Square Enix have announced a free login weekend for Final Fantasy XIV: A Realm Reborn this coming weekend.

With the release of Defenders of Eorzea, the Patch 2.3 update, a wealth of new content and adventures await in the realm of Eorzea. Among the many highlights are Frontline, the three-faction PVP where up to 72 players can go head-to-head in direct combat. Or if you’re looking for something a little more peaceful, why not enjoy Chocobo Raising? With a chocobo stable on your estate grounds and the proper diet and exercise, you can now train your favourite feathered friend to reach its full potential.

Anyone who meets the following requirements will be able to play FINAL FANTASY XIV: A Realm Reborn for free this coming weekend:

Eligibility
Players who have previously purchased and registered any version of FINAL FANTASY XIV and whose service account is set as inactive during the campaign period.

It’s a good opportunity to get back in game if you have been thinking about returning.

CCP Games have just launched a feature site for the July 22nd Crius release for EVE Online and an accompanying in-development video that highlights the biggest changes coming to industry and manufacturing within gaming’s most dynamic and player-driven economy in EVE’s 11 years. As the fuel that powers the “infernal machine” of harvesting, creation and destruction, the industry changes will catalyze player-driven action, create new opportunities for veterans and new players alike, and most likely start some good old-fashioned space conflict.

The in-depth feature site showing the changes coming to EVE Online in Crius can be found here.

Recent developer blogs detailing Crius, as well as a few more on the way, are available here.

As always, gamers can try EVE for free for 14 days at the official website, or via an active player’s invite for a 21-day trial.

Last month Fairytale Distillery announced that their PvP Sandbox ‘Das Tal’ would be entering testing in July, and have set the date of their first test: July 20th. Testers will be selected from the pool of applicants, but it isn’t too late to apply, as they will be constantly adding news testers based on their credentials and not only on the date they applied. Click here for the alpha signup page.

This early build will focus on having fun with some good old-fashioned PvP combat. The gameplay will involve two clans battling it out over five key landmarks on the map, earning points to win the round with the more landmarks they capture and defend. Players will choose between three armor classes and three weapons sets, combining these however they like to fit their playstyle. The playtests will focus on fast paced and diverse combat situations with this mix of characters fighting for map control. Additional features such as experience gains, character progression and proper clan warfare will come later in development.

The test’s storyline hints at the game’s underlying lore, and will set the scene for the battle that the testers will take part in. It tells of two groups of people being cast into the valley by unknown enemies from the city above. Surviving in the harsh environment is difficult enough, but when the groups discover each other and grow uneasy, they realise they may need to fight over what little the valley has to offer. You can read the full story on the play-test page.

The play-test page is also the go to for all information on the tests. It includes details on how to sign up, what will happen if you’re accepted, and everything you need to do once accepted to participate. It will also display a test schedule which will be updated throughout the test phase, so people can check when they will next be able to play.

The Roman Empire is on the brink of civil war! The old emperor has died and no one is there to succeed him. The Senate is hopelessly at loggerheads to find the right candidate. In this critical make-or-break situation, the senators have come up with a daring plan. Each citizen of the Roman Empire is asked to apply for the position of the new emperor. Who will have enough power, who will have enough influence in the Senate and who is able to pursue his goals with military force? Anything can happen in Ancient Europe!

“For the first time in Travian’s ten year history, Travian Games has created a completely new summer special scenario, which is still based on the core principles of Travian, but at the same time also incorporates many new features, such as a new map, a new endgame and new game mechanics”, says Eckart Foos, Game Director Travian 4.

“The scenario is set in the golden age of the Roman Empire. Rome’s sphere of influence stretches from Western Europe to the Middle East and from Northern Europe to North Africa. The map resembles this area, depicting a very real image of Europe at the time” adds Brian Terek, Product Manager Travian 4.

 

The map displays different climate zones, as well as rivers, volcanoes and roughly 90 of the most important ancient cities. Each of these cities is home to a powerful artifact, which offers the players advantages in the game.

The first servers just started and many more will follow over the whole month of July. Players can always register to play at the official website. Travian Games is giving away a gold coin valued at approximately 1.000,- euros among all registered and enabled participants of the Ancient Europe summer special scenario at the end of the summer.

Webzen have released their latest brand new class for Continent of the Ninth Seal (C9). A new advanced class for the Mystic, the ERTA is now available for C9 actionists. The ERTA is an aerial juggler who excels at dealing damage with quick, powerful melee attacks. She’s also very mobile, able to deceive her enemies with lightning-fast dashes.

The ERTA mainly utilizes Stance Change and Teleport skills. She can execute powerful combos by switching between ranged and melee skills with Stance Change. Also, she can use Teleport and Link to move instantly for a trick attack on the enemy. Her primary weapon is the Chakram, a throwing weapon which is circular in shape, with a sharpened outer edge to slice through enemies.

To celebrate the launch of the ERTA, C9 team launched the video contest, “C9 PVP Combo Movie Festival” which will run until the 22nd of July (UTC). C9 players will be able to submit their Youtube videos showing off their PVP combos to win cool prizes, including Songkran Gear, Jaffard Gear, Medical Gear, and many others.

Additionally, from now until July 29th, 2014 (UTC), if your character with the ERTA reaches level 65 or above, you will be able to receive a special reward “Auspice” only for the ERTA.

Official page.

Team Fortress 2 has new maps and a new mode on the way! The team working on TF2 decided that the new modes and maps should be tested with the wider audience. Now when you search for servers and game modes you can opt in to play the beta maps. Of course there are plenty of official servers running the new beta and private servers are also invited to run them too.

Whether you are pushing the cart up Cactus Canyon or blasting your way through the enemy team’s robots on Asteroid it’s pretty fun to get in on the maps while they are still fresh to everyone.

Have you ever wanted to construct battle arenas where mercenaries fight to the death over important global issues, but found you would rather shoot people in those arenas instead of riveting things that need riveted? We’ve got a position for you! Now is your chance to boss around the little guy as you stand on the ground floor of cutting edge environment construction!

FAQ:

How do I participate?

Click on Play Multiplayer, enable Play Beta Maps checkbox, and then choose a mode to play.

Why are you running a maps Beta?

We would like to include the community early in the development process to gather feedback as we try variations in the map layout and game play mechanics.

What sorts of things can I do to help the development process?

Continually playing the maps is one of the biggest ways you can help us develop. Having servers full of users interacting with each other quickly points out problems with the gameplay that need to be addressed.

How do I submit feedback?

To help gather feedback, send us links to discussions happening on your favorite community forum. Or you can write us directly to express your thoughts. We will also be joining servers to play alongside you, shooting down enemies for the greater benefit of the team.

Will the maps be changing a lot?

Yes. There will be times when a change will be needed. That change may be as small as moving a health kit to a different room or it may be a larger change, such as reworking an entire section of the layout.

Are the game mode rules final?

No. We may see drastic swings in rule sets to make comparisons to previous versions. We may change the rule set one update only to find the previous iteration was better.

Are there Beta map servers? Can we host our own?

Yes and Yes. We’re running a set of official Valve Beta servers using quick play matchmaking. Community server owners are welcome to host beta maps.

Source.

Webzen have started the open beta for Archlord 2. Any player with a free account will be able to access Archlord 2 without a Beta key. Players without a WEBZEN account can create one for free www.webzen.com

The Open Beta will offer a choice of 4 servers, based on different regions and languages. To help players better understand the server structure of Archlord 2 and which server they should choose to get the most out of the game, WEBZEN has prepared a special announcement which can be viewed here.

Players can select between two different factions, with one race each. For the Open Beta, character progression will be capped at Level 41, and a good amount of new and updated content will be made accessible, including massive battleground events every evening, each day with different maps and objectives.

ESTsoft Inc, developer of Cabal Online, has announced the development of CABAL Online for the Android TV platform, bringing the exciting and cutting edge MMORPG experience to a Smart TV platform for the first time. In June, at its I/O Developer Conference, Google unveiled a new Smart TV operating system called Android TV which enables users to watch live broadcasts, stream video files, play games, and enjoy a plethora of online features and content.

ESTsoft has already begun its development of CABAL Online for Google’s new Android TV platform, and plans to expand its robust online game service to other platforms such as Chrome OS, Amazon Fire TV and others. The development of a multi-platform CABAL Online experience is expected to bring a significant increase in accessibility and playability to the game and continue the growth of its constantly expanding global service.

Apart from the platform expansion, a browser based game and mobile game utilizing the CABAL Online brand are both currently in development. In addition, the new CABAL Online based mobile game will bring action and RPG elements to the mobile scene in true CABAL Online style. The mobile game has a target release date of Summer 2015.

The BISBOG Group have announced that Astro Lords: Oort Cloud has officially launched in English language territories, as of 10AM PDT / 1PM EDT July 1, 2014. Following a successful three-week beta test, the free-to-play science fiction, mmo is now available to all players in North America and Europe. Everyone can create an account and dive in right now, for free at the official website.

During beta testing, over 2,800 players registered and logged more than 45,000 hours of Astro Lords browser gameplay. Players mined over 17.5 million crystals, earned over 10.7 million credits and racked up over 19,000 victories in the combat arena.

All beta testing activity has been wiped from the game, ensuring a fresh start for all players. Everyone will start on an equal footing at the Tutorial stage, meaning all early players in the game will have the advantage over latecomers, with more time to develop their asteroids, sciences and skills.

Be prepared for fireworks this Independence Day! Aeria Games can announce that their free-to-play anime MMORPG Aura Kingdom has successfully passed Steam’s Greenlight process, and will be available on the well-known platform from July 4th.

The game, which was officially launched earlier this year through the Aeria Games website and Aeria Games’ own gaming platform Aeria Ignite, has already proved very popular and has a vast, loyal set of fans. Now Aeria Games is excited to welcome a host of new players into the fold by making the game available on Steam.

“Having a game launch on Steam is a sign of trust in the quality of the game and the service we provide,” said Dr. Pascal Zuta, CEO of Aeria Games. “We are very excited to now be able to offer Aura Kingdom to a wider audience through the Steam platform.”

In Aura Kingdom, players take the role of envoys of Gaia, gifted individuals who set out to save the world of Azuria. Together with their companions, the eidolons, which they collect along the way and can perform devastating combo-attacks with, they can go on quests, explore dungeons and battle fellow envoys in PvP arenas. To celebrate the launch, all defeated monsters will be offering a 50% increase in drops, for this weekend only.

Steam page.