If there’s one thing people can say about Funcom, it’s that they know how to get people excited for their games. Starting with Anarchy Online and moving to Age of Conan, the developers at Funcom have blown people away with their innovative takes on standard MMO systems, from the invention of instancing in AO to the more agile combat system found in Age of Conan. Again, the team is setting its sights high, this time by taking on a genre that hasn’t really seen the light of day in the MMO industry.

Specifically, we’re talking about the modern horror genre, a venue that’s seen more than its fair share of popularity in the last few years. From TV to movies, you can’t seem to flip a channel or take in a movie without seeing a werewolf, zombie, vampire, Cthullu monster or modern magical beasty. Although MMO companies are probably scrambling to put a team together to get a product out the door, Funcom seems to have gotten the timing right and they’re perched at the doorstep to supernatural success with their upcoming MMO, The Secret World.

Thousands of fans all across the world have been scrambling to learn more about Funcom's upcoming modern world horror game, The Secret World. Until now, facts have been relatively slim regarding the mystery shrouded MMO, but at this year's GDC, things have started to become clearer. While we have much more content coming down the pipe soon, we thought we'd start you off with the very first bit of true gameplay footage ever seen from this gruesome game. Sit back and enjoy.

Funcom seriously knows how to create a realistic and horrifying backstory for The Secret World. First it launched a site for Kingsmouth, a sleepy seaside New England town with some dark secrets. The team then released a grainy trailer that shows zombies wandering the town. Well, it turns out that was only the beginning.

Funcom has been running an alternate reality game on Twitter that currently features four Kingsmouth residents talking with each other. Official forum user Leck has posted a transcript of the recent tweets between Carter, Danny Dufresne, Deputy Andy Gardener and Sheriff Helen Bannerman, and some interesting details have surfaced through the discussion.

The characters have been mentioning a blog written by "crazy" Tyler Freeborn, who is a native of Solomon Island. His Monsters of Maine blog was just discovered, and it's "an investigation into the cryptozoological and occult events occuring on Solomon Island." He says the Pale Men will return soon and "drag us down, down, down into the black ocean where we will endure in cold pain and endless darkness for all eternity."

Freeborn revealed today that he will be posting his evidence soon. We'll be keeping an eye on the blog to find out exactly what that means.

It's been awhile since we've heard anything substantial about Funcom's The Secret World, the upcoming urban fantasy/horror MMO created by Ragnar Tornquist. As we reported earlier this month, the first in-game footage was finally made available to the public, but Funcom's Erling Ellingsen said we'd have to wait for next month's Game Developers Conference in San Francisco to learn more.

However, Gamasutra recently scored an interview with Tornquist about the creation and development of TSW, which is definitely worth a read. Titled "A Little Piece Of Hell: Building The Secret World," the interview features a lot of information about the design process behind TSW. Tornquist talks about using the knowledge and technology Funcom developed in Age of Conan to help design the new MMO, while creating a distinctly unique piece of work at the same time. He also briefly mentions several game mechanics, touches on combat and explains TSW's dark visual styles. Check out the full Q&A here.

Now that Funcom has unveiled the first in-game footage for The Secret World, we're all wondering when we'll get more details on the dark MMO. Director of Communications Erling Ellingsen was kind enough to shed some light on the situation for us:

"We will be showing full color in-game footage for TSW at GDC and we're doing a substantial reveal there."

The next Game Developers Conference will be held in San Francisco, CA, from March 9-13. We're not sure what the big reveal will be, but we're excited to find out. Mark your calendars!

Funcom has revealed the first in-game footage for The Secret World in a video on GameSpot, and it gives us a glimpse at the location of Kingsmouth. The small town in Maine was unveiled last week through the launch of a seemingly innocent site that vaguely hints at the town's dark secrets.

So what is the secret? Zombies. The video shows the undead wandering the town, and Game Director Ragnar Tørnquist states in an interview with GameSpot that players will be dropped right into the middle of the mayhem:

"It's the perfect example of what's happening all over the game world: Dark days are coming. And no one in the know wants widespread panic, so part of what the players have to do is contain this darkness -- prevent the truth from being broadcast beyond the borders of the secret world. Part of this is, of course, kicking zombie butt. But part of it is also following your secret society's storyline, exploring the island, digging into the lore, speaking with characters--finding out what's happened, how to stop it, and how that ties into similar events across the world."

While some fans on the official forums fear that zombies are overused nowadays, Tørnquist confirms that there will be "plenty of monsters to slay -- starting with zombies and ending up with, well, very scary things."

Funcom silently launched a Web site last week that showcases Kingsmouth, a sleepy seaside New England town that will be featured in The Secret World. Fans discovered the site over the weekend and Funcom officially revealed it today on Twitter and Facebook.

The site looks like it was actually made by the Kingsmouth Chamber of Commerce, so don't expect anything flashy when you visit it. Fans are currently picking it apart for clues; the news page contains numerous dates, such as a Feb. 16 harbor planning meeting and Kingsmouth Day on April 3. What does it all mean? We'll just have to wait and see.

There may be a glimmer of hope for disappointed fans who read the news that MMO developer Funcom (Age of Conan, The Secret World) was forced to sack 20 percent of its workforce, as we reported a few months ago. The layoffs didn't look good for the development pace of The Secret World, one of the most-anticipated MMOs of the coming year. Ironically, reports of the layoffs came less than a month after Funcom expanded its studios to Montréal, Canada. "In addition to strengthening our North American presence, the new studio will take advantage of the great incentive programs offered by the Québec region, incentives that makes Montréal one of the most cost effective locations in the world for developing MMO games," a press release from Funcom announced, back then. "This will in turn allow us to better balance our costs, making it possible for us to continue to expand our investments into the MMO segment."

Just a few days ago, Miguel Caron finally took the helm as CEO of Funcom Games Canada, according to Edge. "Caron will take on leadership of several strategic initiatives for Funcom, in several different areas of the MMO sector," Edge writes in the article. "One of his first mandates will be to lead the growth in employees at the Montreal-based company." Whether you're interested in the finer points of the gaming industry or not, fans of Age of Conan and the upcoming The Secret World should find a bit of solace in the announcement; corporate stability and a proper workforce are vital in both maintaining existing MMOs and the development of upcoming titles, such as The Secret World.

Funcom has kicked off the New Year by posting new pieces of concept art for The Secret World and Age of Conan: Rise of the Godslayer on Facebook. You can view both images after the jump.

The Secret World art is creepy, to say the least. Facebook fans are speculating that it depicts some sort of doll or idol since the person added for size reference is holding something small. What do you think?

If you'd like to gain access to the beta tests for Age of Conan: Rise of the Godlayer or The Secret World, you may want to log into your Facebook and Twitter accounts. Funcom is currently hosting a contest to give away beta keys and in-game Age of Conan items, and all you need to do is join one or all of Funcom's social networking pages before the end of 2009 to be eligible to win.

Funcom has Facebook and Twitter pages for Age of Conan, The Secret World, Anarchy Online and the company itself. You can find links to all of the pages after the jump.