It looks like Final Fantasy XI, the MMORPG from Square Enix, is getting a new set of achievements on the Xbox 360 platform.  25 new achievements, worth 250 Gamerscore, have appeared on the game’s listing.

Of course, they’re all ”Secret” achievements (something that’s pretty useless for an MMO like this), so the details aren’t known yet.   It’s a safe bet, though, that they relate to the new content available in the Wings of the Goddess expansion.

I think it’s probably safe to assume that two of them are for reaching 75 with  Scholar and Dancer, the two jobs introduced in the Wings of the Goddess expansion.  Another would probably be for completing the WotG missions, and another for reaching the top rank in Campaign.  Most of the achievements are worth 5 Gamerscore — perhaps they represent various minor achievements related to campaign battles?

FFXI is a cross-platform title, available on the PC, PS2 and Xbox 360.  The achievements, of course, only apply to the Xbox version.  Xbox 360 achievements are earned by speaking with a title-setting bard in one of the major cities.

Tomorrow, June 9, there will be an update to the game following some maintenance.  The new achievements may become accessible then.

Editor’s Note: Today’s post comes to us from Andrew, better known on the Galbadia X forums as CarnivalofHorrors. Since I’m not much of an expert in World of Warcraft, he’ll give us a rundown of what to expect from the upcoming expansion, Wrath of the Lich King. Enjoy the post!

As most, if not all, WoW players know, Blizzard is currently working on their second expansion for their coveted World of Warcraft titled Wrath of the Lich King. With Wrath of the Lich King, players are going to be given a whole new area, a new class, and quite a few game changes, including new dungeons, a higher level cap, and a new proffesion!

Stepping onto the new continent, Northrend, will be like taking a step from your front porch into Antarctica — so I hope you packed a couple extra sweaters. Northrend is the Lich King’s domain, and for those of you that don’t know the Lich King lore, go and educate yourself. Filled with new monsters, quests, and new allies for the Horde, Northrend promises to be just as difficult to overcome as the Outlands were, so pack up your tent, fishing pole and some armor and let’s get going!

With the new expansion also comes a new class, the dreaded Death Knight. The Death Knight isn’t new to the Warcraft series, but it does come with some large changes compared to the others. The talent trees for Death Knights come in Blood, Frost, and Unholy. From my understanding, Blood is the ‘raid spec’, dealing damage through instant casts and attacks. Frost is the tank spec, decreasing damage taken and increasing threat generation. Unholy is more of a PvP spec, allowing summoning and disease spells to be cast.

Death Knights don’t use Mana, Energy, or Rage like all other WoW classes. Instead Blizzard created a new “Rune” system which works along the same lines of a warrior’s rage coupled with a reagent called (surprise!) Runes. Runes come in three ‘flavors’: Frost, Blood, and Unholy and you’re able to equip up to 6 of them at a time to use your devastating abilities in combination with your Runic Power (Warrior’s Rage). (Learn more on WoW’s site.)

With the new class and area comes a new profession: inscription. Inscription, again from my understanding, is quite a bit like enchanting. The difference is instead of enchanting a piece of your gear, you enchant a spell to give it bonus effects. I’m not sure what, if any, limitations are presented here, but this proffesion opens a whole new world in both PvP and PvE aspects of the game and allow for players to greater customize their class to better suit themselves.

For the brave and adventurous, which is most likely all of you, feel free to visit The Nexus. This ice filled cavern of creepy crawlys is just what the doctor ordered. The new dungeon includes 3 wings. The Nexus, for levels 71-73; The Oculus, for level 80 characters, and an unnamed raid for level 80’s. Each comes equipped with their own blue dragonkin and mage hunters. So while you’re dodging dragonkin and making your way towards Malygos, be sure to stop and appreciate the wonderful work of the Blizzard developers.

Add in new character customization options, a level cap of 80, a new faction and a slew of new enemies and this sounds like a very promising expansion, indeed. To all you Alliance, best of luck. To the Horde: FOR THE HORDE! /cheer

All information gathered at the Official WotLK/WoW site.

Speaking with Eurogamer.net, some of the senior members of Blizzard’s World of Warcracft team spoke out today about the state of competition in the MMO gaming market.

Earlier this year, analysts and game publishers alike began to complain about the apparent monopoly that Blizzard has on the MMORPG space with WoW.

But Blizzard’s own staff disagrees, saying that newer MMOs, such as Age of Conan and Warhammer Online have a great chance of succeeding alongside World of Warcraft.

J. Allen Brack, producer of the Wrath of the Lich King expansion, wants to see more MMOs make it:

“The worst thing for our industry is for online games to come out and fail. They cost so much money to develop, and it’s so difficult, and it’s such a huge labour of love to launch an online game, for it to fail is sad for everybody.”

Game designer Jeff Kaplan credits WoW’s success to the strong dedication that Blizzard has to quality, and challenges other companies to match it:

“No hard feelings when a game comes out and beats WoW, it’s going to have to be a great game.”

As game developers and publishers continue to make attempts at this risky business, it’s natural to blame the one company that’s had the greatest success in the market — but Blizzard won’t have it. I think publishers are starting to get it, and are working much harder now to come up with original concepts and quality gameplay.

Eidos has begun selling pre-orders of the much-anticipated MMORPG Age of Conan — and they have a special offer for those who pre-order.

If you pre-order Age of Conan, you’ll get a special code that will allow you to enter the game three days early (on May 17 instead of May 20). Players who pre-order will also get a special Amazon Curved Bow item and a hardcover mini-guide to the game.

It’s a nice extra that will help them anticipate the number of players in their game at launch, while giving some bragging rights to those who get in the game early. A head-start in an MMO is never a bad thing!

The game is available for pre-order from Amazon.com, Amazon.ca, Amazon.co.uk, Gamestop, Walmart and other locations.

A new MMO game is coming to a platform near you — and its sounds a lot like an open-world Grand Theft Auto title.

CrimeCraft will be an MMO game from Vogster Entertainment. Powered by Unreal Engine 3, the game will take place in a large city where players can interact with each other and take part in the various facets of the city life.

The game promises strength in character development and in the AI demonstrated by non-player characters. Players will be able to choose their own career paths on both sides of the law, as well as own cars and property and fight over turf in the game’s city.

What’s more, the game will be free to play. We’re assuming the standard charge for purchasing the game will apply, but Vogster says there will be no monthly charges for the game.

The game is due out in less than a year — March 2009 is the anticipated date for release on the Xbox 360, PS3 and PC platforms.

Amazon recently dropped the price of Tabula Rasa down to $9.99. Now, I know this might not be the most outstandingly excellent MMORPG out there, but I’ve definitely gotten over $10 worth out of it. (After your first month, you’ll have to pay monthly fees, of course.) If I recall correctly, I paid $30 (Canadian) for this when Best Buy had it on sale in January. Regular price is $40 U.S.

If you’re not familiar with it, Tabula Rasa is a sci-fi MMO that takes place in a world where humanity has evacuated Earth and is fighting to survive constant attacks from hostile aliens.  The interface and gameplay is very much like World of Warcraft, but with guns and technology replacing swords and magic.

I’m not sure how long this will last, but it’s a great opportunity to snag the game if you’ve been curious about it: Tabula Rasa on Amazon.com. Unfortunately Amazon.ca is still listing it at $30 Canadian.