similar events are happening across the world, and an investigation as to its source is taking place. Venturing into the game's world, players traveled across the land interacting with playable and non-playable characters to expand the game's story, leading them to numerous locations including the Pulse of Gaia, a blighted land believed to be the source of the corruption, and the homeland of the ancient Icarians, a race known for their prowess with magic. GungHo games plans to introduce new plot points that expand the story of Gaia and the Icarians through regular updates. Players chose a character based on one of three races who inhabit the world: Humans, a small, bushy-tailed raced called the Coltas, and the imposing, tribal Ralgas. Other inhabitants of the world included the diminutive rabbit-like Mogays, who acted as merchants and guides, and numerous species of monsters and animals that serve as the game's primary enemies. Ruins from past civilizations appeared as additional areas, and included opponents such as automatons and robots from a bygone era. As the player ventured further into the game, they encountered progressively more difficult enemies and boss characters who required large groups to defeat. Development Grandia Online was first announced by Game Arts in late 2004 as a collaborative effort between their company and GungHo Online Entertainment under the codename "Project: GO". The game was first revealed during a GungHo Games panel at the 2005 Tokyo Game Show in Tokyo, Japan, where the company announced that they would be working with Game Arts to bring their Grandia role-playing game series to the PC as a "real adventure-themed MMORPG." Development for the game began shortly after completion of Game Arts' previous endeavor, Grandia III, released earlier that year in Japan, and was overseen by GungHo president Morishita Yoshikazu and Game Arts producer Yoshitada Iwata. Inspiration for the game came from Gravity Corporation's Ragnarok Online, as well as to fill the need for "Japan's increased demand for online games." The following October, one month after the game's announcement, GungHo announced plans to become a majority shareholder for the Game Arts corporation, turning the company into a subsidiary and making Grandia Online an in-house production. An open beta test period was originally planned for the first quarter of 2006, with the game's final release following later that year, which was pushed back to the following September, and then an undetermined date due to