Developer MindArk announced that its virtual world Entropia Universe will join graphics chip manufacturer Nvidia's "The Way It's Meant to Be Played" initiative, a program designed to help studios optimize and incorporate exclusive features in their games while promoting Nvidia's graphics hardware.

According to MindArk, Nvidia will work with the company to "enhance" the game's visual effects, taking advantage of technologies in GeForce GPUs and Entropia Universe's upcoming implementation of Crytek's CryEngine2 game engine later this summer.

Launched in January 2003, Entropia Universe has grown to over 720,000 registered accounts from over 200 countries. Users play as settlers tasked with colonizing a wild land, hunting monsters for by-products to trade and sell, mining for materials and exploring as they form new societies.

The game is free to download and play, but all equipment and skills necessary for all but the most basic involvement must be purchased with Project Entropia Dollars (PED). Users may buy PED at a fixed exchange rate of $1 per 10 PED, or they may earn them in-game. The hallmark of Entropia Universe's business model is the fact that PED can also be changed back into real-world currency; theoretically, then, users can earn real money through in-world gains.

Said MindArk's business development director David Simmonds: "We are thrilled to be working with Nvidia and look forward to a prosperous future together. The expertise that the Nvidia team has to offer is so valuable to us as we strive to continually provide the best gaming experience for our players."