Free Realms ~ Meet Cakenstein

Cakenstein! What is it? Cake? Monster? A cakemonster? No one knows for sure. What we do know is that Cakenstein is the result of a strange baking accident in the kitchen of Glerga, a famous Robgoblin chef.

It seems Glerga decided to add Mystery Meat to the recipe in order to win the big bake-off. She baked seven cakes using Mystery Meat and now Cakenstein is appearing everywhere one of these cakes was sent.

Cakenstein is drawn to the special cakes and will fight anyone who gets in the way. He even has smaller Cakelings to help him.

If one of the Cakelings gets some cake back to Cakenstein he becomes invulnerable for a short time!

You never know when Cakenstein will show up. When he does, arm yourself with fireworks to fight him and his Cakelings away!

Thanks you for viewing my Blog, and check back daily for updates on Free Realms and Everquest.

Free Realms - TCG - Blacksmiths

In keeping with our Free Realms TCG Stradegy posting yesterday, I bring you another post on a specific type of deck, the cards in it, and what to look for when building a deck (avg gem flip).

Blacksmiths are cool. Sure, they're not a combat job, but would you like a weapon custom built just for you? See your local Blacksmith.

This deck builds on the awesome coolness of the Blacksmith job and includes Sanctuary celebrities like Nirvi and Poe Tatters.

I always try to get the highest average gem flip with my Machine decks, and this one is no exception -- at 2.9 it's pretty good. You might notice that there are no 2-cost creatures included. When you're in search of high flips, you want to use as few 1-gem creatures as possible. The "skip 2's" philosophy says, "I can always play two 1-cost's on turn 2, so what's the big deal?"

How did that Kart Driver get into my Blacksmith deck? Well, the problem is, that card is just too good to sit in my collection. It keeps screaming out at full speed and ending up in my deck anyway.
You'll also find the amazing trick Breakthrough in this deck. What trick has a better effect than "score a card"? I can't think of one. You'll be cool when you play this on defense to win the game!

Smiths 'R' Us Deck

Creatures:
3 x Armorsmith
3 x Assistant Smith
3 x Smoky Blacksmith
3 x Weaponsmith
3 x Kart Driver
2 x Nirvi
2 x Poe Tatters

Resources:
3 x Discovery
3 x From the Trash Bin
3 x Under the Hood

Tricks:
3 x Hammer Strike
3 x Spring Forward
3 x Squeaky Wheel
3 x Breakthrough





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Free Realms Item Codes

Today over at FreeRealmsInsider they posted new directions to receive by email a Free Realms item code to claim on your account in the Station Store. Basically you go to the website HardCoreGamer and enter in some contact info and they will email you an exclusive in game item code.


Every code will be for a 1 time use and is for the same item, but different codes for each person who signs up.

Basically, it is a way for them to capture your email address and add you to a newsletter mailing list, which, I imagine, you can then opt out of once you receive it.

The item you receive is the Hot-To-Trot-Tots which make your feet on fire!! Pretty cool!!




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Free Realms Dungeon Maps !!

Free Realms is huge vast world in which one can get lost of they do not know where everything is. I came across a few maps that were posted online by Tara aka. Lady P. They are maps of where dungeons and trainers are located. Click the maps below to see the larger version.
The top on is of all the trainers in the world, and the bottom map is of all the dungeons.

Enjoy...

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Free Realms re-cap

It's a slow day for news in Free Realms, so I will just do a recap of what we can expect coming...


Let's see, tonight we have a 90 min patch with no notes as to what it will be updating.

In July we have the racing jobs being finally implemented so we can reach level 20.
Along with that patch in July, we may see the prestige classes going in to progress our current jobs that are maxed out.
August is slated to see new jobs such as the soccer profession and pro-driver which will unlock new racing tracks and cars.
At some unknown point (fall perhaps?) we will see the game ported to PS3 .
And finally houses, garages to work on your car, and guilds are being implemented in the near future as well.

Wow, thats alot of stuff in the works for the next few months. And this is just the stuff that we know of. I imagine there are also some unannounced goodies we can expect as well.
Whether you like this game or not, we can all agree that SOE is definately pouring alot of resources into Free Realms, which is a good thing, as it is progressing the genre we so know and love.
I think that this experiment with F2P and mini-transactions is a good one to 'test' the waters to see how successful it can be vs. the subscription based model. The only thing that is worrying me, and I'm waiting to see how it plays out, is the temptation to put the powerful items and gear in the mini-transaction catagory. This could seriously undermine the integrity of the game as any shmoe with some extra $$ can purchase their way to uber.






And now, because of the lack of news and because The SOE Fan Faire is coming in July, I thought I'd post a nice comparison of the live EQ Firona Vie and the painted one on the box art.



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Free Realms E3 Update

This years E3 has seen alot of new games and announcements from major players in the gaming market. However, not too much has come out regarding Free Realms except a few snippets of info that we mostly already knew of, but was essentially reconfirmed. Which I guess is better then nothing. So without further ado, I bring you a compilation of the things we can expect to be seeing changed in the near future of our beloved game :)

*Soccer - Finally all those soccer fields will be used when this new job is implemented instead of being the empty pixels that they currently are.
*New Job Progression - Most games today go the route of new levels and AA's to keep players interested in logging in and grinding. I'm sure this is not out of Free Realms future. But for now, instead of getting higher levels for the current jobs we have, we get more jobs to level up to the current levels we have.
*Racing Beyond LV 1 :) - I'm glad to see this is going in as currently racing is fun, but without progression, it's pointless.
*Player Housing - I guess it's ok. But for me is just fluff unless they add something really really cool, like a Monopoly game where I can win other people houses, rent them out, make tons of cash, and open a Resort casino on an island :) The Landlord profession anyone?
*PS3 Compatibility - Cross server compatible is always a good thing for a game that is growing in leaps and bounds. And I think certain jobs would be perfect for the PS3. (word on the street is possibly this fall)
*Login Page Notes - I was always a huge fan of login page notes. I guess this goes back to my EQ days. Now if they just add server population back again :)

Also, we need some more FREE Codes !! It's been like forever since a free code has been found.

And for your reading enjoyment I found a booklet that Sony put out back in April regarding gaming and how it is beneficial for kids to play video games. Also there are some very very interesting facts in it. Example, video gaming is an 18 billion dollar bussiness. That's right BILLION !!
(also it has a picture of Smed at the end)

http://www.soe.com/docs/LTKG_Booklet.pdf

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Free Realms : The Dares : Guinness Book

With the concert at E3 and in the Free Realms game at Snowhill on all servers, The Dares and Sony Free Realms enter into the Guinness Book of World Records for the first ever simultaneous live and real world concert. (I think this has been done before in Second Life.) But, none-the-less, they are now in the Guinness. Cheers !! Here is a photo and some of the videos I promised yesterday of the performance both in game and live on the floor at E3.









I must say, these boys have to be psyched! Word has it they are huge fans of EQII and to be able to have their song as the theme to Free Realms and then being invited to play at E3? WOW !! And on such a huge stage (virtually) with all the press it has received? I know I would be on top of the world if I were them. Congrats to The Dares !! They deserve it 100%!

Thanks you for viewing my Blog, and check back daily for updates on Free Realms and Everquest.

Free Realms hosts The Dares Concert

So I went to the concert in Free realms that was supposed to be a live stream of the The Dares performing It's Your world. Instead what we got was a pre recorded animation of the dares performing to their MP3. The first time they came on stage the song ended half way through, then 15 min later they came back on and the full song played fine. I guess Sony made it seem like it was supposed to be a LIVE stream of the song The Dares were performing. Not a pre recorded MP3 of the song.

As posted on Sony's site:
Rock out with The Dares and experience the music of Free Realms in a live streaming concert on the …

So, as expected alot of folks were pissed and started to spam chat bubbles BIG time. That kind of sucked, but hey, when ya get 100's of people online in a space like this and then don't deliver, I guess you can expect that. And, on the Sony Forums people are pretty pised off. And rightfully so. Anyways, here are some of the screens I took and I'll have a video to upload of it all later as well...




And with this huge turn out as seen in the images above, The Dares set a guinness record for the most online for a concert?? Honestly I'm not sure what the actual record is, but they got one :)



Pictures taken by Hammerfel from Twitter @ E3

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Free Realms observations

Free Realms is immensely popular right now. The numbers show the popularity is among younger players, but I know a few of us older gamers are logging in and enjoying it. Sort of. The Free aspect is great. I haven't paid a dime yet and still am enjoying the game. With the huge world and tons of quests I'm not finding the time to do everything I want, which is good. Very good. This equates to alot of content for free that the player base can explore in. But, the content gets stale very very quickly. The only really fun thing to do in the game is play the card game, race, and explore the world. Which is fine for a little while, but then it leaves you wanting more...
The fighting is very very redundant due to all the instances being cookie cutters of one another. More variety please. The mining and cooking puzzle games make my eyes bleed after about 5 mins of them. There are soo many more options they could implement in this area. Off the top of my head, a tetrus type game, old school space invaders type games, pac man type games. With the success of old school games, people would eat this up.
So, Im very excited about Free Realms reaching 2 mil. but if they want to keep them for more then 30 days, I think they need to implement more types of these mini games besides the connect 4 puzzles, add variety to the fighting instances, and make the item GUI more intuitive.

That's my rant for today, feel free to comment - agree/disagree...






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Free Realms hits the 2 Mil Mark !!

Free Realms has hit the 2 Million mark !!
Of those users, 75% are under the age of 17, 46% under 13 and 1/3 are female gamers.
“In less than a month, Free Realms has captivated a core player base of tween and teen gamers, while also strongly resonating with MMO gamers,” said SOE president John Smedley.
“We wanted to create a game to play with our families and are excited to have hit the mark with our intended audience.”

In honor of this milestone, all current players will receive a “party pack” bundle of in-game items to help celebrate! The packs will be rolled out in stages over the next two weeks."

So with this announcement I'll bring you a report posted about some nice shortcuts and key commands you can use in Free Realms. Also it has the paths of where the Screen Shots you take are stored.

Here are some more useful keyboard commands to use:

Esc - Opens Game options and exit the game
F10 - Hides the graphical user interface
F12 - Screenshot
C - Opens the Jobs and Equipment window
I - Opens the inventory window
J - Opens the Job selection window
M - Brings up the Game Map
Num Lock - Autorun (really useful for traveling long distances!)
P - Opens the Pet Window
Spacebar - Jump!

Tab - Targets the nearest enemy in combat. Only works on enemies while in a combat instance -it does not select non-player characters (”NPC’s”) or other players
If you hit the Enter/Return key, the Dialogue.Chat window comes up - this is for things you want to speak to others in the game. Like IM, you may decide to say it out loud to a whole channel or privately message someone, or just speak to a group you have created or joined. In order to do this, add a slash ” / ” before what you want to say in text:
/tell This sends a private message or “whisper” only to another specific player. To use this command type /tell then the full player’s name in quotation marks./g or /group Sends a sends a message only to people in your group.

You can take screen shots while playing Free Realms with the following keys:

First remove the user interface so you only see the scenery (optional of course):Clearing the Interface: F10
Taking the Screenshot: F12
Your screenshots are stored in the following locations on your computer:
Windows XP:C:\Program Files\Sony Online Entertainment\Installed Games\Free Realms\ImageCaptureOutput\
Windows Vista:C:\Users\{your account name}\AppData\LocalLow\Sony Online Entertainment\Installed Games\Free Realms\ImageCaptureOutput\







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Free Realms Party ~ Brenlo and Pex Picts :)

Friday May 15th, 2009 at 8pm EST was the 1 mil. subscriber party. I jumped in and danced with Pex, Brenlo, and some others and took a lot of pictures. They had a boombox blaring some tunes and everyone was dancing and having FUN !!


One all servers the party was in Snowhill under the large Xmas Tree. I logged into multiple servers and they were all packed. I must say, Sony has really made this game alot of fun by going the extra mile for the community. Throwing parties like this really shows they are caring about this game and the players. For now .... hehe.

Here are some pictures I took of the party and Brenlo in his spiffy outfit...



The hotdog outfit is defiantely groovy. I want one !!




And here are some more pictures on Server 3 of the all the players dancing with Brenlo and Pex.







And here is a cool video of the party shot by a player...

Thanks you for viewing my Blog, and check back daily for updates on Free Realms and Everquest.

Free Realms Patch Notes

Here is the patch update from last night.


We are planning a game update tonight starting tonight at 11:30pm PDT. The servers will be unavailable for approximately one and a half hours.
There’s a lot of good stuff in tonight’s update. Here are a few of the highlights:

* Members will now have an increased chance of encountering rich mining nodes
* Member potions and spheres are once again being distributed in-game
* The Marketplace now has a Members Only category
* There are several new items in the Marketplace
* The Briarwood warpstone is once again active
* A pet adoption center has been setup in Blackspore
* Base Ninja health has been increased across all ranks
* Contract: Life and Death Magic and Contract: That'll Teach 'Em are now repeatable quests
* The Changelings in Darvon's Descent are no longer able to keep the artifacts they stole from showing up on the minimap. Players on the quest Stolen Artifacts should have an easier time locating them now.
* The quests “I Love Mushrooms” and “A Thorny Situation” can now be completed
* At the end of a kart race, Portraits, Total Time and Placement now appear properly
* The quest path will now properly update when selecting quests in your Quest Journal
* The lightning bolt bomb powerup is much more zappy than before! It will now blow up enemies from greater distances!
* Quickchat is now available from the Friends list
* Players will now be removed from the acquaintance list once they are added to the Friends list

In addition to the highlights, we’ve stomped out a lot of bugs submitted by our players. Thanks a lot for your help!

Also, posted over at FreeRealmsInsider is that in addition to Blockbuster having Free starter cards, also Best Buy is offering them too. They are the ones that are selling for .99 cents and are only valid with NEW Accounts. Can not be used with an existing account.



It contains 30 day free membership, 250 Station Cash, and 1 Free Magical Potion.
A $7.50 Value for FREE !! Not too shabby.
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Free Realms Gold & Hunting Guide

Posted on the Free Realms Message Boards is a nice hunting and gold making guide. It consists of going to find a troll mob and killing him over and over again.

Here are the step-by-step details ...

1) Teleport to Lakeshore
2) Turn to face the farm and tree
3) Head between the tree and rock (to the left of the farm)
4) Jump off the cliff
5) Cross the river
6) Look for a big troll named Brugo
7) Battle him and he will usually drop an item worth 500-1200 coins!

Thanks you for viewing my Blog, and check back daily for updates on Free Realms and Everquest.

Free Realms TCG Updates

The Free Realms CCG is being now sold at a variety of different retail stores. Target, Blockbuster, Best Buy, Rite Aid, Toys-R-Us, and 7-Eleven.



TCG - "Target Exclusive" Special Value Pack - $1.99.
It includes 3 game cards, 1 virtual reward card, 50 Station Cash, and a $2 coupon for the Starter Pack.

You can purchase the Value Pack first, remove the $2.00 coupon, and buy the Starter Deck for $7.99 ($9.99 - $2.00 coupon)

TCG - Passport to Free Realms Starter Pack - $9.99.
Includes 40 game cards, starter guide with playmat, 1 month free membership, exclusive virtual black lab dog, exclusive virtual card player t-shirt, 3 jumbo health potions, and a raceway speed boost.

So for a total of $9.98 you get the 2 purchases.
Target Exclusive Pack and the Starter Deck.
43 game cards, 1 virtual reward card, 50 station cash, 1 month Free membership, exclusive virtual black lap dog, exclusive in game virtual card for a T-Shirt, 3 Jumbo health Potions, and the raceway speed boost.

Not too shabby.

Also they are selling starter these other items…
Starter Card - $0.99
"New Accounts Only" - includes 30 day membership, 250 Station Cash, and 1 magical potion.
1000 Station Cash Card - $10.00
Includes an exclusive red pirate hat for your in-game dog.

The Free month is only for new accounts...NEW Accounts only.
Othewise, I would go buy 12 of them for .99 ea. and keep using it on my account for a free year for only 12 bucks. Sony isn't that stupid.

Also, Best Buy has the Free Realms TCG 11 card-pack for 3.99.

Add to the fun of your Free Realms gameplay experience with this expansion pack of cards for the Free Realms trading card game. Each pack contains 10 game cards plus an online item card to help you expand your fun in online gameplay. The 11-card pack also includes 50 Station Cash for added excitement.

Product Features:
For use with the Free Realms trading card game.
Includes 11 cards that can be used to play the online card game.
Add to your collection with 10 game cards and one online item card.
Also includes 50 Station Cash

Be sure to visit again for more News, Info, and updates for all things Free Realms.

Free Realms Codes

Here are some more Free Realms codes to redeem either on the login screen or the redeem-a-code in game.


6TNBTGH - Charcoal Bermuda Shorts
ROSESFORMOM -- Mother's Day Bouquet - Available only until May 17th.

To claim your items redeemed, click on the Station Cash button in-game and choose "claim" next to each item.

Enjoy the free items and be sure to check back here for more codes and news for Free Realms!!

Free Realms Observations

http://terranova.blogs.com/terra_nova/2009/04/free-realms.html

A few more observations, after having clocked up a few more hours playing time:
1. The trading card game provides the PvP element. This is a pretty clever design decision, as it will hopefully not be as prone to griefing as traditional PvP. (e.g. both parties have to agree that want to play the card game against each other).
2. My initial dissatisfaction with the quests was partly due to them being too easy for an experienced MMO player - it gets better once you've moved on to the harder ones. The stories are still lame, but the game play gets more interesting. (Starting players off with really easy quests is clearly the right thing to do, though).
3. The items you can buy on the official RMT market are an interesting combination of things that just look cool and have no in-game advantage (e.g. avatar clothing) and things that give a real advantage. This must be one of the hardest aspect of the game to get right - if they overdo it, the leaderboards will just be the people who are willing to spend the most money.
4. The Ninja magic swords you can get on the RMT market look incredibly like vibrators. The manufacturers of sex toys and virtual magic swords are presumably trying to achieve a similar kind of phallic appearance, but rarely has it been this blatant.You can get a glowing one, too.

Free Realms Trading Card Game in Stores This Week

http://pc.ign.com/articles/979/979221p1.html

May 4, 2009 - DENVER, COLO. - Sony Online Entertainment LLC (SOE) and The Topps Company Inc. (Topps) today announced that the highly anticipated Free Realms Trading Card Game hits stores this week. Developed at SOE's Denver studio in close collaboration with Topps, it integrates a trading card game format with the exciting online world of Free Realms, featuring more than 180 game cards as well as more than 50 virtual reward cards redeemable for exciting items in the online game. "Free Realms is poised to be a tremendous success for us," said John Smedley, president of SOE. "Now, we're taking the next step and putting the trading card game in stores nationwide. This week, you'll be able to walk into many of your neighborhood retail stores and pick up one of the best trading card games I've ever played." As Topps continues to explore fun and interactive ways for their young consumers to get involved, Free Realms becomes the latest in a roster that includes Topps Town, Topps 3-D Live, and BabyBottlePop.com, which link physical products to innovative online entertainment destinations. Michael Eisner, whose Tornante Company and Madison Dearborn Partners, LLC. acquired The Topps Company, Inc., in October 2007, said, "It's been exciting working with Sony Online Entertainment on this endeavor, which has resulted in the development of a multiplatform product that is likely to spark the imaginations of trading card game fans everywhere." The physical Free Realms Trading Card Game features: More than 180 Cards – The premier release of the Free Realms Trading Card Game features more than 180 cards, as well as 50 exclusive virtual reward cards not found anywhere else, and 16 physical exclusive cards with codes that unlock the equivalent card in the online game. Exciting Gameplay – Developed by SOE's Denver studio, the minds behind Legends of Norrath, the Free Realms Trading Card Game brings the lively and colorful world of Free Realms to the familiar and fun format of the trading card game. Virtual Rewards In Every Pack – Every Free Realms Trading Card Game pack features a virtual reward card redeemable for fantastic items inside the world of Free Realms, such as exclusive pets like the Toyger, the tiger-striped housecat, cool virtual clothing like the Rocker outfit, pet clothing, special character effects, and more. The Free Realms Trading Card Game arrives in stores this week and is available in two formats. New players can pick up the Passport to Free Realms Starter Pack for $9.99 USD (plus applicable taxes). The Starter Pack features a 40-card starter deck, one full color playmat with rules, and a virtual reward card redeemable in the Free Realms online game for an exclusive virtual Black Labrador dog, an exclusive card player T-shirt for your character, three jumbo health potions, an exclusive virtual Cardie Racer and a one-month membership with full access to Free Realms (a $4.99 USD value). Players looking to enhance their existing decks can purchase the $3.99 USD (plus applicable taxes) booster pack, featuring 10 game cards, one virtual reward card that can be redeemed for an exclusive in-game item, and 50 Station Cash, the virtual currency for the Free Realms online game. For more information, visit the official Free Realms Trading Card Game site at http://www.freerealms.com/tradingcardgame. About Free Realms Free Realms allows you to do what you want to do, when you want to do it, in a lush, living, 3D world, filled with rich landscapes and fun wildlife. Play as a ninja one minute or be a chef the next! From pet raising to mini-games like kart racing, or battling giant spiders and adventuring with friends – there's something for everyone! With scheduled content updates and special events planned there is always something new to see and do in the world of Free Realms. Visit http://www.freerealms.com/ for more information. About Sony Online Entertainment Sony Online Entertainment LLC (SOE) is a recognized worldwide leader in massively multiplayer online games, with hundreds of thousands of subscribers around the globe. SOE creates, develops and provides compelling entertainment for the personal computer, online, game console and wireless markets. Known for its blockbuster franchises and hit titles including EverQuest, EverQuest II, Champions of Norrath, Untold Legends, and PlanetSide, as well as for developing Star Wars Galaxies, SOE continues to redefine the business of online gaming and the creation of active player communities while introducing new genres on various entertainment platforms. Headquartered in San Diego, CA, with additional development studios in Austin, TX; Seattle, WA; Denver, CO; Tucson, AZ and Taiwan, SOE has an array of cutting-edge games in development. About The Topps Company, Inc. Founded in 1938, Topps (www.topps.com) is a leading creator and marketer of sports and related cards, entertainment products, and distinctive confectionery. Topps entertainment products include Major League Baseball, NFL, NBA and other trading cards, sticker album collections, and collectible games. The company's confectionery brands include "Bazooka" bubble gum, "Ring Pop," "Push Pop," "Baby Bottle Pop," and "Juicy Drop Pop" lollipops. In June 2008, Topps unveiled Topps Town (www.toppstown.com), the first online virtual sports community for kids, bringing together the popularity of trading cards with the exploding world of web-based social networking.

http://www.freerealms.com/

Sony's Free Realms

From our friend Wikipedia.com
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Free_Realms

Free Realms is a Massively Multiplayer Online Role-Playing Game (MMORPG) developed by Sony Online Entertainment (SOE) set in a humorous, kid-friendly, fantasy-themed world[1] for the PC and PlayStation 3. The game was released on April 29, 2009 for the PC.[2] The PS3 version still doesn't have an official release date currently.[3]
The game is available to play and download free of charge. The PC version is accessed via the web. During character creation, a 3D client downloads in the background and then streams as the user plays, which eliminates the need for a large download. The PlayStation 3 version will be accessed via the PlayStation Network.[4]
Free Realms offers an optional subscription for a single player, costing $4.99 per month for a single account, allowing for 3 characters to be created per account plus other benefits.[5] Only one character can be played simultaneously [6] but in the future, a "family" subscription will be offered allowing multiple logins at the same time.[7] Also, micro-transactions will be available for players who are interested in purchasing in-game items for their characters. Unlike typical MMOs, combat is completely optional and the focus, instead, is spread across a variety of gameplay mechanics – exploration, combat, building, housing, pet-raising, mini-games and social networking – to ensure its appeal to a variety of audiences.
Players are able to choose from classes such as adventurer, ninja, postman, medic, blacksmith, miner, warrior, archer, treasure hunter, wizard, kart driver, chef, brawler, card duelist, explorer and switch on the fly without creating a new character. The game limits barriers to entry and encourages social gameplay where, regardless of level or class, players will be able to interact, join forces and play together.[8]
Due to the social networking nature of the game, players are able to send links, share images and videos, and chat with friends from their own, personal, customizable social networking page, which is all optional for parents that want to restrict their child’s access to user generated content.