Funcom is planning to make some significant updates to its Age of Conan MMO in an effort to bring back players, amongst which the most important is introducing support for Direct X 10.

Since its well received but buggy launch, Age of Conan has got significant improvements. The Player versus Player element of the game has been rebuilt from scratch, the crafting system has been overhauled and a new zone, Ymir's Pass, has been recently opened in order to provide mid level players with more content.

Craig Morrison, the game director for Age of Conan, says that Direct X 10 support will be added to the title before the end of the year and two new dungeons are set to be opened. The first is the Slaughter House Cellar, which is designed to be tackled by each player solo, and the second is Xibaluku, which the developers describe as a “large team instanced dungeon” that will require a few hours to clear and must be tackled by experienced players.

Early in 2009, the game is also set to receive a city zone called Tarantia Commons. This area, which depicts the slums of the Hyborian capital, will allow players to put down riots. Morrison also says that the items in the game will be reworked in order to make loot more important. He wrote on the official site that “There is a lot to consider in these changes and it will require extensive testing, both internally and externally. We want to make sure that it is a positive development for the game, and find the right balance between the power of items and statistics while still maintaining the pace and compelling nature of our combat system”.

It remains to be seen whether the changes and the new content will draw players back to Age of Conan.