Mutual faction exclusivity and "vets play free" weekend

Phaserlight

There have been some more recent developments over at Vendetta Online:

 

Certain factions now carry mutual exclusivity between them and their enemies; the prime example of this are the Itani and the Serco, who hold a long history of hate, mistrust, and sabotage according to the backstory.  If one exceeds a certain level of standing with the Serco, they will begin to lose standing with the Itani, and vice-versa.  This makes sense from the perspective of each nation, and will carry a variety of gameplay consequences; notably, it is no longer possible to have access to both the Serco and the Itani special.  To say this has been a long time coming would be an understatment.

 

There is also the Union of Independent Territories, and ten other minor factions, between which miniature corporate wars spring up.  At least, that is the idea.  Presently, faction exclusivity is limited to Itani/Serco and Axia/Valent (the latter of which certain missions involving their rivalry already exist in game), however VO's frontman Incarnate has said this is only a first level implementation, with much broader ramifications to come.  For the moment, players with levels above the limit with rival factions will be prompted on login to choose one side or the other to keep their standing with, or to reduce standing with both sides until a happy medium is met.

 

This, combined with the recent changes to the mission system, mark some important updates to the game that put VO one step closer to "1.9"

 

According to a letter Incarnate send out this morning, it is ten years to the day since Penny Arcade made a post about Vendetta Online, marking the game's first significant exposure to the public.  As a nod to this important milestone, Incarnate has indicated that all vets who have previously held a paid account will be able to return to the game, free of charge, this Saturday and Sunday.