We’re taking a time-machine back through our MMO coverage, month by month, to hit the highlights and frame our journey before we head into 2018!
The lockbox debate exploded in October, propelled in the mainstream by EA but closer to home by games like LOTRO. Meanwhile, Destiny 2 launched on PC, and the MMO world was shocked by the sudden closures of two of CCP Games’ substudios following EVE Vegas, which initially was not supposed to affect EVE Online (though by November we found out it most certainly did).
We also saw a number of updates to major MMOs, including Elder Scrolls Online’s Clockwork City, Warframe’s Plains of Eidolon, SWTOR’s pre-merge United Forces Foundation, EVE’s Lifeblood, and LOTRO’s Update 21. And Star Citizen dampened delay criticism by demoing its procedural cities.
Read on for the whole list!
TOP NEWS STORIES OF OCTOBER 2017
Overwatch’s Jeff Kaplan on how toxic gamers try to intimidate Blizzard devs
This is how MMO lockboxes manipulate your mind
SWTOR’s United Forces update includes a massive server merge
Farewell to My.com MOBA Cloud Pirates, which sunsetted over the weekend
Guild Wars 2 is now selling waypoint unlocks in the cash shop
League of Legends dev who insulted streamer is no longer with Riot Games
Indie space sandbox MMO Dual Universe launches pre-alpha with a fresh trailer
Exclusive Guild Wars 2 interview on Path of Fire’s launch and philosophy
The Thargoids are adapting to player tactics in Elite: Dangerous
Players express anger over Lord of the Rings Online adding high-end gear to lockboxes
Standing Stone defends LOTRO lootbox plans
EVE Vegas 2017: CCP announces new EVE-based mobile MMO Project Aurora
From New York Comic Con, SWTOR and Timothy Zahn welcome you to Copero
EVE Vegas 2017: EVE Online’s free-to-play option is getting a huge boost
Frontier Expo 2017: Elite Dangerous goes ‘Beyond’ with big plans for 2018
Guild Wars 2’s AMA covers mounts, raids, maps, and the state of class balance
Wild West Online delays early access alpha: ‘It just ain’t ready yet’
Star Wars: The Old Republic GU 5.5 ‘United Forces Foundation’ is live
Lord of the Rings Online drops update 21, immediately rolls back upgrades
Facebook announces $199 Oculus Go, drops core Oculus bundle to $399 permanently
Naoki Yoshida apologizes for Final Fantasy XIV housing mess, outlines future plans
Warframe’s Plains of Eidolon expansion launches open-world ‘landscapes’ today
Grim Dawn’s ‘massive’ Ashes of Malmouth expansion has launched on Steam
SuperData: ‘The esports market has finally hit the mainstream’
CNN alleges that Russia used Pokemon Go to try to spread dissent in the USA
City of Heroes’ Paragon Chat is getting its own player-run Halloween contests, missions, and music
LawBreakers reportedly drops to ten concurrent players on PC
IGN has apparently bought up the Humble Bundle company
UK lawmakers examine lockboxes, PEGI leaves definitions to gambling commissions
CD Projekt Red confirms that Cyberpunk 2077 is still being made and ‘progressing as planned’
World of Warcraft Elysium emulator disbands, reforms under cloud of corruption
No, Squadron 42 isn’t going to release this year
Albion Online’s new trial is a referral system that costs the referrer in-game gold
Activision secures patent for software to trick you into buying cash shop stuff, seriously
Uncharted Waters Online relaunches today
Prominent MMO blogger Ravious has passed away
Funcom has delayed Conan Exiles’ launch to Q2 2018
Here’s how some online game developers justify lockboxes
Bless Online will launch on Steam in 2018
Star Citizen: Around the Verse, alpha 3.0 bugs, and the state of refunds
NeoGAF gaming forum goes offline after owner is accused of sexual harrassment
Elder Scrolls Online’s Clockwork City DLC launches today with new raid, houses, and transmutation
Pantheon: Rise of the Fallen’s pre-alpha will launch by the holidays – but you can’t afford it
John Smedley rallies the MMO community to help former EverQuest associate producer
Former EA dev: EA only cares about what gamers will pay for
Destiny 2 finally arrives on PC, plans four seasons for first year, and becomes best-selling 2017 game
EVE Online launches Lifeblood expansion, now with a new and improved PvE activity hub
Bungie denies Destiny 2 community claims that third-party apps are triggering PC permabans [Updated]
Star Wars: The Old Republic moves its servers to a location far, far away (from the west coast)
Warframe doubled its concurrency record with Plains of Eidolon to become second top-played F2P on Steam
Cliffy B on LawBreakers: ‘As far as I’m concerned, [the press] can fuck off’
MMO lockboxes: Market impact, regulation, and the letter of the law
Amazon confirms that Breakaway is on hiatus
The US government is considering DMCA exceptions for archived online games after all
Daybreak would like you to consider becoming an unpaid volunteer
Halloween events across the MMORPG verse, 2017 edition
Here’s what you missed from last weekend’s Star Citizen’s CitizenCon 2017
CCP Games ceases VR development, closes two studios – no negative impact on EVE Online
Olympic e-sports are becoming inevitable as IOC says they ‘could be considered as a sporting activity’
FAVORITE EDITORIALS OF OCTOBER 2017
The Daily Grind: Is Destiny 2 an MMO?
Flameseeker Chronicles: One week into Guild Wars 2’s Path of Fire
Perfect Ten: The 10 live MMORPGs everybody should try
Hyperspace Beacon: The pros and cons of SWTOR’s United Forces server merges
The Daily Grind: Do MMORPGs still need traditional guilds?
Choose My Adventure: Following a god in Guild Wars 2
Leaderboard: Do e-sports belong in the Olympics?
The Game Archaeologist: Ultima Worlds Online Origin
The Daily Grind: Is there MMORPG lingo that you just cannot stand?
Guild Chat: Coming back to an MMORPG guild after a long hiatus
The Daily Grind: Why does EVE survive where other PvP sandboxes stumble?
But seriously, lockboxes suck, even if the ESRB doesn’t think they’re gambling. Stop buying lockboxes.
Hyperspace Beacon: SWTOR’s 5.5 adds cringeworthy changes in the name of balance
Perfect Ten: Why no one should recommend World of Warcraft ever
Massively Overthinking: Three-way RvR and ‘fair’ PvP in modern MMOs
Choose My Adventure: Map-based antics in Guild Wars 2
LOTRO Legendarium: Grading Lord of the Rings Online in 2017
EVE Evolved: EVE Online’s free-to-play upgrades are pretty damn generous
The Daily Grind: How should studios solve the gaming-while-rural problem?
H1Z1 has defeated its ‘King of the Kill’ branding in a last-man-standing battle royale
Wisdom of Nym: Final Fantasy XIV patch 4.1 in review
Flameseeker Chronicles: Unpacking Guild Wars 2’s Path of Fire story
Perfect Ten: Why Star Trek Online is an underrated MMORPG
Hyperspace Beacon: 10 things you need to know about SWTOR’s Chiss
The Soapbox: NCsoft’s bizarre silence on Aion’s server merges says everything you need to know
Choose My Adventure: All spoken out in Guild Wars 2
Massively Overthinking: Is open-world housing really a ‘failed’ MMORPG experiment?
Jukebox Heroes: Elder Scrolls Online’s Morrowind soundtrack
Chaos Theory: A guide to Secret World Legends’ first Halloween
LOTRO Legendarium: A shocking Halloween twist
Guild Chat: Should MMO guilds use trigger warnings?
The Daily Grind: How many of you are still playing Guild Wars 2?
Leaderboard: Do you buy lockboxes in MMOs? Take the ‘purity’ test
Global Chat: Is there a gaming middle class?
Perfect Ten: 10 reasons MMO characters seem truly insane
Hyperspace Beacon: Star Wars The Old Republic’s cash shop is finally on the right track
Choose My Adventure: Not quite farewell to Guild Wars 2
The Survivalist: ARK Aberration has already been delayed, but here’s what to expect
WoW Factor: Speculating about World of Warcraft’s next expansion
Massively Overthinking: The state of early access, alpha, and beta ‘testing’ in the MMO genre
LOTRO Legendarium: Reviewing the Mordor soundtrack
EVE Evolved: The Agency could revolutionise casual PvE in EVE Online
The Daily Grind: How can individual MMO players combat toxicity?
The Daily Grind: Should video game developers unionize?
Flameseeker Chronicles: Unpacking Act II of Guild War’s 2’s Path of Fire story
ALL 2017 MONTH-IN-REVIEW POSTS TO-DATE
MMO Year in Review: Landmark is wiped off the map (January 2017)
MMO Year in Review: A home of your own in Elder Scrolls Online’s Tamriel (February 2017)
MMO Year in Review: City of Heroes necromancy in Master X Master (March 2017)
MMO Year in Review: Ship of Heroes abandons Kickstarter (April 2017)
MMO Year in Review: Ashes of Creation vs. Wild West Online (May 2017)
MMO Year in Review: Morrowind, Stormblood, and Secret World Legends (June 2017)
MMO Year in Review: July was the high mark of the year for MMORPGs (July 2017)
MMO Year in Review: Johnny Depp + Secret World = profit? (August 2017)
MMO Year in Review: Expansion 2 for Guild Wars 2 (September 2017)
MMO Year in Review: Lockboxes, CCP, and Destiny 2 (October 2017)
MMO Year in Review: WoW Classic and the doom of Marvel Heroes (November 2017)
MMO Year in Review: Star Citizen’s alpha 3.0 finally arrives (December 2017)
