Back in 2007, Vanguard was intended to be the spiritual successor to the original Everquest. Designed by EQ vet Brad McQuaid, the game launched to a hailstorm of drama. Bugs, missing features and poor performance quickly sank Vanguard at launch. And yet, for the last five years, the only way to sample just what became of this game was to buy it and pay the monthly fee. Left with either closing down the remaining two servers or opening it up for all, today Sony Online Entertainment has chosen the latter and has relaunched Vanguard as free-to-play (click here to visit the official site). This will either increase player numbers and move SOE to keep working on one of the last hardcore MMOs, or it will be a chance for the voyeuristic among us to see this classic disasterpiece first hand.