RaiderZ to Close Its Doors in August

There's some bad news for RaiderZ players: Perfect World announced on Wednesday that they will be permanently shutting down the game on August 7, 2015. Now that developer MAIET has stopped operating and can no longer maintain the game, too many issues have cropped up and the publisher has come to the conclusion that closure would be best for the title.

RaiderZ Asks You To Feel Bad For Killing Its Boss

Look at this guy. He's adorable, isn't he? I'm sure he has a wife, kids, and a picket fence. Hahaha, yeah right, no, you get to knock this guy around. But RaiderZ really wants you to feel bad for him, with all the adventurers lining up to thump him on the head. And it's a pretty charming video. So please, once in a while - think of the bosses. 

Julian "Mirai" Williams

RaiderZ Launches Today!

Fall in the northern hemisphere truly seems to be MMO season. 

Let's see… Guild Wars 2 launched just before September. World of Warcraft: Mists of Pandaria released less than a month later. RIFT: Storm Legion just hit last week, along with free-to-play Star Wars: The Old Republic. Today, we have not one but two brand new MMOs going live - Planetside 2 and RaiderZ. In case you've lost track, and who could blame you, this post is about RaiderZ. And if you're wondering, no - this isn't yet another zombie survival game!

RaiderZ Open Beta Begins

What do you do when your closed beta results in eager players slaughtering over 500,000 deadly monsters? If you are Gameforge, then you make an infographic to commemorate the carnage, and then follow it up by subjecting your monstrous creations to the onslaught of thousands more blood-thirsty players. RaiderZ, the monster-hunting MMO developed by Maiet, has finally entered open beta. If taking down a range of truly epic foes sounds like your foaming mug of Mountain Dew, then head on over to the official RaiderZ US website, or the european site, to register your account and start downloading the client.

The level cap in RaiderZ has been raised to 35, and players can now explore new areas of Rendel; Rits, Riode and the Grand Wall of Silence. That last one sounds particularly ominous to me. If HunterZ need a break from the fiendish creature encounters, they can now relax with a little retail therapy. Vanity and convenience items have been added to the time shop, in the form of costumes, resurrection stones, and skill resets. Gareth Harmer spoke to Rüdiger Moersch from Gameforge during the summer, and you might remember that the Producer was adamant that no 'pay-to-win' items would be introduced to the cash store, and the developers certainly seem to be sticking to that motto. 

As for those that made it into the closed beta, the Infographic from Gameforge indicates that quite a few 'HunterZ' were very keen on a certain feathered mount. Now, I don't know about you, but I'd certainly want a nice, comfortable mount like that after a hard day of killing leviathans out in the wilds of Rendel.

 

Sarah "Pewter" Nichol

RaiderZ Shows Off New Reitz City Trailer

RaiderZ's open beta is inching ever closer, October 24th in fact, and just to make sure nobody forgot, Perfect World Entertainment has unveiled this new trailer, showing off all the sights and sounds of the city of Reitz, including merchants, city squares, and capital building. But don't be fooled by the serenity - Reitz has a darker side too, particularly under the sewer system. 

Julian "Mirai" Williams

ZAM's RaiderZ Beta Key + Item Pack Giveaway!

Get your RaiderZ Beta Keys + Starter Corium Pack Codes here!

Hey RaiderZ fans! Here at ZAM we've got a special promotion going on for this upcoming RaiderZ Closed Beta Test! Not only are we giving away beta keys for guaranteed access next week, but each key also comes with a Starter Corium Pack, complete with 3x Beycium, a Two-Handed Kuotes Sword, and 3x EXP Buffs!

To register your keys, just head over to http://www.PlayRaiderZ.com and sign up! You should get a confirmation email soon thereafter, and your items will be available in-game! See you all in RaiderZ next week!

RaiderZ at Rezzed: An Exclusive Interview

In most MMOs, we’re content to go with the easy kills. One time we might be rampaging through a village of defenseless Jawa. Another might see us obliterate waves of cheap murlocs. All that counts is that they swarm like a hive of bees and make a satisfying squish when they die. Sometimes, the destruction of digital cannon fodder is all you need.

Other times, I get a craving to go after the big fish. I see the Big Ass Monster towering over me, taking entire fields in his stride. I watch the other players flee, lest they become squashed underfoot. And I tell myself: one day, we will dance the whirlwind of death. It will be an epic clash of might versus agility, of steel against sorcery. And in the end, when the dust settles, I’ll take you down.

If playing the role of David in a world of Goliaths sounds like a dream come true, then monster-hunting MMO RaiderZ might be just what you need. As part of our grand tour of PC gaming show Rezzed, I spoke to Rüdiger Moersch, Producer for Frogster, about bringing this free-to-play action-MMO to Europe.

ZAM's E3 Roundup and Best of Show Award

E3 has come and gone, and we learned a lot during our time at the Los Angeles Convention Center. While we invite you to browse through all of our E3 coverage, we wanted to point out some of the highlights from the convention. You'll find all of our original features and a list of other noteworthy announcements after the jump!

We'd also like to take this opportunity to present En Masse Entertainment and TERA with our Best of Show Award! As we explored TERA's political system, the demo shined as the most polished one we saw at the convention. Expanding the role of politics in-game will create a whole new dynamic for players, and we believe TERA holds a lot of potential for its North American audience. We'll definitely be keeping our eye on this game as we wait for details on the testing and launch schedule.

Keep reading below for our E3 roundup!

ZAM at E3: Perfect World Unveils 3 New Titles

We stopped by Perfect World Entertainment’s E3 booth last week to get the scoop on three new titles premiering this year at the convention. Those new games are RaiderZ, Rusty Hearts and Blacklight Retribution. Keep reading after the jump for our impressions of each title, as well as gameplay trailers.

If you like what you hear about Rusty Hearts, be sure to grab one of our Rusty Hearts closed beta keys! The beta will kick off in July, so pick up your key now and be prepared to dive into this anime-inspired MMO.

Exclusive First Look at New RaiderZ Trailer

Perfect World Entertainment has given us an exclusive first look at a new trailer for RaiderZ, the upcoming free-to-play monster-hunting MMO that's developed by MAIET Entertainment. This game is full of fast-paced combat, which you can see in the video below.

RaiderZ will be shown for the first time to North American players at E3 next week. Keep an eye on the RaiderZ teaser page for more details and to sign up for updates. Also, stay tuned to ZAM throughout June for more exclusive Perfect World content and giveaways!