A new expansion for Turbine Inc.'s MMORPG, The Lord of the Rings Online has been announced to be launched this holiday season. Siege of Mirkwood will be coming to add some more action and adventure to the world of LotRO on December 1st, 2009.

In case you haven't heard, the Wrath of the Lich King free 10-day trial is now available. So if you've got a friend who's still not decided or if you don't have your own account yet and would like to play it for free, then this is your chance. Details in the full article.

Flying Lab Software has finally opened a new page on its official website explaining how to avail of its free trial offer for Pirates of the Burning Sea. The Buddy Key Program will allow active subscribers to invite up to three people in a 14-day free trial period and experience exciting adventures on the virtual high seas. More details regarding this offer in our full article after the jump.

You'd think that it's about time that Ultima Online: Kingdom Reborn did something in the face of free-to-play MMORPGs spawning left and right, but actually, they had something for some time now. Just in case you missed this little goodie, we'll spread the news far and wide: EA Mythic is giving out a two week free trial for players interested in experiencing a graphically improved Ultima Online with the new Kingdom Reborn client. More details at the full story.

It was announced on the official Steam Website that gamers can now try CCP's popular MMORPG, EVE Online, for free. Considering this is the very first MMORPG to be made available via Valve's software distribution arm, it might be interesting to see how many people will take advantage of this offer. For more information about this promo, check out the full article by clicking on the "read more" link below.

For the second time in a row - much to the grief of players and developers alike - The Saga of Ryzom, Nevrak's legendary MMORPG, is now once again in danger. This unfortunate bit of news comes directly from the game's forums, in a post made by Community Liaison Marjo.

So what's happened? Apparently, the recent rescue of The Saga of Ryzom was not quite enough to snap it back to life, as Gameforge AG has now made the necessary legal steps to liquidate its assets and close up shop. It seems the company that snatched the Nevrak title from the brink of financial obliteration did not have enough funds to see it through to the very end - which means that yes, the fate of The Saga of Ryzom is now up in the air once more. Until another company decides to pick it up, that is.

Of course, there's still a silver lining in here somewhere. Marjo reassures players that Ryzom is still running, and the characters you've come to know and love are still there in the game's database. Unfortunately, game development has been frozen, and there's a couple of things that are to be changed, as stated below:

• Paying subscribers will not be billed and will be able to continue playing for free.
• It's not possible to pay to subscribe to a full Ryzom account anymore.
• You will still be able to create a Free Trial account, but at the moment there will be no possibility to upgrade your account and go to mainland.
• The level cap on Silan is removed for the Free Trials in the meantime.

Bittersweet news indeed. Updates as we get them, so keep it locked right here for further developments.

Got an inkling to sign up for Legends of Norrath: Oathbound, but don't have/want an EverQuest/EverQuest 2 account? We've just picked up a press wire from Sony Online Entertainment reporting that they've released a stand-alone version of their recently released online trading card game which doesn't require players to be singed into either EQ or EQ2.

Those interested in purchasing a 55-card starter deck will want to ready US$ 9.99, with the 15-card booster packs selling for US$ 2.99. As a reminder, Oathbound - the first of the Legends of Norrath series -  contains 375 cards in total. SOE Denver's Director of Development Scott Martins had this to say regarding the new stand-alone package:

When we showed Legends of Norrath at GenCon last month, it was just as big a hit with hobby and strategy gamers as it has been with our EQ and EQII players. We've had a great run so far with the exclusive access we've provided for our existing fans, and can't wait to bring it to a much wider audience with today's release.

New players will be able to enjoy the game in a single worldwide community with thousands of people that span its own client as well as both of our EverQuest MMOs.

The stand-alone sets can be bought at the Legends of Norrath official site via the read link. The site also carries a free trial starter deck, in case you'd prefer to give the game a try first.

The biggest thing to hit the fantasy world of Vana'diel to date is the imminent release of Final Fantasy XI expansion Wings of the Goddess. In relation to this, Square Enix announced today the release of a Starter Pack that will definitely entice non-players to step into this magical world.

The Final Fantasy XI Starter Pack is just for the PC version of the game and not for the Xbox 360 one. It should contain the PlayOnline Viewer, Tetra Master online card game, and the original Final Fantasy XI software.

Aside from this, those who are going to purchase the pack will be entitled to a one-month free trial of the MMO video game.

"We are confident that this release, coupled with recent gameplay changes and the forthcoming Wings of the Goddess expansion pack will encourage even more to try what is an exciting and prolific online experience," commented Square Enix Ltd. President and CEO John Yamamoto.

The Final Fantasy XI Starter Pack will be sold for just 4.99 GBP or around US$ 10.23.

Here's some good news for those who want to try out a new MMO experience. Lockpick Entertainment has announced that starting this week, their MMORTS title Dreamlords will be free to play for a ten-day trial period.

Dreamlords lets players play the role of a Dreamlord controlling a patria, which is a fancy name for a chunk of land floating around in the game's universe. The patria has its own population and resources and will serve as a player's base of operations as they struggle to manage their territory.

The ten-day free trial is open to everyone interested. You don't need a credit card to participate and there are no strings attached, so check it out. You can join via the Dreamlords website at www.dreamlords.com.

An official announcement by PlayNC on the City of Heroes website has pegged a special weekend for gamers just coming out of school and entering the lazy days of summer. In celebration of the lapse between schooling (and Father's Day?), PlayNC will be doubling your experience points in one weekend.

The special weekend will begin on Friday, June 15 on 8:59 a.m. PST (11:59 a.m. EST) and will end on Sunday, June 17 on 8:59 p.m. PST (11:59 p.m. EST). Gamers who don't have an account and want to take advantage of a special opportunity that happens only twice a year can get a friend to refer them to the game for a 10-day free trial.

And those currently active on City of Heroes might want to take advantage of the Referral Program for free game time in return. And not limiting only to the good side, City of Villains players will also enjoy a double experience weekend in parallel with the protagonist experience.