If you've been looking forward to officially entering the world of Taborea, mark March 19 on your calendar. Frogster Interactive has announced that will be the launch date for Runes of Magic, it's free-to-play 3D fantasy MMORPG.

The open beta test for the game began in December, and since that time more than 450,000 players have tried out the game. If you'd like to be one of those players, simply head over to the Runes of Magic Web site to create a free account and download the client.

"We look forward to welcoming thousands of new players to Taborea during the next few weeks as we get ready to fully launch Runes of Magic," said Daniel Ullrich, Director of Product Management at Frogster, in a press release.

The full press release regarding the announcement can be found after the jump.

Valentine’s Day is coming, in case you forgot, and most of us men always forget or ruin it somehow. Well, Runes of Magic might have just the thing for you and your Significant Other. They have started the festivities early, and are now offering all sorts of goodies to those who are romantic! Grow some roses, eat some chocolate and enjoy the season of love.

"- You can make chocolate that will give you 35% health back when eaten.
- When you have collected 5 chocolate sweets you can use the world broadcast once.
- A good gardener can grow roses from seeds - and get a buff when the flower finally blooms.
- Exchanging 10 roses can be exchanged for certain gifts - like temporary mounts. - 30 roses will grant you a title"

Sounds like an excellent way to share time with the one you love, while possibly changing his or her mind about massively mutiplayer gaming. Not to mention an early Valentine's Day, lest you forget.

Source: Runes of Magic Official Website

The Runes of Magic open beta, which began on Dec. 15, seems to be going well according to Frogster, its publisher. More than 100,000 characters were created in the first few hours, and an additional server had to be created on Monday afternoon to handle the amount of players.

In the past few hours Frogster also noted a significant increase in registration numbers. Out of the total number of 220,000 registrations, more than 20,000 Accounts were created on Monday alone and immediately entered the game world: more than 2 million quests were completed in over 200,000 hours of combined playing time in the game world of Taborea.

If you'd like to participate, head on over to the Runes of Magic Web site and register. You can read the full press release below.

The Runes of Magic open beta starts today! According to a press release, more than 190,000 players have already registered. If you'd like to participate, simply head over to the Runes of Magic Web site and download the client.

With the start of the open beta, Frogster will activate all implemented content. Even the item-shop, where the players can buy supporting items, will be available in Runes of Magic. At the same time Frogster will remove the NDA so players can communicate their impressions from today on and media can publish their first previews.

The slate has been wiped clean and everyone is starting off at level 1 again, so it's a great time to try out the game. Both PvE and PvP servers are available.

Also, Christmas will arrive in Taborea in Thursday, Dec. 19 with numerous events and costumes. For more information on the open beta or holiday festivities, read the full press release below.

The Runes of Magic closed beta is coming to an end on Dec. 10 following an event involving an attack by evil demons, but as the old saying goes, when one door closes, another opens. And this one's a very big door.

The open beta will begin on Dec. 15 for every player interested in venturing into the world of Taborea. All you have to do is register on the official Web site. According to a press release, Frogster received more than 170,000 registrations for the closed beta, and each one will automatically have access to the open beta.

The open beta will likely conclude in the first quarter of 2009 with the release of the game. Any character created before that time will still be available to play after launch, so you can get a head start by participating in the open beta.

And for those of you who happen to be in the closed beta, expect that demonic attack to begin on Dec. 7. For more information on that event or the open beta, the press release can be found after the jump.

For those who are curious how crafting will work in Runes of Magic, the team has posted a summary of the profession system to give you a taste of what's involved.

Every profession has four ranks: apprentice, craftsman, specialist and master. You can learn as many professions as you wish on the apprentice rank, can become a craftsman in six trades, be a specialist in three and ultimately master one profession. To increase your profession rank, you have to have reached the maximum skill level of your current rank and then talk to a trainer of that profession.

The summary goes on the explain the tools needed for the trades and how to upgrade equipment with runes and jewels. Keep reading below for the full post, or check it out here.

The first major server stress test will begin tonight in Runes of Magic. According to a press release from Frogster, 30,000 players have already been invited to the already running closed beta, and they will be called upon from 8 p.m. to 3 a.m. GMT after server maintenance to bring the server under as heavy a load as possible.

Of course, this stress test comes just in time for Halloween, so the developers have some treats in store.

Simultaneously, the beta testers will get a first glimpse of the event system in Runes of Magic. Just in time for the Halloween weekend, they will be greeted by grim pumpkin heads, singing ghosts, monster parades and specially designed landscapes. Interested players can take part in special Halloween quests, fight together against the big pumpkin or turn into monsters themselves by drinking certain potions.

The second stress test will be held Saturday, Nov. 1. Players can still apply for closed beta phase 4 on the Web site. The full press release regarding the stress test can be found after the jump.

Frogster has announced the third phase of closed beta for Runes of Magic will begin on Nov. 2, raising the number of participants to 30,000. Prior to this, two large stress tests will be held on Oct. 30 and Nov. 1 to see exactly how much the servers can handle.

The new participants will be chosen in a random procedure from the roughly 100,000 already registered players. Furthermore there will be several new sweepstakes on big gaming portals, where you’ll get another chance to get access to the beta.

You can register for the beta here. The open beta will be launched in December with the subtitle "Rise of the Demon Lord" for the first chapter. New chapters will be added for free every two to three months after the release.

According to the official Runes of Magic Web site , open beta for the free game will begin on Dec. 9. Frogster has stated that more than 95,000 registered players have already signed up for the game, leading them to start the second phase of closed beta on Oct. 9. During this phase, 30,000 more players will be allowed into Taborea.

The official news post is below, or can be found here . Also, information on the nine largest factions of Taborea can be found here .

Frogster has revealed new screenshots and information on "Dustdevil Canyon," the fifth region in its free Runes of Magic MMORPG, as testers in the closed beta are currently exploring three zones to provide feedback for the developers. Also, a news post on the game's Web site today announced that 200 more players will be invited to join the closed beta this weekend.

Some highlights of the Canyon include "Obsidian Stronghold," which is one of the largest towns in Taboreas, and two different groups of barbarian tribes. Keep reading for more information straight from Frogster.