Two competing factions, composed of a selection of races and classes, battle each other and the enemies who emerge from dynamic "rifts".

[2] In March 2018, Trion launched the game's first progression server called Rift Prime, which features sequential expansions unlocked throughout the year, minimal cosmetic item shop and a fresh start for all characters created.

Players take on the role of the Ascended, resurrected superhuman warriors tasked to defeat the forces of Regulos and cleanse Telara of the threat of the Storm forever.

The Defiant are those who, for cultural, historic, or personal reasons, do not follow the religion of the Vigil and have put their trust in science and technology as a way to conquer the forces of Regulos.

Once opened, these rifts begin to spawn monsters that proceed to march towards important points on the map.

If rifts are left unchecked, the invading monsters will eventually conquer large portions of the map, inflicting casualties and significantly hampering the operations in that area.

In addition to Dungeons, players may also choose to enter 10-man or 20-man Raids which require teamwork and good equipment to be successful.

Each class (with the exception of the Primalist) starts with access to eight different 'souls' from that calling, which have trees to which they can allocate a number of points gained each level.

These combinations allow players to play multiple roles in PvE, PvP, party, and raid gameplay.

They can provide fantastic support via group or tank healing, as well as debilitating destructive debuffs and crowd control.

Originally, these attributes were unable to be changed in game, but patch 1.9 added a barbershop which allowed for re-customization of all aspects but race and sex.

For each wardrobe slot, a player can equip alternate gloves, shoulders, boots, pants, and chest pieces.

Weapon rarities are common (white), uncommon (green), rare (blue), epic (purple), and relic (orange).

Weapons include swords, axes, maces, staves, wands, bows, guns, daggers, and shields.

[11] Trion Worlds CEO Lars Buttler has stated that Rift had an initial budget of "over US$50 million".

[13] Prior to its release, the game was frequently referred to as a "WoW killer", and having the potential to challenge World of WarCraft's dominance of the MMORPG genre.

This expansion tripled the land mass of Telara; raised the level cap to 60; introduced dimensions, a form of player-housing; and added additional soul choices to each class.

Prior to that date, Rift required a monthly subscription fee for continued play, or purchase of prepaid game cards.

[25] PC Gamer said the game was "absolutely colossal, [and] Rift aims high and hits its mark, proving that there's room to grow within the traditional MMO format.

IGN stated that "soul building is very flexible and rifts are great fun" and that although "there's not a lot of originality" and "everything works exactly as it should," and concluding that "Telara is a worthy alternative to Azeroth for anyone looking to explore a new world.

[37] IGN awarded Rift "Best PC Persistent World/MMO Game of 2011" calling it "the most bug-free and out-of-the-gate high-quality MMO ever created.

"[38] In 2010 the company Palladium Books sued Trion over the similarity of this game's title to Rifts, which was created in 1990.