Ubisoft knows that the true secret to making tons of money and launching a hit video game is to strike when the iron is cold. Very cold. “We have been keeping this iron as close to absolute zero as possible for scientific purposes” cold. “You are walking away from the object you are trying to find which I am now holding because this is unpleasant for both of us” cold. “Andre 3000 wants to know what’s cooler than being cool” cold. With that preamble in place, here’s Skull and Bones finally in closed beta! Try to contain your enthusiasm.
Hey, speaking of delays, did you know that Nightingale has been delayed until February 2024? You are shocked, I’m sure. At least that one does not have the problem of waiting until the hype over a thematic conceit has well and truly died, since this is a thematic conceit that has never been popular except in my heart. It never dies there.
I suppose you could consider long intros a delay getting into the meat of our news roundup and list of games in testing just below. You shouldn’t, but you could. What you should do is check out our roundup of the beta news this week followed by our list of games in testing, and then you should let us know if something slipped into a new test phase (or just out-and-out launch) without our noticing. We do appreciate it.
After six delays in its long development, Skull and Bones has finally entered closed beta
Pantheon reports that pre-alpha server is ‘running great,’ moves toward 24/7 testing
Wayfinder reduces queues ahead of the onslaught of expected players this weekend
Fractured Veil discusses bug fixing, performance, and better questing as it now targets October early access
Palia announces its first big open beta event, Maji Market, starting next week
Throne & Liberty details changes to PvP, cash shop, and autoplay features at Gamescom
Party Animals readies pre-orders and three closed beta tests ahead of September 20 release
Early access survival MMO Coreborn Nations of the Ultracore releases adventure patch at Gamescom
Tencent’s Tarisland sets second closed beta for November, talks game optimization
Palia players have racked up 7M hours played in its beta so far
First Impressions: Hands-on with Fae Farm’s delightfully strong opening chapters
Not So Massively: First impressions of Warcraft Rumble
Gamescom 2023: Nightingale has been delayed to February 2024, new trailer ahoy
The Wagadu Chronicles opens its Steam page and plans for an early access launch by year’s end
First Impressions: I sat through Wayfinder’s queues so you don’t have to
Evercore Heroes ends updates August 24, ‘significantly’ shrinks its dev team, and focuses on redesign
We consider an MMO to be in open testing if it features free, public signups and will server wipe prior to launch. An MMO is marked in closed testing if it’s running a private test phase that cannot freely be accessed by the general public; it’s often under NDA as well. Early access and crowdfunded MMOs whose tests we deem legitimate will be included. So-called “open beta” soft-launch MMOs with cash shops, no sign of launch in the west, or limited interest for our readers will not be listed, nor will games that are NFT/blockchain scams; we also do not list expansions, with occasional exceptions. Finally, we’ll mark games “malingering” if they’ve been in a certain tier of development for a long time with no clear path to launch.
Open testing
Closed testing
Paid access
Legit MMORPG
Multiplayer
MalingeringThe Adventurer’s Domain Online: Early access
Aero Tales Online: Early access
Age of Water: Paid closed beta
Anvil Empires: Intermittent alpha
Arcane Waters: Early access
Arcfall: Pre-alpha
ARK 2: Closed testing
Ashes of Creation: Alpha two in planning
Ashfall: Closed beta
ASKA: Closed beta
Battlebit: Early access
Bellatores: Closed testing
Bitcraft: Closed alpha incoming
Blue Protocol: Launching worldwide in 2024
Book of Travels: Early access
Camelot Unchained: Closed beta
Chronicles of Elyria: Pre-alpha, again
Chrono Odyssey: Closed testing
Cinderstone Online: Closed beta
City of Titans: Alpha
Coreborn: Nations of the Ultracore: Early access
Corepunk: Closed alpha, open testing scheduled for September
Craftopia: Early access
The Crew Motorfest: Closed testing
Dark and Darker: Paid early access, legal troubles.
Dark and Light: Early access (abandoned?)
Darkbind: Closed beta (probably abandoned?)
The Day Before: Closed alpha (delay drama)
The Division Heartland: Closed testing
Dreamworld: Pre-alpha
Dune Awakening: Closed testing
ECO: Early access
Eleven: Closed alpha
Enlisted: Beta
Evercore Heroes: Paid testing, updates stopping with a focus on a redesign
Fae Farm: Closed testing, launch planned for September 8th
The First Descendant: Beta in September
Fractured Online: Paid beta access
Fractured Veil: Back in closed development
Frozen Flame: Early access
Genfanad: Alpha
Ilysia: Beta two through August 23rd
Inferna: Early access
Kurtzpel: Closed beta
Last Oasis: Early access (abandoned?)
Lost Skies: Closed testing
Monster Hunter Now: Closed beta
Monsters & Memories: Intermittent pre-alpha
Mortal Exodus: Closed testing
Multiverse: Returned to closed testing
Nightingale: Ongoing closed events
Noah’s Heart: Beta
Odd Giants: Alpha
Outlaws of the Old West: Early access
Palia: Open beta
Pantheon: Intermittent backer alpha
Party Animals: Closed testing starting September 1st
Past Fate: Closed testing
Path of Exile 2: Beta June 2024
Pax Dei: Closed alpha
Perfect New World: Closed beta
Pow Vista: Open beta (mobile)
Project F4E: Closed testing
Project Genom: Closed alpha (servers offline, abandoned?)
Project Gorgon: Early access beta
Project Loki: Closed beta
Project ST: Closed testing, open event ended
Prosperous Universe: Early access
Return Alive: Closed beta
Reign of Guilds: Intermittent open beta
SamuTale: “Paid closed alpha early access” according to the developer, which is just early access, come on dude
Seed: Alpha (drama, crypto link and weird comms blockout?)
Shadow’s Kiss: Early access (but read this first)
Ship of Heroes: Beta testing
Skull and Bones: Closed beta
Spellcraft: Alpha
Star Citizen: Backer alpha
Starbase: Early access open alpha
Tarisland: Beta
Throne & Liberty: Korean closed beta, western launch delayed into 2024
Valheim: Early access
V Rising: Early access
Valiance Online: Closed beta
The Wagadu Chronicles: Alpha two
Warcraft Rumble: Soft launching, changed name, everything is fine
Waven Early access
Wayfinder Early access ahead of full launch
We welcome additions and corrections to this list; send your info our way via tips!
Yes, MMO gamers, you too can perform the unpaid quality-control work otherwise known as game testing! Check out Massively Overpowered’s Betawatch every week for a run-down of MMOs that are still on the road to launch, even if they appear to have set up a permanent residence in a shed called early access.
