Where many other MMORPGs have tried and failed, Severed Lands hopes to succeed. This in-development sandbox MMO from the indie development studio of the same name is aspiring to “create a game that combines PvP and PvE gameplay in a way that satisfies all types of players while maintaining the key sandbox elements” according to its debut post on the MMORPG subreddit.
The game’s official site offers a little more detail on how Severed Lands is shaping up from a gameplay design standpoint. The primary feature – and the one that gives the game its name – is a game world of two societies: Siparia, a nation of order and laws “where cooperation, competition, and aspiration intertwine”; and The Pitts, which is the complete opposite of that, or “a lawless expanse where untamed individualism thrives” in other words.
Severed Lands offers up many familiar hallmarks of open sandbox MMORPGs, including a classless system, character progression that’s based on attributes and gaining knowledge by doing, open base building, plenty of crafting, and a fully open but justice-based PvP system that aspires to incentivize calculated criminal activity.
As of right now, Severed Lands is eyeing an open alpha test in the third quarter of this year and a release in the fourth quarter of 2024. A Steam page for the MMORPG has been opened up and signups for pre-alpha testing are currently available, though pre-alpha is currently on hold. A gameplay preview also awaits below.