Firefall open beta stage 2 begins

Stage two of the open beta for free-to-play, first and third-person shooter MMO Firefall will focus on "expanding the world," was announced on the game's website last week.

The beta previously focused on surviving attacks from the Chosen, a mysterious species that doesn't seem keen on the existence of humans, stage two of the beta turns the tables and places the humans on the offensive. Players will fight to expand the inhabitable parts of New Eden. They will fuel machines that repulse the Melding, an ominous cloud that the Chosen seems to originate from.

Chosen outposts will be revealed as the Melding fades, defeating these will convert the warfront into a "full zone and a new story-based instance will become available to pursue, unlocking the next chapter of Firefall." The more a player helps push back the Melding, the greater the reward that he receives.

The Firefall player base will collectively vote for which warfront to unlock next. Previously obtained warfronts that are neglected will be subjected to the Chosen's counterattacks, "shutting down that warfront entirely, at least for weeks on months."