The Accretian Empire is an autocratic regime where independent thinking is unknown. Its citizens are completely devoted to the welfare of the collective, a quality characterized by their willingness to lay down their lives in the service of expanding its borders. Not that they die easily; indeed, being a mechanized race and carrying immensely powerful weaponry, its soldiers are extremely formidable opponents, possibly the most fearsome within the known reaches of the galaxy. Made up of many jurisdictions, the Cora people's Holy Alliance has also known many wars, invariably fought in furtherance of the deeply held spiritual convictions that unite them. Their considerable strength in battle is drawn from their faith. They make use of potent magic derived from their devotion as well as a selection of traditional armaments made even more deadly by adding the blessings of their deity.

CCR's RF Online is a persistent state world offering a total of three playable factions. The last, but not the least, is the Bellato Union. Typically short of stature due to the gravitational forces on their home planet, its members are very capable both physically and intellectually. When facing the prospect of hostilities, they can deploy a variety of armored mechs. This is not an infrequent occurrence since the race is constantly searching for new resources it can exploit, by force if necessary, in pursuit of its ambitious primary goal, economic domination of the cosmos. Last month, Codemasters announced its intention to offer the title in the North American and UK markets, stating a target launch date in the first quarter of 2006. Being immediately keen to know more, we got hold of spokesman Michael Rowland to fill us in.