Boy, it feels like we’ve been waiting for this for a whole year, doesn’t it? World of Warcraft: Legion launched this past week, putting an end to a lengthy major patch drought and also sending everyone out on an island vacation. Or something. There definitely are islands, that much is a certainty. Our impressions are available in three parts covering the opening moments, the order halls and artifacts, and the leveling experience.
Is that not enough news for you? Well, let’s cover some other beta news, then. Come along!
- The launch for half of H1Z1 is finally in sight. Yes, just half of it, as the shooter-based King of the Kill is launching on September 20th with a price hike. No word on the other half, and the console version is apparently “paused,” so who even knows what’s going on with the game any longer.
- Otherland is heading for launch as well; it’s currently in open beta and is hitting the real launch state on September 8th. No word on whether or not it will actually suck you into a strange world full of rich people’s half-remembered childhood fantasies, but we can only assume.
- Twin Saga opened its servers back up for open beta, raising its cap to 65 and adding the Dragonknight class
- Guardians of Ember is hitting early access at the end of September, pushing itself as a hybrid between traditional MMOs and a hack-and-slash game. If that’s exactly what you’ve been waiting to hear, well… good news?
- Even Project Gorgon is eyeing a launch date at this point. Admittedly, it’s a vague plan for some time in 2017, but it’s still a time.
There’s also our usual list just below, complete with games that didn’t make it into actual launch or whatever this week. If something has arguably already launched, i.e. a free-to-play game with no more wipes and a functional cash shop, do let us know if we missed it in the comments. If you have thoughts about a beta you’re playing, let us know that in the comments, too. Actually, let us know if you saw a cool dog on the way to work today. We’re not picky..
As always, we consider an MMO to be in open testing if it features free, public signups and will server wipe prior to launch. An MMO is marked in closed testing if it’s running a private test phase that cannot freely be accessed by the general public; it’s usually under NDA as well. Early access and crowdfunded MMOs whose tests we deem legitimate will be included. So-called “open beta” soft-launch MMOs with cash shops, no sign of launch in the west, or limited interest for our readers will not be listed; we also do not list expansions, with occasional exceptions.
AdventureQuest 3D: Closed beta, open beta planned soon
Albion Online: Closed beta, final test starts August 1st
Boundless: Donor alpha
Camelot Unchained:Â Backer alpha
Children of Ur: Open alpha
Crossout: Closed beta
Crowfall: Backer pre-alpha
Cube World: Closed alpha
DayZ: Early access
Divergence Online:Â Alpha
Eleven:Â Closed alpha
Eternal Crusade: Early access play on Steam
Ever, Jane: Open beta
Fragmented: Closed backer beta
Gigantic: Closed beta
Gloria Victis: Early Access on Steam
H1Z1:Â Paid early access, split into two games, King of the Kill launches September 20th
HeroWarz: Closed beta
HEX:Â Unofficial open beta
LawBreakers: Closed alpha
Life is Feudal: Early access beta
Line of Defense: Early access, removed from Steam
Master x Master: Alpha test
MyDream: Closed testing open to donors
Origins of Malu:Â Development suspended
Otherland: Open beta, launches September 8th
Paladins: Closed beta
Paragon: Open beta
Pathfinder Online: Subscription “early enrollment”
Project Genom: Closed alpha
Project Gorgon: Free, open testing
Shards Online: Pre-alpha
SkySaga: Ongoing NA and UK alpha events
Star Citizen: Backer alpha
Stash: Backer alpha
The Black Death: Early access alpha
The Culling: Early access testing
The Exiled: Ongoing alpha tests, summer alpha currently active; formerly Das Tal
The Repopulation: Alpha offline, moving to the Unreal engine, survival spinoff Fragmented in early access
Tree of Life: Open beta
Tribal Wars 2: Open testing
TUG: Steam early access alpha
Twin Saga: Stress test over, open beta “soon”
Valiance Online: Pre-alpha testing
