dungeons-and-dragons-online-eberron-unlimited posts

It looks like the various online rumors that a new Neverwinter Nights game coming from publisher Atari and developer Cryptic Studios was in the works have been proven to true - kind of.Today Atari officially announced that game, which is simply called Neverwinter.

The game, due out in the fourth quarter of 2011, is oddly enough not being called an MMO but a "co-op role playing game" where players can pick from one of five Dungeons and Dragons-based character classes and then team up with friends or with AI-controlled characters to form five-player teams. The game will also have support for user-generated content via a new system called Forge, much like how the Neverwinter Nights games developed by BioWare also had such tools.

While the game isn't due out until late 2011, the fictional backstory behind it will be launched on October 5 by author R.A. Salvatore in the novel Gauntlgrym. It's due out on October 5 and is the first of a planned trilogy of novels based on Neverwinter's world and storyline. Dungeons and Dragons owners Wizards of the Coasts also plan to release a Neverwinter-based tabletop RPG game. More info on the game is revealed on GameSpot in an interview with Cryptic co-founder Jack Emmert.

Turbine has now officially relaunched its free-to-play version of its fantasy MMO Dungeons and Dragons Online. The game, which has a name change to Dungeons and Dragons Online: Eberron Unlimited, now allows players to play for free with micro-transactions to purchase additional adventures packs, items and more. There is still a monthly subscription option available for players to gain access to all of D&D Online's content.

In it's press release announcing the launch, Turbine says that the response to D&D Online via its recent beta test was so good they have "already more than doubled our capacity to handle the increased demand." You can get more info on D&D Online via our sister site Massively's coverage of the game.

Last month Turbine announced plans to change their fantasy MMO Dungeons and Dragons Online from a monthly subscription-based game into a free-to-play MMO with microtransactions. They had originally announced that August 6 would be the launch date for the revamp (to be titled Dungeons and Dragons Online: Eberron Unlimited) but today Turbine announced that the re-launch would now take place on September 9.

In their press release announcing the delay, Turbine's Fernando Paiz, the Executive Producer for the game, stated that while beta testing been going well, ".... we are committed to delivering a high-quality experience. We feel that more time is needed to deliver on this commitment. As a result, we are delaying our launch to ensure that we can support the massive increase in players that we are expecting and deliver them a free to play experience like none other."

In addition to the move to a free-to-play game, the new D&D Online will raise the current level cap, and add a new player class along with other new content.

Turbine is now close to getting their Dungeons and Dragons Online MMO ready for the big move from subscriptions to a free-to-play model. Today the developer announced that August 6 will be the official re-launch of the game as Dungeons & Dragons Online: Eberron Unlimited (Turbine VIP players get to play the game two days earlier).

As we have previously reported, the new version of the game isn't just about the switch to the free-to-play model. It will also raise the level cap of the game, adds a new playable character class (the favored soul), adds more adventure packs to the game and improves the title's combat features. While the game can be played for free, Turbine will have an in-game store where players can buy new adventure packs, items and more.

Turbine surprised many earlier this month when they announced plans to turn their subscription-based MMO Dungons and Dragons Online into a free-to-play MMO. This week Turbine announced additional details on their plans for the game, now titled Dungeons & Dragons Online: Eberron Unlimited.

In addition to raising the player level to 20, the new DDO Unlimited will add a new player class, the Favored Soul. The class is described as a cleric but with more weapons abilities than normal spell-based characters. Two new "Adventure Packs" will be added along with changes to the game's combat features and the return of the game's in-game marketplace. As we have reported before Turbine is taking sign-ups to beta test the new D&D Online which will launch in the US later this summer.