Gameforge and HEX Entertainment are expanding the beta of the digital TCG HEX: Shards of Fate with the first single-player content. The Frost Ring Arena will have players duelling against various AI opponents as part of an overarching storyline, with newly introduced PvE cards expanding the repertoire of playable effects, spells and troops to over 700.

Breaking the ice
The Frost Ring Arena is divided into four wings, each consisting of four regular opponents and one boss. To guarantee replayability, the adversaries are randomly chosen at each start from a pool of a total 30 normal AIs and 7 bosses. In addition, the duels against the AI opponents differ in their composition from the previously seen PvP bouts, in such that certain creatures make exclusive use of cards of a specific category, for instance, or draw heavily on countermagic.

If a player loses three rounds in the ring, the attempt to run the arena is a failure. Depending on how far the player has managed to progress, they will receive rewards in the form of rare items, cards and gold.

Challenges and new cards
During a tournament in the arena, there’s a certain random element which can crop up to add a little extra flavour. In this case Hogarth, Lord of the Arena, appears in person and lays down a specific challenge to the players, such as to win a duel without taking more than five points of damage. If the player manages to complete a challenge during a duel, they will earn themselves a bonus for the subsequent rounds, such as an extra unit or the ability to continue to the next level despite having already lost three rounds.

The new PvE cards are exclusive to bouts against the AI and differ in the way they work from the regular PvP troops and spells. Certain cards, for instance, earn a higher damage value with each victorious duel. To make it easier to manage decks, the interface now offers additional areas for players to put together their PvE and PvP decks.

A relic of the past
With the release of the Frost Ring Arena, the story surrounding the world of HEX: Shards of Fate enters the focus of events for the first time. The icy theatre is found in the northernmost reaches of the Hyperborean Mountains, an inhospitable, sparsely populated corner of the world of Entrath. After the Hex meteorite impact which rocked civilisation to its very foundations, this once flourishing land faded into obscurity. One thousand years later the renegade Hogarth managed to pin down the exact location of this long forgotten arena, which cast a spell over the curious and inquisitive, and surrounded him with arcane secrets of all kinds. To this very day, the wizard lives in this most hostile place, waiting for someone to challenge him and his minions in the Frost Ring Arena.

For more info, visit http://en.hex.gameforge.com/

Drakensang Online, the award-winning action RPG and MMO, is in the midst of preparing the largest content update in its history. With an already improved game entry, new group finding features and the unfavoured Crystals of Truth removed from the game, Drakensang promises to delight hardcore fans and new players alike.

“We’ve got much more in store for everyone”, says Drakensang Online Producer Jonathan Lindsay. “We’re in the process of making PvP battles even more exciting as we are currently designing a Guild Battle system. For those who are looking for something more than PvP, the content expansion will also encompass substantial upgrades across the whole world of Drakensang Online. In terms of graphics, gameplay, and content, we are beginning a new chapter in Drakensang’s history. We anticipate releasing this groundbreaking update in the summer months. Action RPG and MMO fans are going to be blown away.”

The content expansion comprises of a whole new continent, an increased level cap, a host of new NPCs and monsters plus a wealth of in-game and graphical improvements. The continent will be called Lor’Tac – the World’s Heart. Lor’Tac will lead into a completely new part of Drakensang´s world Dracania, and will appear heavily influenced by Aztec and Polynesian culture. Set in a tropical rain forest, the player will fight in more than 10 new maps against more than a dozen new monsters and encounter two new tribes. The level cap will be increased from 45 to level 50. In addition to this new continent, the skill and talent system will be completely overhauled for all four character classes to allow for a much greater level of customisation in combat.

“Our main goal for the last few months is to improve core gameplay”, says Jonathan Lindsay. “In the past, Crystals of Truth were needed to identify a looted item before being able to equip, but they were rare or expensive to obtain. This monetization feature tended to damage the core game loop of slay, loot, equip. For the last 6 months we’ve been working hard to make it possible to remove the often maligned Crystals from the game and now they are finally gone. We’ve also changed the ‘Essences’ power-up so that it no longer does any damage in PvP, as we felt it was lame to be defeated by someone just because they were using stronger Essences. With these two big changes plus the new group finder function and completely new game entry, there’s never been a better time to try out Drakensang Online.”

The Dwarf character class was previously only available to premium members or players level 35 and up. Now, the Steam Mechanicus is available to all players for free and has also undergone significant improvements. Previous premium feature ‘auto-collect’ of gold and other currencies is now also available for everyone.

“We wanted to make sure that the game was fun to play for free players too, since they are an important part of the community and, in the end, we as a team want to make great games that everyone loves to play”, remarked Lindsay.

Thanks to extensive visual improvements, new character animations and changes to the game’s environment, Drakensang Online has dramatically increased its overall quality level. As part of this, the world of Dracania has become a little darker and more mysterious than before. Hundreds of destroyable objects and numerous NPC’s (Non-Player Characters) have been added to the game, thereby making it possible for players to interact more with the game world. Players seeking action and adventure now have over 900 quests and 90 maps at their fingertips. If that were not enough, there are also events running every month that unlock access to hidden areas of the game world, where especially valuable loot can be found.

For more info, visit http://www.bigpoint.com/drakensang-online/

Triumph Studios, the creators of the Overlord and Age of Wonders series, today reveal the Age of Wonders III:Eternal Lords expansion which will be released along with the new Mac and Linux ports of the game.

Eternal Lords is the major, second expansion for the acclaimed strategy game Age of Wonders III, marking one year of continuous development since its release. With the introduction of the Tigran and Frostling races and the new Necromancer class, players must adapt to a world on the brink of cataclysmic change.  New mechanics such as the Race Governance system, which allows players to tailor the features of each race in their empire to meet their strategic needs, add new layers of depth to empire development and diplomacy.   Embrace forbidden powers and reign for eternity!

Eternal Lords Content Includes:

• The Necromancer Player Class: The Necromancer’s legions march to establish an eternal kingdom, unifying all the world’s races in death.  The Necromancer creates spectacular undead units, such as the Bone Collector, a crablike monstrosity which eats corpses to strengthen itself.  Other units are summoned, such as the Banshee, which invokes despair in the hearts of the living.  The Necromancer’s dark magic allows players to convert towns to cities of the dead, filled obedient Ghoul minions.
• Keeper, Grey Guard and Shadow Born Leader Specializations:  Champions of Good, Neutrality and Evil respectively, these three new specializations deepen the alignment mechanics and provide players of all classes powers to withstand the challenges of the new age. Learn spells to summon mighty Angels, end game units who embody the essence of each alignment.
• Frostling Player Race: Frostlings are a race of humanoids that emerged from the frozen north. Lead by their Ice Queens, they embark on frequent raids in warmer lands. Their seafaring skills, offensive fighting style and frost magic spread fear among the coastline villages they pillage.  Frostings are even more deadly in their home arctic clime, where they build cities carved into the very glaciers they hope will someday grow to cover the earth.
• Tigran Player Race:  These feline humanoids hail from remote desert lands. They worship the sun and track the cycle of day and night; life and death. Their natural curiosity about necromancy and the passing of regal souls into kingdoms of glory in the afterlife inspires them to construct massive tombs. Tigrans are natural sprinters, capable of moving far faster in combat than members of the other races, and are familiar with shape changing magic, allowing their mystics to transform into Dire Panthers.
• Eternal Lords Story Campaign. An epic battle of the forces of creation: fire versus ice, life versus death.  As Arvik, heir to a broken Frostling kingdom, you awaken forbidden necromantic powers to reclaim your realm. You will find unlikely allies, and must choose between your Frostling roots and the full potential of your new found powers.
• Cosmic Happenings:  The dawn of the Eternal Lords has triggered cataclysmic events that can radically shift fortunes. These events occur as the game progresses, disrupting the best laid plans and providing opportunities for cunning players to gain an advantage. Falling Clouds can fill the world with mist, giving shock weakness to machine and armored units and reducing sight range, while the March of the Troll King can cause armies of trolls to rampage across the map.
• Race Governance: Relations are now tracked per race, allowing you to make careful decisions who to make ware with.  Declaring war on an Elven city might give you a quick conquest, but don’t expect your Elven citizens to be happy about it afterwards! As your relations with each race improve, you will be able to earn unique racial perks that boost your armies and economy.
• Unifier Victory Condition. When reaching maximum Governance for a Race, the production of a Unity Beacon is unlocked in cities of that race. Building Unity Beacons for the number of races set in the victory condition, makes you the Great Unifier and wins the game
• A dozen Mysterious Map Locations: Capture the Reef Colony Dwelling, home to horrors of the deep, and discover new treasure sites such as the Lich’s Castle, Temple of the Sands and the Hall of the Forefathers to benefit your empire.
• Plus New Hero Items, Standalone Scenarios and more!  Eternal Lords incorporates feedback from the community and coincides with a free update which includes “Play by Email”, a new asynchronous Multiplayer Mode. In PBEM games, a player takes their turn in their own time and then uploads it to Triumph’s servers. Once it is uploaded, an email is sent to the next player in the game, who may then take their turn. This allows players to play when they like, without needing to set aside a large amount of time with other people to play a game all at once.

New content and features are integrated into the updated Random Map Generator.

Eternal Lords and the Mac and Linux versions of the game are set for a April 14th 2015 release and available via online stores such as Steam and GoG. The expansion will cost EUR/USD 19.99.

KingsRoad, the multiplayer action-RPG from Rumble Entertainment now available on iPad devices and browsers, is cranking up the supernatural in the game’s next in-game event, the Tournament of Sorcery. Journey out of Alderstone to the tower of The Mad Wizard and face his 13 unique challenges. Those who survive will obtain the first-ever War Banner item ever released.

Beginning Tuesday, March 10 and running until Monday, April 6, KingsRoad players can challenge The Mad Wizard using special consumables, including the Fear Potion that summons a rain of arrows to damage enemies and strike fear into their hearts. The Prosperity Potion increases the amount of gold dropped from slain enemies.

KingsRoad also now features item fusion, allowing players to augment stats on their favorite gear by fusing it with other unneeded items. For more info, visit www.rumblegames.com/kingsroad

Artosis, Azubu and HungryApp have teamed up to produce a two day introductory competition of Hearthstone: Heroes of Warcraft through the OTK Hearthstone Invitational Skirmish. Kicking off on Tuesday, March 17 at 5pm PST, the skirmish features some of the best Hearthstone players in the world vying for a $2,500 prize pool in preparation for the 2015 OTK Hearthstone Invitational League later this year.

Over the two day invitational, Hearthstone’s best players will battle it out, including:

• Rdu (@rduhearthstone)
• Firebat (@archon_firebat)
• Amaz (@archonamazhs)
• Ekop (@ekop1337)
• Thijs (@thijshs)
• Kolento (@kolento)
• StrifeCro (@strifecro)
• Tidesoftime (@tidestv)

Check out the trailer for the invitational here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d0yGlNdC-Aw

Azubu and HungryApp are producing the event, which will air on Azubu.tv/Azubu and aims to showcase a mix of personality, unparalleled casting, giveaways, exclusive content, and much more. The skirmish will also be simulcast in Korea (March 18 and 20 at 10am KST on Azubu.tv/HungryAppTV) featuring a cast by Kim Chun Min and Kim Ki Hoon.

“I look at the OTK Invitational as our love letter to the Hearthstone community,” said Artosis. “I have been wanting to make this invitational happen for a long time, and I’m excited to finally launch it with the help of Azubu and HungryApp. With the insane line-up we have brought to the table, we hope that viewers tune in and respond positively to the event, so that we can bring much more Hearthstone content to Azubu.”

Starting on Tuesday, March 17 at 5pm PST, with the second day taking place on Thursday, March 19 at 5pm PST, the two day tournament will roll out in a unique way. A prize pool of $2,500 will be split among the top three players: $1,500 for 1st, $750 for 2nd, and $250 for 3rd, and the rules are as follows:

• 8 man bracket!
• Players are able to submit decks every round!
• The winning deck stays between matches!
• Every game played is a Best of 5!
• The Finals & 3rd place match are Best of 7!

For more information, please visit www.azubu.tv for all the details on the OTK Hearthstone Invitational.

Skyforge, the highly anticipated sci-fi, fantasy MMORPG from Obsidian Entertainment, Allods Team and My.com, is beginning its first closed beta test today, which more than one million players have signed up for. To celebrate the first beta, My.com has released a brand new developer diary that offers a sneak peek on how the challenging raids work in Skyforge.

The closed beta testing began this morning and will last one week, until March 18 at 2am Pacific Time. 

Players still have a chance to sign up for the beta and take part in future betas, or purchase a founder’s pack with guaranteed access to all beta tests: http://sf.my.com/us/founders-packs

For more details on the closed beta testing, please read this article on the official Skyforge website: http://sf.my.com/us/news/announcements/skyforge-closed-beta-client-download-now-available