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
Shroud of the Avatar talks release 23 postmortem and more
Portalarium published Update of the Avatar #151 this morning. It dives deep into Shroud of the Avatar, and it offers readers a look at...
The Daily Grind: Do you play MMOs contrary to their design?
If you play Final Fantasy XIV, you know that it is not a game that rewards players for playing multiple characters. Quite the opposite, in...
Catch up with Star Citizen via the weekly dev update
Star Citizen's latest development update came out last night. Cloud Imperium says that Murphy's Law was in full effect last week, as the team...
Nexus Telegraph: Evaluating WildStar’s free-to-play model and special events
It's been over a month since WildStar kicked its game -- and business model -- into high gear with the Reloaded update. Since then...
The Stream Team: Get your EverQuest and EverQuest II beta keys!
Have you wanted to get into EverQuest and/or EverQuest II's expansion betas but haven't preordered the necessary expansion to do so? Then today is...
The latest Elite newsletter features a pretty cool Imperial Cutter
Frontier has released the 99th newsletter for Elite: Dangerous, which coincides with initial availability of the 1.5 ship update beta. There's also a slick new video...
Gloria Victis releases a new gameplay trailer for your viewing pleasure
9So you know someone who would probably really like Gloria Victis as a game. Let's call him Trab. You can't convince Trab to try...
The Daily Grind: Is an MMORPG still an MMORPG without gear progression?
A Massively OP commenter recently opined that "without gear progression, is a MOBA not an MMORPG," and I would really love to talk...
Camelot Unchained’s merchandise proceeds go directly to development
Camelot Unchained has partnered with Merchline to produce an assortment of t-shirts, hoodies, posters, and the like, all of them related to the crowdfunded...
Eco’s alpha starts on November 23
Eco will open itself up to alpha tier backers on November 23rd. So says the latest Strange Loop dev blog, while also mentioning the...
Holy crap, Space Engineers just added planets
Space Engineers has been all kinds of awesome for a while now. Today, Keen Software House made its sci-fi multiplayer sandbox even more awesome...
Raise your own pet through ArcheAge’s Pawesome Autumn Adoption Festival
Beginning this weekend, you can participate in one of the more unusual MMORPG events we've seen in a while: ArcheAge's Pawesome Autumn Adoption Festival...
Venture capitalists pour $30M into CCP’s VR plans
If you were worried about the health of EVE Online studio CCP after its recent sale of White Wolf and its associated IP, well,...
Wild Terra adds housing decay, teases upcoming features
If you build it, you better keep it in tip-top shape. That's the underlying message of Wild Terra's newest patch, which adds housing decay...
Ask Mo: The absurd advantages of MMO guilds
A Massively OP reader named Ohnix recently sent us a question just perfect for Ask Mo. Let's debate guilds!
I play EverQuest II quite a...
Black Desert confirms regional IP blocking
Bad news for those hoping that Daum Games would see the light and keep Black Desert's borders open to all nations: The publisher will...
The Daily Grind: What do you look for in a sandbox MMO?
Sandbox lovers must be in heaven lately with so many new choices arising in MMO circles. It seems as though most of the newer...
Massively OP Podcast Episode 38: BlizzCon strikes back
Justin and Bree discuss BlizzCon -- WoW, Diablo III, Hearthstone, and the rest -- as well as NCsoft's Q3 and Funcom's reprieve, plus a mailbag question on cosmetic mounts.
PC maker offers MMO-related deals
Need a new PC? You might want to check out Origin. No, not that Origin, but Miami-based PC maker Origin. The firm is running...
Project Gorgon rebalances combat, adds more Yetis
Who doesn't want more Yetis? If you enjoy these abominable creatures, Project Gorgon has good news for you: all new levels in the Yeti...
