In our mailbag podcast a few weeks back, we answered a question about Wildstar, specifically about whether early access might have helped the game reorient back in the years before its launch. We were torn, as on the one hand we thought early access feedback from a much broader base of players might have rerouted the game’s myopic “tough luck, cupcake” development. But on the other hand, we wondered whether it wouldn’t have exposed the game’s design and process problems to the point that it wouldn’t have sold at all – or NCsoft might have canned it before it ever launched.
I couldn’t help but wonder about other older MMOs that came up long before early access and its concomitant abuses were a thing. Is there any MMO that would’ve truly benefited from a true early access period, and if so, which one?
Every morning, the Massively Overpowered writers team up with mascot Mo to ask MMORPG players pointed questions about the massively multiplayer online roleplaying genre. Grab a mug of your preferred beverage and take a stab at answering the question posed in today’s Daily Grind!
