The beta phase of the free-to-play MMO, Runes of Magic, is in full swing and has received critical acclaim thus far, with thousands of players now occupying the atmospheric world of Taborea.

Although we've yet to give it a shot ourselves, Runes of Magic has apparently been causing quite a buzz amongst early adopters with 220,000 players registered and over 100,000 characters created in the first few hours of beta launch. To cope with further expected demand Frogster has opened another game world this week.

So what's all the fuss about?

Well, some of the initial previews claim the deep storyline has kept them hooked as well as the wealth of interesting quests, the exciting fantasy sandbox environment, solid crafting and reputation system and enthralling PvP play. One of the first previews of the game even goes as far as calling it a "remarkable MMO" and comparing it to World of Warcraft.

"Runes of Magic has the potential for greatness, the capacity to define a new category of free MMOs, situated dangerously close to the subscription-based astronomically-budgeted ones… without bragging about fake and expensive qualities," writes Computer Games.ro

Thus is the buzz surrounding Runes of Magic that we're eager to find out more. We're awaiting our beta access key and will bring you our first impressions shortly.

For full details on Runes of Magic visit the official site. Let us know how you get on.

Runes of Magic will be released in 2009.