Perfect Ten: Ten ways to bond with your kids over MMOs
Back in 2009 I made the transition into parenthood, an advanced class that I still don't think I'm quite qualified for. Since then I've...
Betawatch: AdventureQuest 3D hits open beta (October 21, 2016)
You don't have to go questing for an adventure in AdventureQuest 3D. Wait... hold on. I'm sorry, that's exactly what you do in the...
WoW Factor: Sargeras, the Legion, and World of Warcraft lore on the cosmic scale
Patch 7.1 is just around the corner for World of Warcraft, and it makes me just a little bit anxious. Why? Because the expansion...
Massively Overthinking: Real solutions to the MMO toxicity problem
Toxicity. It's plagued online spaces since long before there were MMORPGs and other online video games, as any old school BBS user can attest....
EverQuesting: EverQuest II’s public quest event — fun or flop?
Last year when EverQuest II had a prelude event before the launch of its expansion, it was a two-parter. And thanks to logistics at...
Hyperspace Beacon: Examining SWTOR’s contentious 5.0 endgame gear grind
If you didn't watch the Star Wars: The Old Republic livestream on Monday, then you missed Creative Director Charles Boyd, Producer Ben Irving, and...
Flameseeker Chronicles: Gaming playstyles, science, and Guild Wars 2
I was curious recently about what specific personality traits or personal qualities lead to my enjoyment of MMOs in general and Guild Wars 2 in particular,...
Final Fantasy XIV Fan Festival: Reactions to Stormblood
Final Fantasy XIV: Stormblood ought to have be the least interesting announcement possible. It was heavily teased before it actually happened, and we knew that...
Wisdom of Nym: Final Fantasy XIV Fan Festival in review
Being at the Final Fantasy XIV fan festival was interesting for me on several levels because I wasn't just there to have fun, I...
EVE Evolved: Controversy over gambling bans and charities
It's been a crazy, drama-filled week in EVE Online, starting with a controversial change to the EULA that will ban all gambling sites using in-game currency or assets...
One Shots: Always fall, never winter
Thank you to everyone who posted pictures of autumnal scenery from MMOs. It truly is one of the best seasons (the worst is Smarch......
The Game Archaeologist: Classic PlanetSide
Unlike fantasy, the sci-fi genre has had a rocky relationship with MMORPGs. While studios have tried just as hard to make and promote them,...
Betawatch: RIFT delays while Albion extends beta testing (October 14, 2016)
This week in MMO beta news, RIFT announced a delay for the beta of its upcoming Starfall Prophecy expansion, first to next week, now indefinitely. "It's...
Working As Intended: A tour of 19-year-old Ultima Online
Wanna feel old? Three years ago, I wrote a Second Wind piece for Massively-that-was on Ultima Online, which had recently been turned over to Broadsword...
Perfect Ten: Incompetent leaders in MMORPGs
Leadership is difficult. You have to get a group of people to work together when they may or may not be naturally inclined to...
EverQuesting: Could Daybreak’s new FPS be an EverQuest?
With the constant clamoring from fans for Daybreak (or someone) to create an honest-to-goodness next-gen sequel to the EverQuest franchise, you'd hope that it...
Tamriel Infinium vs Hyperspace Beacon: Three ways to make lockboxes work better in MMORPGs
Last week, I stirred up a hornet’s nest by bringing up the topic of lockboxes and how I really didn’t mind them in general.
Hyperspace...
Wisdom of Nym: Final Fantasy XIV patch 3.4 in review, continued
There's never really a good splitting point when discussing Final Fantasy XIV patches. They always cover so much ground with features and additions that...
MMO Mechanics: Enhancing MMORPGs with experiential learning mechanics
Ever since I considered the responses to a Massively Overthinking article in which a developer asked if a prestige system to encourage replaying an...
The Daily Grind: What MMO would you like with a different game’s combat engine?
There are things I really like about The Secret World; the combat has never been one of them. However, if I could somehow mix...