Like the petals of an ashen rose, we’ve been carefully pulling back the layers in The Secret World. In a world that’s built like a Russian Matryoshka doll, cracking one mystery open to discover what lies beneath is a delicious reward. Working out the puzzles that unlock them: there’s the challenge.

Since we waved goodbye to Solomon Island, we’ve paid a flying visit to London and headed out to Egypt. We’ve also been on a guided tour of Transylvania and The Darkness War dungeon with Funcom’s Tor Egil Andersen. We also gained some insight behind the dungeon and ability philosophy, and tested the new graphics features.

So buckle up and grab that Agartha beacon, as we whip around the globe in our latest report from The Secret World!

Claim your weekend beta keys for The Secret World here!

Hey Secret World fans! Haven't gotten your weekend beta key just yet? We've got you covered! Just head on over to our weekend beta key giveaway to claim your key! Once you've snagged that, pop over to the official The Secret World registration page to get your account flagged for beta access! We'll see you in The Secret World this weekend!

Come one, come all! ZAM Network and D3DB.com are happy to announce the newly revamped D3DB Skill Calculator! This new skill calculator comes with almost a dozen new features over the old one, including a brand new interface, the ability to categorize and rate builds as you create them, and even site achievements for using the skill calculator! There's a lot of new features being introduced with this new skill calculator, so head on and get building!

Since launch, the D3DB team has been hard at work on various projects, and a revamped skill calculator is just one of many, so stay tuned!

While we’ve been visitors to and veterans of countless virtual worlds, it’s rare that we see one being created almost in front of us. Watching ArenaNet carefully craft the world of Tyria, and unveil it piece by piece, feels incredibly Magrathean. And yet, every so often, they fling the doors wide open, allowing us to scuttle and jape around their factory floor. 

Last weekend was marked with just such an occasion, as the second Beta Weekend Event for Guild Wars 2 saw thousands of players return to their characters and explore the game world further. The weekend also introduced the lush Gendarran Fields, linking the nautical city of Lion’s Arch to the frigid peaks of the Snowden Drifts in the north, and the rolling hills of Kessex to the west.

It’s not just new zones that were bundled in this beta weekend. Almost every aspect of Guild Wars 2, from the user interface to the slot skill system, has been tweaked and refined. Even minor areas, such as the sight and sound of melee combat, have been analyzed and adjusted.  While we’ve been looking at the game for some time now, Guild Wars 2 continues to evolve.

Traversing Telara is an exclusive series of articles from Trion Worlds that explores Rift's lore and gameplay mechanics through the eyes of one intrepid adventurer. It's a great read and a fantastic introduction to the world of Telara. Even if you're a veteran of Rift, you might enjoy hearing about the game from another perspective! Read on for Traversing Telara #12: Laethys and Sylver Valis!

Catch up on all the past issues of Traversing Telara here!

Trion held a 16 minute live stream at E3 today, during which they gave players their first look at the upcoming expansion, Storm Legion. The scenery for a few of the dungeons were briefly shown as well as two of the overlands, one of which is interior. Several juicy tidbits were dropped during this live stream, detailed below.

• The theme of the expansion is the "Rise of Crucia" and the discovery of the two new continents.
• Quite a bit of lost technology is present on these continents; a "magi-tech feel" was used throughout the expansion areas.
• The two new continents will make the existing world three times larger than what it currently is.
• Patches will still continue to happen: 1.9 and 1.10 were mentioned.
• A "new PTS server for the expansion" was briefly mentioned--possibly a beta server.
• They're "pretty sure there will be a digital collector's edition."
• More information on "dimensions", Trion's take on housing, will be released in the near future.

The overland areas shown were called Ashora and Tower of Dawn. Tower of Dawn is an interior, non-instanced overland, which is a break how contested content is currently presented in Rift. Two dungeons called Empryean Core (for level 60s) and Golem Foundry were also briefly shown.

While in Ashora, the QA team took on an epic, end-game difficulty battle against a colossi named Volan. New techniques such as power-up abilities were shown, and Volan even altered the geometry of the world during the battle; for example, at one point he broke through a wall to open up new areas. Ashora also featured purple orbs which are launchpads that spring your character (and mount!) high into the air.

We snagged some exciting screenshots from the live stream, which you can also watch in its entirety after the jump!

Be sure to check out Blizzard's Patch 1.03 Design Preview to see how they're planning to tackle these issues!

It's been about three weeks now since the official launch of Diablo III, and as players get settled in for the long loot grind that is Inferno, I've decided to take a look back on the various lessons that can be learned from this momentous launch. Now, you might argue that Diablo III isn't quite an MMORPG by most standards but every title that Blizzard puts out can be seen as a cumulative progress report on what they've learned from the past. Furthermore, there is some genuinely valuable information to be gleaned from the launch and development of Diablo III, so let's get to it.

UPDATE:  See the official preview on the Free Realms site!

First announced at Fan Faire 2009, players have been able to see Sunstone Valley on the map for a long time but have not been able to get to it.  This just in from E3: Sunstone Valley will be on live servers by the end of summer!  It'll have everything you love in Free Realms:  minigames, new collections, quests, and some fun new stuff!

There's a Gloam Invasion coming, and players will be able to choose to side with the druids or the dwarves of Sunstone Vally who are stranded in the area formerly known as Shrouded Glade. The event brings tons of new storylines, and there will actually be real, non-instanced combat in Shrouded Gloam, so bring your friends!

The Gloam Invasion starts next week, and Sunstone Vally is expected to go live by the end of summer.  You can see the whole interview from E3 on SOE's Twitch page, starting at 21:10. 

Many thanks to our friend Ragu for bringing us this juicy tidbit!

Traversing Telara is an exclusive series of articles from Trion Worlds that explores Rift's lore and gameplay mechanics through the eyes of one intrepid adventurer. It's a great read and a fantastic introduction to the world of Telara. Even if you're a veteran of Rift, you might enjoy hearing about the game from another perspective! Read on for Traversing Telara #11: Gods and Lakeside!

Catch up on all the past issues of Traversing Telara here!

Like a relentless machine, BioWare continues to roll out updates for Star Wars: The Old Republic (SWTOR). From Rise of the Rakghouls to the new Legacy system, the development team has focused on delivering new content alongside a range of quality of life improvements demanded by the fans. With their next update on the horizon, the team shows no signs of slowing down.

Game Update 1.3 - Allies - introduces a strong blend of tools intended to make forming groups much easier, along with even more ways to customize how we play. Currently undergoing internal testing, the update should be available on the public test server soon and live later this summer.

As well as a great video from James Ohlen, we were able to catch a presentation on the update, at London’s recent Comic Con, by technical design director Emmanuel Lusinchi. We also had the opportunity to put some questions to lead designer Daniel Erickson, asking for his thoughts about previous SWTOR game updates and what fans can look forward to beyond the upcoming patch.