December’s many article roundups and awards always remind us that it’s hard to remember what happened last month, let alone what happened way back at the beginning, so this year (as in 2015, 2016, and 2017), we decided to poke through our MMO coverage, month by month, to hit the highlights and frame our journey before we launch into 2019.
January was a mixed month: the Star Citizen lawsuit heated up, WoW’s level scaling patch went in, the first charges in the Call of Duty swatting case were made, Camelot Unchained got a giant cash infusion, Devilian got its pink slip, and Darkfall New Dawn launched. Probably the most disturbing story came from sources who claimed BioWare was gunning to sunset SWTOR in 2018. You might notice that didn’t happen, just as we thought.
Read on for the whole list from January of this past year!
TOP NEWS STORIES OF JANUARY 2018
Exclusive: Ship of Heroes’ Casey McGeever on the superhero MMORPG genre
ESA pushes back against World Health Organization’s gaming disorder classification
LawBreakers is the weak link in Nexon’s Q3 2017 financial results
Kickstarter reports $172M raised for games in 2017
Steam’s best-selling 2017 games include ARK, Warframe, and H1Z1
Black Desert’s first patch of 2018 awakens the Mystic and adds campsite feature
Warframe shares how its business model keeps players happy and giving
Dataminer suggests massive Destiny 2 playerbase slump
Star Citizen was the 2017 crowdfunding champ
Superhero indie MMOs City of Titans, Valiance Online, and Ship of Heroes say they’re not in a race
How video game lockboxes use psychology to manipulate you
PWE is sunsetting both Battle of the Immortals and War of the Immortals next week
Richard Garriott on how players ‘destroyed’ Ultima Online’s ecology
Star Citizen developer Cloud Imperium files motion to dismiss Crytek copyright lawsuit
Michele Morrow calls out BlizzCon gender pay inequality
EA filed an ‘Engagement Optimized Matchmaking’ patent in 2016
Guild Wars 2 overhauls its lockbox mechanics and adds gardening plots
Creditors lay claim to nearly $700,000 in Gazillion assets in bankruptcy case
Why developers believe abusive vitriol is the cost of doing business with games
Gamers argue Overwatch League has a representation problem
EVE Online players beg CCP to address botters after gamer takes down eight botter ships
Accused Call of Duty swatter charged with involuntary manslaughter
Life is Feudal MMO has launched into early access on Steam
World of Warcraft patch 7.3.5 arrives tomorrow with worldwide level scaling
Perpetuum to shut down official servers next week
Chronicles of Elyria confirms layoff rumors
Ready, set, punch: Hyper Universe is live today!
WildStar pens a retrospective on the game in 2017 while looking ahead to 2018
Crowfall’s Raph Koster goes into insane depth on the cost of creating video games
Camelot Unchained lands $7.5M investment to hasten development: Our chat with Mark Jacobs on funding, VR, and beta one
Ex-Cryptic devs are making an Aliens shooter set in a persistent world
Albion Online characterizes layoffs as downsizing to ‘pre-release beta testing’ levels
RIFT announces ‘prime’ subscription-only server for spring 2018
Hell freezes over: Devilian to sunset in March
Fragmented is ‘more or less in maintenance mode’ due to lack of revenue
World of Warcraft Refer-a-Friend experience boost gutted to match Heirloom leveling speed
Age of Conan’s Saga of Zath fresh start progression server launches tomorrow as sub prices drop permanently
EVE Online’s ‘million dollar battle’ ends up a $3300 bust
Star Trek Online claims 5.2M players over its lifespan
Sea of Thieves’ closed beta is live but in choppy waters
BioWare shifts resources to Anthem and debates SWTOR’s future
Hardcore sandbox Darkfall New Dawn launches today – here’s the trailer!
Washington state senator proposes lockbox gambling investigation in new bill
Epic shutters Paragon over playerbase size woes, declaring it ‘unsustainable’
Legends of Aria starts closed beta testing today
Monster Hunter World offers $70K for proof of real-world monsters
Interview: Trion Worlds goes in depth on RIFT Prime
Alganon has been offline for two months, is now owned by Derek Smart’s 3000AD
Final Fantasy XIV patch 4.2 Rise of a New Sun is live today with housing and glamour updates
Guild Wars 2 makes SuperData’s top 10 list of ‘premium PC games by revenue for 2017’
Linkrealms is sunsetting today
Elite Dangerous community thwarts griefers’ attempt to ruin final in-game voyage of terminally ill player
PWE will sunset MOBA Gigantic in July because it couldn’t ‘break through in a crowded market’
Lord of the Rings Online patch adds plenty of attractive loot — in lockboxes
The Stream Team: Farewell, Master X Master
FAVORITE EDITORIALS OF JANUARY 2018
Wisdom of Nym: Actual outdated content in Final Fantasy XIV
Chaos Theory: 2017 was a big year for the Secret World IP
Massively OP Podcast Episode 151: New year staff roundtable
The Daily Grind: Would you be interested in a retro-styled MMORPG?
Perfect Ten: The best MMO updates and expansions of 2017
Hyperspace Beacon: Three things SWTOR could add in 2018 to turn itself around
The Daily Grind: What MMOs are you no longer anticipating in 2018?
WoW Factor: The fate of the class orders post-Legion, part 2
The Game Archaeologist: Neocron
Hi-Rez Expo 2018: Hands-on with Paladins Battlegrounds, the game’s new battle royale mode
Wisdom of Nym: Materia and stats in Final Fantasy XIV
EVE Evolved: EVE Online’s case for asymmetric and asynchronous gameplay
Perfect Ten: 10 tips for crafting a unique MMO character name
Hi-Rez Expo 2018: Our hands-on with Hi-Rez’s new game Bot Smashers
The Daily Grind: Would you play a PvE game with full item decay?
Tamriel Infinium: Three things MMORPGs could learn from Elder Scrolls Online
Choose My Adventure: Starting fresh in Project Gorgon
Massively Overthinking: What’s the smallest MMO you’re willing to play?
WoW Factor: Guessing at Battle for Azeroth’s release date using math
LOTRO Legendarium: My LOTRO wish list for 2018
Jukebox Heroes: Black Prophecy’s soundtrack
The Survivalist: Another year, another Survival Game guide
Perfect Ten: The MMOs with the most uncertain futures in 2018
Hyperspace Beacon: The case for mature-themed guilds in the SWTOR community
Choose My Adventure: Yes, Project Gorgon is a weird game
Massively Overthinking: Tackling our hoarding problem in MMORPGs
Chaos Theory: Secret World Legends 2018 – new year, new game, new goals
The greenhorn hunter’s primer: Getting started in Monster Hunter World
Wisdom of Nym: Does Final Fantasy XIV have too many content subdivisions?
Wisdom of Nym: Reviewing Final Fantasy XIV’s new housing rules
EVE Evolved: The Citadel conundrum
The Soapbox: Confessions of a serial hoarder (in MMORPGs)
Hyperspace Beacon: No, Star Wars The Old Republic isn’t on the verge of sunset
WoW Factor: The debate over World of Warcraft’s refer-a-friend nerf
Guild Chat: Should I hop MMO guilds with my guild leader?
Choose My Adventure: Brain bug mischief in Project Gorgon
The Survivalist: The downside of hosting custom servers for survival games (and why we don’t do it)
The Game Archaeologist: Fallen Age
Massively Overthinking: Considering pay-to-win MMO peripherals
Guild Chat: Choosing your MMO guild officers wisely
Re-examining Asheron’s Call’s Shard of the Herald event on its first deathiversary
Perfect Ten: Ten more World of Warcraft races fans would like to play
Tamriel Infinium: Where will the next Elder Scrolls Online ‘chapter’ take place?
ALL 2018 YEAR-IN-REVIEW POSTS SO FAR
MMO Year in Review: The SWTOR sunset scare (January 2018)
MMO Year in Review: Dragon Bones, Funcom’s revival, and the politics of lockboxes (February 2018)
MMO Year in Review: Thieves, Avatars, and Gorgons (March 2018)
MMO Year in Review: Columbus Nova who? (April 2018)
MMO Year in Review: Mixed Bless-ings (May 2018)
MMO Year in Review: Fallout 76, Elder Scrolls Online, and Bethsoft’s bonanza (June 2018)
MMO Year in Review: So, uh, how ’bout that underwater combat balance (July 2018)
MMO Year in Review: Watching the world tree burn (August 2018)
MMO Year in Review: Literally the biggest news day in MMO history (September 2018)
MMO Year in Review: Gamigo’s gory Trion Worlds acquisition (October 2018)
MMO Year in Review: Blizzard and Bethsoft’s dumpster fire showdown (November 2018)
MMO Year in Review: Daybreak gonna Daybreak (December 2018)
