Patch 1.3 just came out and it looks like the good folks at Trion are already at work on 1.4!  We had the opportunity to participate in a brief live event this past Friday on the Test Shard, and got some sneak previews of upcoming changes that we'd like to share with the ZAM community. New features include a cross-shard LFG system, updates to Whitefall Steppes and PvP rifts.

We just attended the first Rift State of the Game press conference with Executive Producer Scott Hartsman, and it's safe to say that Trion Worlds has a ton of content planned for the game. Hartsman discussed post-50 uses for experience; PvP changes in the form of PvP rifts and Warfronts; a new gameplay option called Instant Adventure to quickly get you into dynamic content; new Chronicles of Telara instances for solo players and small groups that focus on story; and much more.

Keep reading after the jump for all the details straight from Hartsman!

Emily "Domino" Taylor, Greg "Rothgar" Spence, Nandy "Zoltaroth" Szots and Paul "Frizznik" Carrico presented Tradeskill and Housing changes to the EQ2 community at Fan Faire.

The Tradeskill and Housing panel opened up with a recap of prestige housing that has been introduced to the game. Everyone was informed that the multitude of prestige home portals currently in South Qeynos and South Freeport will be changed into a single house directory in those cities from which you can choose a housing destination. Two new prestige houses will be introduced to the Marketplace over the next few months: the Felwithe Mansion and the Tenebrous Island Refuge.

SOE Fan Faire came to a close on Saturday night with the grand banquet and costume contest, and we were there to take photos of every costume that crossed the stage. Above you'll see the top winners of the contest, who certainly turned a few heads as they walked through Bally's hotel and casino in Las Vegas. The EverQuest II ratonga on the left won the best in show award. Her mouth moved when she talked!

Click here to visit our Fan Faire costume contest photo gallery and view every contestant's costume.

If you look closely, you'll find our very own Calthine dressed as a level 90 woodworker looking for work in EverQuest II! You can also see which costumes received awards from the audience.

Which costumes are your favorite? Let us know in the comments below!

En Masse Entertainment sent us a video that takes players on a walkthrough of TERA's Dark Cathedral dungeon! The video follows a group into the dungeon, from its entrance at the Cathedral Redoubt in the Shattered City all the way down through to the shadowy chambers of the Grand Chapel. On their journey to the core of the Dark Cathedral, they fight all kinds of hostile characters, including Devans and Lokians, and of course a big-ass monster.

Watch the video below and explore the Dark Cathedral!

EverQuest II's upcoming eighth expansion, the Age of Discovery, was announced Thursday night at the Fan Faire community address, and we got some more interesting details during a panel. Departing from the traditional expansion format of a large amount of content with a few new features, the Age of Discovery will be packed with only features while Game Updates will continue to add more content to the game. The upcoming new class, Beastlord, was described more and the Freeport revamp was also touched on during the panel.

Continue on after the jump for detailed information on upcoming Game Updates and the expansion!

SOE Fan Faire kicked off with a bang today thanks to a handful of newsworthy announcements from CEO John Smedley and other members of the Sony Online Entertainment team that were made during the opening community address. PlanetSide 2 was the biggest reveal, followed closely by details on the EverQuest and EverQuest II expansions that are launching this November. Also, SOE is launching new security authenticators to help players protect their accounts.

Keep reading after the jump for all of the details we learned during the community address, and keep an eye on ZAM for more Fan Faire news!

Summer has arrived in Norrath and everyone is celebrating! Grab a free Festive Sparkler from the Marketplace and visit fireworks coordinators in Freeport, Gorowyn, Kelethin, Neriak, New Halas or Qeynos to earn your own fireworks launchers! The Summer Celebration Fireworks Festival runs until 11:59pm PDT on July 4th.

The city of Gorowyn was abuzz with excitement this month as the Far Seas Caravan arrived at its docks to begin the city festival. Players can acquire local specialties from Chris Weathers and earn more city tokens by assisting Kella Swampfoot with her tasks. The Flying Freebooters have joined the festivities and a new Aether Racing course is available in Timorous Deep. All are welcome to try their luck on the unstable C.R.A.S.H. pads and those who are fast enough will earn a new pretitle. The aether race and city festival run concurrently and will both end at 11:59pm PDT on July 7th.

On the 20th of this month, the phases of the moon will once again be aligned, revealing the secret grottos. Moonlight Enchantments will begin at 12:01am PDT on July 20th and will conclude at 11:59pm PDT on July 21st. No new items are expected to be on the grotto merchants.

Gnomish gizmos and gadgets will be celebrated around Norrath near the end of the month as the Tinkerfest festivities begin! A new quest, many new craftables and rewards and more merchant items will be available this year. Tinkerfest will run from July 29th through August 8th.

Watch a video of this month's aether race after the jump!

The Force is with us! With anticipation and excitement building for Star Wars: The Old Republic, we’ve created a brand new fansite devoted to all things SW:TOR. Complete with an expanding wiki, forums and robust news section, ZAM SW:TOR will cater to all your current (and upcoming!) Old Republic needs.

And don’t think we’re content to sit on our laurels. We’ll continually strive to give you the best community experience this side of Tatooine, so strap on your lightsabers, heavy blasters or repeaters because there’s a whole lot more to this Star Wars universe than any world we’ve ever delved into before!

Click here to visit ZAM's Star Wars: The Old Republic community site!

Do you plan on being a feared Bounty Hunter in Star Wars: The Old Republic? Then you'll want to watch BioWare's latest character progression video! The trailer shows off some of the armor and abilities that a Bounty Hunter will learn as he levels up in the upcoming MMO.

The video also gives us a glimpse of the Bounty Hunter's advanced classes: Mercenary and Powertech. The Mercenary is all about firepower, while the Powertech focuses on armor to become a one-man blockade. Watch the trailer below to see the class in action!