MUD stands for “multi-user dungeon.” MUDs are typically characterized as text-based proto-MMORPGs.
mud
Space MUD Starmourn adds Bounty Hunters, new zones, and more
How is it that there's a gigantic new space MMO with a dozen playable races, starship combat, exploration, trading, and even hacking on the...
The Daily Grind: Do you trust companies selling ‘games as a service’?
MUD and MMO players are pretty much the original victims of "games as a service" mentality. News that Nintendo is shutting down the Wii...
Project Horseshoe’s design papers confirm decades of MMORPG lessons
Not everyone involved in game design is trying to squeeze every last penny out of you. Yes, a lot of them are, but many...
What Destiny 2 could’ve learned about community puzzle gating… from Star Wars Galaxies
Say you're the developer of an online shooter, but you really want to add something that challenges the players in a world where they...
Richard Bartle reveals the secrets and history of MUDs
If you know even a little bit about the history of the MMORPG genre, you'll be aware that these games didn't start with World...
MMOs you’ve never heard of: Trulion, Morna Tales, Laplace M, Project BBQ, Genesis, Endless Battle, Achaea, Lord of Chains, Star Sonata
We have a perilously tall pile of MMOs (and MUDs and MOBAs and such) that you've probably never heard of for today's roundup. We're gonna just jump right in, starting with Trulion Online, a new open-world sandbox MMORPG that just hit beta on Android. Yes, it's a mobile title with retro graphics, but not all of what we're looking at today falls into that category!
Vague Patch Notes: How to make your points and exit gracefully from online debates
It's 2019, people. Let's do this. And by do this I of course mean learn to actually debate things in a way that might wind up changing...
Vague Patch Notes: The complexity of classic preservation for MMOs
Here's a fun question to kick things off. Should old black-and-white films be colorized? The key word there is "old," because there are a...
The Game Archaeologist’s ultimate MMO archives v2.0
While The Game Archaeologist columns take up the most time of any project I do here at Massively OP, I absolutely love doing them...
Ultima Online’s Raph Koster says Fortnite is more like an MMO than we might think
It's like people are discovering MMOs all over again.
Ultima Online and Star Wars Galaxies creator Raph Koster recently expressed amusement at the culture and...
Text-based sci-fi sandbox MUD Starmourn hits open beta this Saturday
Hardcore roleplayers and sandboxes may want to give Starmourn a sliver of precious attention this week: The elaborate MUD hits open beta this weekend....
Perfect Ten: MMOs to watch in 2019
The MMO genre is in a strange and uncertain place right now -- but also one that is quietly thrilling. We've long passed the...
Ask Mo: The hits and misses of Massively OP’s 2018 predictions
As we do every year, today we're going to peek back at the horrifying outcomes of last year's MOP staff predictions for the genre and the games within it to determine how well we did. After all, what would be the fun of making predictions if we couldn't giggle over our guesses a year later?
So did we nail it or fail it? And did you fare better? Let's find out.
Working As Intended: The gamification of the workification of games
Last weekend, my husband made the bold choice to let our young son play The Stanley Parable. I am not entirely sure the kid...
Federation 2, a text-based intergalactic trading game from the 1980s, has sunsetted
While the common assumption about text-based MMOs is that they can and will last forever, the truth is that many of these are subject...
The Stream Team: Playing in Lusternia’s MUD
Does Massively OP's MJ like playing in the MUD? She's always loved the gooey kind on the ground, and she's just learning about the...
Wisdom of Nym: Examining Final Fantasy XIV’s patch 4.4, Prelude in Violet
I mentioned a few days ago that I follow the same somewhat ridiculous process every time there's a new Final Fantasy XIV patch. Every...
The Stream Team: A first look at MUD Lusternia
Have you ever watched a MUD? Have you ever played one? Massively OP's MJ can say no to both! How can that be? Today...
Text-based MMO MUD Starmourn is a sci-fi sandbox spectacle due out later this year
It's been a while since we talked about Starmourn here on Massively OP, but if you squint back into 2016, you'll remember that it...
Massively Overthinking: Pay-to-win vs. cosmetics in MMOs and virtual worlds
MOP Patron Avaera has entreated us to debate the problems of pay-to-win and cosmetic gear, and indulge him we shall.
"The idea that good MMOs...
