beta-keys
Latest
Another round of Cities XL closed beta keys to give away
We're pleased to announce yet another round of giveaways for the Cities XL closed beta, but this time it's even easier to get your hands on one! If you remember our previous two giveaways, a comment was needed on the post and a code would be sent to you later in the day or the week. Now, it's as easy as following this link and clicking a button. No comment needed! We have 300 to give away this time, and if the last contests were any indication, these will go quickly.So head on over to our giveaway page to claim your very own code and follow the instructions there to set up an account and get into the beta. If you'd be interested in learning about these giveaways earlier, you can also join our Facebook fan page for exclusive announcements before we put them up on our main site.
BlizzCon 2008 beta codes now being accepted
Our sister site Joystiq pointed out last night to their readers that the BlizzCon 2008 beta codes were now being accepted, and we thought it prudent to pass the news along to you.You can enter the code over at http://www.blizzcon.com/beta and enjoy the satisfaction that you'll get knowing in a few months (or less?) you'll be playing the beta of StarCraft II.The code took me a few others on staff a couple tries to enter. 'B' looks like '8', and 'S' looks like '8'. You'll probably need to try a few different permutations of the code until you get it right. When you enter the right code, you'll get an email 'confirmation' that really just tells you that you've entered the key successfully. You don't have to do anything further. The email is a little oddly worded though, and doesn't look like your typical Blizzard email. So we've posted a copy of it after the break for folks.BlizzCon 2009 is coming up on August 21st and 22nd of this year. We'll be there in force again. Should be a blast!
Upcoming chat with the Fallen Earth devs
There's one thing you really can't deny - the MMO genre has sorely needed some shiny new post-apocalyptic titles for some time now. Thankfully it looks like Fallen Earth's development is proceeding at a solid pace. With any luck we'll be able to jump in and get our post-apocalyptic warfare on before too long. As a way of working with the community to ensure that Fallen Earth is as solid they can possibly make it, the developers from Icarus Studios have been scheduling play-dates with the beta testers, followed by an open chat on Stratics for everyone who is curious - tester and non-tester alike. This month's chat, going on tomorrow at 9:00 PM EDT, should prove to be highly interesting, as not only will there be several developers on hand, but there's been talk of some swag (and beta keys) to be handed out as well! You can get all the details over on the Fallen Earth forums if you're interested in checking out more on this upcoming MMO. [via WarCry]
Global Agenda announces new fansite kit and beta contest
Are you eagerly awaiting Hi-Rez Studios' new spy-fi MMO Global Agenda? Are you so excited by the game that you'd create a fansite about it? Well, let Hi-Rez help you out a bit with a newly announced fansite kit and beta key contest. Simply download their fansite kit, promote it and enter their fansite contest for a chance to win tons of exciting prizes.The top three sites will be chosen and announced on May 8th, 2009. These sites will win everything from exclusive Global Agenda artwork for their site, beta keys for the site's members, links to the fansite from the official GA site and credit towards the GA T-shirt and merchandise shop. This seems like a fantastic opportunity to give yourself and your fansite community a head start into this popular new MMO which is slated for release later this year.
Metaplace offers new round of beta keys
Raph Koster and the Metaplace team are offering yet another round of beta keys for their web-based open platform virtual world. This is a limited use key, according to an announcement on their brand new Facebook page (which you should totally join). Simply visit www.metaplace.com, enter the code "MPWELCOME" into the "redeem your invite key" box, fill out a bit of info about yourself and you're in!If you're not sure what Metaplace is, you can head over to their website, our tag page, or a recent interview we did with Raph for more information. As Raph says on his own blog, "Quick, hurry!"
Get Champions Online swag and beta keys at New York Comic Con
Cryptic Studios will be showing off Champions Online at New York Comic Con (which takes place in February from the 6th to the 8th) and they want you to know that you will be handsomely rewarded if you are able to pay them a visit. Not only will there be new playable demos to explore, but fans will also be treated to swag, and the possibility of beta keys. The beta keys will be awarded to contest winners, but we've got no idea what the contests might be, so you'd best brush up on your feats of strength, eye-laser marksmanship, and flight dexterity, just to be safe. Here are the details for Cryptic Studios at NY Comic Con:Cryptic Meet and Greet: Saturday, 1 p.m. – 2 p.m., Room TBD*Champions Online/Star Trek Online Panel: Saturday 3 p.m. – 4 p.m., Room 1A24 (view never before seen footage of STO)MMO Round Table: Saturday 5:30 p.m. – 6:30 p.m., Room 1A24 *Check in at the Cryptic booth (#1341) for the super-secret room location. Oh, and if you happen to be looking for a job in the games industry, it sounds like Cryptic might have some folks at the show on the lookout for new recruits, so make yourself known!
WoW Moviewatch: Run all the way Gnome
The date on the video says 8/13/08, but we suspect it's actually meant to be September 13th, as that's when, this past weekend, WorldofWar.net did that Gnome race for a few beta keys. And this is a fun documentation of it -- the Gnomes all run from the front steps of Ironforge all the way down south to the Dark Portal, with a little fun bit at the beginning using real marathon audio.Big player-run events like this are always a good time. We wonder if there's some way Blizzard could actually support this stuff with an ingame UI feature -- maybe show distance run or time traveled with an option? But even if they don't, players are creative enough to come up with all kinds of strange fun to have in Azeroth. Whether it's fun races like these or Gurubashi Arena challenges, one of the best things about a social game like this is all of the games players come up with on their own.If you have any suggestions for WoW Moviewatch, you can mail them to us at machinima AT wowinsider DOT com.Previously on Moviewatch ...
PTR forums up, more beta invites going out
As a few of our readers have noted (thanks Nicholas!), the Public Test Realm Forum is back up and running, apparently in anticipation for the impending test cycle of patch 3.0.2, the pre-Wrath content patch set to release in the next few weeks or months. As of this writing, Blizzard hasn't posted anything in there yet, but considering Blizzard apparently likes to break open servers right before the weekend, we could have access to 3.0.2 as soon as tomorrow evening.And more folks are getting into the Wrath beta as well -- we've heard from quite a few people on our tips line, and there's been lots of murmuring on the forums that new beta invites are going out. Looks like Blizzard is ratcheting up testing of the new content in a big way. That doesn't mean that we'll move our expectation of the release date up, as there's still a lot of work to be done on what we've seen in the beta. But if you've been waiting patiently for your chance to check out some of the new content, it could be right around the corner.
Where exactly are those Dell/BlizzCon/WWI keys again?
This one's been flying under our radar for a while, but I'm not sure why -- I happen to be one of the affected. Still, while everyone was spending the past few days worrying about tickets for this year's BlizzCon, a whole other set of folks were worrying about last year's BlizzCon. Specifically, the beta keys they received there. Originally, they were all told by Belfaire that there was going to be a wave of invites after August 1st that included people who'd recieved beta keys from Dell, or for attending BlizzCon '07 or this year's WWI. But now we're almost two weeks past that date, and we (I was one of the folks who entered a key from BlizzCon '07) haven't seen any beta keys at all yet.Last Thursday, about a week ago, Belfaire acknowledged there was a problem on the forums, and asked people to enter their names if they'd input their beta keys and hadn't recieved a beta email (here's the BlizzCon thread, and here's the Dell thread). But there's been no answer since then, and I certainly haven't recieved a key at all. In fact, we've heard from people who got invited to the beta through the random opt-ins, which means these keys we paid for haven't done thing number one for us.To tell the truth, I'm not that concerned about it -- I really enjoy seeing new content on the live realms rather than on the beta or test server, and there's certainly enough Wrath beta news coming through here on WoW Insider about the beta to keep me satisfied. But the beta is only going on for so long, and every day that passes without invites sent to Blizzard's biggest fans (the ones who've spent money on the Dell deal and attended Blizzard's invites) is more of the beta key wasted. I doubt we'll be able to use them again, so it's a shame Blizzard hasn't let us use them yet.Thanks to everyone who sent this in!
Wrath of the Lich King beta keys sold on eBay for big bucks
If you you're not in the beta test for World of Warcraft's Wrath of the Lich King expansion, there's another way besides trying your luck by opting in at the website. Well, there's another way if you're filthy rich.Blizzard handed out WotLK beta keys at Blizzcon and the Worldwide Invitational, and unlike the opt-in keys, they're not tied to any particular account. That means that anyone who has the slip can register and use them to participate in the beta. Enterprising individuals who acquired those keys are now selling them on eBay for outrageous sums of money. Eurogamer reports that the UK record so far is GBP 513, or more than 1,000 US dollars.Right now, you can buy one for $400 on the US eBay store. It's true, you don't have to be filthy rich to have 400 bucks on hand, but we figure you'd have to be pretty close to filthy rich to actually spend said money on such a fleeting and empty joy. It's a beta, after all; it probably doesn't even work!
Breakfast Topic: Planning for the beta
It can't be too long now -- people are getting let in the Wrath beta from BlizzCon last year, and everyone's opt-in registrations are in, so it's only a matter of time before the invites go out and the floodgates open. And when they do: what's your plan?Are you going to step right into a Death Knight first to see how the new Hero class works? Which of the classes has got you most interested in trying new things? I'm excited to see all the Shaman changes, and I've got a Shammy waiting at 70, so that's probably what I'll do first. As for the Death Knight, I kind of want to see that stuff on the live realms, though by the time the beta ends, the call of a new class may be too much for me to ignore.What's up first for you when you log into the beta realms?
Where in the wiki is Mitra?
The fine folks over at AoCWiki have noticed that the Hyborean god Mitra has gone missing, and need our help to find him. The strange bit is: he's lost somewhere in the Wiki! So, to help recover him, readers are being solicited to go through the Wiki and follow a series of clues that will reveal the location of the missing god. Do it for the Hyboreans, whose prayers to Mitra have gone unanswered! Or, simply do it for these flash prizes: Five (5) Age of Conan Beta keys Five (5) Age of Conan 3-month pre-paid game cards And, of course, the respect and admiration of your peers. Unless, of course, you beat them to the win, in which case, watch for arrows in your back. The rules and full details of this contest are available on the referring page. This contest has begun, and continues until April 21st. Put on your sleuthing helmets, warriors, and help find Mitra! Personally, we think it's Crom's fault.
Reminder: Post a comment on WoW Insider's Dell notebook giveaway
It's Wednesday, and that means there's only three chances left to put a comment on our sister blog WoW Insider's ginormous Dell notebook giveaway. Yes, the contest ends on Friday, and you can enter once per day, so today, tomorrow and Friday are your last chances to enter to win not only the swank Dell notebook (you get to choose either the Alliance or the Horde version above, not both), but all of the WoW-related swag that comes with it, including the collector's edition pets, a FigurePrints figure, and even five beta keys to upcoming Blizzard games. That's big time.To enter, go over to the WoW Insider post, and just put a comment (you've got to be 18 and a US resident, thanks lawyers). Remember that posting a comment on this Massively post will not enter you in the contest (but it should make you feel all warm and fuzzy inside, if our new commenting system is working the way it's supposed to). So go post a comment on WoW Insider, and then come back here and read about all MMOs. Sure, WoW is super popular, but we here at Massively know you want to read about lesser known MMOs, too.
Everquest I and II expansion beta key giveaways!
What, 24 hours of Tabula Rasa schwag isn't enough for you people? Fifteen days of action-packed sweepstakes not keeping you satisfied? Fine, then -- we'll have to resort to giving out some beta keys to you greedy mofos. Check back later this morning for chances to win 10 EverQuest: Secrets of Faydwer beta keys and 15 EQ2: Rise of Kunark beta keys courtesy of the lovely folks at SOE. See you soon!
