It's that time of year again -- Thanksgiving is tomorrow and all things turkey related have invaded the MMO world: hunting turkeys, eating turkeys, exchanging turkey parts for rewards, wielding turkey weapons, and even wearing turkeys on your head. Sending yourself into a tryptophan coma isn't the only thing to do, though. You'll find some non-turkey related PvP here and there, opportunities to spread Thanksgiving blessings, and even some new content. And of course, Thanksgiving bonuses, treats, and souvenirs are everywhere. Follow along after the jump for a look at what's going on for Thanksgiving.

IGG Inc., source of several free-to-play games, is gearing up for the alpha test of its upcoming browser-based RTS/RPG game Heroes of Bestia, and it's giving fans a chance to take part in the alpha. Certainly sounds exciting... but that reaction might cool a bit when it becomes clear that in order to get in on said alpha test, they want you to spam forums. The alpha test officially begins on October 26th, and in order to receive a pass into the game, "all you have to do is simply post a thread in another forum (except the IGG forums)." Make three posts, and you get your access.

To be fair, the offer specifically states that any posts violating the rules of the forum in question will be grounds for immediate disqualification, but this is still something of a dodgy advertising tactic. It's not exactly without precedent, however, and judging the entire game on those merits would be rather unfair, wouldn't it? Take a look at the official forums, and if it looks interesting, you still have some time to be eligible for your slot in the upcoming alpha test.

There are a lot of games that don't necessarily make the process of having an alt a smooth road, but almost none that outright prevent you from even indulging the idea. However, Freesky Online has come out with a recent developer diary that states precisely that: no alts allowed. And while their decisions outlined therein are focused highly on the idea that as a free-to-play game there need to be certain measures in place to prevent abuse of the system, they're applicable to many of the issues that players of larger MMOs have faced.

An obvious example is the longstanding practice of "bank alts", which is specifically referenced in the diary -- as far as the game's developers are concerned, it's abusing the mechanics of the game for unscrupulous means. There are certain games where it's considered standard practice to have at least one character just for banking purposes, but there's a point to be made that this is circumventing the hard-coded limitation of how much space a single character has to store items. The ramifications for other games are likely small at the moment -- it's unlikely that CCP is going to start deleting extra characters, for instance -- but the concepts are interesting to anyone who plays games where alts are frequent.

Browser-based MMO strategy game Freesky Online has just finished merging two of its servers to help bring the player population up. The Paradise and Canaan servers have been turned into a single server called Paradise&Canaan, and the server's map was made bigger and filled with more resources to give the inflated population a chance to prosper in their new environment. The hope is that a greater population will increase the amount of PvP action that goes on and offer new strategic alliance opportunities.

Along with the positive effects, the merge brought a lot of inconvenience to players: those that had a character on both servers were only able to keep one, and friends lists and existing alliances were deleted. Players were also unhappy about having their ongoing activities interrupted. To make up for all of this, the game's developers IGG have put together some compensatory goodies for affected players. There are two different gift packages; the players' reputation level affects which pack they will receive. To see what you might be entitled to, visit the news article about the merge at the game's official site.

Dreamland Online is a 3D sidescrolling MMO that is currently in its testing phase in China. The latest news from the game's developer IGG is that Europeans and North Americans can expect to be able to play an English version of Dreamland before the year is through. One of the defining aspects of the new title is said to be the involvement of pets: "The main feature of Dreamland Online is its pet system. In Dreamland pets play a central role - they can assist players in fighting monsters and completing quests, but they are also loyal companions on lonely adventures." There will also be some form of competitive player-versus-player gameplay.

The game has an official site up with some limited information, along with a link to some forums. Check out our new gallery for a handful of screens from the Chinese version.

For the first time in a long while, we've come across a tale of digital wrong-doing that doesn't involve internet spaceships and is definitely not allowed by the developers. The game in question is Tales of Pirates published by IGG. Apparently a number of the game's players have fallen victim to a trick, and IGG wants to publicize this to make people aware of the scam. There's a brief warning on the official Tales of Pirates site about account security, but they just put out a press release that's far more detailed.

IGG writes: "As with any popular game, IGG's Tales of Pirates has attracted its share of scammers. Even the most careful pirate can sometimes be fooled by a well-executed scam. The best way to avoid becoming a victim is to learn the common tricks scammers use. To help players, the ToP would like to highlight one particularly popular method used recently." We can only hope they emailed the full info to their playerbase, but we'll keep our own take on it short and sweet here -- five steps to violating the Tales of Pirates EULA and getting banned (and of course, what to watch out for.):

Post-apocalyptic fans rejoice! Yet another game in your favorite science fiction genre is moving ahead with development, as free-to-play title 2029 goes into alpha testing as of Monday, May 25th. Unsure of how the game plays? You can find a newbie guide here that'll give you a pretty thorough rundown of all the MMORTS features designed into the game.

It looks to be an interesting blend of sci-fi and real-time strategy, with a dash of fantasy as well. We also saw some screenshots with a definite hint of Halo and StarCraft. So if you enjoy those settings, it couldn't hurt to give this a look even if you're vaguely interested. After registering an account for the game, you can go for a direct download or a torrent version of the game client -- always a nice option to have.

Free to play 2-D fantasy MMO Wonderland Online has recently update with a brand new version, adding in new quests, a drastic change to the current storyline, and the ability to hold instances in their game. With all of these additions comes their new 13 dungeons, the wings of the Cursed Palace.

The former Hell Generals of the evil King Howert (now deceased as of this patch) have captured Apollo, the Sun God, forcing the world into eternal darkness. Players will have to pass the tests of the Cursed Palace, a place that only Hercules had survived before, to reclaim Apollo and bring light back to the world. If you haven't noticed, this entire patch has a very Greek theme to it, introducing the Greek Polis area, which is a combination of all of the old Greek city-states, and the Hanging Gardens of Babylon in addition to the Cursed Palace.

For the full look at the 2-D MMO's large patch, check out their dedicated site to the update on the main Wonderland Online home page.

Wonderland Online, one of the many free-to-play MMOs at the Internet Gaming Gate, has announced its exciting array of Memorial Day events happening this weekend.

One of these is an interesting take on the original Memorial Day theme as a military holiday or remembrance. The event is called Saving Private Ryan and it will be a play on the movie of the same name. Three GMs will play the part of injured veterans who are on their way home from the front. They will be attacked by monsters along the way, and it's up to the players to defend them until they reach home. Plus, as an added bonus, from May 23rd to May 26th, players who post replies to discuss Wonderland Online in its forum will have a chance to win valuable rewards.

Tales of Pirates, the 3D cartoon-style free-to-play piratical MMORPG from igg.com, is holding Triple Exp Carnival again this weekend across all servers. There's no particular seasonal or event-based reason for this; the motive is simply 'more fun this weekend', and it's hard to argue with that.

Tales of Pirates is a popular MMO with a laid-back atmosphere, and recently celebrated its one-year anniversary. It's based upon an intricate background history and large campaign world, with a particular emphasis (not surprisingly) on oceanic exploration. ToP has also earned particular acclaim for its fighting system and ship-to-ship combat.

Triple Exp Carnival is set to run from 9.00 AM ET on May 24th through to 21.00 PM ET on the same day. Make the most of it while it lasts!

IGG has just launched a new website for Zu Online, their cel-shaded martial arts MMO. The revamped site features an animated video introduction to the storyline with comic book panel transitions, fitting the anime style of the game itself. The free-to-play game is set in an ancient and mythical Sichuan and has an active community, perhaps even moreso in light of the situation facing its real-life locale.

Hot on the heels of the site revamp is Zu Online's new server launch, slated for June 6th. The new server coincides with the game's second anniversary. IGG announced that this new server is needed to accommodate the growing population of Zu Online, as well as to improve the game experience for fans of the title.

Via MMORPG

Aspiring carpenters in IGG's Wonderland Online may wonder, rightly, if they are as clean and fresh as they possibly could be. Is the bathtub that they picked out when they first started their fight against nature's foes still relevant to their faster-paced lifestyle? Is the tent just getting a little small, needing perhaps a second floor or a larger garage? It is these sorts of questions that the Wonderland Online developers answer in their list of furniture improvements that will turn your old tent into one that will be the envy of your friends and the inevitable gathering place for your guild. Learn the benefits a bookcase will bring, or how to decide between an ancient bathtub or air conditioning.

Wonderland Online is a free-to-play Asian import that combines standard RPG elements with interactive social spaces. In how many other games can you leave your rustic cabin in the middle of the forest primeval, climb into your robot and jet away into space? Darn few.

As most people have heard by now, a massive earthquake struck the Sichuan province of China four days ago, killing 12,000 people and leaving as many as 18,000 more missing. The colossal tragedy shocked not only the Chinese, but all the people of the world.

Players of the Chinese MMO Zu Online were no exception. Without any prior planning, they collected together in the game's wuxia fantasy setting -- the mythic past of the the very region struck by this week's terrible disaster -- to mourn those lost in the earthquake, and to pray for their families.

A Zu player put together a tribute video, cross-cutting between footage from the in-game memorial service and photographs from the media coverage of the disaster, and posted it on the game's official forums. It's a noble tribute to the deceased. Watch it if you feel compelled.

[Via MMORPG]

Pirates of the Burning Sea gets a lot of love from Massively, but that doesn't mean we haven't noticed some of the other games in the pirate MMO genre. One such title is Voyage Century Online, a free-to-play game published by IGG, already popular in China, South Korea, and Germany. The game is set in the 17th century, and players can choose characters from among European Monarch, Japanese, Chinese, Korean, or Pirate classes.

Voyage Century Online's game mechanics don't lock characters into a specific profession and, in time, a player can explore a number of different careers with a single character. Although Voyage Century Online already allows for exploration on the high seas and the seizing of ports, this freedom to choose your own career path runs counter to the ability to truly control your own destiny -- the most prosperous port cities have long since been under the control of the strongest guilds.

To balance this, major changes in territorial control are coming to the game through the new city-building system. Voyage Century Online is set to expand the game's horizons by allowing all guilds to build their own port cities, provided that they meet the new requirements.

[Via TenTonHammer]

Do you like anime? Do you crave Kung-fu? Do you salivate over anything with "Naruto" in the title? If so, Zu Online might be a game for you. Zu Online is the latest free-to-play game to come from the Internet Gaming Gate (IGG), a prolific MMOG developer. It seems this crew launches a new MMO every month. What does that mean for the masses of players out there? Well ... good and bad news.

I decided to take a little tour of Zu Online by giving it a few hours of my time. What I found might surprise you.