MMO Open Betas Begin for Sinners And Saints

Sometimes Google searches just bring up some interesting items.  Last night I discovered news about two upcoming MMOs.

The first involves Playboy.  Playboy?  That's right, Hugh Hefner's brainchild is now planning on entering the online gaming market.  In addition, Playboy is teaming up with German online game publisher Bigpoint to distribute Poisonville, a gang-based MMORPG.  The game just went into open beta on August 25.

(Note: The link to the game is workplace safe.  I linked to Bigpoint's web site, not Playboy's.)

Right below the Playboy stories in my Google search was news of a game being produced by another German company, FIAA.  The game?  The Bible Online.  Here is a description from the game's web site.

The Bible Online: Ch1. The Heroes is based on the first book of the Bible, Genesis. Players can meet and play the real heroes of Genesis, Abraham and his descendants. The game is designed for users to actually experience the Book of Genesis by fulfilling quests of Abraham, which is based on the true stories of the Genesis. As a MMORTS, players are to lead their tribe, build buildings, maintain resources and engage in warfare with other tribes. However, players do not stay in one place, but will go on a quest to go to the Promised Land. Players will lead Abraham’s tribe from Ur to Haran and finally to Canaan. The Bible Online: Ch.1 The Heroes also offers additional elements of RPG. When Abraham dies, Isaac becomes the tribe leader and after Isaac dies, Jacob leads the tribe. There are also quests for users to experience Genesis according to the history of the Bible. For example, as it is written in Genesis 14:13~14, there is a quest for Abraham to lead 318 men to rescue his nephew Lot.

For all you players out there looking at the games, FIAA will not be using sex to draw players into its game.  Instead, participants in the open beta get a change to win iPods.  Here are the prizes:

Prize for highest FAME:
   1st - Ipod Touch 3rd generation 8 Gbyte
   2nd - Ipod Shuffle 4 GB or 75€ Cash
   3rd - 25€ Cash

Prize for HERO
   1st - Ipod Touch 3rd generation 8 Gbyte
   2nd - Ipod Shuffle 4 GB or 75€ Cash
   3rd - 25€ Cash
   All participants at the BETA will be awarded with 1.000 Fiaa Cash

For those interested, the beta for The Bible Online begins on September 6.  I don't have a financial interest in the game, but this is a game the rest of my family may actually be interested in playing.  On second thought, probably not, but who knows?  And besides, the juxtaposition of the two items in my Google search was just too good to pass up.