"The Weekly Grind" is a new weekly feature for the MMO Life sites, collecting the past week's biggest headlines for the most popular MMOs, free or not. If you want to catch up on what you may have missed in the world of non-free games, this is your chance to do so.

"Neverwinter Nights" Online? - It could happen, and how joyous would it be? Fans of the original "Neverwinter Nights" series, the one made by Bioware and then later Obsidian Entertainment, might be getting an MMO version of the games. However, if this rumor is true, the acting developers would be none other than Cryptic Studios, the guys who brought you "City of Heroes" and the upcoming "Champions Online." We'll just have to wait and see if this rumor is true or not. Cross your fingers!

Updating... - A new month is upon us and that means Final Fantasy XI is ready to see its new July update bring fresh new life into the game. The upcoming version will bring a new slew of "Wings of the Goddess" missions as usual, but players will also be able to look forward to seeing brand new areas of past Vana'diel being made available, more job adjustments, more additions to campaign and Moblin Maze Mongers, and even more that's still being kept secret. So stay tuned!

"DDO" goes F2P - That's right, what seems to be a somewhat strange turn of events, Turbine released information saying that "Dungeons and Dragons Online" will become a free-to-play MMORPG in North America. Has the success of "LotRO" been a major part in "DDO" going free? An interview with Turbine answers questions about the MMORPG changing subscription styles, and what it means to the players who are playing the MMORPG.

Land of the Dead brings changes - With the upcoming launch of the Land of the Dead mini expansion for "Warhammer Online," many gamers are wondering what, exactly, it will provide, and what game changing features will be implemented. To better understand the new system, it's best to compare and contrast the two. Head on over to Massively where they have a guide explaining what is in store for Warhammer players.

Here is another plate full - There is no stopping the Turbine machine when it comes to free content. In yet another batch of free donwloadable content for their MMORPG "Lord of the Rings Online," Turbine blesses us with Book 2.8, "Halls of Mirrors." To check out more on this update here. Make sure to carry a mirror with you, for the shadows hide dreadful creatures and deadly traps.

That's no easy feat - The dedicated players of the Siren server in "Final Fantasy XI" broke a world record when they successfully defended Al Zhabi 2000 times! Yes, that's right, Siren is undefeated when it comes to stopping the hordes of beastmen from tearing the city apart. In fact, out of all of "FFXI's" 32 servers, they are the only undefeated server. Good job guys, keep up the good work!

Good and Evil collide! - They definitely collide on the new box art that was shown for the upcoming superhero MMO "Champions Online." Even though releasing the box art is teasing us gamers even more, we can't wait to get our hands on what seems to be a super fun MMO coming out this Fall.

It grows and grows - Over the last few weeks the casual-friendly free-to-play MMORPG "Free Realms" has exploded in popularity because of its friendly, easy and accessible interface for all ages of gamers. Recently Sony Online Entertainment announced that the game broke the 3 million registered users mark. As with the previous milestones, this one is being celebrated with more exclusive in-game items. The 3M Pet Party Pack will be filled with goodies for use on a character's virtual pets, and players have until June 19th to redeem this special offer.

Playing together is more fun - When Cryptic Studios announced that "Champions Online" will play on very few server shards, many people loved the idea. So many characters battling it out and joining to rid of the enemy can feel great but some had worries. Well Cryptic Studios recently announced that "Champions Online" will also be region free, so people from all over the world can help you in your adventures.

The Isle approaches - Excited about the next big "World of Warcraft" patch? The "Isle of Conquest" will be a new battleground for Horde and Alliance to face off in forty-vs.-forty PvP across different locations offering their own unique challenges and rewards. Each location will have a certain advantage, ranging from Glaive Throwers and Catapults to an airship that allows players to parachute into the enemy keep.

That's it for this week! Be sure to check back next week for yet another helping of the major MMO news in SparkNotes-like form!

Posted by D. Kouvalis
June 15, 2009

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