https://massivelyop.com MMORPG news and opinions Wed, 26 Apr 2023 15:53:03 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=6.1.1 https://massivelyop.com/2023/04/26/perfect-ten-25-text-based-mmos-and-muds-that-are-worth-playing-in-2023/ https://massivelyop.com/2023/04/26/perfect-ten-25-text-based-mmos-and-muds-that-are-worth-playing-in-2023/#comments Wed, 26 Apr 2023 16:00:00 +0000 https://massivelyop.com/?p=435150 Wanderlust hits even the most content MMO adventurer from time to time, and while there are worlds a-plenty to visit, sometimes it is easy to feel that one has “seen it all.” When those times arise and you’re feeling a little bit stale with current offerings, there’s always a different type of massively multiplayer title […]]]> https://massivelyop.com/2023/04/26/perfect-ten-25-text-based-mmos-and-muds-that-are-worth-playing-in-2023/feed/ 8 https://massivelyop.com/2023/04/19/perfect-ten-10-ways-world-of-warcraft-feels-like-a-dead-mall/ https://massivelyop.com/2023/04/19/perfect-ten-10-ways-world-of-warcraft-feels-like-a-dead-mall/#comments Wed, 19 Apr 2023 16:00:00 +0000 https://massivelyop.com/?p=436157 There was a time that I lived next to a very small mall that’s tucked kind of out-of-the-way in a part of my state. It was already kind of a low-rent location even when I went there in middle school, but as time went by it only got more dead over time. By the time […]]]> https://massivelyop.com/2023/04/19/perfect-ten-10-ways-world-of-warcraft-feels-like-a-dead-mall/feed/ 109 https://massivelyop.com/2023/04/12/perfect-ten-10-reasons-new-world-deserves-a-second-look/ https://massivelyop.com/2023/04/12/perfect-ten-10-reasons-new-world-deserves-a-second-look/#comments Wed, 12 Apr 2023 16:00:00 +0000 https://massivelyop.com/?p=432588 If you were one of the many, many players who skipped off New World after giving it an initial try, well, we don’t blame you. The launch was a bit of a mess, the subsequent months were a morass of unsteady development, the population plummeted, and an aura of uncertainty seemed to hover over Amazon’s […]]]> https://massivelyop.com/2023/04/12/perfect-ten-10-reasons-new-world-deserves-a-second-look/feed/ 42 https://massivelyop.com/2023/04/05/perfect-ten-ten-mmo-promises-that-are-not-filling-me-with-confidence/ https://massivelyop.com/2023/04/05/perfect-ten-ten-mmo-promises-that-are-not-filling-me-with-confidence/#comments Wed, 05 Apr 2023 16:00:00 +0000 https://massivelyop.com/?p=433995 Every game’s development – and this includes MMOs – involves certain promises being made that the developers probably half-knows are not going to wind up being true. With a little bit of luck, the audience also knows that this is untrue. Yes, you plan to have monthly content updates without fail. Very nice, Guild Wars […]]]> https://massivelyop.com/2023/04/05/perfect-ten-ten-mmo-promises-that-are-not-filling-me-with-confidence/feed/ 24 https://massivelyop.com/2023/03/29/perfect-ten-10-features-that-take-star-trek-online-out-of-this-world/ https://massivelyop.com/2023/03/29/perfect-ten-10-features-that-take-star-trek-online-out-of-this-world/#comments Wed, 29 Mar 2023 16:00:00 +0000 https://massivelyop.com/?p=430966 In returning to Star Trek Online after a couple of years away, I did something brand-new this time around: I brought my Star Trek-obsessed teenage daughter with me to experience the fun. For the first time, the two of us are playing an MMO together, and I’m glad to get to share with her the […]]]> https://massivelyop.com/2023/03/29/perfect-ten-10-features-that-take-star-trek-online-out-of-this-world/feed/ 11 https://massivelyop.com/2023/03/22/perfect-ten-a-primer-on-10-very-basic-mmo-fight-mechanics/ https://massivelyop.com/2023/03/22/perfect-ten-a-primer-on-10-very-basic-mmo-fight-mechanics/#comments Wed, 22 Mar 2023 15:00:00 +0000 https://massivelyop.com/?p=431762 When the first two humans decided to get into a fight, they were just pushing one another and telling the other person to quit it, that hurts. Then one of them had an idea. “If I hit him with this rock,” she thought, “it’ll hurt more and he’ll give up!” Then she hit him with […]]]> https://massivelyop.com/2023/03/22/perfect-ten-a-primer-on-10-very-basic-mmo-fight-mechanics/feed/ 18 https://massivelyop.com/2023/03/15/perfect-ten-10-pieces-of-striking-mmo-cover-art/ https://massivelyop.com/2023/03/15/perfect-ten-10-pieces-of-striking-mmo-cover-art/#comments Wed, 15 Mar 2023 16:00:00 +0000 https://massivelyop.com/?p=428924 Earlier this year, MMO Folklorist posted a rather intriguing article about the 10 best MMO box art designs — at least in his opinion. It was a fun read and prompted me to do what any creatively starved writer does, which is to blatantly steal the idea for my own. While giving credit. Hey, I’m […]]]> https://massivelyop.com/2023/03/15/perfect-ten-10-pieces-of-striking-mmo-cover-art/feed/ 17 https://massivelyop.com/2023/03/08/perfect-ten-10-franchises-that-deserve-another-shot-at-an-mmo/ https://massivelyop.com/2023/03/08/perfect-ten-10-franchises-that-deserve-another-shot-at-an-mmo/#comments Wed, 08 Mar 2023 16:00:00 +0000 https://massivelyop.com/?p=429919 Some experiments are attempted once and fail, and it’s not hard to figure out why that didn’t work. We don’t really need to take another swing at Scarlet Blade to see why that didn’t work the first time. There’s no need to relaunch Hellgate: London on the assumption that this time it’ll work (even though […]]]> https://massivelyop.com/2023/03/08/perfect-ten-10-franchises-that-deserve-another-shot-at-an-mmo/feed/ 47 https://massivelyop.com/2023/03/01/perfect-ten-10-small-guild-wars-2-details-that-make-it-special/ https://massivelyop.com/2023/03/01/perfect-ten-10-small-guild-wars-2-details-that-make-it-special/#comments Wed, 01 Mar 2023 17:00:00 +0000 https://massivelyop.com/?p=426673 I find that there’s this special window of time that happens when you return to an old favorite MMO that shouldn’t be missed. It’s only about the first week or so in coming back that you have this sort of mini-honeymoon revival. You are reminded of those details and features that you had forgotten, and […]]]> https://massivelyop.com/2023/03/01/perfect-ten-10-small-guild-wars-2-details-that-make-it-special/feed/ 19 https://massivelyop.com/2023/02/22/perfect-ten-10-things-i-really-dislike-about-final-fantasy-xiv/ https://massivelyop.com/2023/02/22/perfect-ten-10-things-i-really-dislike-about-final-fantasy-xiv/#comments Wed, 22 Feb 2023 17:00:00 +0000 https://massivelyop.com/?p=427740 Sometimes, when I have a series of columns planned, I start off by saying, “Hey, here’s a series of columns I plan.” And sometimes I let it just be unstated and see how many people expect the followup because if it’s not obvious by now that I enjoy having at least a bit of cheeky […]]]> https://massivelyop.com/2023/02/22/perfect-ten-10-things-i-really-dislike-about-final-fantasy-xiv/feed/ 60 https://massivelyop.com/2023/02/15/perfect-ten-ranking-10-mmorpg-map-designs-from-worst-to-best/ https://massivelyop.com/2023/02/15/perfect-ten-ranking-10-mmorpg-map-designs-from-worst-to-best/#comments Wed, 15 Feb 2023 16:00:00 +0000 https://massivelyop.com/?p=412144 When I was a kid, I loved poring over maps in our family’s atlas when we went on road trips. Getting a kind of bird’s eye view of the world and figuring out my location in it was always satisfying. This hasn’t changed as I transitioned into virtual road trips through vast fantasy and sci-fi […]]]> https://massivelyop.com/2023/02/15/perfect-ten-ranking-10-mmorpg-map-designs-from-worst-to-best/feed/ 9 https://massivelyop.com/2023/02/08/perfect-ten-10-things-i-really-dislike-about-final-fantasy-xi/ https://massivelyop.com/2023/02/08/perfect-ten-10-things-i-really-dislike-about-final-fantasy-xi/#comments Wed, 08 Feb 2023 17:00:00 +0000 https://massivelyop.com/?p=425912 You don’t have to dig very far to find my articles saying nice things about Final Fantasy XI. I say them often. I’d be inclined to say nice things about the game at this point even if just for the fact that years after it supposedly entered maintenance mode, the game is not only getting […]]]> https://massivelyop.com/2023/02/08/perfect-ten-10-things-i-really-dislike-about-final-fantasy-xi/feed/ 6 https://massivelyop.com/2023/02/01/perfect-ten-10-dead-mmos-that-should-be-revived-for-a-second-chance/ https://massivelyop.com/2023/02/01/perfect-ten-10-dead-mmos-that-should-be-revived-for-a-second-chance/#comments Wed, 01 Feb 2023 17:00:00 +0000 https://massivelyop.com/?p=421720 I have always felt that it’s such an enormous waste of everything when a live MMORPG is sunsetted and access to it is gone for good. Not only do players lose those virtual worlds, account progress, and homes for social groups, but developers see their life’s work go poof with the flick of a switch. […]]]> https://massivelyop.com/2023/02/01/perfect-ten-10-dead-mmos-that-should-be-revived-for-a-second-chance/feed/ 61 https://massivelyop.com/2023/01/25/perfect-ten-tutorial-topics-every-mmo-really-needs-to-cover/ https://massivelyop.com/2023/01/25/perfect-ten-tutorial-topics-every-mmo-really-needs-to-cover/#comments Wed, 25 Jan 2023 17:00:00 +0000 https://massivelyop.com/?p=423690 Tutorials are important in MMOs. No MMO has a great one, unfortunately. I don’t just mean in the cases where returning players could use tutorials to remember what the heck we were doing when we logged out that might explain why you have 1900 pieces of leather and 78 bones in our inventory as if […]]]> https://massivelyop.com/2023/01/25/perfect-ten-tutorial-topics-every-mmo-really-needs-to-cover/feed/ 10 https://massivelyop.com/2023/01/18/perfect-ten-why-its-better-than-ever-to-be-an-mmo-fan-in-2023/ https://massivelyop.com/2023/01/18/perfect-ten-why-its-better-than-ever-to-be-an-mmo-fan-in-2023/#comments Wed, 18 Jan 2023 17:00:00 +0000 https://massivelyop.com/?p=421142 Welcome to 2023! You probably didn’t need that heads-up, but you’re getting it even still. I’m quite excited about the year to come in MMO gaming, and I hope you are as well (if not, why are you reading this site? It’s not my languid prose!). In the spirit of endless possibilities stretching before us, […]]]> https://massivelyop.com/2023/01/18/perfect-ten-why-its-better-than-ever-to-be-an-mmo-fan-in-2023/feed/ 12 https://massivelyop.com/2023/01/11/end-of-year-eleven-the-mmos-with-the-most-uncertain-futures-in-2023/ https://massivelyop.com/2023/01/11/end-of-year-eleven-the-mmos-with-the-most-uncertain-futures-in-2023/#comments Wed, 11 Jan 2023 17:30:00 +0000 https://massivelyop.com/?p=421757 Years ago, I did the first version of this yearly column in a one-off format in the middle of the year just because I thought of it and it seemed amusing to me at the time. That is one of the two modes I work in, so it’s not entirely surprising. But now here we […]]]> https://massivelyop.com/2023/01/11/end-of-year-eleven-the-mmos-with-the-most-uncertain-futures-in-2023/feed/ 18 https://massivelyop.com/2023/01/04/end-of-year-eleven-the-top-mmos-to-watch-in-2023/ https://massivelyop.com/2023/01/04/end-of-year-eleven-the-top-mmos-to-watch-in-2023/#comments Wed, 04 Jan 2023 17:00:00 +0000 https://massivelyop.com/?p=413735 You know how some people like to push this narrative that “MMOs are dying?” If that was actually true, then my job to round up all of the up-and-coming titles every year would be far simpler. I’d look at a desolate wasteland, let my tears fall upon dusty soil, and turn in a scant column. […]]]> https://massivelyop.com/2023/01/04/end-of-year-eleven-the-top-mmos-to-watch-in-2023/feed/ 23 https://massivelyop.com/2022/12/28/end-of-year-eleven-the-best-value-mmos-going-into-2023/ https://massivelyop.com/2022/12/28/end-of-year-eleven-the-best-value-mmos-going-into-2023/#comments Wed, 28 Dec 2022 17:00:00 +0000 https://massivelyop.com/?p=420416 Every year when I do this post, I muse about what “value” actually means for MMOs because it’s actually a tricky proposition and that fascinates me. And every year Bree asks me to please just write the column instead of wasting a whole lot of words musing on the definition there because it isn’t that […]]]> https://massivelyop.com/2022/12/28/end-of-year-eleven-the-best-value-mmos-going-into-2023/feed/ 18 https://massivelyop.com/2022/12/21/end-of-year-eleven-the-best-mmo-expansions-and-updates-of-2022/ https://massivelyop.com/2022/12/21/end-of-year-eleven-the-best-mmo-expansions-and-updates-of-2022/#comments Wed, 21 Dec 2022 17:00:00 +0000 https://massivelyop.com/?p=417535 One of the underrated aspects of being an MMO player is that our games get more updates and expansions than almost any other type of video game. So the longer a title runs, the more content — and value! — is injected into it. Is there any reason that we celebrate a really great update […]]]> https://massivelyop.com/2022/12/21/end-of-year-eleven-the-best-mmo-expansions-and-updates-of-2022/feed/ 5 https://massivelyop.com/2022/12/14/end-of-year-eleven-the-biggest-mmo-stories-of-2022/ https://massivelyop.com/2022/12/14/end-of-year-eleven-the-biggest-mmo-stories-of-2022/#comments Wed, 14 Dec 2022 15:00:00 +0000 https://massivelyop.com/?p=418764 I might be biased – by which I mean I am definitely biased – but 2022 was a year of big stories and big surprises. And that’s without getting into the way that my life got wildly upended, became very frightening, and generally fell apart in cataclysmic fashion. But just like Andre 3000 foretold, y’all […]]]> https://massivelyop.com/2022/12/14/end-of-year-eleven-the-biggest-mmo-stories-of-2022/feed/ 11 https://massivelyop.com/2022/12/07/end-of-year-eleven-the-healthiest-live-mmos-at-the-end-of-2022/ https://massivelyop.com/2022/12/07/end-of-year-eleven-the-healthiest-live-mmos-at-the-end-of-2022/#comments Wed, 07 Dec 2022 17:00:00 +0000 https://massivelyop.com/?p=415651 When you’re investing a whole lot of time and (potentially) money into MMORPGs, you want to make sure that your game isn’t going belly-up tomorrow or already sliding into obscurity. The “health” of an online game is of great importance to many players, which is why we at MassivelyOP like to put together a list […]]]> https://massivelyop.com/2022/12/07/end-of-year-eleven-the-healthiest-live-mmos-at-the-end-of-2022/feed/ 22 https://massivelyop.com/2022/12/05/five-things-that-excite-me-playing-world-of-warcraft-dragonflight/ https://massivelyop.com/2022/12/05/five-things-that-excite-me-playing-world-of-warcraft-dragonflight/#comments Mon, 05 Dec 2022 17:00:00 +0000 https://massivelyop.com/?p=416398 For most of 2022, World of Warcraft: Dragonflight was so far down my list of “most anticipated releases” as to be falling off the page entirely. I figured there’d be the usual undertow of hype that’d pull at me, but the focus on (sigh) dragons and the lack of a “must have” feature kept my […]]]> https://massivelyop.com/2022/12/05/five-things-that-excite-me-playing-world-of-warcraft-dragonflight/feed/ 18 https://massivelyop.com/2022/11/30/end-of-year-eleven-the-biggest-mmo-surprises-of-2022/ https://massivelyop.com/2022/11/30/end-of-year-eleven-the-biggest-mmo-surprises-of-2022/#comments Wed, 30 Nov 2022 17:00:00 +0000 https://massivelyop.com/?p=416085 All right, 2022, you are officially no longer allowed to surprise us any more because we’re doing the end-of-year thing now and that means it’s time to return to the End-of-Year Eleven! One extra entry and all sorts of crazy crap that happened over the year because this way we can all vent our surprise […]]]> https://massivelyop.com/2022/11/30/end-of-year-eleven-the-biggest-mmo-surprises-of-2022/feed/ 11 https://massivelyop.com/2022/11/23/perfect-ten-what-to-be-thankful-for-in-mmo-gaming/ https://massivelyop.com/2022/11/23/perfect-ten-what-to-be-thankful-for-in-mmo-gaming/#comments Wed, 23 Nov 2022 16:00:00 +0000 https://massivelyop.com/?p=413755 In my experience, people who invest heavily into being grateful and thankful for blessings don’t have a lot of excess room for negativity and cynicism. They’re also a lot more enjoyable to be around, on the whole. And while I’m never as thankful as I should be in my life, I do try to be […]]]> https://massivelyop.com/2022/11/23/perfect-ten-what-to-be-thankful-for-in-mmo-gaming/feed/ 10 https://massivelyop.com/2022/11/16/perfect-ten-the-players-youre-likely-to-meet-in-mmo-hell/ https://massivelyop.com/2022/11/16/perfect-ten-the-players-youre-likely-to-meet-in-mmo-hell/#comments Wed, 16 Nov 2022 16:00:00 +0000 https://massivelyop.com/?p=411555 We’ve all met folks in game who leave an unpleasant taste in our mouths for a long time after. With all of the good of social games comes the seedy underbelly, and for every stellar soul you connect with, there is another lying in wait to destroy your day. If MMO heaven is full of […]]]> https://massivelyop.com/2022/11/16/perfect-ten-the-players-youre-likely-to-meet-in-mmo-hell/feed/ 23 https://massivelyop.com/2022/11/09/perfect-ten-the-metrics-to-check-to-gauge-mmo-success-or-failure/ https://massivelyop.com/2022/11/09/perfect-ten-the-metrics-to-check-to-gauge-mmo-success-or-failure/#comments Wed, 09 Nov 2022 17:00:00 +0000 https://massivelyop.com/?p=413314 There are a lot of MMOs out there. How do you know which one of them is the most popular and therefore the best one? Well, you ask me. No, seriously, you ask me; I am a certified Worth Decider like Dan Olson, and thus you can just ask me and I’ll tell you. I […]]]> https://massivelyop.com/2022/11/09/perfect-ten-the-metrics-to-check-to-gauge-mmo-success-or-failure/feed/ 9 https://massivelyop.com/2022/11/02/perfect-ten-10-great-reasons-to-revisit-older-mmorpgs/ https://massivelyop.com/2022/11/02/perfect-ten-10-great-reasons-to-revisit-older-mmorpgs/#comments Wed, 02 Nov 2022 16:30:00 +0000 https://massivelyop.com/?p=410530 When one MMO dies, it forces us to look at the rest of the bunch through the sunglasses of mortality. The finite nature of MMO lifespans shouldn’t deter us from getting involved in them; on the contrary, it should make what they do and what they are that much more precious to us — precious […]]]> https://massivelyop.com/2022/11/02/perfect-ten-10-great-reasons-to-revisit-older-mmorpgs/feed/ 7 https://massivelyop.com/2022/10/26/perfect-ten-10-things-to-understand-about-mmo-bards/ https://massivelyop.com/2022/10/26/perfect-ten-10-things-to-understand-about-mmo-bards/#comments Wed, 26 Oct 2022 16:00:00 +0000 https://massivelyop.com/?p=411335 In the past four installments of this pseudo-series, I have done columns on archetypes that exist in every single game. Every game has a Warrior, every game has Rogues, every game has Mages and healers of some type. But not every game has Bards, and frankly this is a sad thing. Why in the world […]]]> https://massivelyop.com/2022/10/26/perfect-ten-10-things-to-understand-about-mmo-bards/feed/ 12 https://massivelyop.com/2022/10/19/perfect-ten-10-mmo-haunted-houses-to-explore-if-you-dare/ https://massivelyop.com/2022/10/19/perfect-ten-10-mmo-haunted-houses-to-explore-if-you-dare/#comments Wed, 19 Oct 2022 16:00:00 +0000 https://massivelyop.com/?p=408242 Happy Halloween! Or if you prefer, Happy Scare-Related Holidays featuring the Stylings of Ed Casbar and His Electric Teeth. It’d be the best of holidays if most people didn’t have a prejudice against a middle-aged guy going trick-or-treating. Hey, we adults need sugar fixes too, you know! And just because you don’t understand my saucy […]]]> https://massivelyop.com/2022/10/19/perfect-ten-10-mmo-haunted-houses-to-explore-if-you-dare/feed/ 9 https://massivelyop.com/2022/10/12/perfect-ten-10-mmos-that-went-through-complete-technical-clownshows/ https://massivelyop.com/2022/10/12/perfect-ten-10-mmos-that-went-through-complete-technical-clownshows/#comments Wed, 12 Oct 2022 16:00:00 +0000 https://massivelyop.com/?p=409185 I’ve gone on record multiple times to state that when you get right down to it, MMOs look pretty darn complicated. There are a lot of moving parts when it comes to game development and coding and all that stuff. I do not envy the people who are trying to deal with the game when […]]]> https://massivelyop.com/2022/10/12/perfect-ten-10-mmos-that-went-through-complete-technical-clownshows/feed/ 16 https://massivelyop.com/2022/10/05/perfect-ten-ten-quirky-and-interesting-mmos-worth-trying/ https://massivelyop.com/2022/10/05/perfect-ten-ten-quirky-and-interesting-mmos-worth-trying/#comments Wed, 05 Oct 2022 16:00:00 +0000 https://massivelyop.com/?p=406196 Quite often while I’m writing columns for Massively OP, the catalyst behind a given topic is what interests me right then — and, I figure, if it has my attention, perhaps it’s something others think about as well. And something I think about every so often are MMORPGs off the beaten path. You know, the […]]]> https://massivelyop.com/2022/10/05/perfect-ten-ten-quirky-and-interesting-mmos-worth-trying/feed/ 10 https://massivelyop.com/2022/09/28/perfect-ten-10-final-fantasy-xiv-musical-tracks-that-absolutely-slap/ https://massivelyop.com/2022/09/28/perfect-ten-10-final-fantasy-xiv-musical-tracks-that-absolutely-slap/#comments Wed, 28 Sep 2022 15:00:00 +0000 https://massivelyop.com/?p=407252 Everyone knows that people who play Final Fantasy XIV will not shut up about the game’s music. This includes me. I will not shut up about FFXIV’s music. It adds a lot to the atmosphere and emotional moments of the game, it’s memorable, it’s beautiful, and it is an absolute testament to the fact that […]]]> https://massivelyop.com/2022/09/28/perfect-ten-10-final-fantasy-xiv-musical-tracks-that-absolutely-slap/feed/ 22 https://massivelyop.com/2022/09/21/perfect-ten-10-strategies-to-avoid-getting-fleeced-in-f2p-mmos/ https://massivelyop.com/2022/09/21/perfect-ten-10-strategies-to-avoid-getting-fleeced-in-f2p-mmos/#comments Wed, 21 Sep 2022 16:00:00 +0000 https://massivelyop.com/?p=403399 “Nothing is ever truly free,” my grizzled Uncle Trigger once told me. “So you got to pay for that there air! Pony up, boy!” While Uncle Trigger was overlooking a few aspects of this philosophy, the sentiment is an important one to grasp, especially when it comes to free-to-play MMOs. Even though the first word […]]]> https://massivelyop.com/2022/09/21/perfect-ten-10-strategies-to-avoid-getting-fleeced-in-f2p-mmos/feed/ 14 https://massivelyop.com/2022/09/14/perfect-ten-an-mmo-sunset-tour-for-2022-to-date/ https://massivelyop.com/2022/09/14/perfect-ten-an-mmo-sunset-tour-for-2022-to-date/#comments Wed, 14 Sep 2022 16:00:00 +0000 https://massivelyop.com/?p=405265 MMO sunsets can be weird. I am never happy when a game that people love goes away. It always represents a lot of lost time and effort, the loss of something beloved, and it is never a thing that I revel in. But so far this year, the shutdown announcements have come down to one […]]]> https://massivelyop.com/2022/09/14/perfect-ten-an-mmo-sunset-tour-for-2022-to-date/feed/ 4 https://massivelyop.com/2022/09/07/perfect-ten-recent-promising-mmos-that-died-before-they-were-born/ https://massivelyop.com/2022/09/07/perfect-ten-recent-promising-mmos-that-died-before-they-were-born/#comments Wed, 07 Sep 2022 16:00:00 +0000 https://massivelyop.com/?p=399977 Is there anything more agonizing to an MMO fan than to get excited about a promising title and then see that title cancelled before it even launches? It’s a bitter fact of life in all corners of the video game industry, of course, but it especially seems a shame when these massive projects fail to […]]]> https://massivelyop.com/2022/09/07/perfect-ten-recent-promising-mmos-that-died-before-they-were-born/feed/ 13 https://massivelyop.com/2022/08/31/perfect-ten-the-mmo-studios-that-keep-whiffing-on-new-projects/ https://massivelyop.com/2022/08/31/perfect-ten-the-mmo-studios-that-keep-whiffing-on-new-projects/#comments Wed, 31 Aug 2022 16:00:00 +0000 https://massivelyop.com/?p=403237 Everyone makes mistakes, and that’s all right. That’s not necessarily a big deal. Yes, this is true when it comes to MMO studios too. I cannot think of a single MMO studio that has not had at least one staggeringly bad idea, and usually those studios come back with a laugh, a shake of the […]]]> https://massivelyop.com/2022/08/31/perfect-ten-the-mmo-studios-that-keep-whiffing-on-new-projects/feed/ 9 https://massivelyop.com/2022/08/24/perfect-ten-my-memories-from-the-2004-world-of-warcraft-launch/ https://massivelyop.com/2022/08/24/perfect-ten-my-memories-from-the-2004-world-of-warcraft-launch/#comments Wed, 24 Aug 2022 15:30:00 +0000 https://massivelyop.com/?p=400351 Back in November of 2004, I was a wide-eyed 28-year-old bachelor who had just met his future wife and was generally leery about MMOs to date. Now I’m a grizzled [AGE REDACTED] journalist, father of four, and veteran of more MMOs than I can count (because I cannot count past 22). It was then that […]]]> https://massivelyop.com/2022/08/24/perfect-ten-my-memories-from-the-2004-world-of-warcraft-launch/feed/ 11 https://massivelyop.com/2022/08/17/perfect-ten-10-mmos-that-took-aim-at-world-of-warcraft/ https://massivelyop.com/2022/08/17/perfect-ten-10-mmos-that-took-aim-at-world-of-warcraft/#comments Wed, 17 Aug 2022 16:00:00 +0000 https://massivelyop.com/?p=401290 The fact that we currently have a Big Five in the MMO space is a big change from not so long ago, when the market was so thoroughly dominated by World of Warcraft that everyone else kind of slid into the “other” category. Now, obviously, this did not stop other MMOs from coming out and […]]]> https://massivelyop.com/2022/08/17/perfect-ten-10-mmos-that-took-aim-at-world-of-warcraft/feed/ 22 https://massivelyop.com/2022/08/10/perfect-ten-small-features-that-still-make-rift-awesome/ https://massivelyop.com/2022/08/10/perfect-ten-small-features-that-still-make-rift-awesome/#comments Wed, 10 Aug 2022 16:00:00 +0000 https://massivelyop.com/?p=397982 When I re-installed RIFT this past month, I knew I was setting myself up for heartache. It is, after all, one of my all-time favorite MMOs, and it kills me to see it languishing under the neglected oversight of Gamigo. But I’ve also missed it terribly, and I don’t feel it’s a wasted opportunity to […]]]> https://massivelyop.com/2022/08/10/perfect-ten-small-features-that-still-make-rift-awesome/feed/ 20 https://massivelyop.com/2022/08/04/perfect-ten-10-mmorpgs-that-let-you-talk-to-cats/ https://massivelyop.com/2022/08/04/perfect-ten-10-mmorpgs-that-let-you-talk-to-cats/#comments Thu, 04 Aug 2022 16:00:00 +0000 https://massivelyop.com/?p=399404 Let’s not mince words here: I am a cat person. I absolutely love cats. They are small furry idiots who make stupid yelling noises, destroy things for no reason, have little regard for the rules you set down, and are also some of the most loving animals on the planet. (To anyone who tells me […]]]> https://massivelyop.com/2022/08/04/perfect-ten-10-mmorpgs-that-let-you-talk-to-cats/feed/ 16 https://massivelyop.com/2022/07/27/perfect-ten-useful-excuses-for-ditching-an-mmo-dungeon-run/ https://massivelyop.com/2022/07/27/perfect-ten-useful-excuses-for-ditching-an-mmo-dungeon-run/#comments Wed, 27 Jul 2022 16:00:00 +0000 https://massivelyop.com/?p=396219 I’m not saying that MMO dungeons are boring or anything, but when you start one, you’ve kind of committed to seeing it through — even if it’s late in the evening. Unfortunately, that means you’re locked into an unknowable span of time during which sleepiness, hunger, and unexpected emergencies can strike. What can you do? […]]]> https://massivelyop.com/2022/07/27/perfect-ten-useful-excuses-for-ditching-an-mmo-dungeon-run/feed/ 16 https://massivelyop.com/2022/07/20/perfect-ten-the-subtle-differences-between-world-of-warcraft-and-final-fantasy-xiv-combat/ https://massivelyop.com/2022/07/20/perfect-ten-the-subtle-differences-between-world-of-warcraft-and-final-fantasy-xiv-combat/#comments Wed, 20 Jul 2022 16:30:00 +0000 https://massivelyop.com/?p=397203 It’s the little things that get you when you weren’t paying attention, according to Jim Infantino (and Jim’s big ego), and this is true a lot with MMOs that seem pretty similar to one another at the outset. Out of our oft-mentioned big five, the two games that most immediately seem like they’re clearly in […]]]> https://massivelyop.com/2022/07/20/perfect-ten-the-subtle-differences-between-world-of-warcraft-and-final-fantasy-xiv-combat/feed/ 27 https://massivelyop.com/2022/07/13/perfect-ten-weirdly-specific-tropes-found-in-every-fantasy-mmorpg/ https://massivelyop.com/2022/07/13/perfect-ten-weirdly-specific-tropes-found-in-every-fantasy-mmorpg/#comments Wed, 13 Jul 2022 16:00:00 +0000 https://massivelyop.com/?p=394332 If you take some weird, outlandish, or out-of-the-ordinary item and then saturate your life with it, sooner or later the bizarre becomes the accepted norm. So much so, in fact, that you’d cease to even think about it. I mean, do we ever question those magic boxes known as “microwaves” that mysteriously heat up our […]]]> https://massivelyop.com/2022/07/13/perfect-ten-weirdly-specific-tropes-found-in-every-fantasy-mmorpg/feed/ 36 https://massivelyop.com/2022/07/07/perfect-ten-mmos-that-have-fallen-to-the-dark-side-of-cryptocurrency/ https://massivelyop.com/2022/07/07/perfect-ten-mmos-that-have-fallen-to-the-dark-side-of-cryptocurrency/#comments Thu, 07 Jul 2022 15:00:00 +0000 https://massivelyop.com/?p=395338 Here’s an interesting point that’s worth considering: For all the talk about cryptocurrencies, NFTs, the metaverse, and other Web3 buzzwords being the future of video games, it’s important to note that none of the entries on this list are games that are, were, or are expected to be wildly successful. The MMOs we’re going to […]]]> https://massivelyop.com/2022/07/07/perfect-ten-mmos-that-have-fallen-to-the-dark-side-of-cryptocurrency/feed/ 28 https://massivelyop.com/2022/06/29/perfect-ten-abrupt-mmo-sunsets-that-shocked-us/ https://massivelyop.com/2022/06/29/perfect-ten-abrupt-mmo-sunsets-that-shocked-us/#comments Wed, 29 Jun 2022 16:00:00 +0000 https://massivelyop.com/?p=391364 Not all MMO sunsets are equal, when you look at them. Sure, all impact players who made those games a home, but some titles went down fairly quickly after launch while others faded out long after their playerbase had already quit. And then there are those MMOs that genuinely shocked us by announcing a closure. […]]]> https://massivelyop.com/2022/06/29/perfect-ten-abrupt-mmo-sunsets-that-shocked-us/feed/ 42 https://massivelyop.com/2022/06/22/perfect-ten-the-old-school-guide-to-grouping-up-in-final-fantasy-xi-back-in-the-day/ https://massivelyop.com/2022/06/22/perfect-ten-the-old-school-guide-to-grouping-up-in-final-fantasy-xi-back-in-the-day/#comments Wed, 22 Jun 2022 15:00:00 +0000 https://massivelyop.com/?p=392971 Recently, our resident Choose My Adventure expert Chris has been taking on Final Fantasy XI, and he’s come away with a somewhat… let’s say rocky experience. And you know what? It’s no shock because he’s playing the modern, fallen incarnation of the game. The developers have added things like trusts and free teleports and the […]]]> https://massivelyop.com/2022/06/22/perfect-ten-the-old-school-guide-to-grouping-up-in-final-fantasy-xi-back-in-the-day/feed/ 2 https://massivelyop.com/2022/06/15/perfect-ten-the-10-npcs-you-meet-in-mmorpgs/ https://massivelyop.com/2022/06/15/perfect-ten-the-10-npcs-you-meet-in-mmorpgs/#comments Wed, 15 Jun 2022 16:00:00 +0000 https://massivelyop.com/?p=390468 Is there a figure in online games that more symbolizes the thin barrier between the server database and user playerbase than the non-player character? NPCs exist to fill the world with warm bodies so that places don’t feel empty, yet they also exhibit no more life than a mannequin with a tape recorder strapped to […]]]> https://massivelyop.com/2022/06/15/perfect-ten-the-10-npcs-you-meet-in-mmorpgs/feed/ 6 https://massivelyop.com/2022/06/09/perfect-ten-the-stupid-reasons-i-have-had-for-sacrificing-sleep-for-mmos/ https://massivelyop.com/2022/06/09/perfect-ten-the-stupid-reasons-i-have-had-for-sacrificing-sleep-for-mmos/#comments Thu, 09 Jun 2022 15:00:00 +0000 https://massivelyop.com/?p=391155 One of the most useful pieces of advice that I’ve gotten regarding making decisions for the future is also the simplest: Imagine yourself taking the action and then imagine the consequences. Put yourself in the shoes of the version of you that took this action. Imagine what it feels like. But there’s a trick to […]]]> https://massivelyop.com/2022/06/09/perfect-ten-the-stupid-reasons-i-have-had-for-sacrificing-sleep-for-mmos/feed/ 12 https://massivelyop.com/2022/06/08/perfect-ten-10-things-you-can-spend-money-on-instead-of-diablo-immortal/ https://massivelyop.com/2022/06/08/perfect-ten-10-things-you-can-spend-money-on-instead-of-diablo-immortal/#comments Wed, 08 Jun 2022 15:00:00 +0000 https://massivelyop.com/?p=391336 So how about that Diablo Immortal eh? Sure is a lot of “weeping and gnashing of teeth” surrounding its release, huh? But hey, it’s for a good reason. In an ironic twist, putting that good ol’ “Blizzard polish” that defined the company for so many years on a new free-to-play mobile game illuminates just how good companies […]]]> https://massivelyop.com/2022/06/08/perfect-ten-10-things-you-can-spend-money-on-instead-of-diablo-immortal/feed/ 55 https://massivelyop.com/2022/06/01/perfect-ten-weird-ways-we-heal-each-other-in-mmorpgs/ https://massivelyop.com/2022/06/01/perfect-ten-weird-ways-we-heal-each-other-in-mmorpgs/#comments Wed, 01 Jun 2022 16:00:00 +0000 https://massivelyop.com/?p=356320 One of the most important implications of the virtual worlds we visit is that they all boast medical care far above and beyond anything we have in our society. In reality if we get cut by a sword, fall off a cliff, or roasted by a fireball, we’re in for painful surgeries and lots of […]]]> https://massivelyop.com/2022/06/01/perfect-ten-weird-ways-we-heal-each-other-in-mmorpgs/feed/ 9