A new report from Today’s Gamers International Survey, which collects information about gamers’ online spending, reveals the spending in MMOs in the US and in some of the European countries. According to the report, Americans spent £2.5 billion (appr. $3.8 billion USD) on MMOGs in 2009.

The same report puts British spending to £195 million, well ahead of France and Germany, each with £145 million and £165 million respective.

“Free to play” versus “Pay to play”

The majority of the British MMO players ..read the full article

Free to Play MMORPG Aika Online will be entering Open Beta next week, according to publishers Gala-Net. We have previously held closed beta key giveaways here at The MMO Gamer, but starting March 16th, anybody can play the game.

New and returning Aika fans will be able to access a regular lineup of the exciting PvP events introduced during CB. Invading nations continuously attempt to steal valuable relics from their rivals in 1000 vs. 1000 battles, while weekly Castle Sieges ..read the full article

NBC Universal and Bigpoint announced today that they will be publishing a browser-based MMOG based on the Battlestar Galatica IP. The development will be handled by Norway-based studio Artplant.

Players will be able to choose to play as cylons or humans in a constant struggle to control the universe or just survive its perils. A blend of tactical space combat, exploration, and mission-based gameplay will provide a diverse experience. The dramatic missions will define the game’s overall storyline, enabling the player ..read the full article

Quest Online announced last week that it’s MMOG title Alganon will be removing its subscription fees ad repositioning itself as a free-to-play game with a micro-transaction market place.

QOL engaged Alganon as a Soft Launch in December for the purposes of refining the product and getting in-tune with the industry and player needs. There were two key things to do; refine the game, and review Alganon’s position in the market. QOL held back all marketing during the new year because many ..read the full article

According to Turbine, the now free to play MMORPG Dungeons & Dragons Online: Eberron Unlimited has now surpassed 1 million new players since the game changed its business model to free to play. The game was released in early 2006 and was turned into a free to play game in 2009.

“The launch of DDO Unlimited has been a huge success and has really taken the game to a new level,” said Fernando Paiz, Executive Producer of DDO Unlimited. “As ..read the full article

Turbine, the developers of Lord of the Rings Online, released today the next major content update to its game. Book 1: Oath of the Rangers is now live for all LotRO players.

Introducing Volume III: Allies of the King – The epic story continues with Volume III which will introduce players to new lands, new threats, and new adventures, as the tide of destiny pushes them ever onwards into danger. Book 1: Oath of the Rangers begins in Rivendell, where Elrond ..read the full article

Welcome to the 22nd episode of the Working As Intended podcast!

In this week’s show we’re joined by Gordon Farrell of Reverie World Studios to discuss Dawn of Fantasy, the company’s inaugural MMORTS.

Gordon is Lead Writer on the project, and as story quality (or lack thereof) in the genre is a favorite topic of discussion here at The MMO Gamer, you can bet that we had a lively conversation.

For those wondering about his credentials to pontificate on such topics, when he’s ..read the full article

EverQuest 2’s sixth expansion, Sentinel’s Fate is now released and available for download and at retail stores. This expansion also introduces battleground PvP to the game:

Finally, current EverQuest II subscribers with characters level 80-90 can now participate in the ultimate PVP with the complimentary addition of Battlegrounds. Battlegrounds allows players to engage in the most exciting and intense PvP battle against their friends or foes, regardless of server, and provide thrilling group-based, competitive matches in three all-new zones.

Retail price for ..read the full article

With Aika Online entering Closed Beta 2 today, The MMO Gamer and Gala-Net are proud to present our Aika Online beta key giveaway! Just click below to get your key and then follow the instructions to activate your key to play Aika Online!

1. Go to gpotato.com

2. Login using your gPotato username and password, or create a new account. (if you don’t log in to your gPotato account first, clicking on “Redeem” on the Aika ..read the full article

Yesterday, Funcom revealed Monsters of Maine, a new blog written from the perspective of one of the main characters of The Secret World universe.

Monsters of Maine, a blog run by one of the characters featured in The Secret World, is a part of the latest ARG campaign launched by Funcom. The community spent yesterday picking up clues and following leads, eventually uncovering the blog. The ARG is a follow-up to last month’s ARG that had the community hunt for clues ..read the full article

Heatwave Interactive announced yesterday that they have obtained the IP and core game technology of the Gods & Heroes: Rome Rising MMORPG. The title had previously been in development at the now defunct Perpetual Entertainment studio and was cancelled, or “put on indefinite hold”, in October 2007.

“Heatwave’s philosophy is to identify and develop world class IP, and we believe the project is just that,” said Anthony Castoro, co-founder and CEO, Heatwave Interactive. “With this acquisition Heatwave greatly expands its core ..read the full article

CCP Games have announced the next expansion for EVE Online, titled Tyrannis. This expansion will focus on the planets and make them interactive with players.

That‘s right, you will finally be able to survey for juicy deposits of minerals and other goodies, build infrastructure to harvest them, store them, process them and launch them into space. Build complex networks of facilities and fine tune them for optimal production. All in a very massive single shard sandboxy way as only EVE can ..read the full article

Welcome to the 21st episode of the Working As Intended podcast!

In this week’s show, we largely focus on the declining difficulty of the modern MMO genre (or as many people call it, the ‘dumbing down’) in order to appeal to a wider audience than its original base.

Using STO as a jumping off point for the discussion (sorry, Cryptic, we’re going to stop ranting about your games eventually, we swear), the conversation weaves its way from the Sunwell in World of Warcraft, ..read the full article

Gala-Net announced yesterday that their upcoming free-to-play MMORPG Allods Online has entered open beta, inviting people to go and try the game.

Allods Online is a revolutionary sci-fi fantasy MMORPG developed by Astrum Nival, creators of Heroes of Might & Magic V, with a budget of $12 million and four years in development.  Astrum Nival is owned by Mail.Ru, the leading online gaming publisher in Russia.  Two warring factions, League and Empire, vie for control of allods—islands floating in Astral space.  ..read the full article

Funcom announced today that the 6th update for Age of Conan has hit the live servers. Titled Return of Thoth-Amon, this marks the 6th free update for the game. Among other things this update introduces the guild renown system and new content in the form of Thoth-Amon’s Stronghold.

Update 6: ‘Return of Thoth Amon’ introduces the much anticipated guild renown feature, where any guild on any server can acquire renown points that unlock exclusive rewards. Anything that the members of that ..read the full article

After less than two weeks since its launch, Star Trek Online is starting to release content updates for the game, with the Borg Hub being one of the first.

Previously, the Borg were thought to be severely weakened by the actions the USS Voyager, as fans of the show will remember. But in 2409, the Borg have regained and surpassed much of their old strength, and Episodes in the Borg Update will add more substance to that portion of STO’s story. ..read the full article

Welcome to the 20th episode of the Working As Intended podcast!

In this week’s show we’re joined by Sara Kaplan of Sony Online Entertainment to discuss their Gamers in Real Life (G.I.R.L.) scholarship, currently entering its third year, which aims to get more women working in the gaming industry.

For additional information about the G.I.R.L. scholarship, including deadlines, rules, and application requirements, be sure to pay a visit to the official website: http://www.station.sony.com/girl

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LEGO Group and NetDevil have opened up the game’s beta signups page over at LEGO Universe’s official website.

Welcome to our beta site.

Sign up now for your opportunity to become one of our chosen heroes that must answer the call. Your mission is to test LEGO Universe for bugs, so prepare yourself to strap on your suit of armor and help your friends battle the dark forces of the Maelstrom!

Click here to sign up for the LEGO Universe beta!