Sandboxes are a type of MMO that emphasize player freedom and expression. They frequently include mechanics for building, crafting, trading, character customization and development, roleplaying, destruction, and significant interaction with the world and other players. A sandbox that is dominated by an open-PvP or free-for-all ruleset is sometimes pejoratively called a gankbox. Contrast with the themepark.
sandbox
Mabinogi’s next update grants players an island village to settle and spruce up
Nexon is talking up Mabinogi's next update, launching next week: It's the second part of its chapter 8 Winds of Fate release, but don't...
Old School RuneScape brings back slayer partners after a four-year absence
It's been four years since Old School RuneScape offered a feature called "slayer partners" that lets duos of players team up to grind out...
Project Gorgon buffs Necromancers, preps mount cosmetics, and fixes AOE issues
Indie MMORPG Project Gorgon dropped a fresh content-and-QOL patch this week in what devs characterized as a "nice well-rounded update" with a little bit...
Star Citizen takes a look at the space stations, asteroid bases, and FFA PvP of alpha 4.0’s Pyro system
Star Citizen's weekly video series is now starting to look past alpha 3.24 and towards alpha 4.0, especially the addition of the game's second...
The Daily Grind: Is there an MMO you wish had never been made?
Before I dig into today's Daily Grind, I want to make clear that I don't seriously wish any MMOs had never been made, not...
Massively Overthinking: Has Discord helped or hurt MMOs?
MOP reader Josiah recently pitched us a rather relevant question about the impact of social media on MMORPGs and their communities - specifically, the...
Solarpunk’s July progress report showcases additions to its building system
Solarpunk is a survival crafting sandbox, so obviously building is going to be a major part of its core gameplay loop, but that feature...
ARK: Genesis Part 2 circulates onto the Nintendo Switch
Just because you're rocking a Nintendo Switch instead of a PlayBox 360 doesn't mean you're left out of the dino-tastic fun of ARK: Survival...
B2P survival MMO Myth of Empires is free-to-play on Steam through August 5
If Myth of Empires always whispered to you but you've not wanted to shell out 30 bucks to try it, this weekend's free-play event...
Ashes of Creation previews its Bard class, announces Alpha Two’s release in October
It's time to get violently musical in Ashes of Creation, or at least it will be when Alpha Two goes live because the Bard...
Raph Koster on designing and defining Stars Reach: ‘The Tragedy of the Commons is a lie’
Playable Worlds' Raph Koster is back with a new dev blog on Stars Reach, and it's not about game design pillars this time; it's...
Elite Dangerous confirms Type-8 ship launch and major overhauls to engineering for August 7
Frontier Developments' monthly livestream once again provided some big news for Elite: Dangerous players, particularly those who have been in the game for a...
Old School RuneScape once again applies adjustments to Deadman and Guthrix
This may have happened twice before, but that's not stopping Jagex from continuing to dial things in for Old School RuneScape players engaging with...
Crowdfunded multiplayer RTS Stormgate enters headstart today ahead of its August free-to-play launch
If you're an MMORTS junkie as MOP's Tyler is, you've probably been watching Stormgate's development with great interest over the last few years. In...
Perfect Ten: MMOs with outstanding tutorial sections
Tutorials! They're important. I even wrote an entire column about them recently, talking about how important they are in getting people into a new...
Star Citizen begins its Ship Showdown community event and demonstrates building a POI
The time has once again come for fans of Star Citizen to stump for their favorite internet spaceships and ultimately see which one is...
Embers Adrift adds new chat features and introduces new ‘tree imposter’ technology
Before you ask, no, Embers Adrift is not making trees that spring up and attack you or entering into a collab with a certain...
Survivalbox Enshrouded’s Back to the Shroud update offers three new difficulty presets – including a relaxed easymode
Enshrouded blew up the sandbox world at the top of the year, roping in a million players and then following it up with dungeons,...
Massively OP Podcast Episode 478: Ultima Online finds its stones
Justin and Bree discuss the WoW War Within prepatch and Ultima Online's New Legacy, followed by a mailbag catch-up segment on AI, holidays, release timing, and MMO complexity.
Choose My Adventure: Blowing up rocks for fun and profit in Elite Dangerous
When I first started my run in Elite: Dangerous for this week's Choose My Adventure, I was just barely over the amount of credits...
