By CM Boots-Faubert Form GAMING UPDATE

Game developer Nival is calling on gamers to invite their friends and then destroy them in King's Bounty: Legions -- an upcoming game for Facebook that is entering its Beta Test Stage.

Nival confirmed the opening of the roles for its initial beta test for King's Bounty: Legions, a turn-based social strategy game playable on Facebook, but only via a limited number of invitations.

How to Get a Beta Key?

Interested players can acquire an invitation over at gaming website Gamesradar or via an invite from a Facebook friend who is already playing the game.

King's Bounty: Legions welcomes social features and competitive player-versus-player combat as new additions to the popular turn-based strategy series, beloved for its tactical combat, amusing storyline and challenging quests.

In King's Bounty: Legions, players travel to different lands, meet interesting NPC's and defeat treacherous armies while growing and customizing their own forces to unleash in the game's addictive and challenging turn-based strategy system.

"King's Bounty: Legions combines the classic, quest-fulfilling game play with new PvP battles and an asynchronous feature that lets users send their army into battle even when they are away," says David Christensen, general manager for Nival's North American operations.

"While we look forward to King's Bounty fans settling long-standing debates about who amongst them is the greatest leader, we are confident the various types of game play will allow a wide audience to enjoy King's Bounty: Legions."

Gamers who strategically assemble a well-balanced army and exploit different advantages held by some classes over others, will enjoy more success and potentially achieve a higher Legion ranking in PvP.

Classes include the following:

Archer -- This range class offers players the chance to deal damage while keeping a safe distance from the fray.

Defender -- The best offense is a good defense, as demonstrated with their ability to withstand heavy attacks from enemies.

Mage -- Unleash magical powers to conquer foes from afar with these masters of the mystic arts.

Support -- Everybody needs somebody to watch their back and this class is the go-to back-up in battle.

Warrior -- Whether it's swinging a big sword, showing off some big fangs or just being a frontline trooper, this class will get up close and personal with foes.

King's Bounty: Legions will be a cross-platform title, appearing initially on Facebook, and later on iOS and Android platforms for mobile and tablet devices. The game is being developed on the Unity 3D engine, allowing for the popular King's Bounty art style to help raise the visual quality expectations of browser-based, social games.

Players play King's Bounty: Legions for free and may choose to purchase in-game items. Nival plans to support King's Bounty: Legions with regular game maintenance and updates, featuring new fighting units, maps, quests, social elements and game play mechanics.