Massively OP’s Best of 2015 Awards: Most Anticipated for 2016 and Beyond

December 17, 2015 11:00 AM

Massively OP’s end-of-the-year awards continue today with our award for most anticipated MMO for 2016 and beyond.

In 2013 and 2014, EverQuest Next and Landmark took home this award. In fact, it was a bit of an upset in 2013, as WildStar had won it several years running before that. This year, our future is filled with more well-funded indies than AAA-budget games, and choosing a most anticipated from that field proved extremely hard, one that we continued debating long after the votes were cast (and changed and cast again). Best expansion was close. This was even closer.

All of our writers were invited to cast a vote, but not all of them chose to do so for this category. Don’t forget to cast your own vote in the just-for-fun reader poll at the very end.

The Massively OP staff pick for Most Anticipated MMO for 2016 and Beyond is…

Star Citizen

Brendan Drain (@nyphur): Star Citizen. It’s hard to argue that Star Citizen isn’t objectively the most anticipated MMO for 2016 and beyond. It’s managed to raise $100m in crowdfunding from over 1,070,000 individual backers, and undoubtedly many more people waiting to buy the game on release and hanging on development updates. Star Citizen is also consistent driver of both web traffic and discussion on Massively OP and other gaming news sites, which is a good indicator of anticipation among MMO fans.

Brianna Royce (@nbrianna, blog): Camelot Unchained. It’s the RvR craftingbox I want to play, full-stop. But I’d like to tip my hat to Project Gorgon, Shroud of the Avatar, Star Citizen, and Revival while I’m at it. I’m rather liking this sandpark horizon, at least from a player perspective.

Eliot Lefebvre (@Eliot_Lefebvre, blog): I don’t know if I’m really going to like playing Crowfall. I don’t think that’s the point. What is the point is that it’s genuinely trying to create something very novel in the MMO space, and whilst I don’t like all of the directions it’s taking, I’m very excited to see where those directions end up. It looks like something that I haven’t seen before, and that means a lot, because I’ve seen lots of games.

Jef Reahard (@jefreahard): Duh, Star Citizen. It’s a Ferrari. The rest of the genre is a Hyundai, at best. Maybe even a Yugo. Honorable mention to Camelot Unchained.

Justin Olivetti (@Sypster, blog): I can’t deny that there is, shall we say, a smidgen of anticipation around Star Citizen. Sometimes it’s like a scary high-tech cult of anticipation, to be honest. But I confess that now that we’re seeing the pieces of the game come together, it’s starting to look like something worth my time and attention. I have doubts about its ability to deliver on everything, but at the same time I admire its ambition and fearlessness. Maybe we need some more of that in this industry. I’d also give a nod to Crowfall. We must not forget that 2015 was the year that Crowfall exploded on the scene, ran a blockbuster crowdfunding campaign, and kept the excitement and information running pretty steady for the entire run. I think it’s definitely a game that’s going to keep the interest of the MMO community next year (and the year after, etc.). And I also want to mention Project Gorgon. This is so indie that I know putting it here won’t get it an award, but it really deserves it. Gorgon is genuinely exciting and innovative in a way that MMOs haven’t been for a while and is the game that I am dying to play when it finally launches.

Larry Everett (@Shaddoe, blog): I’m simply looking forward to Star Citizen the most. I’m not on the edge of my seat about any of its features. I’m not champing at the bit to pilot a ship in space. I’m just curious to see if it can be made in the first place.

Matt Daniel (@Matt_DanielMVOP): I’m gonna hafta go with Camelot Unchained here. So far, everything I’ve seen and heard about the game has been something I like. The classes are varied and interesting and a revival of DAoC-era RvRvR combat is something I’ve been waiting for for a long time.

MJ Guthrie (@MJ_Guthrie, blog): The most anticipated expansion for 2016 belongs to Path of Exile: Ascendancy. That whole randomized labyrinth is the definition of replayability. And the fact that it had me totally excited to jump in and play it means it appeals to a wider audience. The most anticipated launch goes to Shroud of the Avatar; I am really looking forward to diving into that world.

Tina Lauro (@purpletinabeans): Crowfall is brought up so many times in the comments of my MMO Mechanics articles that I have to side with it. Many MMO enthusiasts have pinned their future MMO hopes on the gritty, unapologetically brutal title, and it’s going to be in open beta by the end of next year, so I guess I can count it for 2016?

Star Citizen won our award for Most Anticipated for 2016 and Beyond. What’s your pick?

What the most anticipated MMO for 2016 and beyond?