Family Guy fans are getting a new way to enjoy Peter Griffin and other characters created by Seth McFarlane with a new free-to-play, browser-based, 3D multiplayer game named Family Guy Online.

The game will be set in a virtual Quahog and players can interact with popular characters taken directly from the television series including the Griffins. The show’s writers have joined the development team to ensure the characters are able to interact with players while appearing authentic.

Areas available to explore will include well-known landmarks such as Spooner Street, The Drunken Clam and Lake Quahog. Players can team up with friends and family to complete adventure and explore the virtual world although it seems like solo play may also be a viable option.

The official promotional screenshots show Peter and Chris Griffin with bright blue exclamation points over them which are the ubiquitous standard for NPCs offering quests. Imagining a quest offered by Glenn Quagmire brings Leisure Suit Larry games to mind

Players can already set up an account and create characters for the open beta which is scheduled to launch later this year.

Character role are:

• Stewie – Attacks from a distance with gadgets.
• Chris – Causes a lot of mayhem and destruction.
• Peter – A tough up close fighter.
• Lois – Good at healing teammates.

This makes it appear that the classic Tank, Healer, DPS roles are covered. Seeing how these roles are incorporated into the universe should be interesting. Brian and Meg are obviously missing as class prototypes, but there is an icon locked out on the character creator that is shaped like Brian.

You can register your character by following these steps:

1. Visit www.FamilyGuyOnline.com and create an account
2. Register for access to the Open Beta that will start later this year
3. Click on the “Create your Family Guy Character”
4. Follow the directions on screen.

Post a screenshot of your character in the comments below and let everyone know what you are looking forward to the most when Family Guy Online is released.