Generally used to describe MMOs from before World of Warcraft’s launch in 2004, though sometimes shortened to describe just the first few MMOs launched prior to 2000.
classic mmos
The Game Archaeologist: Were sequels ever a good idea for MMOs?
From movies to books to video games, sequels (and all related spin-offs) are a common sight when a property is sufficiently successful enough. Even...
The Game Archaeologist: McDonalds’ McWorld MMO is a thing that existed
If you thought that it was strange for MTV to create its own virtual world, then you probably are forgetting how desperate companies always...
The Game Archaeologist: The rise and fall of Landmark and EverQuest Next
The year was 2013. Sony Online Entertainment was still a functioning and seemingly robust MMORPG studio, and its yearly SOE Live convention was a...
The Game Archaeologist: The history of play-by-email games
For most all of human history, people who wanted to play a game together usually had to be in physical proximity with each other....
The Game Archaeologist: The history of Guild Wars 2’s Super Adventure Box
In the MMORPG genre, April Fools' Day is especially relished as a time in which developers and studios can get a bit wacky and...
The Game Archaeologist: Shenmue Online
If you ever stumble across a Dreamcast enthusiast -- and believe me, they are everywhere -- on the forefront of their diatribe about how...
The Game Archaeologist: Tabula Rasa
The story of Tabula Rasa begins, as so many others do, with 1997's Ultima Online. Raph Koster and Richard Garriott's online fantasy sandbox proved...
The Game Archaeologist: The legacy of Guild Wars
Last week on The Game Archaeologist, we examined the exciting beginnings of Guild Wars, thanks to a trio of ex-Blizzard developers who wanted to...
The Game Archaeologist: The rise of Guild Wars
In early 2005, World of Warcraft mania was rising exponentially, month over month. But even as Blizzard's MMO juggernaut barreled toward its full strength...
The Game Archaeologist: Super-early versions of MMORPG websites
One of the absolute best things the internet ever generated has been the Internet Wayback Machine. Through this site, snapshots of millions of websites...
The Game Archaeologist: That time when MTV made a virtual world
For the music trendy in the '80s and '90s, MTV was a huge source of fascination and audio discovery. It was the edgy channel...
The Game Archaeologist’s ultimate MMO archives v3.0
Behind history are people and stories, some of them well-known and some of them obscure. It has been my mission in The Game Archaeologist...
Remembering the life and work of legendary MMO designer Brad ‘Aradune’ McQuaid
When the news hit last night, it brought everything to a screeching halt in the Massively OP office: At the age of 51, veteran...
The Game Archaeologist: A brief history of Multi-User Dungeons
You know that sinking feeling when you get into something that's way, waaaay over your head and you have no choice but to swim...
The Game Archaeologist: Funcom’s long-abandoned Midgard MMO
There used to be a time that Funcom was deeply into the MMORPG business, bringing us titles such as Anarchy Online, Age of Conan,...
The Game Archaeologist: The day Dungeons and Dragons Online dropped the free-to-play bomb
By 2009, the MMORPG genre had firmly established a norm for its business model. For over a decade, a monthly subscription -- usually $15...
The Game Archaeologist: Is it worth the hassle to update graphics in older MMOs?
"I'd play this game again if the graphics were updated."
"If they re-released this game with modern graphics, it would be way more popular."
"The Game...
The Game Archaeologist: Dungeons & Dragons
Part of the holy mission of the Game Archaeologist is to ferret out the roots of history that ultimately led to MMORPGs as we...
The Game Archaeologist: Ironman modes and elective permadeath
One facet of video games that's been around almost since the very beginning is difficulty levels. This allowed the player to choose how hard...
The Game Archaeologist: Sierra’s Fates of Twinion and Ruins of Cawdor
A few years ago I regaled you with the fascinating tale of one of the very first multiplayer graphical MUDs, the absurdly named Shadow...
