(taken from the official site)
Beta Rumor By: Sanya Thomas 2006-06-22 11:43:26
There was a bit of a rumor on some boards that "beta was pushed back." This is not the case, as we're still totally on track. I stomped around the office, muttering "Who started this stupid rumor? Don't I have enough stupid rumor mongering in my life right about now?"
It turns out that *I* started the stupid rumor. Read on!
Beta has not been pushed back, and it is still starting this fall. (Heck, one phase of testing for employees and partners is starting next WEEK.) But it is a closed beta, and very few of the players out there on the boards are going to be able to play without some serious luck. The big phases of beta won't start until next year. Part of my job is preventing disappointment, so to keep people from expecting to get their hands into WAR in the next few months, I said that "beta, the phase I'll be putting you crazy people in, is probably after the new year."
In other words, we're still on track, things are going great, and the large closed betas/gigantic public betas will start next year. And sorry, I'm not usually such a newb.
European FAQ By: Sanya Thomas 2006-06-06 11:45:28
The details of our deal with GOA are not final. The short version, no doubt observed by astute readers, is that GOA and Mythic are doing things a little differently than we did with DAOC. Here's what we do know, and what we sent out with the press release this morning:
Q. What languages are being targeted for initial release?
A. Initially the game will support English, French, German, Italian and Spanish.
Q. Will European players have access to the beta?
A. There will be several stages of beta and it has yet to be decided at what stage we will localize the beta. Otherwise yes, Mythic and GOA will ensure that players from Europe and the US have access to the beta before the game launches
Q. Will the Beta be in English only?
A. No, the later stages of the Beta will be in English, French, German, Italian and Spanish.
(Sanya here: "Later stages" most likely means "after the new year," just FYI.)
Q. Will Europe and the US receive patches at the same time?
A. Not only will the game be released in the US and Europe simultaneously but patches and expansions will also reach both groups of players at the same time.
Q. How will the European support of the game compare to the US?
A. GOA and Mythic have a contractual obligation to collaborate and share all tools and techniques that both companies have developed over the years to ensure the same high quality of support to all US and European players.
Q. Who will handle distribution in Europe?
A. A distribution partner has yet to be selected. Mythic and GOA are working to select the best possible partner in order to ensure that the game will be readily available in every country across the EU.
Q. Where will European servers reside?
A. GOA has very successfully located the European servers for DAoC in one central data center near Paris. We expect this to also deliver excellent performance for WAR to players across Europe.