Until now, the online role-playing genre has essentially consisted of medieval fantasy games in which players run around with swords or bows slaughtering mythological creatures. But in the relatively near future, science fiction fans will finally have their turn in a futuristic persistent online world called Anarchy Online that is currently being developed by Norwegian-based developer Funcom.

Set almost 30,000 years in the future, Anarchy Credits  takes place on the distant planet Rubi-Ka, which is ravaged by an on-going conflict between the governing Omni-Tek corporation and the rebel clans fighting its regime. Players can participate in this conflict on any level they want, rising through the departments of Omni-Tek, setting up their own clans, or trying their luck as freelancers, seeking fame and money on their own. We invite you to look forward into this exciting and different world in this Anarchy Online Intelligence Report.

Developer: Funcom. Prominent team members include Producer Tommy Strand and Lead Programmer Martin Amor.

Projected Release Date: Fall of 2000, according to the official FAQ.

Type: 3D science fiction-based persistent online world.

Story & Setting: By the year 29,475 A.D., humanity has colonized many of the worlds of the Milky Way, both to obtain much-needed resources and to allow the growing race to earn a livelihood. Rubi-Ka is a tiny planet on the furthest frontiers of the galaxy. Several thousand years ago, the huge galactic Omni-Tek corporation began a terraforming effort on Rubi-Ka, but even today, only a small portion of the planet is inhabited by humans. At present, Omni-Tek controls the planet and the extraction of Notum, a substance used to power nanotechnology, from the confines of Rubi-Ka's one major city and capital, Omni-1.

The Clans are rebels opposed to Omni-Tek's rule. Some clans choose to use political means, while other clans use a combination of politics and force. But Omni-Tek has many methods of opposing the rebel forces, from Omni-Reform, which teaches the public to oppose the rebels through social engineering and brainwashing, to the subversive Omni-Interop, the antibodies of the company. In the end, only one side will emerge victorious.

Game World: It will take approximately three hours to walk across Rubi-Ka, not counting delays such as impassable terrain and getting past monsters. The terrain will consist of mountains, forests, rivers, swamps and deserts. There will also be huge futuristic cities, mining outposts and small villages that players can explore.  Anarchy Credits will incorporate zones, but currently plans on having one persistent world instead of multiple game shards. While the beta test server will be located in Europe, the plan is to have servers in all the major markets.