MMO Week in Review: No, LOTRO's War of Three Peaks is not an 'expansion'
This week, we took a first deep-dive into Torchlight III (we found it cheerfully "adequate"!) and struggled to puzzle out just why Standing Stone Games would try to spin Lord of the Rings Online's first paid patch ever as an "expansion" when it most definitely is not, and even if it were, players are unhappy […]
Battle Bards Episode 179: Arrr pirates!
Shiver me timbers — the Battle Bards are coming aboard and demanding that all capable musicians appear on the poop deck and blast out a few shanties and jigs for their pleasure! In today's episode, this motley crew examines the pirate themes that sail across many-a-MMO. Will they find rich booty — or only a […]
The MOP Up: Soulworker fulfills your greatest desire
Soulworker Online delighted fans with a huge content update this past week that added something called "Desire Workers" and "SinForce." We'll let the game explain: "With Desire Workers every playable character now can receive a new ability: SinForce! When SinForce is activated, some of your character's abilities are strengthened, and you be more powerful than ever […]
Destiny 2 provides a peek at changes to weapon types, exotics, and adept weapons coming in Beyond Light
As we've noted before, Destiny 2's Beyond Light expansion is going to be changing quite a bit. Earlier in the month there was a look at armor mod changes, and now with this week's Bungie post we get a look at weapon changes. The post first touches on adjustments being made to weapon types, with […]
Massively on the Go: All the events and promos coming Pokemon Go this fall
Pokemon Go has received a sudden influx of new events, updates, partnerships, and "heads-ups" from Niantic in the past few days. Most are small, a few are unclear, and others might be hard to understand without some background knowledge. Even press receive little to no warning on events and updates most of the time, meaning this […]
Apex Legends confirms Steam launch November 4, delays Nintendo Switch launch to 2021
In the blur of studio-specific reveal events that took place over the course of this past summer thanks to E3's closure, it's perhaps easy to have forgotten that Apex Legends had designs to release for Steam and Nintendo Switch in the fall. Well, here we are in the fall, and there's been a launch timing […]
One Shots: Rock out in your hideout
I don't have a full-blown lair, unless my work office counts, but if I did, I would aspire to put it someplace really cool. Like on the top pointy thing of the Great Pyramids or inside the mouth of George Washington in Mt. Rushmore. Or, you know, the moon. Mysecretid is way ahead of me […]
The Daily Grind: What do onlookers not understand about your MMO of choice?
I do not understand Guild Wars 2. I don't mean that solely in the sense of the game's mechanics not making sense (there are definitely some problems with making the stats more arcane than they need to be, though); I mean it in the very simple sense that I do not have firsthand knowledge of the […]
Global Chat: Which MMO has the best Halloween?
That's a really good question! While pretty much every MMO has some sort of autumn/harvest/Halloween event going on this month, there are a few standouts from the pack. MMO blog Nerdy Bookahs rendered this judgment: "It is actually a tie between LOTRO's Haunted Burrow and Guild Wars 2 with all activities taken together. LOTRO finds […]
ArenaNet confirms that work on improving Guild Wars 2 latency is still ongoing
If your Guild Wars 2 experience has been sub-optimal, the somewhat heartening news has been that ArenaNet is aware and working on it, as evidenced by a forum post in August. Unfortunately, the alluded-to long road of work doesn't appear to have an end in immediate sight according to an update post this past Friday. […]
APB Reloaded runs third beta test of update 2.1 to get it out 'sooner rather than later'
It's been a long, winding, and very likely frustrating road for APB Reloaded and its attempt to upgrade the game's engine, to the point that even the devs at Little Orbit appear to be sick of it. It's in that spirit of biting the bullet and launching update 2.1 sooner than later (their words) that […]
Fallout 76 drops the bomb — and a new Steel Dawn trailer
October in the Fallout 76 universe is Bombs Drop Day, the anniversary of the nuclear holocaust that ravaged the game world. To… celebrate? To mark this occasion, Fallout 76 is opening up all the game for free through October 26th and doubling up on XP and SCORE acquisition. Following that, the game will kick Halloween […]
Star Trek Online drums up support for the Trek the Vote grassroots initiative
This year's US election has some irrefutable importance for both the country and very likely the globe, so protecting and helping that process is of interest to a number of people. This brings us to the grassroots campaign Trek the Vote, which is now being promoted by no less than MMORPG Star Trek Online. Trek the […]
City of Heroes Homecoming's Issue 27 beta adds new story, travel changes, and enhancement overhaul
City of Heroes' Homecoming rogue server has been a bit sparse on new-content updates over the last little while; Issue 26, you'll recall, was all the way back in March. But as it turns out, that's because the player developers have been storing it up for the release of Issue 27, Second Chances, which just […]
WRUP: Who is the big stupid dumpster man edition
Wyatt: A big stupid man who lives in a dumpster, Wyatt is a strong candidate whom we should all consider for this. Liam: If anyone who is reading this is named Liam, I'm sorry. This isn't about you. This is about the other Liam, the one who is a big stupid dumpster man. All of […]
The Daily Grind: Which MMO does the creepiest Halloween?
While pretty much every MMORPG out there right now is running some sort of harvest or Halloween event, usually you get the same angle. It's all candy corn, cute disguises, trick-or-treating, Smashing Pumpkins (both the band and the activity), and a not-scary-at-all seasonal overlay in major city hubs. But are there MMOs out there that […]
Betawatch: New World approaches its autumn alpha apprehensively
No, no, don't worry. This will not be like the joke a couple of weeks ago with the letter P in front of things. New World has just got its autumn alpha going, and since leveling speeds appear to be slower, it seems like the game itself is a bit nervous. Perhaps… apprehensive? Look, it's really […]
Beyond the Wire thrusts you into a WWI multiplayer battlefield
While World War II has been done and done and done some more in the gaming space, its prequel hasn't gotten as much coverage. That's what makes Beyond the Wire so interesting, as it's a World War I multiplayer shooter that goes back to an earlier era of warfare. Available on Steam early access, Beyond […]
EVE Echoes plans Crimson Harvest events and module improvements next week
Halloween this year is invading space once again – yes, even in the still-got-that-new-car-smell EVE Echoes. In the mobile version of EVE, CCP Games and Netease are running The Crimson Harvest for the spooky season. "The Halloween in New Eden – The Crimson Harvest is coming! From Oct. 31 to Nov. 10, the Crimson Harvest […]
Voxelbox Staxel introduces a new area, new quests, and new items with the Hideaway Hollow update
I have to admit, the name of the newly launched update for the voxel sandbox Staxel sounds kind of cozy and kitsch, like a bed and breakfast that's decorated with almost too many cat-shaped porcelain knickknacks and knitwork tea cozies. The reality, of course, is entirely different but should be no less engaging for players. […]
H1Z1 kicks off Season 9 on PS4 with new rewards and minor vehicle spawn changes
Apparently, there's been an update for H1Z1 on the PlayStation 4. Don't get too excited, though; it's mostly the launch of the game's next season. Or get excited if you dig on this title's seasonal content, no judgment here. Honestly, the update's patch notes are skinny enough to be zero calorie: We know that Season […]
Avorion will introduce black markets, docking, and hacking with the Black Market DLC on November 2
Say, do you guys and gals remember Avorion? It's a space sandbox released on March 9th that described itself as a "procedural co-op space sandbox where players can build their own space ships out of dynamically scalable blocks," or as Justin put it, "space LEGOs." Our own MJ took a peek at it on OPTV […]
Massively on the Go: Pokemon Sword and Shield's Dynamax Adventure dungeons for the fan and MMO player
Helping to bring the Pokemon main-series games closer into the MMO realm, Pokemon Sword and Shield's new expansion, The Crown Tundra, introduced Dynamax Adventures, a kind of simplified dungeon experience. As we previously mentioned, in this content you're sent in groups of up to 4 players with rental pokemon, not your own team, sadly. The in-game reason is basically […]
Albion Online's Halloween event is prepping a solo dungeon
While you're going to have to wait until next week to experience Albion Online's Halloween event, the developers assure you that your patience will be rewarded. The Allhallows celebration is poised to deliver a lot of spooky fun right in time for the holiday. When the event kicks off on October 28th, it'll introduce a […]
SuperData September 2020: Fall Guys falls hard, WoW claws its way back up
SuperData's September report on the state of the game industry's global revenues is not going to shock anyone this month. On the PC side, League of Legends has once again resumed the throne, as Fall Guys: Ultimate Knockout, which was #1 on the list last month with the "highest-earning launch of any PC title" since […]
TERA Console teases crossplay for Xbox One, PS4, Xbox Series X, and PS5
As we've been covering this fall, the dissolution of En Masse has caused no end of confusion over timelines and publishers when it comes to TERA. Last week, we finally learned that Gameforge would be taking over the North American branch of the game. But as for the console version, that's already been picked back […]
Conan Exiles offers apologies for the state of the Xbox One version and assurances of more focus to fix it
So the Xbox One version of Conan Exiles has been pretty busted, with out-of-memory system crashes and error messages stating files had been corrupted that started cropping up with Update 41 in August. Worse yet, these issues haven't really been fixed in spite of an attempt to correct them. This has brought out project director […]
MMO Burnout: Red Dead Redemption 2 succeeds in spite of itself
I have very little experience in the Red Dead world. I can recall wandering around Best Buy nearly two decades ago and encountering an overzealous sales boy in the video game section of the store. "Have you seen this new game Red Dead Revolver? It's a western game, supposed to be pretty good!" I ignored […]
Inside Star Citizen returns with a look at an updated mining UI, refinery decks, docking collars, and utility weapons
The break between episodes of Star Citizen's weekly video news digest series is over, so that means your Fridays are going to be full of wrap-ups of what was outlined on Inside Star Citizen starting with this week. You're very welcome. I know, you love me for it. In this episode, we get a sneak […]
WoW Factor: The World of Warcraft leveling experiences ranked, part two
And we're back! Last time, we went through the four lower expansions in terms of ranking World of Warcraft's leveling experiences. This time, we're going through the top four. This is a pretty straightforward process; sometimes doing things in a sequential chunk of columns makes that happen, after all. One thing I do want to talk […]
Hearthstone's Madness at the Darkmoon Faire adds duels, revamps progression on November 17
Last night, Blizzard announced Hearthstone's latest expansion, Madness at the Darkmoon Faire, and even our newsteam puzzled over how fast these expansions are coming lately. But then again, this one seems primed to rev up the Halloween-addled audience. "Come one, come all to the Darkmoon Faire, Azeroth's one and only traveling carnival! Bear witness to […]
No, friendos, streamers should not be paying games studios for licenses
Did you miss the debate last night? The debate over whether we should all be paying game companies extra for the pleasure of streaming their games, I mean. Yesterday, Alex Hutchinson, a former Ubisoft Montreal developer who currently builds games for Google Stadia, kicked it all off with a steaming hot take. "Streamers worried about […]
Bless Unleashed has officially launched on PlayStation 4
After launching on the Xbox One this past spring, Bless Unleashed is working to spread to other platforms in a bid to make this franchise work. This week's conquest is the formal launch of the PlayStation 4 version, which can be grabbed for free on the PlayStation Store. Of course, there are add-on packs for […]
World of Warcraft may be getting ready to test Burning Crusade Classic
While it hasn't been officially announced, The Burning Crusade is all but assumed to be coming to the World of Warcraft Classic scene, presumably next year. Blizzard teased the 2019 BlizzCon crowd with the possibility and then sent out a survey this past spring to players about the alternate server type. Now we have signs […]
The Daily Grind: Are we ever going to see the 'VR revolution' – and do you care?
Polygon put out a brutal piece this week on virtual reality titled The VR revolution has been 5 minutes away for 8 years and ooooooh feel that burn, right? Tech gurus have been promising us that everything is going to virtual reality any day now for literally years. I remember covering this all the way […]
The Stream Team: The perfect year for a Masquerade of Liars (in Neverwinter)
It seems like 2020 is a perfect year for an event called Masquerade of Liars — at least to Massively OP's MJ. Thankfully, these liars are in Neverwinter, and they are all about celebrating the Halloween season with tricks and treats. And MJ has been wearing a mask for quite some time now, so she'll […]
Massively Overthinking: Where is the line between buy-to-play, free-to-play, and subscription MMOs?
You might think this Massively Overthinking topic is way too obvious, but I assure you, it's not! Consider this: When the buy-to-play-with-no-sub Guild Wars 2 made its basegame a giant free trial years ago and kept a purchase fee only for the expansions (without which the game lacks basics like mounts and elite specs and […]
Battle royale Spellbreak added its chapter system and Clash deathmatch mode today
Where most new battle royales fizzle in the wake of the giants like Fortnite, Spellbreak seems to be doing pretty well for itself, to the point that it's counted up millions of players and has dropped a hefty new patch as of this morning. The centerpiece of the update is a 9v9 deathmatch mode called […]
Phantasy Star Online 2 forms an ARKS League and bans over 10K RMT accounts
Want to join the ARKS League? Players of Phantasy Star Online 2 are being invited to do precisely that in an announcement post of the event, which sees players that participate being sorted into leagues, then sent off to complete objectives like killing enemies, clearing specific quests, or collecting certain items for points. Players that […]
MechWarrior Online unveils 2020's annual rewards program, vaguely promises work on 'the next phase'
Ride-or-die fans of MechWarrior Online are getting plenty of rewards with the 2020 edition of the annual rewards program, which offers up 'Mech bays, cockpit items, C-Bills, or 'Mechs from previous years' programs depending on the number of matches played or purchases made. As for what else is happening in the game, the same announcement […]
Halloween festivities in GTAO, MapleStory, Aion, and Star Stable, plus a Halloween makeup collab in Elvenar
We'll have our complete Halloween roundup ready next week, but in the meantime, we have some spoopy events you might not want to miss out on. Let's roll: MapleStory: Maplers will return to the Prendergast Toy Company's mansion headquarters as Trick or Treat is live in the game as of this week. Players will be […]
Conan Exiles is testing its next patch, and it is all about crafting and customization
What is best in life, Conan Exiles? Is it to crush your enemies, see them driven before you, and hear the lamentation of their romantic interests? No. It is sitting in a camp and meticulously crafting a very nice end table you can use as part of a reading nook on the second floor of your […]
Final Fantasy XIV bans gilselling accounts as its free login event rolls out
Gilselling, also known as goldselling, also known as RMT, also known as "that thing you're not allowed to do in most games and especially Final Fantasy XIV": What happens when you do it anyway? You get banned. Another ban wave has hit the game, with nearly 400 accounts terminated for advertising these services and just over […]
The Stream Team: Another AdventureQuest 3D Mogloween dance party
Music and Mogloween: Two of Massively OP's MJ's favorite things have come together this Halloween! And of course, 'tis the season to show off your very best costumes. What better setting to combine all three than in AQ3D's new Raveyard? It's the perfect place to host a Mogloween dance party! Dress up in your favorite […]
Diablo IV offers a closer look at the creation of its reveal cinematic
Back in BlizzCon 2019, fans got their first taste of the upcoming Diablo IV by way of its reveal cinematic, which not only set the tone for the new ARPG but also illustrated once again that Blizzard's cinematics team is full of top flight creators. If you're the sort who appreciates the process of putting […]
PWE OARPG Torchlight III is live on the Nintendo Switch
As promised, PWE and Echtra Games' Torchlight III OARPG is live on the Nintendo Switch today, just a week after the game's official launch for PC, Xbox One, and PS4. The $39.99 pricetag holds firm on all platforms. "Perfect World Entertainment and Echtra Games are excited to announce that Torchlight III, the light-hearted and fast-paced […]
The Wagadu Chronicles reaches its Emere sub-culture stretch goal, looks to nomadic village totems next
The Kickstarter stretch goals for afro-fantasy MMO The Wagadu Chronicles just keep on getting met. With the project crossing the $160K funding threshold, the four sub-lineages of the Emere people have been officially unlocked. There's not much information on the Emere people, but there is some gorgeous concept art to ogle. With the Emere stretch […]
Vague Patch Notes: Kickstarter shouldn't be your investor demo funding
There are a few things that kind of make me see red about indie game studios. Generally speaking I'm of the philosophy that indie studios are very good for this industry. I want indies to get out there and succeed and so forth. But when I see something like Titan Reach failing at its Kickstarter and immediately […]
World of Warcraft: Shadowlands rearranges soulbinds and alters the Renown UI
Players might be a little bit bored in World of Warcraft right now aside from leveling alts. But have no doubt, Shadowlands is on its way with new content! The current testing phase is about ironing out the issues and delivering a polished experience, and this delay is not just rearranging the deck chairs! Let's look at […]
LOTRO Legendarium: Is LOTRO at war with Orcs – or with its playerbase?
Normally, I would be opening this column with my enthusiastic explorations of the brand-new content update for Lord of the Rings Online. After all, we only get a few of these every year, and so any such patch day is a big deal. Normally, I'd be sharing my first impressions and analyzing where the game […]
