Massively Overthinking: The worst chat in the MMORPG genre
The first rule of MMORPGs is turn off global chat. Think about that for a sec. This is a genre that is expressly multiplayer and social, where one of the best parts is that we're supposed to be able to connect to people all over the world. And we tell our newbies to turn off […]
World of Tanks collabs with Swedish metal band Sabaton for a music video and in-game event
It's time once again for World of Tanks and a band to come together to mesh online vehicular battling and music. In a similar vein to the game's collaboration with Korn, the Swedish metal band Sabaton will once again be featured in WOT (having done so twice before) in both in-game event form and music […]
Destiny 2 elaborates on adjustments coming to Trials of Osiris on September 10
A number of things were unleashed upon Destiny 2 fans during the game's showcase presentation, including the next expansion, the launch of the Season of the Lost, and the game's 30th anniversary pack among them. One the things that were touched on briefly was a revamp coming to the Trials of Osiris PvP activity, which […]
EverQuest II opens fresh content for Kaladin, EverQuest begins Stone Cold Summer
Daybreak's MMOs are getting love this week. Not only did PlanetSide 2 get a big patch, DC Universe Online get a new episode, and Aliens Firetime Elite finally launch, but the studio has updated EverQuest and EverQuest II in varying degrees. To wit: EverQuest II has updated with a random assortment of bug fixes and […]
SMITE has launched the new hunter Charybdis and kicks off its latest Odyssey major event
We knew that she was coming, and now players of SMITE can become the whirlpool as the hunter character Charybdis officially arrived to the MOBA this past Tuesday. Charybdis wields a ravenous weapon known as the Maw, with an ultimate ability that unleashes a devastating strike that becomes immediately available for another attack if it […]
Blizzard is changing the name of Overwatch's character McCree
Over the course of the last month of the Activision-Blizzard sexual harassment and discrimination scandal, players have wondered aloud whether Blizzard would do anything to address the fact that one of Overwatch's characters, McCree, was named after a now-former employee tangled up in the accusations. Jesse McCree was one of three prominent developers ousted from […]
DC Universe Online's House of Legends launches new hub, episode, and allies system
As promised, Daybreak pushed House of Legends to the DC Universe Online live servers this week. It's a freebie episode for everyone. The episode adds the titular new hub in The Bleed, the new allies system, new dailies, updated queue UI, and the updated Superman Classic content. "Answer The Monitor's call and travel to his […]
Fallout 76 outlines what will happen when the Nuclear Winter battle royale mode goes offline
With Fallout 76's Nuclear Winter battle royale mode shutting down this fall, fans of the mode may be wondering what happens next or whether cosmetics that were unique to the mode will be making a comeback. A number of those questions were answered in the game's latest Inside the Vault news post. Cosmetics from Nuclear […]
Grab a Skydome starter pack key courtesy of Gamigo and MOP
Skydome is Gamigo's latest multiplayer title; it's a 4v4 multiplayer hybrid MOBA/tower defense title that just hit early access. To celebrate the release and give players a leg up, the studio is treating our readers to a starter pack key giveaway! Here's what the key unlocks: • Champion Skin Fragments to choose your favourite skin […]
Fortnite hosts in-game Martin Luther King Jr. exhibit, doubles down on Impostors Trials
This might be one of the weirder but more important online gaming promotions we've seen all year: Fortnite is collaborating with TIME Studios for an "interactive experience" in the game that focuses on civil rights leader Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., and his life's work. "Celebrate the life and work of Nobel Peace Prize recipient […]
Guild Wars 2 sets Festival of the Four Winds for next week as players grump over anniversary sales and birthday gifts
Earlier this week, just ahead of the game's ninth anniversary, Guild Wars 2 dropped a fresh roadmap to get us through the fall. Your eyeballs were probably busy looking for the dates for the various End of Dragons beta events, but you might also have noticed that ArenaNet was planning to roll out its usual […]
The Elder Scrolls Online offers extra rewards for players going back to its original adventures
While there's no shortage of new stuff to do right now in The Elder Scrolls Online, the latest event for the game is asking for players to go back to the old school. No, really, the oldest school available in the game. The new Year One event kicking off today is giving players a chance at […]
Path of Exile players rejoice over new item filter update patch
Path of Exile has had a bit of a controversial summer thanks to the much-needed powercreep-smooshing Expedition expansion and subsequent drop in player numbers. This week's interim update probably won't be a sea change for the title, but it's worth noting all the same. The 3.15.3 update does address gobs of bugs, including bugs with […]
Dauntless adds a new Hunting Ground, new Hunt Pass, and refreshed repeaters in today's update
As a long time Dauntless player, one of the game's most underwhelming weapons has been the ranged repeaters; shooting monsters with a pair of pistols should have been cool, but their modular design and weak damage output made them overall a letdown. So consider me (and perhaps other Slayers) intrigued by the update arriving today, […]
Bless Unleashed PC says it's cracking down on cheaters and RMT
Bless Unleashed's PC updates just keep coming – both the content kind and the administrative kind. First, Round8 has addressed the "large amount of reports related to illegal programs" being made by the community. "As a result, we have further strengthened our monitoring of the use of illegal programs," the studio says. "The use of […]
Steam mysteriously bans two Chinese MMOARPGs
Strange things are apparently afoot in the dark recesses of Steam's MMO section. MMO Fallout reports this week that Valve mysteriously delisted two titles that may be the same game (based on the art assets) and weren't being played by anyone. The titles in question were God of Flame and Legend MMO, both of which […]
Niantic finally reverted the Pokemon GO COVID interaction radius after player boycott
It seems the blowback from the Pokemon GO community in response to Niantic's gym/Pokestop situation had some teeth after all. While the community – and we – had championed for COVID-related changes to stay long before the details appeared, Niantic's nerfing of interaction distance was never something we thought would be among the first bonuses […]
Pearl Abyss downgraded DokeV from an MMORPG to 'open-world action adventure'
Back in 2019, Pearl Abyss announced a slew of new MMOs, including Crimson Desert, Plan 8, and DokeV, the last of which was being called a "collectible MMORPG for all ages" by the studio. Unfortunately, following last night's trailer reveal of the game at Gamescom, the studio made clear that DokeV not only won't be […]
The Daily Grind: Do you regret not backing any MMO Kickstarters?
Let's be real about something – there are a lot of MMO Kickstarters that crash and burn well before getting to the "launch" stage. Some of them implode pretty early in the "concept" stage. But at this point we also can't pretend that no MMOs based on Kickstarter pitches have ever made their way to […]
Whatever happened to The Exiled (formerly known as Das Tal)?
Do you remember The Exiled? What about Das Tal, its original name? If you answered yes to either question, congratulations, you remember a PvP-centered MMO that was at one point highly anticipated before it came out. The game has been pretty quiet since release and some accompanying struggles with the player count, and the last […]
Into the Echo is a new MMORPG with an emphasis on character individuality
When it comes to most MMORPGs, there will very often be a build meta — a largely agreed upon "best" way to put together a class through very specific equipment choices, skill selections, and talents, and while all players of a game don't have to follow these molds, the in-development MMORPG Into the Echo seeks […]
VR MMO Orbus previews next week's Highsteppe revamp
VR MMO Orbus has a big patch coming next week, when the Highsteppe map and the hub town of Patreayl will get a full revamp and a few side quests too. Ahead of the August 31st release, Ad Alternum Game Studios has posted a cutesy in-character dev blog about the revamp. "Gone is the hodgepodge, […]
Tree of Savior's Hot Week event hands out endgame gear and character boosts simply for hitting level 50
Do you want to be endgame ready in Tree of Savior without doing anything more than hitting an arbitrary level number? Then you'll be delighted by the game's current Hot Week event, which is dishing out a huge list of goodies that effectively let players hit their maximum, including Level Jumping Cards, XP Cards, Class […]
Closers maps out new content, new modes, and system adjustments arriving through April 2022
The anime action MMO Closers is setting its update sights far into the horizon — as far forward as April of next year. A roadmap video from the devs provides a look at several new features and existing feature adjustments that will be heading to the game over the next few months. Starting off with […]
Don't panic, but yes, Phantasy Star Online 2 added sunset provisions to its TOS
You might have noticed that this week's Phantasy Star Online 2 update came with a change to the end user license agreement. SEGA noted that it added a section for the "Shutdown of Online Services," a section detailing the "Binding Arbitration and Class Action Waiver" for North American players, and "[o]ther minor corrections" that "reflect […]
Legends of Runeterra releases Beyond the Bandlewood expansion, Valorant makes some bug fixes
Riot Games' titles that aren't a MOBA have seen some new updates. The largest one arrived to the online CCG Legends of Runeterra, which released its Beyond the Bandlewood expansion, adding nine new champions, new keywords, and an event pass among other things. One of the expansion's key mechanics that was detailed previously is the […]
Gamescom 2021: New World open beta Sept. 9, plus DokeV, Valheim, Halo Infinite, Riders Republic news
[We're updating with the highlights below, including the New World info!] Gamescom 2021 is officially kicking off today as a free virtual event as the pandemic drags on. The Geoff Keighley-helmed opening night live event for the show is promising a slew of non-MMORPG titles – "Call of Duty: Vanguard, LEGO Star Wars: The Skywalker Saga, […]
RuneScape outlines plans for a new Treasure Hunter system and the end of the Hearts of Ice currency
The Treasure Hunter lootbox monetization scheme in RuneScape is going to be seeing some changes very soon. Starting tomorrow, August 26th, Jagex will be trialing a Gifts of the Creator promotion, which will let players who spend a Key choose from one of three goodies: a Medium Lamp, a Medium Star, or 3 Mini Protean […]
South Korea plans to abandon its 10-year-old 'Cinderella law' gaming curfew for kids
If you can stretch your brain back a decade, you might remember a flurry of articles in the western press about a gaming curfew South Korea imposed on minors. At the time, we (under the original Massively banner at the time) were calling it the "nighttime shutdown" or "Cinderella law" as it essentially blocked teenagers […]
EVE Online is implementing a new plan for 'skill plans' this fall
CCP Games isn't finished tinkering with EVE Online's skill system: This week, it announced its plans for your plans – your skill plans, that is. The feature is expected to roll out in September and "allow you to create, share, and interact with purposely created lists of skills within the client" as part of a […]
Digimon Masters Online developer is working on a new MMO based in the Digimon universe
Are you ready to discover both a new game and an old game? Then allow us to fill you in! First we'll start with the new: It's called Digimon Super Rumble, an in-development MMO based on the Digimon franchise. According to details from a Digimon series fan forum, the game is being built in Unreal […]
PlanetSide 2's playable robots re-emerge as a free faction on PS4
Everyone knows the acronyms of PvE and PvP, but what about PvB? We'll call that "Player vs. Bots," and it's especially relevant in PlanetSide 2 this week as the robotic fourth faction, the NSO, has come roaring back into the game's PS4 edition in a powerful way. While unlocking the NSO is free to all […]
Perfect Ten: 10 MMOs that waved goodbye without ever making it to launch
If you've somehow missed this fact, then I hate to be the one to inform you of it, but it's time you learned: MMOs shut down. Yes, sometimes even beloved games that are good and neat shut down after years of operation. This is a sad reality, but it is also a reality of the […]
Black Desert celebrates two years on console and 2000 days on PC with free stuff
So hey, want some free stuff? Pearl Abyss has a bunch of goodies queued up for Black Desert fans, even beyond the Margoria expansion in the mobile edition earlier this week, and yes, at least for console, it includes free stuff. Console players on PlayStation and Xbox are being treated to a bundle of free […]
World of Warships apologizes for issuing promo code that personally attacked a content creator
Even while under the public microscope for aggressive and possibly predatory monetization schemes and the near-collapse of its influencer program, Wargaming is making few moves to quietly slink out of the spotlight. The latest controversy started when a Russian-language World of Warships community contributor named Turry accused Wargaming developers of not playing the game they […]
Swords of Legends Online drops two more raids tomorrow, teases fall roadmap
We hope you like raids because Swords of Legends Online has kind of a lot of them. Since its launch, it's pushed out three raids in patches, and this week, it's releasing two more: the Ruins of Nuowu and Ice World. Ruins of Nuowu in the Shanghuai Grassland asks players to battle the Plaguebringer and […]
Phantasy Star Online 2: New Genesis gets ready to usher in the fall with Sonic the Hedgehog
Phantasy Star Online 2: New Genesis may be the latest and greatest in this long-running franchise, but does it boast pumpkin spice swords and crisp fall days? It may just (who knows?) when its autumn event kicks off on September 1st, transforming the landscape with colorful leaves. Also coming at the top of next month […]
The Daily Grind: Do you like interrupt mechanics in MMO combat?
MMO combat isn't all that complicated, for the most part. Hit bad guys with the end of your Pain Stick, don't stand in the fire, and if you see a cast bar happening, you flail about looking for your interrupt ability that you totally forgot you even had. I'm of mixed feelings about interrupt abilities […]
California lawsuit now alleges Activision-Blizzard HR literally 'shredded' evidence
So who had "Activision-Blizzard gets caught shredding possible evidence in an ongoing lawsuit" on the ol' Blizzard scandal bingo card? Yes, we're back to coverage of the ongoing disaster trainwreck over at Activision-Blizzard, the subject of a lawsuit filed in July by the California Department of Fair Employment & Housing alleging that the company has […]
Stardew Valley's lone developer announces a $40K speedrunning competition on September 4
Yes, the words "speedrunning," "competition," and "Stardew Valley" are being used together in a headline. That's because Eric "ConcernedApe" Barone, the farming/life sim RPG's lone developer, has unveiled plans for the first official Stardew Valley Cup. Also, let's not forget that this game does indeed have an esports scene already. This competition collabs with YouTuber […]
Dual Universe focuses on player-created content, including a racing circuit
As Dual Universe strives to meet its goal of launching sometime in the middle of next year, fans are keeping a close eye on the progress of its beta. In the latest newsletter, Novaquark isn't focusing so much on what it's doing to improve the game as what the community itself is adding to the […]
The Elder Scrolls Online's Year One Celebration event grants new rewards for visiting old zones on August 26
Sometimes it's good to circle back around to old regions in an MMORPG and reminisce on your character's advancement through the area on to bigger and better things, and now players of Elder Scrolls Online will have a little extra incentive to have a nostalgia trip with the Year One Celebration event that grants goodies […]
Massively OP Podcast Episode 336: Bards and battleships
Justin and Bree discuss World of Warships, Roblox, World of Warcraft, Guild Wars 2, Elyon, and Neverwinter, with adventures in LOTRO, FFXIV, GW2, and SWG Legends, plus mailbag topics on repurposing nostalgia and transplanting MMO systems.
EA's 'patent pledge' openly shares tech patents in an effort to increase game accessibility
Everyone, regardless of physical or medical issues, should be allowed to enjoy gaming, and Electronic Arts is attempting to facilitate as much by openly sharing five tech patents with all game devs, promising in a so-called "patent pledge" that studios using these listed tech patents will not face any legal repercussions from EA. "Through our […]
Black Desert Mobile sets sail on the Great Ocean with today's expansion
The mobile version of Black Desert requests your oars, as it's finally getting the Great Ocean expansion today. Readers will recall that the expansion rolled out as Margoria back in 2017 on PC, but mobile players can finally get their feet wet too. "The Great Ocean is a new region players can discover after they […]
Multiplayer co-op shooter Aliens Fireteam Elite officially launches
It's been a very weird and winding road to get to this point, but Cold Iron Studios' long-teased co-op shooter Aliens: Fireteam Elite has now officially launched, arriving as a buy-to-play title to PS5, PS4, Xbox Series X, Xbox One, and PC via Steam. "Set in the iconic Alien universe, Aliens: Fireteam Elite is a […]
DC Universe Online takes you to the House of Legends tomorrow
Where do you go to hang out when you've got a pair of spandex tights, unlicensed superpowers, and a desire to hobnob with fellow caped crusaders? If you're in DC Universe Online, you're going to want to book it over to the brand-new House of Legends, which will go live tomorrow. This definitely sounds like […]
Choose My Adventure: A quick spot of building and crafting in Trove
I have to admit, this one didn't take long at all to get through. I sort of assumed that building things in Trove was a generally simple affair, owing to the big boxy voxels that this game's world operates on, but I also wasn't really expecting the building segment to be… well… so quick. For […]
Book of Travels has delayed its early access launch for the fourth time
Ah dangit, there goes our other August launch: Might and Delight has delayed Book of Travels for the fourth time. MOP readers will remember that the game was crowdfunded back in 2019 and set early access for last fall, then delayed to Q2 of this year, then to Q3 and more specifically to August 9th for the "chapter […]
Neverwinter's Jewel of the North is live on console with the Bard and level squish
Jewel of the North has officially launched in Neverwinter's Xbox One and PS4 versions as of today – yes, the same update that went live for PC at the end of July. As readers will recall, the release includes the epic new Bard class and a complete overhaul of the game's leveling systems. "The game's […]
