There are a few MMOs out there that hold a special place in my heart; one of which doesn’t have the best reputation, but is an extremely fun and innovative game nonetheless. Of course I'm talking about Vanguard, which had a rough launch and hasn't quite recovered from the players that canceled shortly thereafter. But now it seems that there's hope. As we mentioned over the weekend, Sony Online Entertainment has added a few of their titles to Steam in an attempt to bring new players into the game. In addition, old accounts in good standing were reactivated until January 31st to give former players the opportunity to return to Telon.

The development team has also been working on an amazing amount of free content that is unlike anything SOE has done before. The team is raising the level cap, adding AA's (Alternative Advancement) and implementing new raids and revamps to existing group content. We sat down with Salim "Silius" Grant, Lead Designer of Vanguard, to talk about all of the new 'expansion like' content that will be making its way to the live game soon.

Tamat : Hey Salim, thanks for sitting down with us to talk about Vanguard.

Salim : Thanks for the opportunity Andrew!

Tamat : Vanguard has been live for nearly two years now but unfortunately the 'buzz' in the community has died off quite a bit. What is the games current state?

If you're like me you might enjoy playing non MMO titles such as Left 4 Dead, Bioshock and Team Fortress 2. I find it extremely convienent to buy said games through Steam, which I can then download, and play through the Steam client. Well, imagine my surprise when I loaded Steam this morning to find some new products available for purchase: EverQuest, EverQuest II, Pirates of the Burning Sea and Vanguard! This is great news for existing players because you can most certainly count on an influx of players giving your favorite MMO a try!

"We are always looking for additional ways to introduce our great catalog of games to new audiences. It's hard to think of a larger group of PC gamers interested in multiplayer games than those connecting to Steam," said John Smedley, president of SOE. "We've long been a leader in MMOs and this agreement will help bring our exciting content to millions of additional online gamers around the world."

While Sony left out a title that I think would do great on Steam *cough* Planetside *cough*, I'm sure they will add more titles down the road. For now, the products available on Steam are listed below.

• EverQuest
• EverQuest: Seeds of Destruction
• EverQuest II
• EverQuest II: The Shadow Odyssey
• Pirates of the Burning Sea
• Vanguard: Saga of Heroes

For more details, visit the Steam Store.

If your Vanguard account has been inactive for 45 days or more, you have been given a free opportunity to log back in until Jan. 31 so you can check out the Festival of Gloriann, as well as the recent updates to the game. All you have to do is log in; the reactivation has already been done for you.

Don’t have your discs?  No problem.  Download the trial client HERE , log in and you will be patched up to the full game.

So if you're a former Vanguard player, why not log back in? All the information on the offer can be found after the jump.

The Vanguard team has put the spotlight on some more new features to be added to the world of Telon, including the Bridge of Destiny and the Island of Garuzamut, Arena of Games, enchantments and new race/class combos.

The Bridge of Destiny has some new...inhabitants, shall we call them? They definitely look like some villainous encroachers that need to be dealt with. The Jharru have been trying to keep this place protected in order to prevent people from thwarting their efforts to summon Garuzamut the world eater. They have recently summoned some elemental constructs to act as wardens for the area. Do you have what it takes to defeat these elementals and find out what is happening on Garuzamut island? If so, check out this new 6-man content with some 12-man encounters, and collect the pieces to build two might weapons as you progress.

Check out the full post here or below.

The Festival of Gloriann will soon be coming to Telon, and VGPlayers has a brief preview to excite players.

Once a year during the wintery months, the tale of Atnas Claws and his spirit of giving imbues the cities with an aura of goodness. Towering trees adorned with lights can be seen glittering within the cities of Telon. Be on the look out for an abundance of gifts and goodies! Those who have been very nice this year may find their treats granting them an extra little something special!

Also, new features will be coming along with the festival as well, "including fishing, sailing in galleons, enchanting items, adventuring with new race/class combos and much more." So get ready to start spreading holiday cheer in the world of Vanguard very soon!

One of the best aspects of MMORPGs is that the community can make an impact in the game. For example, Vanguard Players is spotlighting an upcoming event called Pay It Forward that will be hosted by The Preferiti guild on the Seradon server on Dec. 6 at 6 p.m. EST.

The Preferiti are hosting their second Pay It Forward event. This event began because of the guild's interest in two things: helping to advance the community in anyway that they can, and to return the kindness that has been extended to them. This event will be aimed at tier two (levels 11-20) in all three spheres.  Prizes include gear, consumables, bags, diplomacy cards, and many more items.

For more information, check out the event forum post. Aasha, the leader of the guild, thanks everyone who donated items for the event.

Harvest Day is here! You can now participate in various quests to receive fun items, like a "leg" weapon, throwing pies, a slime costume and a vulture. You can also upgrade your new Harvest Day weapon and obtain festive costumes by keeping an eye out for raid NPCs.

Brenda Halgrim and her family are new residents of Khal. Tired of being the shortest Lesser Giants, they decided to move and make a new home. To celebrate their new abode, the Halgrim family wants to throw a Harvest Day Feast. Unfortunately, they just don’t have enough food. However, a passing gnome offered to use a Gnomish Invention to help...and caused all sorts of problems...

Keep reading after the jump for more information from VG Players. There's also a thread on the official Vanguard forum discussing the events.

As promised, the Vanguard team has provided a sneak preview of the upcoming Harvest Day festivities.

As the Festival of the Grim Harvest ends in Telon, a new event is beginning. There will be feasting and celebrating, along with some rather large birds, a bit of spicey-ness, and some slimy, cranberry-colored somethings. We've got new quests, new rewards and new raid mobs, to boot!

Visit the Vanguard Players announcement or simply click the "More..." link below for a screenshot of one of the rewards you can earn in the event.

The Festival of the Grim Harvest may be ending Tuesday, but Harvest Day will quickly be taking its place on Wednesday. The Vanguard team will be providing a sneak preview of the upcoming Harvest Day events on Monday, so keep your eyes peeled.

If you plan on spending the weekend getting some last-minute rewards from the Halloween event before it ends, check out this post on Vanguard Players for a number of handy Grim Harvest links.

A sneak peak of Sartok's Surprise, the upcoming Halloween event, has been posted on Vanguard Players. While it doesn't give a launch date, it does tell us that "three terrifying new undead raid encounters will be roaming the lands seeking out adventures both young and old." These terrifying monsters are under the control of the sinister necromancer Sartok, hence the event's name.

Any heroes able to best Sartok’s abominable creations will be rewarded with special appearance-altering costumes and magical masks. While adventurers rest between battles, they can complete special new quests to claim additional rewards such as new pets or more magical masks.

Keep checking Allakhazam and Vanguard Players for more information on Sartok's Surprise as it is released.