You can join the week-long fray and battle alongside The Escapist in Dust 514, or you can let us do the heavy lifting and watch us live on Twitch.tv.

Beginning on Monday, March 4th, and running through Friday, March 8th, The Escapist will be hosting a week-long event in the Dust 514 beta, where The Escapist staff will be battling clone armies alongside the community, as well as streaming to Twitch.tv to allow those without a PS3 to join the fun. As an extra bonus, every community member that joins The Escapist's in-game corporation will receive a commemorative Dust 514 badge on site. You can even join early by going in game and submitting your application to the "Escapist Magazine" corporation, being sure to include your Escapist username in your application. The PS3-exclusive Dust 514 is currently in open beta, and instructions on how to get into the game can be found in the How to Play section here.

Dust 514 is a free-to-play FPS with a twist; it ties directly into CCP's EVE Online. Whether you're being hired as a mercenary for a ruthless player-owned corporation, or you're calling in a favor with an Orbital Bombardment, the battles that take place in Dust 514 can have real effects on the in-game universe of EVE Online. This sort of interaction is definitely a novelty to players, and we are excited to see just how much impact the battles of Dust will actually have on the EVE universe.

Dust 514 features two currencies, ISK and Aurum, the former being the same as the in-game currency for EVE Online, and the latter being the real-money currency exclusive to Dust 514's micro-transactions. You'll be able to purchase cosmetic upgrades, as well as some actual equipment with Aurum, however, most practical items you can buy with Aurum are slated to be available via ISK as well, which can be earned through contracts in the game.

The Escapist will be in game and streaming live on Twitch.tv for four hours each day from Monday to Friday, as per the schedule below. In case you're busy at work during the day, we'll be bookending the event on Monday and Friday with MikeWehner, who you may know from the Neverwinter beta live stream, putting some extra hours into Dust 514 in the evening starting at 5:30pm Eastern. If you've got a PS3, you may want to download Dust now, so you'll be ready to get in on the action when Monday rolls around. Would you like to know more?

Update: The Dust 514 event launch has been delayed until Noon Eastern time. Check back then for more info!