Vikings of Thule, one of the first ever MMORPGs designed for Facebook, released their first expansion pack this week. Chapter 1: Slayer of Wyrms is oriented towards single player content and features a long questline. The new content enables players to set their own difficulty level, making it available to new and old characters alike.

Iris Kristin Andresdottir, Senior Producer for Vikings of Thule, said of the expansion, “We have been pleased to see more players than ever before engaging with [our game], so we wanted to create a whole new experience for them.” Also included in the update are new game maps.

Vikings of Thule lets players use force and craftiness to work their way through the hierarchy of Viking society. Players collect gear upgrades and earn the favor of certain Norse gods, all of which come into play when they engage others in fierce PvP combat.

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Gala-Net has opened up registration for players who want to help beta test their latest offering, Iris Online. Developed by the same team responsible for Luna Plus and Titan Online, Iris Online is a gypsy-themed free-to-play 3D MMO with both PvE and PvP encounters.

One of the unique features of the game is its Divination System, in which a player can visit a Fortune Teller to receive a Tarot Card reading. Cards will reveal story lines, give buffs and magical benefits, and perhaps even temporarily turn the character into a monster!

The Tarot Card theme doesn’t end there. Each of Iris Online’s 22 dungeons is designed in the style of one of the Major Arcana cards, such as The Fool or Wheel of Fortune. For example, The Lovers Dungeon can only be entered by a male and female pair who remain linked through out the raid — if one dies, the other character will instantly die as well.

Does your future hold a visit to Iris Online? Control your own destiny — players can sign up here to join the closed beta testing process, which is expected to start this Fall.

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Cryptic Studio’s City of Heroes was full of news this week, addressing both the impending Issue 18: Shades of Gray update and giving a bit more of the background for the Going Rogue expansion.

Issue 18 is currently being sent out to CoH players via automated download, although it’s not available on the live servers yet. In anticipation of the update publishers NCsoft are offering free character transfers within the same server zone (North America or Europe) from Tuesday, August 17 until Monday, August 23. Additionally, players who own an active account on August 16 will earn one free Character Respec per character and one Tailor token per unlocked costume. Players will also be able to change their global chat handle.

We’re only days away from the August 17 launch of the Going Rogue expansion, and City of Heroes is whetting our appetite with a little more of the GR story and background. Players can get their first look at the urban landscapes of Imperial City and Neutropolis in this new trailer.

ESTsoft’s CABAL Online has released some of the details of its next episode, titled “Episode IV: Porta Inferno“. The free-to-play game has seen a number of updates this summer, and it looks like September will be no different.

Episode IV will bring in a level cap increase (moving to 180) as well as the introduction of a new skill for every class. Players level 160 and above can enjoy the new Porta Inferno zone, home to three different evil bosses. Additionally the item upgrade system will be made more player-friendly, a new Chaos Arena will be added, and the Mission War event will be extended.

Fall is shaping up to be pretty action packed for CABAL Online players!

There’s a new addition to the Altus Online Portal: Soul of the Ultimate Nation, a free-to-play fantasy MMO. Players can now join a group of independent rebels in their fight against the sinister Empire and their quest for Ether.

One of SUN’s more unique features is the Battle Zone System. Players are able to pick a zone map and set party preferences such as difficulty, number of participants, and style of combat for a custom gameplay experience. There are also static dungeons with unlimited numbers of characters in each zone.

From now until August 31st, Soul of the Ultimate Nation players will receive free in-game items as they hit certain levels on their characters.

Turbine’s long-running MMO Asheron’s Call has released some update notes and details for its August event, named Quiet Before the Storm.

The August changes include many tweaks and bugfixes that are sure to please players, including animation and texture updates to smooth out character movements. Additionally, changes were made to the Gear Knight hunting area, the Mace Paradox Olthoi Weapons, and Asheron’s Lesser Benediction.

This month will also feature the Quiet Before the Storm event, which includes new quest NPCs, evil plant foes, and a number of unique items.

Screenshots of Quiet Before the Storm and some new short stories about the event are available on the Asheron’s Call website.

This week’s post by Colin “Means” Cragg, the Game Director for Anarchy Online, talked about the impending tweaks and changes to their newest PvP playfield. The zone became available on the live servers last week, and has generally seen a very smooth launch.

In the immediate future the playfield will be adjusted to add a number of features, including a store and a way to refill healing/nanos in the start room, more landmarks so players can tell where they are without opening up the map, and random exits across the playfield to help head off spawncamping. Additionally, a number of small bug fixes will be made, such as blocking players who are outside of the playfield’s level range and preventing contagious flags.

Cragg confirmed that the ability for players to form a team on the playfield will be continued, as will the ban on rooftop running. The overall changes are so small that the playfield will continue to be available on the live servers during the update process.

Aika Global, the latest offering from Korean development house T3 Entertainment, will start closed beta testing for players on August 20. The testing will feature various types of PvP wars with groups of 6 to 1000 players facing off in a fight to save humanity.

One of the most unique aspects of Aika Global is the “Pran” or in-game fairy familiar. Each player can own up to two Prans, and over time will help it grow from a baby to an adult. A Pran’s personality will develop based on how the player treats it. Prans can assist in battle, and will have their own inventory slots, costumes, and skills.

Aika Global will feature three types of PvP encounters. Nation War is a large-scale battle that can involve up to 1000 players on each side and will earn the victors points which can be used to purchase armor. Castle Sieges are weekly guild vs. guild battles, where the winners are given special titles and can set taxes on the kingdom. Finally, Relic Wars are goal-oriented PvP scenarios in which players attempt to capture certain relics that give bonuses to stats such as experience or attack power.

Aika Global is based on the same lore as the award-winning game Aika Online. AO was limited to North American players only earlier this year, whereas Aika Global is limited to players everywhere except North America (and Brazil). Once it’s released, Aika Global will be free-to-play.

Gala-Net has announced that their MMO Rappelz will be getting a new expansion this Fall. Titled “Epic 7: Awakening”, the expansion will contain new zones and an overhaul to the Guild System.

Epic 7 will see The Veiled Island be expanded to four times its current size. Some of the new areas include the Nanani Breeding Grounds, home to giant killer insectoids, Unicorn Forest, and Dragons Nest. The Veiled Island is the location of the new The Hidden Dungeons, which will hold items and gear for high-level players.

Along with all the new content, Epic 7: Awakening will bring in a complete overhaul of the current Rappelz Guild System. New features and cosmetic changes will be added, along with a tameable Death Tyrant.

Click below to see some screenshots from the upcoming expansion!

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Black Prophecy may be a 3D space combat MMO, but it’s not all just about fighting! This week developer Reakktor Media released some details and screenshots of the game’s crafting system, which players will use to make components and ship modules.

The three main type of crafting materials are metal, plasma, and gas. Individual players can gather resources through salvaging space debris, completing missions, and visiting unique black market vendors. Larger material deposits, or resource stations, are zones and outposts that can be farmed by a controlling clan. The bigger and badder your clan is, the more resources you’ll collect.

Once a player has access to materials, they can combine them with blueprints (also found through salvaging) to make items. Much like other MMOs, players will be able to have a critical success while crafting, creating a superior item. On the other hand, Black Prophecy crafters can also “fail”, consuming all materials and leaving the player with nothing but the original blueprint. Ouch.

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