Elder Scrolls Online’s first DLC of the year, Dragon Bones, launched this week along with update 17. While the patch is loaded with content, including a new cosmetic system and new dungeons, the rollout suffered from an experience exploit that caused server downtime in addition to angst from the community, which objected to the pricing scheme attached to the new outfit system.
Meanwhile, Camelot Unchained picked July 4th for its beta, we got the scoop on Bless Online, SWTOR delivered its spring roadmap, Trove announced a new expansion, Star Citizen launched a new ship sale, and LOTRO began testing a new region.
Read on for the very best of this week’s MMO news and opinions.
THIS WEEK’S TOP STORIES
Camelot Unchained’s beta will launch on the 4th of July; we interview Mark Jacobs - You can go ahead and order extra sparklers because you're going to need 'em this July 4th. That's the auspicious day that Camelot Unchained's beta one will finally launch after…
Elder Scrolls Online’s Dragon Bones DLC and update 17 are live – and the new outfit system is not cheap - [AL:ESO]Elder Scrolls Online's paid Dragon Bones DLC and free update 17 are finally fully launched on PC. While technically the update rollout was yesterday, the EU and NA servers were…
Massively OP’s guide to Valentine’s Day 2018 across the MMORPG-verse - Is your Valentine's day about love, friendship, or free candy from mom? In MMORPGs, it's about questing, murder, and free loot! So, yeah, kinda the same. Enjoy Massively OP's guide…
Star Citizen’s Cloud Imperium reps meet with California Better Business Bureau - Cloud Imperium apparently met with representatives of the Better Business Bureau in California for an "introductory meeting" that the Star Citizen studio described as "cordial and constructive." Polygon reported last…
Bless Online interview: Soft launch plans, why Gamigo bowed out, and avoiding pay-to-win - Bless Online is one of the biggest MMORPGs we're expecting to launch in the west in 2018. Over the last six years, we've watched it blossom in South Korea, switch…
Path of Exile: Gotta catch ’em all in the new Bestiary League and update 3.2.0, coming March 2 - [AL:POE]With a new Path of Exile challenge league every three months, you might wonder whether Grinding Gear Games can keep coming up with new themes for each one. And each quarter,…
WoW Factor: How could multiclassing work in World of Warcraft? - Not so long ago, our editor-in-chief was talking about how World of Warcraft needs some form of multiclassing system. So let's talk about how the game could do that, yes?…
Trove’s Heroes expansion adds superhero-themed city and class this spring - [AL:Trove]Today is a positively massive day for fans of Trove - and fans of superheroes, for that matter - as Trion is announcing a brand-new expansion for the popular MMO…
Sea of Thieves will make your character for you - As an online multiplayer RPG, Sea of Thieves is making its own playbook instead of copy-and-pasting features and structure directly from other games. One such deviation from contemporary MMOs is…
Chaos Theory: Do you need to sub to enjoy Secret World Legends? - [AL:SWL]A question I am asked quite a bit about free-to-play games is whether or not one needs to sub to really play. It is a fair question: We've got enough…
SWTOR’s spring content: Cash shop overhaul, conquest revamp, new flashpoint – but probably not a ‘traditional expansion’ - [AL:TOR]Star Wars: The Old Republic's had a couple of rocky months with the greater MMO community, following ominous rumors reportedly from inside BioWare that EA was internally debating the MMORPG's future.…
Rumor: Disney eyes Ubisoft and Activision to take over Star Wars video game IP - Raise your hand if you're a little tired of Electronic Arts' handling of the Star Wars video game franchise since its acquisition in 2013. One... two... yeah, a few of…
Star Citizen’s new $185 Aegis Vulcan support ship is so ugly it’s cute - On this week's episode of Around the Verse, Star Citizen's Sandi Gardiner and Chris Roberts bookend segments on the ship pipeline in the game. Did you know Star Citizen has…
Cyberpunk 2077’s CD Projekt Red takes a stand against lockboxes and unfinished games - The studio behind The Witcher 3 and Cyberpunk 2077 isn't mincing words when it comes to business practices that involve lockboxes and partially delivered games. "If you buy a full…
Final Fantasy XIV announces an end to congested worlds and restricted housing sales - [AL:FFXIV]The launch of Final Fantasy XIV's new housing plots came with an additional restriction: Players weren't allowed to purchase these new plots as individuals, just for free companies. Similarly, the…
Whatever happened to Pirates of the Burning Sea, Pirates of the Caribbean Online, and Puzzle Pirates? - Ever pause during your day and find yourself wondering, “Whatever happened to that game?” With hundreds upon hundreds of online titles these days, it’s surprisingly easy for MMOs to fall through the…
Massively Overthinking: Could bots save dying MMORPGs? - Last week, a reader named Chris, who is writing a paper on the MMO industry and revivifying sunsetted games, dropped an intriguing question into my inbox. It's about bots -…
Black Desert’s Kakao Games enjoys $131.6 million in investment - It's all coming up Kakao Games these days. The Korean studio received a large investment package recently that totals $131.6 million. The bundle comes from five external companies, including China's…
New Hampshire senator Maggie Hassan has picked up the lootbox and gaming addiction cause - Up until now, the political grumblings about video game gambleboxes has been mostly limited to state governments, specifically Hawaii's Chris Lee, who submitted four regulatory bills this week, and Washington…
Secret World Legends posts a quick teaser of the agent system - [AL:SWL]One of the first new Secret World Legends systems is coming soon, and Funcom posted a quick video of it this week to whet players' appetites. In a minute-and-a-half, CM…
Black Desert players protest lag, bugs, pay-to-win, and lack of account security - [AL:BDO]Agitators on the Black Desert subreddit are attempting to whip up press and players over a range of grievances players have with Kakao, the western publisher of the Pearl Abyss…
Dauntless argues ‘bespoke purchases’ are replacing the lockbox model - It might be tempting to think that the industry is doomed and that no studio will ever be able to ignore the siren song of easy lootbox, but the parade…
Perfect Ten: The top 10 sexiest monsters of Monster Hunter World - I remember my first time. Unlike many hunters, I didn't stalk her. In fact, she bumped into me. I was just strolling down the beach, collecting some bugs and BAM!…
Steam terminates its relationship with MMO company Insel Games over alleged review manipulation - It's really unusual to see publishers outright booted off of Steam, but Valve has done exactly that to Insel Games following reports of review manipulation. It started with a Reddit…
Lord of the Rings Online starts testing Northern Mirkwood - [AL:LOTRO]With the beta for Lord of the Rings Online's Update 22 on the test server, players eager to escape the clutches of Mordor are able to see greener pastures in…
Ubisoft investor presentation highlights the profit benefits of ‘games as a service’ - Have you wondered why it is Ubisoft is so dedicated to putting out a continual string of games as a service, even its ostensibly single-player offerings? Actually, as an MMO…
Perfect Ten: The tabletop GMs behind MMOs - One of the advantages to computer RPGs, I've always thought, is that you don't need a friend who you can alternately sucker or bribe into taking on 80% of the…
Hawaii state rep Chris Lee has now introduced four bills regulating lockboxes - Hawaii State Representative Chris Lee has made good on his plan to write and submit bills to the state legislature regulating the sale of video games with predatory lockboxes. The…
CCP banned over 1800 EVE Online botters in January alone - [AL:EVE]If you've been paying any attention at all to EVE Online over the past few months, you know that the playerbase's anger over the botting problem in the game -…
Could Blizzard be taking World of Warcraft or Diablo to mobile? - It's a tantalizing dream for some: A handheld version of World of Warcraft or Diablo that will no doubt spell the end of productivity and free time. And such games…
THIS WEEK’S CASTS & STREAMS
Massively OP Podcast Episode 157: Lunar Valentines
Battle Bards Episode 115: EVE Online
The Stream Team: Collecting the Tear of Dhakaan in Dungeons and Dragons Online
The Stream Team: A Valentine hellbug in Trove
The Stream Team: Sunshine and Scorched Desert adventures in Secret World Legends
The Stream Team: SMITE’s new adventure is adorable anime
The Stream Team: Celebrating Dead Maze’s Steam launch with style
The Stream Team: Converting to Set on Age of Conan’s Zath server
AND FROM OUR FRIENDS AT BLIZZARD WATCH
Is first aid going away in WoW’s Battle for Azeroth?
Know Your Lore: The history of the Tauren
The WoW forum MVP program will soon require applications
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.
