Neverwinter released its Dragonslayer module this week on both PC and console, getting the universe one step closer to fulfilling somebody’s monkey’s paw wish that every MMORPG launch an expansion with dragon in the name.
Meanwhile, Activision-Blizzard continued its quest to be the most odious villain in gaming, Gazillion’s CEO apologized (kinda) for the Marvel Heroes debacle, TERA kept inching toward its sunset, and we examined predatory monetization in MMOs.
Read on to catch up with the very best of this week’s MMO news and opinions today as every Sunday (since 2010!) in Massively Overpowered’s Week in Review!THIS WEEK’S TOP STORIES
Activision-Blizzard workers on Board’s exoneration of execs: ‘The fish rots from the head’ - Remember last year when Riot Games formed a "special committee" to investigate the sexual harassment accusations against its CEO and then amazingly cleared him and the company of all wrongdoing?…
Vague Patch Notes: Examples of predatory monetization in the MMO industry - So, if you've been paying attention to this column over the past few forevers, you will have no doubt noticed by this point that I'm not really a big fan…
Former Gazillion CEO apologizes for Marvel Heroes’ chaotic 2017 shutdown - Ah, Marvel Heroes. The game would've turned nine years old this month, had it lived, but of course as veteran MMORPG players know, it wasn't to be. Back in 2017,…
You can watch – but not play – TERA’s last quest before its shutdown - TERA's remaining days are sadly few as of this writing, as the long-running action MMO is scheduled to close its doors on June 30th. To give the game a final…
LOTRO Legendarium: Return to Moria hopes to fill a niche crevasse - As you may have already noticed from this column's previous coverage of the Amazon MMO, LOTRO Legendarium's umbrella is big enough to provide shade for any and all online Lord…
Diablo IV talks up player choice in PvE and endgame while Diablo Immortal rakes in $24M in revenue - The devs of Diablo IV are hitting the press trail, putting out interviews and previews of the multiplayer ARPG ahead of its 2023 release window. An interview with director Joe…
Conan Exiles accidentally leaks a video announcement of its large-scale Age of Sorcery update - The general purpose of having a countdown to a major reveal is that you follow the clock's timer. Conan Exiles was doing just that, teasing some major reveal with cryptic…
WoW Factor: How greater-scope villains harm World of Warcraft’s storytelling - Sargeras was really trying to stop the Void Lords. The Jailer was really fighting against some anonymous bigger enemy. Sylvanas was really trying to help the Jailer because she thought…
Palia answers questions about combat and costumes, says it’s a ‘long way from launch’ - Can't wait to get your cozy on with Palia? It's going to be a while, as the team confirmed that the title is a "long way from launch" at this…
Massively Overthinking: Which classic MMOs hold up the best visually in 2022? - As one of our resident fans of old MMOs, I always have to clarify that it's the systems and ideas in old games that I like. Their graphics... not so…
Overwatch 2 shares seasonal patch plans from its October launch with PvE planned for 2023 - The wait is not yet over for Overwatch 2, but it's getting close to being over... assuming you were mostly waiting for the PvP, anyhow. If it's the PvE you…
MMO sandbox BitCraft picks up another $22M in funding round led by Roblox CEO - Just a few weeks ago, we did a check-in on BitCraft, the procedurally generated sandbox MMORPG from Clockwork Labs. The game's been notable thanks to its big-name investors, who included…
Lord of the Rings Online welcomes back the Midsummer Festival, talks about what’s next - Wedding bells are ringing in Middle-earth -- again -- which means that Lord of the Rings Online's Midsummer Festival has returned for another season. The wedding-themed event kicks off today…
Flyff Universe reboots with improved graphics and cross-platform play - Flyff is back -- and it's better than ever. Gala Lab announced this week that the 2005 MMORPG has relaunched globally as Flyff Universe. This isn't just an old game…
Perfect Ten: The 10 NPCs you meet in MMORPGs - Is there a figure in online games that more symbolizes the thin barrier between the server database and user playerbase than the non-player character? NPCs exist to fill the world…
Swords of Legends Online is bringing more story, new zones, and revamped raid loot in its next update - Update 2.1 is on the horizon for Swords of Legends Online, and publisher Gameforge is promising it will be a "killer update," with more story content, more zone content, and…
Lost Ark readies for for a ‘massive’ banning of the bots - The battle of the bots - or more specifically, against the bots - continues in Lost Ark. Amazon told players last night to expect another big bot wave as part…
Wargaming opens new offices in Europe after Russia exodus - With the war in the Ukraine stretching on into the summer months, it might be more difficult to remember how much various game studios were scrambling back in April to…
Choose My Adventure: Final Fantasy XI shows its age and its nostalgia in equal measure - Once again, this week in Final Fantasy XI continues to deliver nostalgia and aggravation in mostly equal amounts. First off, I will admit that deciding to switch back to a…
Tamriel Infinium: Big-name voice actors you didn’t know were in Elder Scrolls Online - When Elder Scrolls Online players dived into the High Isle expansion this past week, among the many new delights was the addition of Billy Boyd (Lord of the Rings) as…
Neverwinter’s Dragonslayer module launches today on PC and console - The MMORPG genre is super into dragons right now, and that includes Cryptic's Neverwinter, which launches its 23rd module, Dragonslayer, today. This update is notable as it's coming to all…
Star Citizen and EVE Online unveil a LEGO build-off challenge for prizes and charity - Last December, we spied the Twitter accounts of both Star Citizen and EVE Online trash-talking each other as a result of a fan-built Vulture made of LEGO. At the time,…
Microsoft and CWA union enter into ‘labor neutrality’ agreement that will ultimately apply to Activision-Blizzard - Microsoft is continuing its efforts to look like a decent place for gaming developers to work: It's apparently entered into a "labor neutrality" agreement with the Communication Workers of America.…
Wisdom of Nym: Examining Final Fantasy XIV patch 6.15 in the wild - Sometimes it feels very weird when Final Fantasy XIV bribes me into doing content. Ameliance's custom deliveries are a prime example of this. You did not need to put anything…
Fight or Kite: New World’s 3v3 arenas are unplayable if you’re not already level-capped - We’re only about two and half weeks removed from the launch of 3v3 arenas in New World. This was a feature I was extremely hyped for as New World has…
Diablo IV devs take to Twitter to get ahead of monetization fears spawned by a job posting - With all of the monetization headlines springing up around Diablo Immortal, it'd be easy to understand why fans watching the development of Diablo IV might be a little concerned. These…
Gamigo’s Echo of Soul will close July 15, though a new publisher could potentially take over - Gamigo recently announced that its publishing agreement with the Nvius MMORPG Echo of Soul aka EOS Phoenix will not be renewed when it's set to expire on Friday, July 15th,…
THIS WEEK’S CASTS & STREAMS
Massively OP Podcast Episode 377: Isle thing, you make my heart sing
The Stream Team: Checking out the demo version of pixel pirating MMO Arcane Waters
The Stream Team: A first look at ARK’s Fjordur
The Stream Team: Weapons of fire and ice from Yulgar’s Inn in AQ3D
The Stream Team: Venturing into Neverwinter’s Vanrakdoom
The Stream Team: Backseat Streaming the front lines of PlanetSide 2’s war
The Stream Team: A first-timer’s sampling of Star Trek Online endgame
The Stream Team: Wrapping up End of Dragons and Guild Wars 2
The Stream Team: It’s a vampire life in V Rising
The Stream Team: Life after war in Warframe
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 bits of news we didn’t cover anywhere else.
