With more than seven decades of popularity behind him, Conan the barbarian is one of the most enduring characters in all of fantasy. Created by author Robert E. Howard, Conan has gone on to appear in novels, comic books, and, of course, movies that starred a future governor of California. Now Funcom, the developer and publisher of Anarchy Online, is working on creating an online role-playing game that's based in Hyboria, the fictional universe that's home to Conan and all his adventures. Age of Conan: Hyborian Adventures won't be a typical online RPG, though. Funcom touts Age of Conan as an "online action RPG" that combines single-player gameplay with a "massive and brutal multiplayer endgame." In other words, the game starts as a single-player adventure, and after you're finished with the story, you can bring your character into the online universe to adventure with other players from around the world. To learn more, we caught up with Gaute Godager, director of the game, who filled us in on its details. Age of Conan is expected to launch in the second quarter of 2006.