Get a quick sneak peak at what’s coming for patch 1.8 in the latest trailer released by Trion.

With Rift’s upcoming 1.2 patch, the game will be seeing a whole lot of new and exciting features. From a cursory glance, it would appear that Trion has really taken into consideration what Rift’s playerbase has had to say. This is not to say that every change being implemented with 1.2 is being welcomed with open arms or that everything players have wanted is going to be added, but the game is, without doubt, continuing to evolve, arguably for the better, despite a few holes that still need to be properly addressed.

This article will take a brief look at some of the major highlights that will soon be arriving in a nicely wrapped 1.2 package and summarize the community’s general reactions to these highlights. Class balance changes, however, will not be addressed, as it is impossible to look at balance in an objective and purposeful way. Additionally, class balance is in a perpetual state of flux, so looking at the features that will soon become permanent fixtures of Rift’s landscape is a more appropriate route to take.

Editor’s Note: There are lots of things to get caught up on. This weekend I got married so I’m just catching up!

Happy Friday all!

As we head into the weekend we wanted to give you an update on what you have to expect to see in the near future.

The team here has put together posts for each of the 4 Archetypes about upcoming changes to their respective souls, in addition to an update on PvP, Crafting and Expert Dungeons.

Please see the links below for all the info – thanks and have fun!

• Soul Updates
• Warriors
• Rogues
• Clerics
• Mages
• PvP Update
• Crafting Update
• Expert Dungeon Updates

Rift 1.1 – 3/30/11

== FEATURED ==
* The Endless Court launches an unprecedented invasion of Telara. Check out WORLD EVENT below for event details!
* In-game video can now be recorded as well as posted on YouTube! Read more under VIDEO CAPTURE.
* You can now report AFK teammates in Warfronts. Check out PVP/WARFONTS for details.
* Rift events no longer track player contribution against other players. See below under RIFTS AND INVASIONS for more.
* Leaders of merged groups now have the option to Unmerge Group through their portrait menu.
* Many quest fixes below under individual ZONES.

Here are the patch notes for the upcoming Beta 3.

Patch Notes – Beta 3 (12/27/2010)

=== FEATURED ===
* Soul acquisition and soul point gains have undergone some changes — see below under SOULS for more details!
* One new full-zone event and seven new Invasion bosses are available for Beta 3!
* You can now control-click soul icons in quest windows and get a full soul tree preview of the soul with all of its abilities.
* You can now rename your pet! Right click the pet’s portrait and select the ‘Rename’ option.
* Reactive abilities now have a special display when they are triggered and available for use.
* New game opening movie is in!
* Cyril has a whole new voice! This includes the Guardian intro movie voiceover.