Rift registrations top 1 million

On March 1, Trion Worlds will launch the first of its three announced online efforts, Rift, and thus far, the game seems to have generated significant interest. This week, the online gaming company announced that more than 1 million people have created accounts through its website. Among other perks, registration served as an opt-in to participate in Rift's beta-testing phase.

The milestone comes with Rift's launch date quickly approaching. The fantasy-based massively multiplayer online role-playing game will be available for the PC on March 1 in North America, while the European and UK release dates will follow on March 3 and March 4, respectively. Those who preordered the title were able to enter one of the game's 33 Head Start servers starting yesterday.

As its title might suggest, the game's premise is that "rifts" in space-time are playing havoc with the land of Telara and threatening to tear the fabric of the universe. Trion noted that the world will be highly malleable, as these rifts can be triggered by players or the development team, and they can also occur spontaneously. Their arrival will alter the landscape, as well as open up new areas for exploration.

Rift is available in three different configurations: Standard ($50), Digital Collector's Edition ($60), and Retail Collector's Edition ($80). The game also carries a $15 monthly subscription charge, with the first month being included in the game's purchase price. Trion is offering promotional $10-a-month pricing for those who make a six-month commitment as part of the "Founder's Pricing" plan, which will be available through March 15.

For more information, check out GameSpot's previous coverage of Rift.