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
E3 2019: Black Desert announces Great Expedition expansion and adorable Shai class
Black Desert brought the good stuff to fan con Heidel Ball this weekend thanks to a slew of announcements about new content inbound for...
Star Citizen’s alpha 3.5.1 is live as CIG seeks feedback on ship customization pricing
Ship customization rolled out to PTU testers this week as part of Star Citizen's alpha 3.5.1, but CIG didn't waste much time pushing it...
The ArcheAge consumer lawsuit against Trion Worlds is still inching onward
It seems weird to be writing about Trion Worlds again, but here we are. MMO players will recall that back in 2015, three gamers...
Massively Overthinking: Does the MMO genre have too many games for its own good?
Last month I saw a video from YouTuber Josh Strife Hayes with an eyebrow-raiser of a thesis: He essentially argues that we have too...
The Stream Team: Double your dose of adorable with MapleStory 2’s expansion
When a cynical world bites, what can you do? You get an antidote! Massively OP's Chris and MJ are looking for a double dose...
Classic MapleStory’s new Pathfinder class is officially launching June 26
Classic MapleStory knows that you secretly want to be Legolas but cool, and it's giving your heart what it desires most: the Pathfinder class....
Desert Oasis: Comparing Black Desert and Blade & Soul’s design philosophies
One of my favorite MMO stories is how I got into Black Desert in the first place. It was right after I tried out...
Black Desert has launched Star’s End, a brand-new quest zone, for PC players
It sounds like it ought to be a cantina in a galaxy far, far away, but nope: Star's End is a major content drop...
APB Reloaded launches battle royale mode APB RIOT into open beta today [Updated]
It's gonna be a big Wednesday for APB Reloaded: New developer Little Orbit is launching the biggest update the game's seen since the takeover....
Massively OP Podcast Episode 223: Starbase Adrift
Justin and Bree discuss Worlds Adrift's sunset, ESO Elsweyr's launch, Starbase, FFXIV Shadowbringers, and City of Heroes, with mail on old episodes and WoW Classic blowback.
Star Citizen pushed alpha 3.5.1 and ship customization to the PTU
It's happening: Star Citizen's next iteration, alpha 3.5.1, has rolled out to the PTU. Of course, as usual, this is for the early waves...
The Division 2 gets trigger-happy with the Gunner specialization
When you're running around the post-apocalyptic streets of The Division 2's Washington D.C., do you ever find yourself feeling as if you're not doing...
New World’s always-on test phase comes to a close as Amazon posts alpha infographic
A month ago, Amazon Game Studios told testers of its upcoming MMORPG survival sandbox New World that it was pulling down the always-on alpha...
The MOP Up: China’s getting Fallout Shelter Online, and that’s not fair
For my money (and time), the best Fallout game of the past five years has been Fallout Shelter, a mobile base builder which has...
One Shots: Larger than life
If there is one thing that MMORPGs are able to do regularly and impressively, it is to give us a sense of massive scale....
SpatialOS TwoKinds Online transforms a webcomic into an MMO
Huh, this might be a first for MMORPGs: a webcomic-turned-MMO. What we're talking about today is TwoKinds Online, a small indie RPG created by...
Some Assembly Required: Will Starbase’s focus on minutiae be too much of a good thing?
Recently, Massively Overthinking explored chores in sandboxes and MMOs that can feel like jobs. I may not have answered that then, but boy am...
Star Citizen explains customized ships and ship gear insurance while exploring black market trade mechanics
Star Citizen's done something rather rare this week: It's posted up a detailed Q&A on ship customization that cuts right to the big questions...
RuneScape’s RuneFest 2019 ticket sales begin this morning
Get your ticket-ordering fingers ready, folks, because RuneFest tickets go on sale today. RuneFest, of course, is the UK con where Jagex and friends...
The Daily Grind: Which sunsetted MMO had the most wasted potential?
Since Bossa's announcement that it's sunsetting Worlds Adrift this summer without even even launching out of early access, there's been an odd reaction across...
