Guild Wars 2 has come a long way since we first got our hands on it back in February. Since then we’ve admired the world that the team at ArenaNet has built, and dissected the elements that make this an incredibly strong social MMO. From those initial Beta Weekend Events, we’ve gradually seen the world grow, both in the size available to explore and the depth of stories to be found within.

We’ve also examined how ArenaNet hopes to reinvent the traditional MMO, as well as some of the arguments against these plans. Our analysis wouldn’t be complete without also weighing the potential for Guild Wars 2 as an eSport.

As we close the book on the Guild Wars 2 beta, I’m left with a single question: is this MMO ready for launch? My first reaction would be an emphatic yes – everything, from renown questing to dungeon crawling - works. It’s fun to play, with a strong undercurrent of charm and wonder seeping into every aspect of the game. 

But is this enough, or does a radical shift in MMO design require an equally strong change in gamers themselves? Are we ready as a player base, or do we still need convincing? On this, I’d argue the jury’s still out.

A while ago, I went on an in-game tour of Divina, the newest (and cutest!) offering from Lucent Heart proprietors Gamania. To be honest, I started out my tour a little wary, especially considering the game's ultra-cute premise in an industry trending toward "mature" personal stories and darker settings. That being said, after romping around this colorful world (as a trident-wielding Mystic Sea Snail for the latter half, no less), I'll admit that there is something irresistibly charming about a game that doesn't take itself as seriously as the rest.

I had the chance to interview Aaron Campbell, senior producer on the Lord of the Rings Online team, about the newest features of the Riders of Rohan expansion. Set to be released on September 5th, the expansion entered Beta on Wednesday, July 18th. Our interview focused on the new mounted combat mechanic to be used by players while riding through the plains of Rohan.

In most MMOs, we’re content to go with the easy kills. One time we might be rampaging through a village of defenseless Jawa. Another might see us obliterate waves of cheap murlocs. All that counts is that they swarm like a hive of bees and make a satisfying squish when they die. Sometimes, the destruction of digital cannon fodder is all you need.

Other times, I get a craving to go after the big fish. I see the Big Ass Monster towering over me, taking entire fields in his stride. I watch the other players flee, lest they become squashed underfoot. And I tell myself: one day, we will dance the whirlwind of death. It will be an epic clash of might versus agility, of steel against sorcery. And in the end, when the dust settles, I’ll take you down.

If playing the role of David in a world of Goliaths sounds like a dream come true, then monster-hunting MMO RaiderZ might be just what you need. As part of our grand tour of PC gaming show Rezzed, I spoke to Rüdiger Moersch, Producer for Frogster, about bringing this free-to-play action-MMO to Europe.

If you've been following our previous coverage on The Secret World, you probably think we've spent most of our time killing zombies, uncovering secrets, escaping Hell and battling long-dead Gods. But while the Secret Societies struggle to keep the world from crumbling beneath us, there's a further threat they also face: each other.

For the fourth and final Beta Weekend Event, Funcom invited all challengers into the fighting arenas of Eldorado, Stonehenge and Fusang Projects. Whether it's to settle old scores against other beta testers, represent your Society in battle, or simply sate a growing bloodlust, this weekend was all about PvP combat. With each of the three factions represented in every location, conflict promised to be fast-paced and brutal. Under the watchful eye of the Council of Venice, victories would be won and glory earned.

We won't have long to find out how The Secret War will unfold. With Early Access starting on Friday June 29th and full launch following on Tuesday July 3rd, thousands of players will be flooding in to unleash chaos on Funcom's Secret World. Although the grand battle is yet to begin, this is what we encountered in the prelude.

Turbine is releasing the latest expansion for Dungeons & Dragons Online (DDO) this week with Menace of the Underdark. We had first been told of the expansion and its setting with the last content update, update 13, but this time we had a walkthrough with Executive Producer Fernando Paiz and a chance to view a lot of the content that is to be released on Monday. Interested in seeing what surprises await players in the Forgotten Realms? Read on!

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!

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.

I'd like to preface this article with a warning: I am a big fan of titles with strong underlying game mechanics. To me, what sets a video game apart from any other medium is its level of interactivity; if I can't engage with your creation in a way that is both satisfying and challenging, then your primary form of communication - player agency - is squandered. The downside of this premise, however, is that my criteria for what makes a mechanically engaging game can be rather high. To use action RPGs as an example, I simply could not connect with Bethesda's The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim, while FromSoftware's Dark Souls is probably my favorite title of 2011. Skyrim is a gorgeous wide-open world, but after my twentieth round of cave exploration with uninspired combat and clunky enemy AI (which consisted mostly of being chased around tables), I had to set it down. Dark Souls, on the other hand, is almost entirely about tight combat with challenging encounters and, while the plot can be described as "minimalistic" at best, I still made more of a connection with my undead character than any dragonborn could inspire.

To be fair, the above examples may also highlight the core differences between Japanese and North American game design, as Japanese action RPGs (Dark Souls, Monster Hunter) are more famed for their challenging combat mechanics, while many popular North American action RPGs (Skyrim, Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning, Fable) are more known for their open-world exploration and character development. I won't jump into any of the debates here as to which is a "better" industry (and the debate is very much ongoing), but all of the afore-mentioned information is there to give some background to two statements I will be leading with: one, that Capcom's Dragon's Dogma captivated me in spite of its vacuous NPC conversations (my subject headings are all direct quotes from the game), and two, that Dragon's Dogma may very well be one of the most important new RPG franchises to come out of Japan in some time.

Dungeon crawler role playing games. The genre name can evoke many feelings: tedium from the endless grind, fear of the mandatory giant spiders, excitement while wondering what’s right around the bend. The name on most people’s lips right now is Diablo III; and in the frantic rush of its opening week many might have overlooked Torchlight II beta, which closed on May 24th. I had the opportunity to play through the open areas of the game and hit the cap before it closed, so I'll be breaking down my experience, piece by piece, to show you how Torchlight stands up against its stiff competition – read on for more!