The two big launches of May had one thing in common: technical snafus. Phantasy Star Online 2’s western PC “technical clownshow” launch even generated an apology from SEGA itself, while the delayed launch of Elder Scrolls Online’s Skyrim-flavored Greymoor chapter struggled through nasty outages and version bugs.
Meanwhile, Gamigo made a bungle of ArcheAge Unchained’s monetization, Guild Wars 2 rolled out No Quarter, and LOTRO and DDO gave away truly absurd amounts of content.
And of course, it wouldn’t be a month in 2020 without a nod to the pandemic continuing its reign of terror across the world, including the gaming industry. It even canceled BlizzCon and CitizenCon.
Read on for the whole list from May of this past year!
TOP NEWS STORIES OF MAY 2020
Elite Dangerous is delaying its Next Era content into 2021
Mark Jacobs says Camelot Unchained’s 90-day plan is still on track
Star Citizen just canceled this year’s CitizenCon 2950 thanks to the pandemic
Star Wars: Battlefront 2004 officially brings online multiplayer back after six years
Interview: Black Desert on crossplay, the engine, and the future of mobile
Amazon Game Studios’ PvPvE shooter Crucible launches May 20 — here’s a video outlining its modes
Survival MMO Population Zero has formally launched into Steam early access
Trove’s Delves update is live for PC players today with new delve mode and Tomb Raiser revamp
Activision-Blizzard Q1 2020: Blizzard MAUs flat at 32M, but revenue jumps ahead of Shadowlands
Half a million people played Albion Online in April, so its studio is hiring again
CCP intensifies fight against COVID-19, hopes EVE Online will ‘outlive us all’
Conan Exiles’ Architect of Argos DLC and Followers II update are live today
Fallen Earth’s reconstruction continues slowly but surely – check out the new screenshots
Make My MMO: Kickstarted social MMO Book of Travels has journeyed into closed beta
World of Warcraft’s Ion Hazzikostas suggests MMO social bonds are formed over ‘friction’
Guild Wars 2 has restored the EU servers to Monday morning after multiday rollback
World of Warcraft’s infamous Leeroy Jenkins raid gaffe is 15 years old
Gamigo is sunsetting more MMOs, this time Dragon’s Prophet EU and its sequel, Savage Hunt
The Culling returns, again, with an eyebrow-raising new business model
Black Desert moves Heidel Ball online, adds Striker on mobile and events on PC
PSA: But seriously, don’t buy vampirism cures in the Elder Scrolls Online cash shop
Valorant has so far found and banned over 8,000 cheaters, causing sweet cheater tears to flow
NCsoft Q1 2020: Double YoY revenue thanks to Lineage 2M, Tencent to pub Guild Wars 2 in China
Twitch forms a ‘safety council’ to promote healthy streaming habits and protect marginalized groups
Chinese World of Warcraft players beg NetEase to rescue them from RMT bot infestation
BioWare Austin’s studio director confirms Anthem reboot will be more transparent and ‘a longer process’
Phantasy Star Online 2 is officially launching on PC in the west May 27
Black Desert just patched in a full-fledged music composition system for the Shai
Star Wars Galaxies Legends celebrates 40 years of Empire Strikes Back with new PvE and PvP content
Amazon Games’ team shooter Crucible is supposed to go live this afternoon
Daybreak has apparently registered another substudio: Wandering Monster Games
Blade & Soul’s Steel Bonds update is now live
Black Desert spin-off Shadow Arena has just hopped into Steam early access
So ArcheAge Unchained’s Garden of the Gods is not free, and ArcheAge players are not happy
Kickstarted cyberpunk MMO Zenith features footage of the pre-alpha, teases alpha
Elder Scrolls Online’s Greymoor chapter sends players back to Skyrim today
Blizzard has canceled BlizzCon 2020, aims for online replacement early next year
Phantasy Star Online 2 has finally launched on PC in the west after eight years
Aion’s Shadows Over Balaurea is live today in North America
Elder Scrolls Online’s Greymoor, Phantasy Star Online 2 PC struggle during launch week
Fallout 76 interview: Bethsoft on One Wasteland, text chat, and other radioactive topics
Kickstarted MMORPG Crowfall moves from pre-alpha to alpha today
Pathfinder Online moves into open enrollment and makes several updates
LOTRO and DDO extend promo, give away zones, discount expansions, and sweeten subs
SEGA apologizes for botched Phantasy Star Online 2 launch
Ashes of Creation partially lifts its NDA, discusses open world housing and caravans in a livestream
FAVORITE EDITORIALS OF MAY 2020
The Soapbox: The sunsetted MMORPGs I miss the most
WoW Factor: Examining Shadowlands’ Warlock, Paladin, and Demon Hunter changes
LOTRO Legendarium: Wells of Langflood, River-hobbits, and free questing
Wisdom of Nym: The curious rebirth of Final Fantasy XIV’s old content
Massively Uplifting: Communities and companies bolster COVID-19 relief and mental health support
Choose My Adventure: The first steps as a Romulan in Star Trek Online
Fight or Kite: Valorant’s place in an MMO player’s rotation
Perfect Ten: The top 10 things we loved about WildStar
MMO Cartographer: Exploring Revelation Online’s Skyward World update
Vague Patch Notes: What causes the preponderance of disconnected MMO endgames?
Working as Intended: Sparking joy in MMOs
Massively Overthinking: The oldest MMORPGs we still play
WoW Factor: Examining Shadowlands’ Rogue, Death Knight, and Warrior changes
First impressions of Fallout 76 Wastelanders from a true newbie to the game
The Game Archaeologist: The rise and fall of Landmark and EverQuest Next
Not So Massively: Kind Words is one of the most intense games I’ve ever played
Wisdom of Nym: What awaits in Final Fantasy XIV’s relic battleground?
WoW Factor: World of Warcraft’s class and race restrictions have never made any sense
Perfect Ten: Actually useful World of Warcraft toys
Working as Intended: The big list of City of Heroes rogue servers, 2020 edition
Warframe of Mind: Five ways to make a more splendiferous TennoCon 2020
Vague Patch Notes: Player vs. class in Final Fantasy XI
Desert Oasis: Exploring Black Desert’s guild system, from contracts to drama
Massively Overthinking: Do MMOs need ‘adult’ character customization?
WoW Factor: Why I genuinely miss World of Warcraft’s old janky Retribution Paladin
EverQuesting: EverQuest II’s Blood of Luclin offers an aggravating lesson on gated MMO content
LOTRO Legendarium: What I want from Amazon’s Lord of the Rings MMO
Fight or Kite: Surveying Crowfall’s new Frostweaver class and interface updates
Wisdom of Nym: Final Fantasy XIV’s healer problem and how it’s kind of unsolvable
Choose My Adventure: New ships, New Romulus, and a new gun in Star Trek Online
Perfect Ten: World of Warcraft’s multicolored troll rainbow
WoW Factor: Impressive Influence and the ongoing half-hearted Battle for Azeroth apology
Tamriel Infinium: Getting ready for Elder Scrolls Online’s Greymoor chapter
Massively Overthinking: The more things change in MMOs, the more they stay the same
Vague Patch Notes: The endless allure of the games we never got
The Game Archaeologist: McDonalds’ McWorld MMO is a thing that existed
Wisdom of Nym: Final Fantasy XIV Shadowbringers has mined out its own nostalgia
Choose My Adventure: Taking the new Warbird for a spin in Star Trek Online
Flameseeker Chronicles: First impressions of Guild Wars 2’s No Quarter
Perfect Ten: Unconventional MMORPG magic classes
Wandering Wraeclast: Final impressions of Path of Exile’s Delirium
First Impressions: Phantasy Star Online 2’s technical clownshow mangled its PC launch
Vague Patch Notes: BlizzCon’s cancellation might just be for the best
Desert Oasis: Rethinking the Black Desert grindspot debate
Massively Overthinking: Are MMO developers stuck in the past?
WoW Factor: Shadowlands needs an excitement boost it’s not getting
ALL 2020 YEAR-IN-REVIEW POSTS SO FAR
MMO Year in Review: A new New World (January 2020)
MMO Year in Review: A ‘colossal’ announcement (February 2020)
MMO Year in Review: Gaming’s pandemic disruption (March 2020)
MMO Year in Review: Elyon’s pivot, Elyria’s fizzling storm (April 2020)
MMO Year in Review: ‘Technical clownshows’ for PSO2 and ESO Greymoor (May 2020)
MMO Year in Review: Solidarity (June 2020)
MMO Year in Review: Lord of the Rings Offline (July 2020)
MMO Year in Review: Business business business (August 2020)
MMO Year in Review: FFXVI, ArcheAge 2, and the Bethsoft buyout (September 2020)
MMO Year in Review: The Shadowlands delay (October 2020)
MMO Year in Review: Shadowlands’ arrival (November 2020)
MMO Year in Review: When Daybreak and Albion got bought out (December 2020)
