Guild Wars: Eye of North dated

NCsoft has revealed that Guild Wars: Eye of the North will be available on 31st August for GBP 24.99.

It's touted as the first expansion in the series, despite being the third paid-for update. Factions and Nightfall were campaigns, you see, so Eye of the North is the start of a new direction for developer ArenaNet. GET IT RIGHT.

It's all about rewarding the existing fan-base, apparently. The veterans. So, rather than introduce lengthy campaigns designed to ease new players into the fray, ArenaNet can focus on expanding the elements that have kept old-timers loitering around.

So, that means you'll be treated to 18 meaty new dungeons, 150 new skills across all professions, 40 new armour sets, 10 new Heroes, new weapons, new items and titles. Eye of the North will also act as a bridge to Guild Wars 2, allowing you to carry titles and accomplishments over using The Hall of Monuments.

"Guild Wars has one of the most committed and loyal player bases I've ever seen, and Guild Wars: Eye of the North is our way of delivering prized content to veteran players and creating a link to the future of Guild Wars," said Jeff Strain, co-founder of ArenaNet.

Eye of the North will continue in the no-fee tradition of the MMO series, so once you've bought the game you won't have to fork-out on subscription costs. It's a method that's proved exceptionally popular, propelling Guild Wars to reach out to more than 3.5 million people worldwide - helped along considerably by the critically acclaimed gameplay.

We recently cornered lead designers Ben Miller and Eric Flannum to talk about Eye of the North, Guild Wars 2, and rewarding loyalty. Head over to our interview to find out more.