This year, we’re taking a time-machine back through our MMO coverage, month by month, to hit the highlights and frame our journey before we head into 2016.
December has been a surprisingly busy month in spite of the holidays, and rising to the occasion was Star Citizen, which launched its 2.0 alpha, passed the $100 million mark, and offered up trailer for its procedurally generated planet system that surprised even its stalwart supporters.
Meanwhile, Camelot Unchained revealed its crafting, Elder Scrolls Online and Firefall dealt with financial issues, and The Repopulation’s Hero Engine saga came to a head. Here’s a look at all the top MMORPG stories of December in our last Year in Review entry for 2015.
TOP NEWS STORIES OF DECEMBERÂ 2015
Lord of the Rings Online’s next update will allow you to level to 95 instantly
Guild Wars 2 promises quarterly balance updates, says e-sports are crucial to the game’s growth
Hardcore PvP MMO Sphere 3 arrives today
Marvel Heroes 2016 delayed until January
Players are upset that Elder Scrolls Online is selling werewolf and vampire transformations
EVE Online player counted among the victims of mass shooting
Star Citizen shows off ship combat, FPS, and EVA in new trailer
Elder Scrolls Online is giving away a million bucks
Gigantic developer Motiga lays off 16, delays launch into 2016 [Updated]
The Division moves beta to next year, announces Xbox One alpha test this month
Blizzard promises future Overwatch maps and characters will be free
Cube World resumes active development
EVE’s ‘ISIS’ ship browser gets a rename
Landmark’s holiday patch introduces the Winter Holiday Party Zone
EVE Valkyrie will launch bundled with the Oculus Rift
Tribes: Ascend’s first major patch since 2013 lands today
Star Citizen launches 2.0 alpha for all Citizens
Star Citizen just dinged to 100 million dollars
The Ghost in the Shell online shooter is live now on Steam
Elite: Dangerous’ Horizons goes live today
Guild Wars 2 e-sports team ragequits over design meta, technical issues
World of Warcraft’s Legion testing is taking a holiday break, too
Black Desert’s first English closed beta starts today
Star Citizen’s breathtaking procedurally generated planet system trailer
WoW Legion aims to flatten the PvP gear curve
Funcom announces new Conan game
Notorious e-sports team boss Martin Shkreli arrested for securities fraud
Elder Scrolls Online reportedly lays off 300 support staff [Updated]
Hands-on: Blade & Soul’s early beta has solid mechanics, but not much else
Take a tour of Star Citizen’s $10,000 club
Overwatch’s theatrical teaser will give you goosebumps
There are eight live SWGemu projects right now
LOTRO’s 2016 roadmap
Entropia Universe sells invisible clothing for $5,000
New source claims 300 Elder Scrolls Online layoffs throughout 2015
Nexon to take over TERA operations in Korea
Camelot Unchained’s Mark Jacobs on economy, crafting, and Star Wars Galaxies inspiration
The Repopulation temporarily suspends development
PSA: Steam suffers a serious malfunction [Updated]
Rumor: Alleged Firefall devs claim Red 5 missed December payroll
Tree of Savior’s hairstyles cost more in-game than in real life
The Repopulation rejects blame for Hero Engine’s financial struggles
Pathfinder Online has a new investor interested in taking over the game
FAVORITE EDITORIALS OF DECEMBERÂ 2015
Perfect Ten: The 10 best free-to-play MMORPGs
Massively Overthinking: MMO predictions for 2016
Perfect Ten: The biggest MMORPG news stories of 2015
Perfect Ten: The 10 best MMORPG updates and expansions of 2015
Massively Overthinking: The next big Star Wars MMORPG
Hyperspace Beacon: SWTOR’s 2015 report card
Exploring ‘The Video Game Debate’: Games and education
Perfect Ten: Where to get your MMO podcast fix
WoW Factor: Legion testing is an exercise in absurd decisions
Chaos Theory: The Secret World’s Issue #13 Trail of Shadows reveal
Nexus Telegraph: How can WildStar be more alt-friendly?
Tamriel Infinium: Elder Scrolls Online’s 2015 report card
Tamriel Infinium: Elder Scrolls Online predictions for 2016
The Game Archaeologist: Asheron’s Call
MMO Mechanics: 2015’s MMORPG mechanics in review
Wisdom of Nym: Why Final Fantasy XIV’s Anima Weapons don’t bother me
The most popular MMORPG conversations of 2015
Hyperspace Beacon: SWTOR developers reflect on 2016
Ask Mo: Massively OP’s 2015 awards debrief
The most popular MMORPG articles of 2015
The best MMORPG polls of 2015
The Game Archaeologist: Asheron’s Call 2
Not So Massively: Top 10 most surprising NSM stories of 2015
Flameseeker Chronicles: Guild Wars 2 predictions for 2016
ALL MONTH-IN-REVIEW POSTS
MMO Year in Review: Daybreak’s downslide (February 2015)
MMO Year in Review: Crowfall’s Kickstarter (March 2015)
MMO Year in Review: A Star Wars Galaxies postmortem (April 2015)
MMO Year in Review: WoW’s nosedive (May 2015)
MMO Year in Review: Heavensward’s arrival (June 2015)
MMO Year in Review: Smed & Smart (July 2015)
MMO Year in Review: Into the Heart of Thorns (August 2015)
MMO Year in Review: WildStar Reloaded (September 2015)
MMO Year in Review: The SWTOR vs. Guild Wars 2 showdown (October 2015)
MMO Year in Review: Blizzard’s big plans (November 2015)
MMO Year in Review: Star Citizen’s triumph (December 2015)
