Rift Lite Is Free-To-Play

Today Trion Worlds launched Patch 1.7 for their MMORPG Rift. This update, dubbed "Carnival of the Ascended," is accompanied by a new trial version of the game called Rift Lite.

Rift Lite is accessible to anyone who has signed up for a Trion account. You can create a character and advance them to level 20. You'll get access to the beginner zones of Terminus, Mathosia, Freemarch, Silverwood as well as your faction's capital city.

"In the past ten months, Rift has evolved at a breakneck pace, through seven massive updates that set new expectations for live MMOs, in features, in content, and in service,” said Scott Hartsman, Executive Producer of Rift and CCO of Trion. “We think a Lite edition with no time limit is the best way for players to see what an amazing experience Rift continues to be.”

The Carnival of the Ascended update brings a number of changes for current subscribers as well. It overhauls PvP progression and expert dungeons and introduces new loot for max-level players. It also introduces a new Chronicle (River of Souls), a Master Mode dungeon (Caduceus Rise) and the titular Carnival, a massive world event kicking off in a few weeks. Characters can now marry each other, too.

Screenshots from Patch 1.7 are below.