Spotlight On - Runes of Magic Progress Report

We won't lie to you. It's GDC 2010. There are games like Runes of Magic, a free-to-play, fantasy-themed game with a mysterious resemblance to a world where war is crafted. Currently, Runes of Magic is entering its next phase of content, known as "chapter three," after concluding its long-running second chapter, which is currently culminating with a high-level dungeon housing the ultimate villain of that chapter: a demon lord. Chapter three will introduce a new kind of variable-instance player-versus-player battle called Guild Siege, which is currently being beta tested and will be migrated to the live game soon.

Guild Siege lets guilds do battle with each other to see who really is the best of the best. This new PVP mode allows for up to 300 players at once (150 on either side) in and around the game's guild keeps, which have also been revamped. Expanding your guild housing now has a more strategic element to it because different improvements your guild decides to build within its walls may contribute directly to guild sieges. You'll be faced with choices, such as whether to use your limited space to build farms (which produce resources and make your guild wealthier); stables, which increase the speed of your guildmates and their riding mounts; or a library to research siege-related improvements. You can also make use of the guild throne, which was previously a vanity item but now acts as a vending machine of sorts that will not only produce global bonuses for your guildmates, but will also sell siege-related abilities and spells.

Once a siege begins, it becomes the defending guild's job to repel the attackers, which will be easier said than done. Sieging guilds can commission multi-person mounts for fast travel in chapter three, and more importantly, they can commission multi-person siege vehicles, such as catapults and ballistae, which can be aimed at guild walls (which can't be destroyed, but when sufficiently damaged, can't be fortified with defensive siege catapults of their own). Or the vehicles can be aimed at the front gates, which must be smashed to allow for front entry. (Then again, the attacking guild may also commission sky platforms that can quietly sneak you up and over the fortress walls as well.)

Once a guild keep is sieged, siege structures become activated, such as resource nodes. When these are fully captured by one team, they will fortify themselves with computer-controlled minions to help defend it. Likewise, keep defenders can purchase magical turrets from their guild throne to emplace at key areas to attack any nearby invaders. However, the most crucial part of a guild keep is its guild crystal, which is a giant glowing orb on a pedestal located deep within the keep. Once the crystal is destroyed, that's it--the siege is over. The attackers win and receive various rewards for their successful assault.

In addition, developer Frogster is working with Mothership Interactive, a social networking game company to launch a Facebook version of its game, which will have various crossover functionality with the online game and is scheduled to launch in May.