The official World of Warcraft website offers details on the upcoming Wrath of the Lich King expansion for the game. There is a new Death Knight gameplay information page, new gameplay features page and new wallpapers among other things.

Noting how successful the game is, Funcom sent out word that the Collector’s Edition of Age of Conan is now completely sold out throughout the world. In fact, in some regions the edition has been sold out for weeks. Additional boxes were made to meet demands, but they were sold out as well.

In addition, Funcom mentions that sales of the standard edition are also impressive, stating that they have shipped around 700,000 copies of the game on day one. As a result of massive interest in the game, the company has ordered additional servers to accommodate the extra players.

“Everyone in Funcom is delighted and humbled with the historical pre-order numbers for Age of Conan. If the information we have is correct, they represent the highest pre-order number for any global launch of an original PC game, ever, including the original World of Warcraft launch,” said Morten Larssen, Funcom’s VP of Sales & Marketing.

However, on the development side there’s a small hitch. The company was forced to ship only the DirectX 9 version of the game, noting that the DirectX 10 version will be released later this year. They believe that the DX10 client wasn’t up to snuff and is taking extra time with it. This is good news for gamers as Funcom has mentioned that it will include even more features in the DX10 version than originally planned.

The DX10 version will premiere at the Leipzig Games Convention this August; it will also be shown off at the NVISION event in California in the same month.

Iron Realms Entertainment has announced that it is working on a MMO called Earth Eternal. The game is being developed by a “spun off division” that is being referred to as a separate company and brand - Sparkplay Media.

As to why a separate company is needed to develop the MMO, Matt Mihaly, CEO of both Sparkplay and Iron Realms, said, “We’re creating a separate company because the aims of Sparkplay are a bit different from Iron Realms. With IRE we’ve tried to create the most expansive, deep text-based MMORPG experiences around, and IRE will continue to do that with new text MMOs and with the near-daily game updates that our fans have become accustomed to.”

A 2008 release for the game is planned. It will be followed by two more games in 2009.

Sierra Online sent out word that a premium upgrade subscription is no longer required to play through Freestyle Street Basketball, a MMO sports game that is now completely free. The game offers 45 levels of basketball action, having players meet up on virtual courts to challenge each other in dynamic pick-up games. It features cutting-edge music, latest fashions and various basketball moves.

Primotech has a story up where they carry word from a “source close to BioWare” that the studio’s next game will be a MMORPG based on the Star Wars: KOTOR universe. The game was originally released back in 2003 and has become a seminal hit.

Their source states that the game is being developed by the company’s Austin studio, which was formed in 2006 and is headed by James Ohlen, whose past credits include the first KOTOR, Neverwinter Nights and the Baldur’s Gate series, all legendary RPGs.

As expected, no other details are currently known about the game.

The open beta for Project Torque, an upcoming MMO racing game, has begun. Aeria Games, the developers, are hosting a $1000 cash contest to celebrate the event. They will choose 32 people from the highest level players from the game next month, having them compete in an all-out battle for the grand prize, which includes the cash, a Philips amBX system, Logitech equipment and more.

The engine behind Crysis is being used to power an upcoming action-strategy MMO, as Seoul-based Reloaded Studios announced that they have licensed CryENGINE 2 from German developer Crytek.

“When we saw the stunning concept visuals and exciting game design ideas they shared with us we immediately knew that what they have planned will be a true next-generation MMORPG, and become the kind of game which will set the visual and game play standards against which future MMO?s will be judged,” said Crytek director Faruk Yerli in the announcement.

Though no information is known about the project, it is the first title for the studio, which was formed last month. It was founded with industry vets from Korean MMO-publisher Webzen along with the creators of MMORPG MU Online.

Parent company of Bethesda Softworks, a major star in the single-player RPG genre, ZeniMax Media has opened a new division focused solely on MMOs. Called ZeniMax Online Studios, the devision will be headed by Matt Firor, a ten-year veteran of Dark Age of Camelot and Warhammer Online: Age of Reckoning developer Mythic Entertainment.

“I am extremely impressed with ZeniMax and Bethesda Softworks management–their development philosophy closely matches my own, with an emphasis on quality, innovation, and craftsmanship,” said Firor.

No details are currently known as to what platforms are being targeted by the newly formed studio. However, in an interview on Bethesda Blog, Firor indicated that he expects the PC to remain the main focus for MMOs by indie developers, implying that ZeniMax Online Studios will be developing mostly for this platform.

The second bit of MMOG news comes from GOA, who today announced that more than 300,000 players have signed up for the Warhammer Online: Age of Reckoning closed beta test, making it one of the most popular MMOG ever. The closed beta test began in June, with the game amassing so many gamers in a little more than a month.

They are still accepting applications for the beta, so if you’re interested to contribute to that number, you’re more than welcome to do so. WAR is set for release during the first quarter of 2008 and will feature revolutionary Realm vs. Realm gameplay.

Ever wonder why MMO players are so… extremist? One such case comes from Brazil, where a gang used a girl to set up a date with the top scorer of online game GunBound, who they then proceeded to threaten with a gun to transfer his online score to them.

Thankfully, police have caught the culprits. As for the score itself, it is on sale on a website for 15,000 reals (approximately US $8,000).

A worldwide preview event for Fury, Auran’s upcoming PvP MMO, is coming up on July 27 and will run up to July 29. The servers will be open for 60 hours from midday Friday July 27 and up to 200,000 login accounts will be issued on a first-come-first-serve basis. You have to visit this link to get your very own beta key for the period.

“After the fantastic press demos last week in LA, and the great feedback we’ve seen from the closed beta testers, we believe it is now time to unleash Fury upon the broader public,” said Harry Miller, Head of Development at Gamecock, the publisher of Fury in North America. “We love indie developers because they innovate, and sometimes the best way for people to discover more about exciting new games is simply to let them experience it first-hand.”

“This Beta Preview Event will allow new players to experience Fury’s unique combat and multiple game types as well as the challenge of mixing and matching more than 400 abilities to create their ‘perfect’ incarnation,” said Adam Carpenter, Fury’s Lead Designer. “In addition, our existing beta players can see the progress we’ve made in the past weeks with improvements to matchmaking, player training and starter ability selections. And of course with all the extra players, there will be shorter wait times and evenly matched battles for everyone.”

In more BioWare news, the company has licensed Perpetual Entertainment’s online technology platform for an upcoming unannounced MMO title.

“We evaluated numerous technology solutions to serve as the service backbone of our first MMO title and feel Perpetual’s online platform is the best fit,” said Gordon Walton, Co-Studio Director of BioWare Austin. “The Perpetual team has years of experience building infrastructure and tools for online games and we are thrilled to be working with them.”

The Pepertual online platform offers modules necessary to deploy and operate any modern online game, as well as a collection of in-game features and services, including player management, billing, load-balancing, community management and more.

Square Enix has announced that it will launch the Final Fantasy XI Starter Pack in Europe and other PAL territories for a low price of £4.99. This Windows-only offering will net players a copy of the game as well as a one-month free trial to the MMORPG.

“We are delighted to have the opportunity to offer FINAL FANTASY XI to a whole new spectrum of gamers at such a competitive price,” said John Yamamoto, President and chief executive officer of Square Enix Ltd., “We are confident that this release, coupled with recent gameplay changes and the forthcoming Wings of the Goddess expansion pack will encourage even more to try what is an exciting and prolific online experience.”

Final Fantasy XI is an MMO based on the famous RPG franchise, enjoying about 500,000 active players on the PC, PS2 and Xbox 360 combined. An upcoming expansion dubbed Wings of the Goddess is slated for release this Winter.

Starting tomorrow, you can enjoy the prerelease bonus pack for Guild Wars: Eye of the North, the first expansion for the free-to-play MMORPG. The bonus pack includes exclusive in-game items and access to the Sneak Peek Weekend set for later this Summer.

The bonus will be available from retailers across North America and Europe as well as the NCSoft store and through the official Guild War online store.

Players who pre-order Guild Wars: Eye of the North will gain access to the Sneak Peek Weekend, August 24-26, 2007, where they will be able to log into the game for a first look at Eye of the North. Players will be able to explore the Far Shiverpeaks region of the world, home of the barbaric Norn. Everything players obtain during the Sneak Peek Weekend, including items, XP, Heroes, and loot, will be permanent and available when the expansion goes live.

The Guild Wars: Eye of the North prerelease bonus pack also comes with exclusive weapons, including the Glacial Blade, the Hourglass Staff, and the Darksteel Longbow. These new weapons are based on the winning designs from the Guild Wars Design-a-Weapon Contest held earlier this year. In addition, the prerelease bonus pack includes a Guild Wars Trilogy Trial DVD that provides access to all three of the Guild Wars campaigns for a special trial promotion lasting 10 hours or 14 days, whichever comes first*.

Eye of the North is set for release on August 31.

Cryptic Studios has announced that they have hired a new Design Writer, John Layman, for working on the Marvel Universe Online, a MMO currently in development for PC and Xbox 360.

Layman is a twelve-year veteran of the comics industry, having worked on prominent series like Marvel Zombies vs. Army of Darkness, House of M: Fantastic Four, Gambit and many others. He has also worked on several games, including Metroid: Hunters (DS) and Marvel Trading Card Game (PSP).

No information on the MMO itself was disclosed.