editorial
Five IPs that could tackle ARG gameplay features Pokemon Go lacks
Following the news that Niantic is now in fact working on a Harry Potter AR game, I realized that even as someone who enjoyed the...
The Soapbox: Calling an MMO launch a launch
It's launch.
Can we collectively accept that? Marketing, developers, and players alike? Launch is launch. When your game launches, it has launched. If I can...
The Soapbox: Sharing MMORPGs with my kids
"Dad, can I pilot your ship tonight?"
I turn around to see my seven-year-old son giving me Bambi eyes with his hands clasped because, somewhere...
Working As Intended: Busting up the MMORPG nostalgia party
Last week, a clever Massively OP commenter, SC_Deadline, neatly summed up the ongoing Nostalrius emulator shutdown as Blizzard "bust up someone's nostalgia party," which...
Working As Intended: The fate of the MMORPG genre
I don't think I'm exaggerating to say that this past weekend was a strange one in the MMORPG community, when gamers across the wide expanse...
How Star Wars: The Old Republic won me over with its endgame
I walked away from last week's Star Wars: The Old Republic livestream pretty happy. Considering that I repeatedly say how much I absolutely loathe...
Working As Intended: What Star Wars Galaxies got wrong
If you've listened to Massively's staff and readers talk about Star Wars Galaxies a little bit, you might come away with the impression that...
Working As Intended: The MMOs we lost in 2015
It's become tradition to fare well the MMOs that sunsetted in the preceding year, but that wasn't always the case. At the beginning of 2015,...
The Soapbox: Advertising, blacklisting, and critique – The broken incentives of gaming media
This guest Soapbox was commissioned through Massively Overpowered's Kickstarter campaign and is authored by D. Emery Bunn. The opinions here represent the views of our guest...
The Soapbox: MMOs and the power of habit
I've been reading this book by Charles Duhigg called The Power of Habit. Actually, the full title is The Power of Habit: Why We...
The Soapbox: The fun and frustration of SWTOR’s housing system
When I was a kid, I had far too many Star Wars action figures, vehicles, and playsets. And when I say kid, I actually...
The Soapbox: These three MMOs deserve a do-over
Wouldn't it be cool if every MMORPG that failed to reach its potential were granted some sort of do-over? We've seen it happen once, with...
The Soapbox: Why I’m hopeful for the future of MMOs
Earlier this week, Justin asked what gives you hope for the future of the MMOs. As you might expect, the responses were many and...
The Soapbox: An ode to MMO positivity
I had a strange thought the other day, at least as regards the MMO genre. I'm kinda having fun here. I know, it surprised...
The Soapbox: Star Citizen is still worth the wait
Wow, it's Star Citizen and Derek Smart in the same post! OK, now that I've stopped laughing (again), you can call me crazy because I remain optimistic about...
The Soapbox: The fallacy of ‘F2P insight’ in the MMO market
I read with disgust a recent GI.biz piece about free-to-play and its supposed coming of age. The business model has of course run amok...
The Soapbox: Can MMOs eradicate pay-to-win?
You know what sucks about getting old? Apart from the adult diapers and the dying? Yeah, it's the seeing things you love retconned into...
Working As Intended: Sex, love, and MMOs
In the ongoing, neverending sandbox-vs.-themepark MMO debate, the folks on the side of sandboxes want one thing: more. Actually they want a lot more. They want...
Working As Intended: Ten lessons I learned from classic Guild Wars
Guild Wars -- the first Guild Wars -- celebrates its 10th birthday this week alongside several of my characters who are equally old. I originally...
The Soapbox: Making your own fun in MMORPGs
This guest Soapbox was commissioned through Massively Overpowered's Kickstarter campaign and is authored by Chris "Warcabbit" Hare, a developer at Missing Worlds Media. The opinions here...
