Weekly MMO news round-up: Second Life shows growth, Shadowbane to close, STO gets lored

Loads of little goings on the land of MMOs last week, but as per usual, the biggest stuff hit our front page.

WoW patch anyone?

Get the rest after the link.

• EYA's international version of Titan Online enters open beta on April 28. This one has an interesting premise: it's a combination of martial arts, fantasy and robots. Sign up here.
• Warhammer was patched on April 16. The update also heralds the start of the Beyond the Sands Live Event, starting today. Server performance improvements were also added to the Dark Crag server. More though the link.
• Guild Wars celebrates its four year anniversary on April 28, and festivities run from April 23-29. Check the official site for details, and head over to Massively to watch a video featuring the Asian-themed Zaishen Menagerie which will be over by the Shing Jea Boardwalk.
• Second Lifers take note: adult content controls are due in the next release of the Second Life viewer. PG, Mature, and Adult are the ratings, so you'll be able to decide if you want to see pixelated breasts and other not so breasty things while you run about the world. Also of note, Q1 2009 figures show user hours for the game averaged out to 124 million, while 260,400 hours were lost due to 'downtime'.
• The Spring Rain Festival's going on full swing over at Runes of Magic. Frogster has given players a new series of adventures with a wide range of rewards. For example, during the festival period, there are the rabbit-like 'wabbits' cavorting about, each holding surprises for players. They will be handing out gift parcels for completed tasks, which among other things may contain a 'wabbit' pet or a drink which briefly turns players into rabbits themselves. Fun times for all.
• G4.TV screwed up pretty well this week, accidentally mixing the names Earthrise and Fallen Earth during a segment. When the show apologized to the Fallen Earth folks, it was repaid in kind by exclusive footage for the game being sent to the G4 offices. Wish we got cool stuff every time we screwed up around here.
• Wolfpack Studios and Ubisoft announced that the Shadowbane: Chronicles of Strife severs will permanently close on May 1. No reason for the decision was given, but the announcement on the official site focused on the accomplishments and the joy the title brought to players. If you've been holding out on doing anything special in-game, now's your chance.
• Sony has released a video showing off the Kart Racer, which is just one of the many jobs you can take in the upcoming Free Realms. Who doesn't wanna be a Kart Racer?
• The next expansion for Fiesta Online will raise the level cap from 89 to 105, and goes live April 22. New maps, monsters, skills, and gear are also included in the update. Read all about it here.
• If you're excited about Star Trek Online, you will be double-happy over the new lore entry on the official site. The entry discusses the Gorn and Klingon conflict through the eyes of a former Starfleet Officer who was witness to a Klingon takeover of Gorn planet Gilga IV. Turned the officer into a drunk, it did. Read all about it here.