It’s weird to look back at February 2021 and remember those halcyon days before the great Blizzard collapse of mid-year, but roundabout the time Blizzard was running its first (and ultimately its last) “BlizzConline” event digitally because of COVID-19, the big news was how the company managed to leak its own press site publicly early and spoil its whole show – including the reveal of WoW Classic The Burning Crusade. Even so, WoW Classic’s next big thing was gladly received.
Meanwhile, February was also the month of the Gamigo gamepocalypse. But take heart; it gets worse!
Read on for the whole recap from February of this past year.
TOP NEWS STORIES OF FEBRUARY 2021
Class action suit accuses Valve of using its ‘dominant’ position in the marketplace to drive up prices
Google is shutting down its Stadia development studios, though Stadia games remain playable
Massively Uplifting: 2021 begins with Trove’s trees, Warframe’s Tennobaum, and Star Trek Online’s Tribbles for charity
Posting record 2020 revenues, EA recommits to the Star Wars franchise that made it $3B
Elite Dangerous players are apparently being duped into indentured servitude
Activision-Blizzard Q4 2020: Activision’s revenues are up QoQ and YoY as Blizzard MAUs drop again
Liveblogging the Final Fantasy XIV announcement showcase
A new version of the long-sunsetted MMORPG Shadowbane has landed on Steam
NCsoft Q4 2020: Aion Classic was a huge success, Guild Wars 2 improves on 2019
The first quadrant of EVE Online 2021, Reign, is live today with hefty fleet and travel updates
CD Projekt Red is the victim of a cyber attack compromising its systems and ransoming its data
Rumor: EA is debating the future of the beleaguered Anthem Next
Blizzard announces a Hearthstone ‘Classic’ mode
Former Riot Games staffer accuses CEO Nicolo Laurent of sexual harassment in new lawsuit
Valheim is a co-op PvE-minded survival title of conquering a Viking purgatory – and it’s already sold 1M copies
Wizard101 assures players it is ‘still KingsIsle’ after acquisition and outlines a PvP hotfix
Shadowbanning of Elite Dangerous ‘slavers’ is reportedly corroborated by email screenshots
ArcheAge Unchained just launched two new ArchePasses, including one with no end date
Hackers have successfully sold stolen CDPR source code and internal documents in a dark web auction
ZeniMax Online Studios goes on a hiring spree for ESO and ‘multiple unannounced projects’
Obituary: Guild Wars 2 composer Stan LePard passes away
Amazon has delayed New World for at least the third time, now to August 2021
Gamestonk’s gamified guerilla trading made losers of both the good and bad guys
Neverwinter’s Sharandar: The Iron Tooth is live on PC today
No Man’s Sky adds an in-depth pet system with the Companions update
Fractured Veil is a new open-world survival MMO – and it’s hunting for stress-testers
Naoki Yoshida sees at least another five years of vitality in Final Fantasy XIV
World of Warcraft’s BlizzConline press kit leaks confirm patch 9.1 and Burning Crusade Classic
Chronicles of Elyria is releasing Kingdoms of Elyria as a standalone product for backers
Gamigo is merging down ArcheAge and ArcheAge Unchained’s servers, and yes there will be new land rushes
Interview: Crowfall is ‘very close’ to launch, plus more details on 6.400 Transformation
LOTRO producer Q&A: Legendary item revamp, closed world transfers, difficulty sliders, and more
BlizzConline 2021: Opening ceremonies – WoW Chains of Domination, Burning Crusade Classic confirmed
BlizzConline 2021: WoW Classic and Chains of Domination panel recaps
BlizzConline 2021: Everything you need to know about Diablo II Resurrected, Diablo Immortal, and Diablo IV
BlizzConline 2021: Overwatch 2 shows off New York City, visceral combat, and PvE content
BlizzConline 2021: Everything we learned at the World of Warcraft Q&A
BlizzConline 2021: Why WoW Burning Crusade Classic won’t have the dungeon-finder
BlizzConline 2021: Everything we learned from the Diablo Q&A
Riot Games starts hiring ‘a raid team’ of devs for its Runeterra MMORPG
Mobile MMO Warhammer Odyssey soft launches across the globe
Blizzard is definitely working on a Warcraft mobile game, studio artist says
Dungeons and Dragons Online is releasing its own ‘mini-expansion,’ Sinister Secret of Saltmarsh, this summer
Kakao Games bids a fond farewell to fans as Black Desert publishing officially changes hands to Pearl Abyss
Gamigo is sunsetting Twin Saga in April, saying it could ‘no longer sustain itself’
SuperData says WoW’s player count is already ‘back to normal levels’ post-Shadowlands
BioWare is halting development on Anthem Next, but Anthem itself will stay up
Defiance and Defiance 2050 are dismissed from duty
Eden Eternal becomes the third MMORPG Gamigo killed off today
Elite Dangerous players discuss the ramifications of in-game ‘slaves’ and ways to change the lore
Sorry kids, Dragon Age 4 is cutting multiplayer after years of troubled development
Insiders expose Google Stadia’s rushed release, poor hiring practices, and stymied studios
FAVORITE EDITORIALS OF FEBRUARY 2021
The Daily Grind: What’s the most obscure MMORPG you’ve ever actually played?
Not So Massively: Wolcen’s Bloodtrail is worth coming back for
Choose My Adventure: An intriguing but PvP-free first foray into Warhammer Return of Reckoning
Perfect Ten: A guide to podcasts for your favorite MMOs
Desert Oasis: Having a blast with Black Desert’s new Nova class
Vague Patch Notes: If this MMO was so good, why didn’t it succeed?
Preview: Dauntless’ Frost Escalation will force you to fight frigid foes and frostbite
Massively Overthinking: Do MMO players secretly just want ‘another WoW’?
WoW Factor: What I want to hear from World of Warcraft during BlizzConline
Not So Massively: First impressions of Century Age of Ashes
LOTRO Legendarium: Ranking Lord of the Rings Online’s Eriador zones from worst to best
First impressions of Skyforge on Nintendo Switch: A messy port of a solid MMORPG
Jukebox Heroes: Secret World Legends’ soundtrack
Choose My Adventure: Battleground PvP in Warhammer Return of Reckoning is unexpectedly fun
Stick and Rudder: Leader of Elite Dangerous ‘slavery’ racket espouses a ‘cult-like’ guild full of ‘chaos and evil’
Perfect Ten: The types of MMO guilds
WoW Factor: The return of Valor is far from valorous
Vague Patch Notes: Emergent gameplay in MMOs isn’t a defense of awful behavior
LOTRO Legendarium: How can LOTRO become more alt-friendly?
The Daily Grind: What MMORPG would’ve performed better had it launched in a different year?
Not So Massively: Torchlight III is less than the sum of its parts
Wisdom of Nym: What Final Fantasy XIV has lined up for patch 5.5
First impressions: Valheim early access is already one of the best co-op sandboxes in recent memory
Perfect Ten: 10 MMOs to get you out of your gaming rut
Why I Play: Final Fantasy XIV’s memorable Shadowbringer relic weapon grind
The Daily Grind: What’s the most egregious grifting you’ve seen in the MMO sphere?
Vague Patch Notes: The challenge of the average MMO player
Massively on the Go: Your complete guide to the Pokemon Go Kanto tour
Massively Overthinking: Which MMORPG offers the best tutorial?
Wisdom of Nym: The shirt-based speculation around Final Fantasy XIV’s next melee job
Choose My Adventure: In search of RvR in WAR Return of Reckoning; first steps in Darkfall Rise of Agon
Massively On The Go: Pokemon Go’s Kanto Tour failed to Meet Go Fest 2020’s high standards
The Daily Grind: Do you think the MMO genre is in decline?
Perfect Ten: MMOs of the ‘internet spaceships’ genre
Stick and Rudder: Seven player-made Elite Dangerous tools that you should check out
Leaderboard: So, is RIFT next?
Vague Patch Notes: Considering the soloer’s experience in MMOs
Why I Play: Finally completing Final Fantasy XIV’s relic grind
Massively on the Go: Pokemon Go’s Season 2 is Legendary
WoW Factor: WoW Classic is doing everything right in the wake of BlizzCon
Perfect 10: Ten features I want to see in Splatoon 3
Massively on the Go: Everything notable – and potentially multiplayer – from Pokemon Presents
The Game Archaeologist: EA’s Motor City Online
Jukebox Heroes: The best of DK Online’s soundtrack
ALL 2021 YEAR-IN-REVIEW POSTS SO FAR
MMO Year in Review: At least it wasn’t 2020? (January 2021)
MMO Year in Review: The first and only BlizzConline (February 2021)
MMO Year in Review: Magic Legends begins (March 2021)
MMO Year in Review: Amazon’s Lord of the Rings MMO is over (April 2021)
MMO Year in Review: Odyssey and a billion betas (May 2021)
MMO Year in Review: Blackwood, New Genesis, and Burning Crusade (June 2021)
MMO Year in Review: The Blizzard lawsuit (July 2021)
MMO Year in Review: Bless redux (August 2021)
MMO Year in Review: Old genre, New World (September 2021)
MMO Year in Review: Elyon, Book of Travels, and Queue World (October 2021)
MMO Year in Review: The Marvel MMO, $400M, and Blizzard’s decline (November 2021)
MMO Year in Review: Endwalker, Cryptic, and Crowfall (December 2021)
