Lineage II's casual friendly version includes an action-packed solo dungeon
Hopefully you didn't miss the word that Lineage II is about to launch a brand-new version of the game that's far more casual-friendly than anything the MMO has had in the past. And it's not just a decrease in difficulty that's happening with Lineage II Aden; this version includes two more classes, a new pet […]
PlanetSide 2 brings back its summer weapons, introduces new vehicle engine cosmetics
It's time once again for players of PlanetSide 2 to trade in their lethal firearms for some squirt guns as the shooter's summertime even is back once again. From now until August 25th, players will have access to a squirt gun sidearm, faction-specific water balloons, and a variety of summer-themed directives to fulfill for cosmetics […]
Final Fantasy XI prepares a Ramuh-filled update for August
The developers of Final Fantasy XI really hope you like everyone's best-known avatar of lightning, Ramuh, because he's going to be featured a lot in the August update. First and foremost, he's got a starring role in the newest installment of the Voracious Resurgence, which continues the Aht Urhgan portion of the storyline. There will […]
Playable Worlds' lead designer: 'Our industry does not thrive on ideas'
Raph Koster's startup Playable Worlds is working on an MMORPG. A big one. A big one we don't know much about yet, in spite of all the words the company has spilled on it so far. We're getting more words this week, though this time, they're from the game's lead designer, Greg Costikyan, whose name […]
SMITE's next god is Charybdis, the Ceaseless Whirlpool
I'm actually a bit surprised that it's taken SMITE this long to add this character, particularly since Scylla is already a playable option. Regardless, it's a bit of better late than never when Charybdis, the Ceaseless Whirlpool arrives to the game soon. Information about this new character is a bit sparse, but the initial announcement […]
The Stream Team: Causing some trouble in Space Punks' early access
A fair number of new games cross our desk over the course of any given news week, but the whole vibe of Funcom-published Space Punks strikes a little differently and has caught the attention of MOP's Chris enough that he's willing to buy in to early access, fire up the game live, and give it […]
Amazon Games just delayed New World again, now to September 28
Amazon Games has just announced on Twitter that it's postponing the launch of New World. "[W]e're going to take a few extra weeks to smash bugs, improve stability, and polish the game," the studio writes. "New World's new global launch date is September 28, 2021. This was not an easy decision to make. We know […]
Dungeons and Dragons Online invites players to discover the Sinister Secrets of Saltmarsh today (for money)
Today is the day for Dungeons and Dragons Online players to get their boots mired in water, mud, and secrets. Today marks the launch of the Sinister Secrets of Saltmarsh update, bringing with it a marshland full of enemies, a haunted manor, 10 new dungeons for players to plumb, and the Horizon Walker enhancement tree. […]
Aliens: Fireteam Elite previews its soundtrack and difficulty modes
Beneath the sudden sparks of gunfire, the hissing of something hiding in the dark, and the sound of a team slowly stepping through infested corridors, Aliens: Fireteam Elite is going to be relying a lot on the music of the game to sell its atmosphere. Will it succeed at that? Well, we can't tell you […]
Vague Patch Notes: Blizzard may live on, but it will never be Blizzard again
If you want to chart the moment when Blizzard stopped being Blizzard, you got a really nice data point when J. Allen Brack stepped down yesterday. His replacements are not "Blizzard people." These are not people who have been with the company for years on end and have ultimately been a part of the structure […]
Pantheon: Rise of the Fallen talks limited action sets, traits and dispositions, and other MMO launches
It's time once more for Pantheon: Rise of the Fallen's VIP developer roundtable podcast for the month of July. In this episode, Ben Walters shares the table with creative & programming producer Chris "Joppa" Perkins and associate game designer Adam "Tehom" Moste to talk about Pantheon's design, production, and other related matters. Here are a […]
Book of Travels teases the groundwork of how cooperative play will work with Endeavours
It goes without saying that the point of Book of Travels is that you will not be grouping up with other players to descend into a hole and go smash some orcs in the face. For one thing, there might not be orcs to smash. But that doesn't mean you won't ever expect to be […]
EverQuest II plots Toil and Trouble for next week, teases dinosaur/centaur expansion
Daybreak's Jenn Chan has surfaced with a letter to the EverQuest II community this week that spills a few beans on the game's next update: It's dubbed Toil and Trouble, and it launches August 10th. What's in it? Oh my sweet summer child. Chan is not telling you that in spite of the fact that […]
Crowfall plans scoring and reward changes for Conquest campaigns
Earlier this week, ArtCraft elevated Crowfall's first big patch since launch to the live servers, bringing the 3v3 faction PvP fully online and opening the larger Dregs campaigns as the original campaigns wound down. But the rollout hasn't been without challenges. "Players identified an issue in the Conquest scoring system late in the campaign and […]
Elder Scrolls Online shores up its Waking Flame dungeons
As Elder Scrolls Online focuses on its Waking Flame DLC this month, ZeniMax is working to make sure that the associated dungeons aren't falling down around players' ears as they explore them. As such, Patch 7.1.3 is going through its paces on the test server. This patch "includes several more fixes for the Waking Flame […]
RIFT quietly retires free subscription trial from Steam
Fans of RIFT haven't seen a lot to give them optimism about the MMO's future this year, especially following team layoffs and transfers back in March. While the title continues to roll out sale promotions and the odd event, it hasn't put out a patch since February or seen meaningful dialogue with Gamigo in months. […]
The Daily Grind: What MMO expansion feature instantly had your money?
Every time an MMORPG expansion is announced, the very first thing that I look for is the big hook — that tentpole feature that is a gotta-have, totally want, shut-up-and-take-my-money. It's the feature that has everyone buzzing about it the day (or week) afterward, and if an expansion can pull off more than one of […]
Activision-Blizzard Day 14: Brack and Meschuk exits, fraud lawsuit, proto-union, and Q2 financials
It's been a helluva Tuesday in the swamps of the Activision-Blizzard sexism scandal: The day opened with the departure of J. Allen Brack from Blizzard and closed with the Activision-Blizzard Q2 2021 investor call, which showed Activision revenues up but Blizzard revenues and monthly active users down, in spite of the release of WoW Classic's […]
Apex Legends adds a new character, updates its map, and kicks off ranked arenas in Emergence update
The battle royale shooting of Apex Legends has gotten a little bit more artistic. That's according to the general vibe of the title's latest roster addition at least, which is a tentpole feature of the overall Emergence update that has gone live today. The new character is named Seer, a man who brings "microdrones and […]
Corepunk delays its beta testing until December
Bad news to anyone who was heavily anticipating Corepunk's previously planned first beta test happening this month. The developers made a short video today announcing that technical issues made it unavoidable that the team would have to delay, and while the team is optimistic and targeting October internally, the beta test has been pushed back […]
Q2 2021: Activision revenues are up, Blizzard MAUs are down amid sexism scandal
Back in May, we got quite a bit of unexpected attention here at MassivelyOP as the headline for our coverage of Activision-Blizzard's Q1 2021 financials – Blizzard has lost almost 29% of its overall active playerbase in three years – went viral across social media and Reddit. We, like many journalists and gamers, had been […]
Massively OP Podcast Episode 333: Dragon us back to Guild Wars 2
Justin and Bree discuss Guild Wars 2's End of Dragons, Pathfinder Online, Crimson Desert, and Week Two of the Blizzard Scandal, with adventures in LOTRO, FFXIV, Albion, Guild Wars 2, and SWG Legends, plus a mailbag topic on boycotts in the MMO space.
Pokemon Go skips multiple generations and trash pokemon to land on Sword/Shield legendaries
Players once thought that Pokemon GO's third Ultra Unlock from GoFest 2021 was just a simple release of Giratina, or perhaps Gen 4's Mythical god-status pokemon, Arceus. We thought it would be a nice time to rest. Apparently, that's not the case. Whether it's a way to reward players or distract from the PokeStop/Gym radius nerf […]
Guild Wars 2's One Path Ends is free for all players this week as game perks hit Amazon Prime Gaming
End of Dragons may have everyone buzzing, but Guild Wars 2 has stuff going on right now that won't require you to wait until next February. For starters, One Path Ends is this week's freebie episode; originally released in 2017, it was the capstone episode for season six, which led into Path of Fire itself. The […]
The Soapbox: Pokemon Unite's monetization is gross and threatens a competent game
By now, you've probably seen several articles about the poor monetization in Pokemon Unite, often based on Reddit posts or streamer hot takes. Most talk about pay-to-win play, though the better ones note that it should eventually even out. Few mention that the gacha loot boxes are problematic as well. While I think most of us […]
Dual Universe launches beta patch 0.26 'Apollo' today with shield, asteroids, and chairs
Are you sitting down? Because that's a thing you can do in Dual Universe with the game's most recent patch. Beta patch 0.26, known as "Apollo" to its friends, has added new elements to the game like actual chairs you can sit in for all the luxury and enjoyment you would ask for from a […]
Tencent reacts to Chinese state media calling online games 'spiritual opium' by adding new restrictions
Young online game fans in China are going to be facing some new restrictions from Tencent-operated games. That's in response to an article from the Chinese newspaper Economic Information Daily (EID), an affiliate of the country's state-run Xinhua news agency, which called the company's mobile MOBA Honor of Kings "spiritual opium." "'Spiritual opium' has grown […]
Choose My Adventure: Tearing through the colorful world of Trove at breakneck speeds
The idea to play Trove this month ended up being something of a needed breath of fresh air for me. With all of the miserable news surrounding the industry recently as well as my general distaste for last month's game, I'm delighted to be able to play something so colorful and cheerful and fun. I […]
Enter to win a Star Trek Online Klingon Personnel Package in honor of today's House United console launch
Console players of Star Trek Online are in for a treat today with the launch of House United on Xbox One and PS4. "Starting today, console players can log into the free-to-play MMORPG based on the Star Trek universe and experience the long-awaited finale of the Klingon Civil War. The game's newest season features some of […]
Craig Morrison announces his departure from Blizzard
It's time for the departure of yet another name you might recognize from Blizzard, but you might recognize him from other projects as well. Craig Morrison has announced via Twitter that he is no longer at Blizzard Entertainment, noting that his departure was in the works for some time and took place last week, but […]
Flameseeker Chronicles: The End of Dragons reveal didn't wow people – and that's OK
We finally have our first real peek at the features and story of Guild Wars 2's third expansion, End of Dragons. It has been a long time since this game got a proper expansion, and hopes were high for what was in store. Could we be getting a new class? A new race? Housing? A […]
The gamer in the infamous BlizzCon video says she 'dodged a bullet' by not working at Blizzard
When Xantia stepped up at BlizzCon to address World of Warcraft's character design and ask that women in the game not all look as if they had stepped out in just their underwear, it wasn't the flippant dismissal of her question by the designers that bothered her. No, it was the sound of a large […]
EVE Online's record-breaking World War Bee 2 has seemingly come to an end
In an unexpected twist, one of the largest and longest-running wars in EVE Online came to a close with a fizzle instead of a bang last night. World War Bee 2 (WWB2) ended with The Imperium (aka Goonswarm Federation) declaring victory after all members of the PAPI (PandaFam Alliance Please Ignore) coalition ordered forces to […]
Bless Unleashed dev discusses PC version's release, post-launch content, and cash shop promises in video
With only a few days left before Bless Unleashed makes its PC debut, Round 8 Studio's head of development Koven Park decided to take a few moments and answer some questions about the MMORPG's launch in a video, where he talked about the game's final test, content for the MMO after launch, and it's monetization. […]
Elyon amps up the PvP options for this month's beta test
With a second closed beta kicking off on August 18th and a full launch at the end of September, Elyon is a very busy bee these days. Kakao said that testers who show up for CBT2 will find one marked difference from the first beta round: far more PvP options. In CBT2, Elyon will feature […]
Blizzard's J. Allen Brack is stepping down ahead of today's investor call
J. Allen Brack is out at Blizzard today ahead of the investor call this afternoon, replaced by a pair of co-leaders. Activision-Blizzard President and COO Daniel Alegre announced the news to the company this morning. "I am pleased to announce that, effective immediately, Jen Oneal and Mike Ybarra have been appointed co-leaders of Blizzard. Jen […]
The Daily Grind: How realistic should MMO armor be?
One of the things that has me excited about New World is the specific realism of its armor. If I'm playing a warrior type of toon in a more realistic MMO, I really strongly prefer to have heavier armor. Maybe I don't want to fully rock the "boxy" armor look, but I also don't want […]
Massively Uplifting: Summer goodness from SOLO, EVE, Bungie, Warframe, and Guild Wars
When the news gets filled with dark and horrible things (and maybe you start to be disgusted with companies and people), it is natural to turn toward some comfort news that focuses on the good and uplifting things happening around us. Filling up on this is more than satisfying; it is balm for the soul. […]
Nevergrind Online is an upcoming cooperative multiplayer title dressed up in classic RPG style
Update: An MOP reader pointed us to the history of this particular developer, which appears to involve publicly promoting anti-vax conspiracies. We do not support and will not be covering this game further. Do you like the classic battle system of a game like Dragon Warrior or Wizardry but would rather play it online with […]
Wolcen Lords of Mayhem details plans for summons and endgame activities
With the Arise update of Wolcen: Lords of Mayhem already in players' hands, there's perhaps some question on what the multiplayer ARPG has next up its sleeve. In their July 2021 monthly update, the devs of Wolcen Studio offer some word on what's in the works for the near future. Further scaling improvements to summons […]
Star Sonata 2 adjusts support classes, adds a new zone, and introduces base upgrading features
Let's check in on Star Sonata 2, shall we? After all, the last time we had a peek in on this one it had made its free-to-play debut on Steam in June 2020. So what's been going on since then? Quite a lot, actually, if you flip through the game's dev blog. One topic of […]
Star Wars Galaxies Legends just restored language-learning and expanded smuggler slicing
I have grumped before about logging into an MMORPG and having a mechanic upended so thoroughly that it's cost me days or weeks of playtime or piles of credits, but while the recent SWG Legends patch does just that, I am not at all sad about it. And that's because it's in the service of […]
Crowfall launches The Shadow update, opens new recruiting campaign
This won't surprise anyone who was already participating in Crowfall's pre-launch recruiting programs, but it's worth noting all the same that the live game is also embarking on a promotion to pull in new players. "Starting today, all Crowfall players can use their personal CrowLink (Crowfall.com/join/displayname) to invite friends to join you in Crowfall," ArtCraft says. […]
Competitive MMO Lands of Kehliel posts slow but sure progress on its first match
Do you remember Lands of Kehliel? It first crossed our desk in November of last year, promising a competition-focused open world MMORPG experience where four teams of four players can fight monsters and one another, use soul shards from slain players in crafting, and race to complete quests that can only be snapped up by […]
SEED dev blogs discuss city building, player testing reactions, and the first version of an economy
If you were worried that the somewhat sort list suggested by this story's headline meant that there weren't a lot of developer blogs roaring out of SEED, then don't be. There's plenty for the devs at Klang Games to talk about as the team moves its way along the development pipeline of the colony building […]
Mortal Online 2 revamps pet XP, adjusts clade gifts, and adds new monsters in latest update
Mortal Online 2's newest content patch is yet another little cornucopia of different things, whether it's fixes for bugs, adjustments to abilities or pet behaviors, or improvements to UI. There are a couple of highlights in this patch we'd like to call attention to, particularly those who bring pets along into battle. The pet experience […]
TERA PC adds new dungeon content, new gear, and a new armor boon system in Build 108
PC players of TERA have a few new dungeon things to do with the launch of Build 108, particularly since there are two new five-player dungeons in the form of the Cursed Fusion Laboratory (in normal and cursed versions) and the Stormed Citadel, along with new Mahtnan gear found in Ace Dungeons and Echoes of […]
DragonCon 2021 plans hybrid setup, implements COVID precautions for in-person event
Since 1987, DragonCon's put out a yearly call for geeks, the hardcore, and cosplay royalty to gather together to get their nerd on. When it returns on September 2nd, fans will find the same celebratory spirit couched in new precautions due to the ongoing pandemic. According to an August 1st update, the organizers said that […]
Wisdom of Nym: What will Final Fantasy XIV add to its magical DPS?
The biggest issue that Final Fantasy XIV has with its casters, as a rule, is that casters in the series all basically work like Black Mage but have to work differently in the game. That isn't a problem for adding new abilities, of course; it's just an interesting fact to consider when thinking about the […]
Star Wars: The Old Republic offers lore-filled look at Legacy of the Sith's new planet Manaan
Fans of KOTOR are already very familiar with the planet Manaan, which is coming in the Legacy of the Sith expansion for Star Wars: The Old Republic. That said, this is still a new version of the old favorite, and there are — conceivably at least — new players who have never even heard of […]
