Lockboxes dominated the headlines again this week as the ESRB, PEGI, the UK government, and a handful of developers weighed in on the issue. Meanwhile, in a case of exceptionally bad timing, Activision secured a patent for match manipulation intended to drive engagement and cash-shop purchases. Just in case that whole lockbox thing doesn’t work out, see.
Meanwhile, we’re gearing up for Halloween across the MMORPG world, from Guild Wars 2 and LOTRO to Secret World and WoW. We’ve got nine more days of this until it’s time to begin prepping for the next big holiday. I’m talking about Black Friday, of course.
Read on for the very best of this week’s MMO news and opinions.
THIS WEEK’S TOP STORIES
Halloween events across the MMORPG verse, 2017 edition - Hey, you. Yeah, you, dude leeching candy from the bucket you bought "for the neighborhood kids." And you, lady still trying to decide between "Princess Leia" and "lazy zombie" for…
Chaos Theory: A guide to Secret World Legends’ first Halloween - [AL:SWL]Hello Samhain my old friend! It's so good to see you again. It's been such a long year, and so much has... wait, where is the rest of you?! Break…
Perfect Ten: Why Star Trek Online is an underrated MMORPG - [AL:STO]I'm the type of player who has a stable of games that I return to from time to time, particularly when I'm looking for a dependable, enjoyable experience. I'll stay…
Here’s how some online game developers justify lockboxes - Yes, it's apparently the Month of the Lockbox across the internet, as the level of discussion and controversy over how these items manipulate your mind and whether or not they constitute…
Star Citizen: Around the Verse, alpha 3.0 bugs, and the state of refunds - Let's just get this out of the way upfront: There are 25 serious issues still on the docket before Star Citizen's alpha 3.0 moves from Evocati testers to the next…
Guild Wars 2’s Halloween event heralds new mount skins and new content - [AL:GW2]Guild Wars 2's Halloween festivities have officially begun! The Mad King's gala has a few new additions this year, including new themed guild decor, new daily achievements, new Halloween minis, a…
Massively Overthinking: Is open-world housing really a ‘failed’ MMORPG experiment? - Massively OP's Justin Olivetti has a provocative article on his personal gaming blog, Bio Break, this week on MMORPG housing. "I once again wonder why open world housing is this…
LOTRO Legendarium: A shocking Halloween twist - [AL:LOTRO]Two of my absolute favorite "inconsequential" elements of Lord of the Rings Online have to be the Haunted Burrow every Halloween and the whole Bingo Boffin saga, the latter which…
The Soapbox: NCsoft’s bizarre silence on Aion’s server merges says everything you need to know - [AL:Aion]NCsoft done messed up. Again. Yes, I know the studio has already had a few black eyes for other things throughout the years, but this recent punch hit closer to…
Bless Online will launch on Steam in 2018 - NEOWIZ announced on Steam today that the global release for Bless Online is indeed still happening, with a Steam launch planned here in the west at some point in 2018.…
Secret World Legends promises ‘major’ quality-of-life update next month - As Secret Worlds Legends' Samhain 2017 is in full swing and Funcom has released Hide and Shriek as a free title, there's a lot of (excuse the pun) buzz swirling…
Chronicles of Elyria begins price increases in preparation of pre-alpha releases - Great ready to pay more for Chronicles of Elyria. Soulbound Studios announced this week that it is preparing to raise the prices on all of its packages, a move that…
World of Warcraft Elysium emulator disbands, reforms under cloud of corruption - The drawn-out story of Project Elysium, one of the more notable World of Warcraft emulators that rose to prominence in the wake of last year's Nostalrius saga that saw the legit WoW community…
Jukebox Heroes: Elder Scrolls Online’s Morrowind soundtrack - [AL:ESO]Lately I've felt the need to get into gear and cover a lot of the more recent MMO soundtracks that have released alongside their launches and expansions in 2017. If…
Project Gorgon’s huge UI revamp is a ‘major stepping stone’ toward Steam early access - Interface junkies, gather round, especially if you like detailed old-school-inspired MMORPGs, for Project Gorgon has unveiled a detailed tour of its new UI. It's been "written to take advantage of…
Choose My Adventure: All spoken out in Guild Wars 2 - [AL:GW2]Well, this is a bit awkward. I appear to have run out of things to say. This is not inherently a bad thing. My time with Guild Wars 2 has…
Trove’s November 14 update revitalizes guilds, adds East Asian biome - [AL:Trove]Trion has just announced a "massive" free expansion for its cutesy voxel sandbox Trove, launching on PC, Xbox One, and PS4, all on November 14th. If you were wondering what…
Funcom has delayed Conan Exiles’ launch to Q2 2018 - Funcom announced this morning that it's delaying Conan Exiles' formal launch, this time to Q2 2018. "We've been looking at our development roadmap for Conan Exiles, and considering the level…
World of Warcraft (briefly) shows off the 8.0 expansion in testing - Can we officially declare the next World of Warcraft expansion announced yet? Technically, no. But the game's beta version testing very briefly turned to 8.0 yesterday, as screenshotted by a…
Destiny 2 PC preloading has begun, while console daily logins decline - PC fans, your time is almost here: You're finally getting a Destiny game on your platform. In fact, if you've already purchased Destiny 2, then get thee to the preload: Just…
Blade and Soul is stung by Hive Queen update and welcomes Halloween - [AL:BaS]Would you ever stick your hand into a hive of angry hornets? Blade and Soul is hoping that you'll go further than that; the Hive Queen is taking her throne,…
Hyperspace Beacon: 10 things you need to know about SWTOR’s Chiss - [AL:TOR]Star Wars: The Old Republic will launch its sixth major update since Knights of the Eternal Throne at the end of November. It will include an additional operation boss fight…
UK lockbox gambling regulation petition receives baffling government response - A formal UK petition requesting that video game gambling laws be adjusted to include language covering lockboxes passed 10,000 signatures earlier this week, ensuring that the petition would receive a…
Activision secures patent for software to trick you into buying cash shop stuff, seriously - Hey, gang, this is absolutely wonderful. Activision has filed and been granted a patent for software designed to push you into buying cash shop crappies through the most insidious means possible.…
Dungeons and Dragons Online: Mists of Ravenloft opens pre-orders, aims for December release - [AL:DDO]The, ahem, bloodiest MMO expansion of 2017 is finally available to pre-purchase. Dungeons and Dragons Online opened up pre-orders today for Mists of Ravenloft, allowing players to secure some extras…
EverQuest II opens Planes of Prophecy expansion preorders, includes $139.99 edition - Daybreak has just announced that EverQuest II's Planes of Prophecy expansion first teased back in September is launching on Tuesday, November 28th, with preorders live now. The basic edition is $34.99, but the…
Albion Online’s new trial is a referral system that costs the referrer in-game gold - If last week's rumors about a new trial version in Albion Online had you excited, good news for you: It's actually happening and in fact is already in place as…
Flameseeker Chronicles: Unpacking Guild Wars 2’s Path of Fire story - [AL:GW2]I feel as though the time is finally right to talk to you all about the awesome chunk of story that dropped with Guild Wars 2's second expansion, Path of Fire. In terms…
No, Squadron 42 isn’t going to release this year - All right, let's be honest, you probably didn't actually think that Star Citizen's much-delayed single-player Squadron 42 was coming out this year. Around this time last year, it was confirmed…
CD Projekt Red confirms that Cyberpunk 2077 is still being made and ‘progressing as planned’ - Considering the sparse information that has been released about CD Projekt Red's perhaps-an-MMO Cyberpunk 2077 over the last four years, it's easy to assume that the game has long been…
PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds tops 2.3M concurrency, bans a fraction of that - [AL:PUBG]Here's a fun game that we play around the Massively OP office: A troublemaker will come in and loudly proclaim, "You know what's a good game name? PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds!" Then…
Check out Destiny 2’s Legends Will Rise PC launch trailer - Hey remember Destiny 2? That cute li'l sequel from Bungie that launched on console and core MMO players promptly forgot all about it? Well, in case that's you, Bungie has…
UK lawmakers examine lockboxes, PEGI leaves definitions to gambling commissions - The ESRB may not be interested in protecting gamers against predatory business model practices like lockboxes, but European regulators may be joining their Chinese counterparts in at least taking a…
H1Z1 has defeated its ‘King of the Kill’ branding in a last-man-standing battle royale - Looks like at least some of the rumors last week have proven true, as Daybreak is indeed removing the "King of the Kill" branding from H1Z1, meaning the battle royale half…
Prominent MMO blogger Ravious has passed away - It's with a sad heart that we report that one of the most prominent and prolific MMO bloggers in the community passed away on Monday. Zach "Ravious" Best was diagnosed with…
THIS WEEK’S CASTS & STREAMS
Massively OP Podcast Episode 140: Dubious drops in LOTRO, FFXIV, and SWTOR
The Stream Team: Down with ARK’s dragon!
The Stream Team: A Black Desert Halloween
The Stream Team: Win a key to play The Black Death’s new Pestilence update
The Stream Team: Getting free Halloween goodies during DCUO’s The Witching Hour
The Stream Team: Secret World Legends’ first Halloween
The Stream Team: SWTOR’s return of the Star Fortresses
The Stream Team: Staying at AdventureQuest 3D’s Camp Gonnagetcha
The Stream Team: Daring to try RuneScape’s Dimension of the Damned
The Stream Team: LOTRO’s Haunted Burrow is habit-forming
AND FROM OUR FRIENDS AT BLIZZARD WATCH
Are you ready for the next WoW expansion?
BlizzCon 2017 Pre-Show videos intensify the hype
Hallow’s End returns to World of Warcraft with some new collectibles
Every week, get caught up on the MMO genre’s latest news and Massively OP’s best content in our MMO Week in Review! Want more roundups of content? Try Friday’s Betawatch for MMO testing highlights, Saturday’s Make My MMO for MMO crowdfunding updates, and Sunday’s The MOP Up, which mops up all the little bits of news we didn’t cover anywhere else.
