resources and options to gain them available. I struggled at first to remember what I needed to gather to build certain buildings and units, but soon found myself optimizing build orders to create lean mean armies.

For the most part AoE Online is mostly a macro game where building a big base and maintaining a strong economy is key. Micro elements are, however, present throughout. Some quests only afford you a handful of units that must survive, whilst consumables offer the chance to buff friendlies and debuff enemies.

From a competitive stand point there are a wide range of units which can be used to formulate and counter strategies. Gear does of course play a big role, a little extra health on units can be the difference between success and failure. It is a little early to tell but it seems like dedicated players will be able to reach a point where their armies are maxed out, allowing for battle to take place on more even ground, though this is not to say that customization will be dead. Advisers will have a big part to play as they offer tangible passive buffs or a new type of unit. There are quite a few Advisers that can be collected and equipped, and good players will no doubt play to advisers’ strengths and tailor strategy around them. RTS veterans should find some common ground between other games in the genre, Age of Empires Online offers a similar yet unique gameplay experience.

FREE 2 PLAY: What is free and why should you pay? Free players gain access to most of the same content as paying ones but miss out on some seemingly little things which are required to complete the experience.

• Rare and Epic Gear: Every player loves gaining new gear but the blue and purple items are only open to those with a premium civilization.
• Advisors: These guys offer some great buffs and units but the better ones won’t join you for free!
• Ranked PvP: Only paying customers will be able to pit their skills against the best in the game and claim glory over the global rankings.
• Storage: Inventory space is always important and whist free players have 2 warehouse slots, premium players get 5.
• Workshops: The more workshops you have, the more materials you can harvest. Free players are limited to one of each whilst premium players can double up.
• Tourism: Premium players can gain coins from visiting players that buy goods from their shop.

World of Warcraft is free to play! Well, up to level 20 anyway. Yes World of Warcraft starting today is going free to play with the all new “Starter Edition”. Blizzard have decided to replace the good old 14 day trial with an all new system which will no longer limit time but cap content instead.

Any one with a Battle.net account and an internet connection will be able to take advantage of the free to play system by heading over to WarCraft.com. The idea is to give new players as much time as they like to sample the wonders that WoW has to offer whilst offering the option of a full upgrade at any point.

Think of it like a crack dealer giving you the first hit for free then making you pay once you are hooked!

Level is not the only cap which will be enforced for free to play players. Gold, trade skills, chat, grouping and even server priority will have some kind of cap or restriction in place to protect paying subscribers and add incentive to the subscription service .

Upgrading will cost as little as £9.99 and will net you the original World of Warcraft which now includes the first expansion, The Burning Crusade.

Full details of the caps and restrictions below:

• A level cap of 20.
• A maximum of 10 gold.
• Trade skills are capped at 100 ranks.
• Unable to trade via the Auction House, mailbox, or player-to-player.
• In-game access to public chat channels unavailable. Players are limited to communicating using only say, party, or whisper.
• Characters will be unable to create or join guilds.
• Characters are not able to send whispers to other characters unless they have been added to the characters’ friends lists or have received a whisper from a character first.
• Characters will not be able to invite other players into a party.
• Characters will not be able to join parties with other characters above level 20.
• Voice chat disabled on Starter Edition accounts.
• Realms experiencing login queues will prioritize players who have full, paid accounts.
• Starter Edition accounts are not eligible for character transfers
• RealID features are disabled on all Starter Edition Accounts.

Source: VG247

When the next major RIFT update hits early this summer, subscribers will be treated to a surprise – free character transfers. Trion Worlds announced today that with RIFT 1.3, players will have the ability to move to select servers in their territory once each week, taking all items, achievements, and titles with them. Additionally, guild leaders will be able to move their guild’s level and experience.

“MMOs are all about playing with your friends no matter which server they’re on, and that’s why we’re offering this as a free service to our subscribers,” said Scott Hartsman, Executive Producer. “RIFT is both a game and a service, and adding free server transfers is just one more way we can make this the best possible MMO experience available.”

Whether you want to play with friends, check out a new server, or avoid queue times on highly populated servers, you’ll be free to move about Telara. As a part of this grand experiment, there will initially be no limits on the number of times you can transfer your characters or guild. Character transfers will remain a free service for the foreseeable future, and could become a permanent addition to the RIFT experience. Subscribers will be able to perform the transfers inside of the game itself once the patch is live.

The RIFT Free Trial and Ascend-a-Friend programs are currently in full swing. For more information go to www.RIFTgame.com/freetrial and www.RIFTgame.com/ascend.

With Star Wars The Old Republic updates hitting every Friday, the last day of the working week is quickly becoming a favorite here at GodisaGeek. The latest update comes in the form of an all new class trailer showcasing the one and only Sith Inquisitor.

Players will have a contrasting choice once they get hold of the Inquisitor, you can take to the shadows as the Assasin, Whilst magic can be mastered as the Sorcerer.

Inquisitors, the dark geniuses of the Empire, are masters of treachery and dark Force power. Feared as much on the battlefield as they are by prisoners and political enemies, they will stop at nothing to earn themselves more power. The paths to power are many, though. Is your Inquisitor an Assassin, striking down enemies from the shadows with cunning tactics and a skilled blade? Or are you a Sorcerer, a triumph of the dark side, smoldering with ambition and uncovering dark secrets of the Force to destroy your enemies?