TV-based console games may be the rage in interactive entertainment, but there is something exciting happening on the PC front as well. Thousands of players log on to roam digital landscapes, accomplish missions and "level up" to become more powerful characters in massively multiplayer online role-playing games (MMORPG). Age of Conan: Hyborian Adventures, the latest success in the genre, is based on the works of fantasy author Robert E. Howard. After customizing your character, you first wash up on the brutal island of Tortage, where you interact with dozens of NPCs (non-player characters) who help you get your feet wet with single-player missions that range from finding people and delivering important items to eavesdropping on a conversation and attacking a target. Eventually you'll make it to the mainland of Hyboria and graduate to the multiplayer component of the game, where you tackle quests with other players, increase in skills over time and, if desired, form player guilds based on common beliefs. Or, you might choose to go the other route and play on a deadly "Player versus Player" ("PvP") server, where it's one fighter against the other (or guild versus guild).

Much of the game focuses on real-time combat. You must master mouse and keyboard moves, be it hacking and slashing with swords, using range weapons (such as a bow and arrow), performing magic with spells or summoning pets to help attack enemies. You can also fight while mounted on horses, mammoths and rhinos. And don't forget to loot the fallen enemy if he drops a parcel, which may include weapons, gold or other items. Aside from a few technical bugs and frequent updates, this epic, open-ended online fantasy adventure is well worth the ticket price.