To celebrate the influx of players that have entered the world of Global Agenda due to various holiday sales, Hi-Rez is offering a Friends with Benefits quickie promotion that gives your friends 50% off the game.

In case you're not familiar with the Friends with Benefits program, all active users are assigned a series of coupon codes. When you give these codes to your friends, they can purchase the game at a discount and you earn exclusive in-game items. For a limited time, the discount has been bumped up from 30% to 50%!

If you're a current Global Agenda player, now's the perfect time to get your friends in the game. If you're new to the game, you could buy a copy and then get another for half price!

As part of the incredible Steam Holiday Sales, Global Agenda is now available for 75% off for today only. So hurry over and get in on this amazing deal while the game is only $7.49!

Steam is running sales on a myriad of games right now, so while you're there, check out all the great games!

See that creepy elf up there? He's going to take you on a magical journey to a mystical place... with or without your permission. Alright, let's back up a bit. Earlier this year, Hi-Rez Studios released the "Line Up" video as part of its No Elves promotional campaign for Global Agenda. As a holiday gift, the team has released the outtakes from the video. Check out the elf's lines that didn't make the original cut after the jump!

If you'd like to try out an action MMO that contains no elves whatsoever, Global Agenda is 50% off in the game's store and on Steam through Jan. 3, 2011. If you're currently a player, you can participate in the 12 Drops of Christmas challenges through Jan. 9 to win seasonal head flair.

Global Agenda's 12 Drops of Christmas event kicks off tomorrow, December 16, at 8 a.m. GMT. Complete each challenge to win a piece of seasonal head flair, and complete all 12 challenges through Jan. 9 to earn the Abominable Snowman flair.

Each challenge will be revealed before that specific event begins. The first drop is the Cold Turkey head flair, and to earn it you'll need to win 5 PvP Breach matches between Dec. 16 and 17. Keep checking the 12 Drops of Christmas page regularly for the rules of each event.

Global Agenda Version 1.39 is set to go live today following the server maintenance, which is scheduled to end around 5 p.m. EST. This patch introduces four new maps to the action MMO: Volcano Assault (Breach), Himalayan Point (Breach), Toxicity (Payload) and Triumph Missile Complex (4v4 Breach).

In addition, the patch features new PvP rewards, enhancements to the /challenge function, updates to Dome City and new seasonal flair that you can earn during the upcoming Holiday event. Oh, and we can't forget to mention the new "Crescent" jetpacks that allow players to fly a bit faster and longer. These jetpacks drop as rare end-of-mission rewards from Merc PvP, so keep an eye out for them.

Would you like a shot at an Alienware M15x Laptop? All you need to do is play Global Agenda for a chance to win! Alright, it's a little more complicated than that. First you'll need to head over to the Alienware Arena and sign up to receive a Global Agenda promotion code. Then you'll need to register for Global Agenda or log into your existing account and enter the code. Then you can play Global Agenda for a chance to win the laptop.

There are a couple other rules involved in the contest. You need to reach level 12 or higher and play at least three Mercenary PvP matches by Dec. 20 at 1 p.m. EST. In addition to the grand prize, 10 players will receive Limited Edition Global Agenda boxes and 20 players will earn $10 gift cards to the Global Agenda merchandise shop.

The holiday sales just keep on coming! Hi-Rez Studios is offering a pretty major sale on Global Agenda this week:

"As a big thank you to our community, we are offering Global Agenda at 50% off and boosters at 25% this week only in the Global Agenda store! You can also get the limited edition box from Amazon at 50% off this week! Happy Thanksgiving from Hi-Rez Studios!"

If you've ever wanted to try out this third-person shooter MMO, this is the perfect opportunity. The sale ends on Nov. 29, so act fast!

Do you like the look of these Global Agenda PvP prestige helms? If you do, you may want to take advantage of two limited-time opportunities:

1. To earn the Anubis helm (right), all you need to do is win 5 PvP Mercenary matches between November 13 and November 20.
2. To earn the Horus helm (left), complete ten /Challenge matches by November 22 as part of the AgendaStats 4v4 Pre-Season Tournament.

Hi-Rez wants players to hone their PvP skills in preparation for Version 1.39, which will include new Merc PvP maps. Will you be going after these helms?

Several members of the Hi-Rez Studios Dev team will be in game tonight to participate in the Global Agenda PvP Pre-Season Tournament. The tournament is being organized by the popular community site AgendaStats.com. Devs will be online from 8-10pm EST to help promote the tournament, which is going on through November 22.

Currently over 80 teams are registered for the event, but players are encourage to jump into the game this evening to test their skills against the Devs for fun.

Any players still interested in registering for the tournament can head over to the AgendaStats website. Will you be in-game tonight trying to pwn a Dev?

When you think about an MMOFPS like Global Agenda, does the term kid-friendly spring to mind? Well it should, at least according to the National Parenting Publications Awards. NAPPA recently awarded the Gold to Global Agenda in the Software and Video Games category for teens and tweens ages 13 and up.

NAPPA found that boys loved testing the game and "really enjoyed the futuristic weaponry and gadgetry." NAPPA also acknowledges that players must act as a team to accomplish goals in Global Agenda.

Executive Producer Todd Harris said that Hi-Rez Studios actually designed the game to be family friendly, which is why there is no blood or gore. Do you know any young gamers who play Global Agenda?