Warhammer Online strikes gold

Over the weekend, Mythic Entertainment held a large-scale preview play test for its upcoming Warhammer Online: Age of Reckoning, in which closed beta participants and a select number of preorderers were given an advance look at the fantasy-themed massively multiplayer online role-playing game. The player reception was apparently strong, as Mythic today has stamped shippable code gold in advance of the PC game's September 18 launch date.

Warhammer Online will be available at retail for $50, with a $15 subscription fee being assessed following the first 30 days of play. An $80 collector's edition--which featured a pewter miniature, a graphical novel, an art book, and a number of in-game extras--was also briefly available at retail, but Mythic confirmed that the premium limited edition quickly sold out after it was initially announced earlier this year.

The MMOG has been developed as a collaboration between EA-owned Mythic Entertainment and Games Workshop, who created the fantasy universe as a tabletop RPG in the early 1980s. While Games Workshop's original universe features a decidedly macabre aesthetic, the MMOG has been rated T for Teen by the Entertainment Software Rating Board.

Mythic expects to open its servers for stress testing on September 7. Those interested in gaining access to the open beta will be required to preorder the game at participating retailers or through publisher EA's online store. Current closed beta participants will automatically be granted a slot in the open test.

For more on the long-in-the-making MMOG, check out GameSpot's most recent impressions from earlier this month.