Shaiya is an MMORPG (Massively Multiplayer Online Role Playing Game) created by Sonov Entertainment and published in North America and Europe by Aeria Games and Entertainment. The game is being launched in Europe. A German Open Beta started on the 3rd of December 2008 and a French version started on the 16th of March 2009.

In ancient times, there was the Goddess Etain and the three races she created: the Dragons, the Nordein, and the Dumianas. The Goddess Etain found faults in the Nordien and cast them into the soil. In their arrogance, the Dumianas questioned the Etain`s power and authority. The Goddess was weakened by their disbelief, and the Dumianas killed her. Her soul was torn in two. The death of the Goddess left Teos out of balance and unprotected. Other Gods sought to take over Teos and created monsters to invade and destroy it. The Dragons hid themselves from the world. When the dust settled, there were two new Goddesses overseeing Teos. The remaining Dumianas were split into two factions; one for each Goddess.

These two races, the Elves and the Vail, found themselves in constant conflict with each other. Age old tensions fueled their aggression. Soon after, the Humans joined forces with the Elves while the Nordein re-emerged as the "Deatheaters" and allied with the Vail, creating two factions: The Alliance of Light and the Union of Fury. Not only battling the monsters that still roam the lands, these two sides wage a never ending war over the control of Teos.

New players must choose which faction they will play before creating a character: Alliance of Light or Union of Fury. Since these factions are at war, an Alliance player cannot use the game`s chat features with a Union player and vice-versa. Once a player has chosen a faction, he/she cannot create a character on the opposing faction until all of his/her existing characters have been deleted. The chosen faction determines a player`s available races. The appearance of a player`s character and its starting location are determined by its race. All races of both factions can be either male or female. The same customization options are also available for each race, including hair, eyes, facial features, and height. In addition, the choice of race also determines the available classes for a character.

Shaiya, pronounced "shy-uh," allows players to receive quests - normally by interacting with NPCs. These quests are optional and usually require players to kill certain monsters. Players are free to explore the game world as they please, making Shaiya a sandbox game. Completing quests and killing monsters give players` characters experience points. When enough experience is accumulated, the character gains a level and is granted ability points to spend on improving his/her characteristics. The play mode chosen by the player has an effect here where the more difficult modes give more ability points each level. Players` characters maneuver in a 3D environment and are able to run, walk and jump. Players have the option of using either click-to-move or WASD controls. All of the available player skills may be dragged into hotbars and assigned keyboard shortcuts. Players can also communicate by many means: In-Game Chat, Whispers, Guild Faction Chat, and Party Chat. The game also includes in-game guides that are backed by actual humans GS, otherwise known as Game Sages, as well as the GM`s most players are used to in other RPGs.