evergreen
Vague Patch Notes: Whaling is a death spiral, especially in MMOs
Here we are again with another one of my "let's put down some important industry notes" columns, and this time we're talking about whaling....
The Perfect Ten: 10 MMOs and online worlds with super cozy vibes
In this age of increased anxiety and friction, there's a natural desire to retreat into safe spaces. And yet not all of us have...
WoW Factor: Infinite (Dragonflight) frustration and the time-travel problem in World of Warcraft
Sometimes, you just gotta rant about lore. And that's the case this week because World of Warcraft has finally wrapped up the long-standing plot...
Perfect Ten: 10 things I really dislike about Star Wars The Old Republic
So we're all talking about Star Wars The Old Republic lately, and hey, that's understandable. We have not come to the end of the...
Vague Patch Notes: Which players count in an MMO?
When I first started playing Final Fantasy XI some two decades ago, I went in with no illusions about one thing that seemed clear...
WoW Factor: And now we ruin the Trading Post
Those of you who have read my work in WoW Factor for a while will know that I tend to be very cards-on-the-table about...
Vague Patch Notes: The power of the middle bit in MMOs
I knew that Tales of Arise wasn't really working for me like its immediate predecessor when I started kind of avoiding combat.
Now, to a...
Perfect Ten: Why SWTOR is still a lot of fun to play today
In a time of great uncertainty and some short-term chaos as Star Wars: The Old Republic moves from BioWare to Broadsword, one might assume...
The Soapbox: A belated The Secret World post-mortem
This weeks marks the eleventh anniversary of the launch of The Secret World. While the game is still playable (for those with existing accounts),...
The Daily Grind: How do *you* pronounce ‘MMORPG’?
OK, so here's a fun Daily Grind for a holiday when most of our readers aren't at work! Let's talk about how to pronounce...
LOTRO Legendarium: How to avoid burning out in LOTRO (and other MMOs)
When Lord of the Rings Online kicked off its head start in April 2007, little did I know that I was logging in for...
Lawful Neutral: Freedom of speech in MMOs
I don't think a day goes by without gamers ranting on Reddit or Twitter or forums or comment sections about how their freedom of...
Massively Overthinking: Why don’t MMOs try harder to foster great guilds?
MOP reader Mahaf1089 posed an interesting question beneath a WoW Factor column earlier this month, one that clearly resonated with our readers because it...
Perfect Ten: The most regrettable MMO studio names
The name of a studio has no bearing on the game's quality. You might disagree and point to a game you were more inclined...
Working As Intended: My 20 years of Star Wars Galaxies
Last year, when Ultima Online turned 25 years old, I did a piece reminiscing on those early days and marveling that so much of...
WoW Factor: Speculating on compelling future World of Warcraft class specs
With the release of patch 10.1.5, World of Warcraft's Evokers will become the second class to get a new spec added after its introduction...
Vague Patch Notes: Examining the MMO tiers, from the Big Five to maintenance mode
I've mentioned many a time that one of the ideas behind the Vague Patch Notes column here on MOP is to have a place...
MMO Burnout: Lessons MMOs can learn from The Legend of Zelda Tears of the Kingdom
Like most MMO players, I am, first and foremost, a PC gamer. However, like many gamers born in the '80s and '90s, I also...
Perfect Ten: What good MMO logos say about their games
Back when I was taking a smattering of business classes in college, one of my favorite electives dealt with marketing. It wasn't that I...
Vitae Aeternum: Touring New World’s housing system
Whenever I've talked about player housing in New World, my coworkers have requested tours of my in-game homes. Being a lazy worker looking to...
