Allods continues to do well in Beta, how has the feedback been from players?

So far the feedback has been absolutely phenomenal from the players. Since they are in game all day every day they are great at finding and reporting bugs, as well as letting us know what they love about the game. Since the release of the Astral ship content the players have been happily working their butts off to get one of those giant ships!

Give us some insight on the lore of the sky ships? What made you choose that concept?

There's actually a really fun and interesting story behind Astral travel.

The legend states that there once was a Gibberling fisherman that was as thirsty as he was adventurous. He snuck out of his house one night to escape his nagging wife and found himself at his local pub. Several drinks later, he decided that he was going to bring his wife a feast to make up for sneaking out. So he fashioned a fishing pole out of a length of string, a stick, and a strange stone that he had found on the shore. Our bite-sized protagonist then hopped into his boat and set off for the middle of the lake. Unfortunately for him, his drinks caught up with him and he was soon fast asleep.

When he awoke, he found himself floating out in a vast sea of blue. He had apparently drifted off a waterfall and straight out into the Astral! But, amazingly, he was still alive. He looked all around the boat for some sort of sign as to how he was able to survive in the Astral. When he peered over the side of his boat he saw that the stone he had attached to his makeshift fishing pole was glowing, the rays seemed to envelope and protect his boat from the Astral. He rowed back to his allod as fast as he could and within weeks, the entire allod was empty. Its citizens had all built their own boats and set off on adventures through the Astral.

Which race seems to be the player favorite? Both factions have a lot to offer.

Based on our excursions into the game, I'd have to say that the Arisen and the Kanians are the preferred races of our players.

How has the PvP been in testing? Do you find players fighting a lot?

We've found that our players enjoy fighting each other at almost every chance that they get. Several have even started organizing dates and times for everyone to be on at once for all-out brawls.

What areas of the game do you think need some changes before launch?

As with any new game there are of course kinks and aspects of the game that will need to be ironed out once the game is fully released. We make an extra effort to pay attention to all player feedback, both bug reports as well as suggestions, and then report it to the developers. If there is a mechanic or feature of the game that we feel truly needs to be adjusted, we will work with the developers to see what can be done.

When do you expect a full open beta for Allods?

Our open beta is going to go live on February 16th at 11:00 AM PST!

How are you coordinating the launch of the game globally?

As many already know, the Russian version of Allods Online has been in Open Beta for quite some time already. For both the North American and European versions while we had separate Closed Betas, we have been working together and communicating frequently so that the Open Beta for both games will go live on the same day, February 16th, 2010!

In terms of gameplay, what are your favorite parts of the game from a design perspective?

Personally, I think that the end-game content is the best part of the game. It's when the players finally get their hands on their own ships and are able to go out and explore the Astral and find previously undiscovered allods. There are all sorts of different adventures awaiting you out there!

How can players learn more about Allods?

We have recently launched a completely redesigned website with information on the races, classes, professions, and anything that you might hope to learn about Allods Online! Please visit us at http://allods.gpotato.com/ !

What do you see as major goals for Allods in 2010?

To take over the World... of Warcraft!

But seriously, we just want to put out a game that everyone can enjoy in many different ways.