https://massivelyop.com MMORPG news and opinions Tue, 13 Feb 2024 04:01:15 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=6.1.1 https://massivelyop.com/2024/02/12/the-stream-team-mini-mo-mania-for-the-9th-mopiversary/ https://massivelyop.com/2024/02/12/the-stream-team-mini-mo-mania-for-the-9th-mopiversary/#respond Tue, 13 Feb 2024 00:55:26 +0000 https://massivelyop.com/?p=479640 How long is nine years? Measured from your Daily Grind wishes to a pirate’s week in review, it’s how long Massively OP has been bringing you all sorts of tasty, tantalizing, and even sometimes terrible MMO news as well as opinions, streams, and more. Of course, how could MJ pass up celebrating this most auspicious […]]]> https://massivelyop.com/2024/02/12/the-stream-team-mini-mo-mania-for-the-9th-mopiversary/feed/ 0 https://massivelyop.com/2024/02/12/ncsoft-updates-eulas-for-lineage-ii-aion-and-blade-and-soul-as-part-of-their-move-to-purple/ https://massivelyop.com/2024/02/12/ncsoft-updates-eulas-for-lineage-ii-aion-and-blade-and-soul-as-part-of-their-move-to-purple/#comments Mon, 12 Feb 2024 15:30:00 +0000 https://massivelyop.com/?p=479412 At the top of February we reported on NCsoft’s decision to migrate many of its MMOs to its bespoke Purple platform, specifically affecting Blade & Soul, Lineage II, and Aion. With that in mind, it’s probably going to come as no surprise that the EULAs for all three titles have been updated as a result. […]]]> https://massivelyop.com/2024/02/12/ncsoft-updates-eulas-for-lineage-ii-aion-and-blade-and-soul-as-part-of-their-move-to-purple/feed/ 3 https://massivelyop.com/2024/02/12/the-daily-grind-is-there-an-mmorpg-you-think-shouldnt-be-classified-as-an-mmorpg/ https://massivelyop.com/2024/02/12/the-daily-grind-is-there-an-mmorpg-you-think-shouldnt-be-classified-as-an-mmorpg/#comments Mon, 12 Feb 2024 13:00:44 +0000 https://massivelyop.com/?p=475522 We have the MMORPG subreddit to thank for this morning’s Daily Grind: At the beginning of January, some bright spark over there posted a thread insisting that EVE Online, a long-running sci-fi MMORPG, is not in fact an MMORPG. Now, I didn’t click on the thread; insert the “I’m not falling for that hot take/that’s […]]]> https://massivelyop.com/2024/02/12/the-daily-grind-is-there-an-mmorpg-you-think-shouldnt-be-classified-as-an-mmorpg/feed/ 20 https://massivelyop.com/2024/02/11/the-stream-team-finishing-a-friends-run-of-final-fantasy-xivs-pandaemonium/ https://massivelyop.com/2024/02/11/the-stream-team-finishing-a-friends-run-of-final-fantasy-xivs-pandaemonium/#respond Sun, 11 Feb 2024 18:55:00 +0000 https://massivelyop.com/?p=479408 This Eorzea Sunday sees MOP’s Chris, his husband Jamie, and their friend Ollie wrap up the Final Fantasy XIV Pandaemonium raids! It’s four more fights for a new arrival to learn and any number of random discussion topics to talk about, today at 2:00 p.m. EST! What: Final Fantasy XIV Who: Chris Neal When: 2:00 […]]]> https://massivelyop.com/2024/02/11/the-stream-team-finishing-a-friends-run-of-final-fantasy-xivs-pandaemonium/feed/ 0 https://massivelyop.com/2024/02/11/one-shots-sky-control-to-major-tom/ https://massivelyop.com/2024/02/11/one-shots-sky-control-to-major-tom/#comments Sun, 11 Feb 2024 15:00:00 +0000 https://massivelyop.com/?p=479209 I have to imagine that there’s no more stressful job in a galaxy far, far away than being an air traffic controller for Coruscant. That’s like playing three-dimensional Pac-Man with thousands of users who may not have gotten a full night’s sleep. Vincent is keeping feet on the ground on this planet, though: “With the […]]]> https://massivelyop.com/2024/02/11/one-shots-sky-control-to-major-tom/feed/ 6 https://massivelyop.com/2024/02/11/the-daily-grind-are-there-mmo-systems-you-long-ago-gave-up-on-understanding/ https://massivelyop.com/2024/02/11/the-daily-grind-are-there-mmo-systems-you-long-ago-gave-up-on-understanding/#comments Sun, 11 Feb 2024 13:00:00 +0000 https://massivelyop.com/?p=479042 “I do not understand how Ninja is supposed to be played,” he said, “and at this point I have given up on understanding it.” This was, in fact, a defensible statement; Ninja in Final Fantasy XIV is a complicated job with a whole lot of messy parts that are not immediately obvious when you start […]]]> https://massivelyop.com/2024/02/11/the-daily-grind-are-there-mmo-systems-you-long-ago-gave-up-on-understanding/feed/ 34 https://massivelyop.com/2024/02/10/wrup-taylor-swift-throws-the-first-football-at-the-superbowl-edition/ https://massivelyop.com/2024/02/10/wrup-taylor-swift-throws-the-first-football-at-the-superbowl-edition/#comments Sat, 10 Feb 2024 15:00:09 +0000 https://massivelyop.com/?p=479320 Before any contest for initial possession of the football begins, a visibly tired Taylor Swift walks onto the field wearing sweatpants, a loose blouse covered by a jean jacket, and her hair up in a makeshift bun. She walks over to the football, picks it up, and beckons for the camera crews to follow her. […]]]> https://massivelyop.com/2024/02/10/wrup-taylor-swift-throws-the-first-football-at-the-superbowl-edition/feed/ 25 https://massivelyop.com/2024/02/10/the-daily-grind-which-mmo-character-do-you-identify-with-the-strongest/ https://massivelyop.com/2024/02/10/the-daily-grind-which-mmo-character-do-you-identify-with-the-strongest/#comments Sat, 10 Feb 2024 13:00:00 +0000 https://massivelyop.com/?p=479222 Pause and think for a moment about how many MMO characters you’ve created in your lifetime. Is it in the dozens? Hundreds? Thousands? Or are you the type of person who has one and only one special someone in your virtual life? Out of that (probably) large roster, which one do you identify with the […]]]> https://massivelyop.com/2024/02/10/the-daily-grind-which-mmo-character-do-you-identify-with-the-strongest/feed/ 21 https://massivelyop.com/2024/02/09/genshin-impact-takes-cheat-makers-to-court-for-copyright-infringement/ https://massivelyop.com/2024/02/09/genshin-impact-takes-cheat-makers-to-court-for-copyright-infringement/#comments Fri, 09 Feb 2024 23:00:00 +0000 https://massivelyop.com/?p=478972 You have to be a special sort of sad to want to cheat in a game like Genshin Impact, let alone one who would pay for the ability to do so. That’s regrettably what has been happening, but developer Hoyoverse is not taking the matter lying down and has taken several people to court for […]]]> https://massivelyop.com/2024/02/09/genshin-impact-takes-cheat-makers-to-court-for-copyright-infringement/feed/ 3 https://massivelyop.com/2024/02/09/final-fantasy-xi-adds-a-new-master-trial-against-the-guardians-of-adoulin/ https://massivelyop.com/2024/02/09/final-fantasy-xi-adds-a-new-master-trial-against-the-guardians-of-adoulin/#respond Fri, 09 Feb 2024 21:00:00 +0000 https://massivelyop.com/?p=479152 The next major Final Fantasy XI patch will not actually involve going to war against a month, but it certainly sounds like it will. Why? Because the new Master Trial will involve going up against August, the king and founder of Adoulin. Of course, his partner in this operation is not June or July, but […]]]> https://massivelyop.com/2024/02/09/final-fantasy-xi-adds-a-new-master-trial-against-the-guardians-of-adoulin/feed/ 0 https://massivelyop.com/2024/02/09/the-stream-team-sailing-the-open-beta-seas-of-skull-and-bones/ https://massivelyop.com/2024/02/09/the-stream-team-sailing-the-open-beta-seas-of-skull-and-bones/#comments Fri, 09 Feb 2024 18:55:00 +0000 https://massivelyop.com/?p=479190 After seven worrisome delays, it’s finally time for MOP’s Chris to get his hands on the open beta of Skull and Bones! Will this pirating adventure title put the wind in his sails, or is it all just a load of bluster at the very opening few moments? We can’t give full impressions in a […]]]> https://massivelyop.com/2024/02/09/the-stream-team-sailing-the-open-beta-seas-of-skull-and-bones/feed/ 1 https://massivelyop.com/2024/02/09/working-as-intended-a-guide-to-city-of-heroes-homecomings-best-player-crafted-portal-bases/ https://massivelyop.com/2024/02/09/working-as-intended-a-guide-to-city-of-heroes-homecomings-best-player-crafted-portal-bases/#comments Fri, 09 Feb 2024 16:00:00 +0000 https://massivelyop.com/?p=478317 A few years ago, I was wandering around in City of Heroes when someone advertised a cool base in chat. All I had to do was head over to a supergroup base portal, type in the code flashed in text, and be welcomed into this person’s custom base. I was expecting something akin to the […]]]> https://massivelyop.com/2024/02/09/working-as-intended-a-guide-to-city-of-heroes-homecomings-best-player-crafted-portal-bases/feed/ 11 https://massivelyop.com/2024/02/09/former-overwatch-2-lead-vfx-artist-calls-out-blizzard-for-deceptive-promotion-and-pay-behavior/ https://massivelyop.com/2024/02/09/former-overwatch-2-lead-vfx-artist-calls-out-blizzard-for-deceptive-promotion-and-pay-behavior/#comments Fri, 09 Feb 2024 14:00:00 +0000 https://massivelyop.com/?p=479177 Workers and former workers at the various substudios at Activision-Blizzard have been calling it out as an unpleasant workplace for a while now since the whole scandal with the company began, and Blizzard was not spared (just remember how Brian Birmingham was treated last year). But now we’ve got even more evidence that company has […]]]> https://massivelyop.com/2024/02/09/former-overwatch-2-lead-vfx-artist-calls-out-blizzard-for-deceptive-promotion-and-pay-behavior/feed/ 21 https://massivelyop.com/2024/02/09/the-daily-grind-have-you-ever-lost-a-house-in-an-mmo/ https://massivelyop.com/2024/02/09/the-daily-grind-have-you-ever-lost-a-house-in-an-mmo/#comments Fri, 09 Feb 2024 13:00:28 +0000 https://massivelyop.com/?p=478378 Last week, fellow MMO blogger Belghast wrote a blog post that sent a shot of panic through my own heart: He tells the tale of forgetting to log into Final Fantasy XIV for a few months and having his character’s house be repossessed by the game while he wasn’t paying it any mind. Now, the […]]]> https://massivelyop.com/2024/02/09/the-daily-grind-have-you-ever-lost-a-house-in-an-mmo/feed/ 24 https://massivelyop.com/2024/02/08/korean-supreme-court-rules-man-isnt-a-conscientious-objector-because-he-likes-playerunknowns-battlegrounds/ https://massivelyop.com/2024/02/08/korean-supreme-court-rules-man-isnt-a-conscientious-objector-because-he-likes-playerunknowns-battlegrounds/#comments Thu, 08 Feb 2024 22:00:00 +0000 https://massivelyop.com/?p=478949 We admit that the headline for this story is pretty wild, so allow us a few moments to lay some contextual groundwork: South Korea has a Military Service Act that mandates all able-bodied men between the ages of 18 and 35 be conscripted into military service, with those violating the law facing prison time. However, […]]]> https://massivelyop.com/2024/02/08/korean-supreme-court-rules-man-isnt-a-conscientious-objector-because-he-likes-playerunknowns-battlegrounds/feed/ 10 https://massivelyop.com/2024/02/08/players-rolled-nearly-50k-characters-during-nightingales-stress-test-last-weekend/ https://massivelyop.com/2024/02/08/players-rolled-nearly-50k-characters-during-nightingales-stress-test-last-weekend/#comments Thu, 08 Feb 2024 21:00:00 +0000 https://massivelyop.com/?p=478798 When Inflexion announced this week that it’s planning to launch Nightingale’s early access two days earlier than originally planned, it casually mentioned that it had seen 48,000 testers during this past weekend’s stress test – perhaps a few more than it anticipated. The Tencent-backed team has now dropped a dev blog to talk more about […]]]> https://massivelyop.com/2024/02/08/players-rolled-nearly-50k-characters-during-nightingales-stress-test-last-weekend/feed/ 1 https://massivelyop.com/2024/02/08/lost-ark-celebrates-its-second-birthday-by-reminding-you-how-many-times-its-killed-your-characters/ https://massivelyop.com/2024/02/08/lost-ark-celebrates-its-second-birthday-by-reminding-you-how-many-times-its-killed-your-characters/#respond Thu, 08 Feb 2024 18:00:00 +0000 https://massivelyop.com/?p=479017 Lost Ark fans are already swept up in the game’s second anniversary festivities thanks to the patch yesterday, but technically, the formal western birthday isn’t until the 11th, but apparently Amazon and Smilegate mean to start early by celebrating the original headstart, and who’s gonna say no to that? This afternoon, the studios have released […]]]> https://massivelyop.com/2024/02/08/lost-ark-celebrates-its-second-birthday-by-reminding-you-how-many-times-its-killed-your-characters/feed/ 0 https://massivelyop.com/2024/02/08/into-the-super-verse-whats-wrong-with-city-of-heroes-incarnate-system/ https://massivelyop.com/2024/02/08/into-the-super-verse-whats-wrong-with-city-of-heroes-incarnate-system/#comments Thu, 08 Feb 2024 17:00:00 +0000 https://massivelyop.com/?p=479049 It hasn’t been all that long since I said that what City of Heroes needs to focus on right now is not endgame content, and I stand by that. In fact, there’s arguably a whole other column to be written about where the game really does need more content and more stuff to do, although […]]]> https://massivelyop.com/2024/02/08/into-the-super-verse-whats-wrong-with-city-of-heroes-incarnate-system/feed/ 16 https://massivelyop.com/2024/02/08/ftc-files-a-complaint-against-microsoft-following-activision-blizzard-layoffs/ https://massivelyop.com/2024/02/08/ftc-files-a-complaint-against-microsoft-following-activision-blizzard-layoffs/#comments Thu, 08 Feb 2024 13:30:00 +0000 https://massivelyop.com/?p=479046 When Microsoft outlined its plans for what would happen following the acquisition of Activision Blizzard, one of the things that the company stated was that there would not be layoffs as the acquisition would be treated in a strictly vertical fashion. Of course, this was perhaps an obvious prevarication even before the raft of 1900 […]]]> https://massivelyop.com/2024/02/08/ftc-files-a-complaint-against-microsoft-following-activision-blizzard-layoffs/feed/ 17 https://massivelyop.com/2024/02/08/the-daily-grind-how-difficult-should-it-be-to-respec-in-an-mmorpg/ https://massivelyop.com/2024/02/08/the-daily-grind-how-difficult-should-it-be-to-respec-in-an-mmorpg/#comments Thu, 08 Feb 2024 13:00:00 +0000 https://massivelyop.com/?p=479038 It struck me the other day how my two favorite MMORPGs are wildly different in terms of respecs. Final Fantasy XIV offers effectively infinite respecs simply because there is never anything stopping you from choosing to level and focus on a different job; there is time investment on a few projects like relic weapons or […]]]> https://massivelyop.com/2024/02/08/the-daily-grind-how-difficult-should-it-be-to-respec-in-an-mmorpg/feed/ 24 https://massivelyop.com/2024/02/07/the-stream-team-backseat-streaming-watches-a-virtual-reality-giant-fight-tiny-pc-knights-in-davigo/ https://massivelyop.com/2024/02/07/the-stream-team-backseat-streaming-watches-a-virtual-reality-giant-fight-tiny-pc-knights-in-davigo/#respond Thu, 08 Feb 2024 00:55:16 +0000 https://massivelyop.com/?p=478927 What happens when one giant playing in virtual reality faces off against itty bitty rocket-firing knights playing on PC? You get Davigo, the VR vs. PC asymmetrical PvP title! And tonight, MOP’s MJ and Chris are going to be enjoying some gameplay footage from the giant’s point of view! Tune in tonight at 8:00 p.m. […]]]> https://massivelyop.com/2024/02/07/the-stream-team-backseat-streaming-watches-a-virtual-reality-giant-fight-tiny-pc-knights-in-davigo/feed/ 0 https://massivelyop.com/2024/02/07/final-fantasy-xis-valentiones-day-arrives-once-more-with-bird-mating/ https://massivelyop.com/2024/02/07/final-fantasy-xis-valentiones-day-arrives-once-more-with-bird-mating/#comments Wed, 07 Feb 2024 22:00:00 +0000 https://massivelyop.com/?p=478787 Once again, Final Fantasy XI will spend its Valentione’s Day celebrating that which matters most: bird mating. Yes, as always, the annual Valentine’s Day event within the game features a quest to find mates for chocobos, and isn’t that the real meaning of the holiday? Getting birds to make lots more baby birds that you […]]]> https://massivelyop.com/2024/02/07/final-fantasy-xis-valentiones-day-arrives-once-more-with-bird-mating/feed/ 5 https://massivelyop.com/2024/02/07/the-stream-team-learning-how-to-play-war-thunder-the-matriarch-way/ https://massivelyop.com/2024/02/07/the-stream-team-learning-how-to-play-war-thunder-the-matriarch-way/#comments Wed, 07 Feb 2024 19:55:11 +0000 https://massivelyop.com/?p=478924 MOP’s Chris is entering all-new territory for him in today’s stream: He’ll be taking up the role of pilot or tanker (or both!) in War Thunder for the very first time, and he’ll be joined by his best friend the Matriarch Britarnya as she helps him learn the ropes and teaches him how to play! […]]]> https://massivelyop.com/2024/02/07/the-stream-team-learning-how-to-play-war-thunder-the-matriarch-way/feed/ 1 https://massivelyop.com/2024/02/07/tarisland-discusses-its-business-model-and-in-game-economy-in-a-new-video/ https://massivelyop.com/2024/02/07/tarisland-discusses-its-business-model-and-in-game-economy-in-a-new-video/#comments Wed, 07 Feb 2024 17:30:00 +0000 https://massivelyop.com/?p=478900 Tarisland has airdropped in a new video about its economy this week, but the downside is that the video is a bit vague when it discusses economic activity. It talks a great deal about how its sold items will not be meant to grant any sort of in-game advantage, for example, but it remains vague […]]]> https://massivelyop.com/2024/02/07/tarisland-discusses-its-business-model-and-in-game-economy-in-a-new-video/feed/ 1 https://massivelyop.com/2024/02/07/the-daily-grind-which-mmo-is-the-worst-at-balancing-its-classes/ https://massivelyop.com/2024/02/07/the-daily-grind-which-mmo-is-the-worst-at-balancing-its-classes/#comments Wed, 07 Feb 2024 13:00:43 +0000 https://massivelyop.com/?p=477589 A few weeks back – and before we realized the game was slated for execution – MOP’s Sam wrote a piece about balance in Warhaven, and in it, there was a quote about character balance (more specifically, the game’s lack thereof) that leaped out at me. “There is a large imbalance in the game right […]]]> https://massivelyop.com/2024/02/07/the-daily-grind-which-mmo-is-the-worst-at-balancing-its-classes/feed/ 7 https://massivelyop.com/2024/02/06/the-daily-grind-when-was-the-last-time-an-mmo-studio-truly-impressed-you/ https://massivelyop.com/2024/02/06/the-daily-grind-when-was-the-last-time-an-mmo-studio-truly-impressed-you/#comments Tue, 06 Feb 2024 13:00:34 +0000 https://massivelyop.com/?p=478126 Embers Adrift is probably never going to be my MMORPG, but damn I’m proud of Stormhaven Studios. Yes, I have a soft spot for true indie MMORPGs – there’s a reason I’m obsessed with Project Gorgon – but Embers Adrift was already a longshot, having managed to launch after weathering a Kickstarter, development controversies, the […]]]> https://massivelyop.com/2024/02/06/the-daily-grind-when-was-the-last-time-an-mmo-studio-truly-impressed-you/feed/ 26 https://massivelyop.com/2024/02/05/microsoft-will-require-final-fantasy-xiv-players-to-subscribe-to-xbox-game-pass-in-order-to-play-the-game/ https://massivelyop.com/2024/02/05/microsoft-will-require-final-fantasy-xiv-players-to-subscribe-to-xbox-game-pass-in-order-to-play-the-game/#comments Mon, 05 Feb 2024 21:00:28 +0000 https://massivelyop.com/?p=478737 It’s tucked away in the announcement that Final Fantasy XIV’s beta on the Xbox Series X|S starts on February 21st, but the announcement does confirm that players will be required to pay a monthly subscription to Xbox Game Pass in order to subscribe to the game. That means that at minimum, you will be paying […]]]> https://massivelyop.com/2024/02/05/microsoft-will-require-final-fantasy-xiv-players-to-subscribe-to-xbox-game-pass-in-order-to-play-the-game/feed/ 78 https://massivelyop.com/2024/02/05/the-daily-grind-how-do-you-cope-with-losing-someone-in-an-mmorpg/ https://massivelyop.com/2024/02/05/the-daily-grind-how-do-you-cope-with-losing-someone-in-an-mmorpg/#comments Mon, 05 Feb 2024 13:00:35 +0000 https://massivelyop.com/?p=478569 I have been immeasurably lucky in that I have never lost a close online friend to death, only to drifting away. But unfortunately, you don’t have to tour an in-game memorial to know it’s incredibly lucky and that it eventually touches everyone in gaming. Over the weekend, a Final Fantasy XIV player posted a touching […]]]> https://massivelyop.com/2024/02/05/the-daily-grind-how-do-you-cope-with-losing-someone-in-an-mmorpg/feed/ 17 https://massivelyop.com/2024/02/04/the-stream-team-moving-a-first-timer-through-the-next-round-of-final-fantasy-xivs-pandaemonium-raid/ https://massivelyop.com/2024/02/04/the-stream-team-moving-a-first-timer-through-the-next-round-of-final-fantasy-xivs-pandaemonium-raid/#respond Sun, 04 Feb 2024 18:55:00 +0000 https://massivelyop.com/?p=478559 MOP’s Chris is once again helping a friend through Final Fantasy XIV content! Last week he and his husband joined their good friend Ollie in helping them through the first four stages of the Pandaemonium raid, and this week it’s time for round two! Tune in today at 2:00 p.m. EST for more delving further […]]]> https://massivelyop.com/2024/02/04/the-stream-team-moving-a-first-timer-through-the-next-round-of-final-fantasy-xivs-pandaemonium-raid/feed/ 0 https://massivelyop.com/2024/02/04/the-daily-grind-would-you-be-interested-in-a-guild-wars-3/ https://massivelyop.com/2024/02/04/the-daily-grind-would-you-be-interested-in-a-guild-wars-3/#comments Sun, 04 Feb 2024 13:00:00 +0000 https://massivelyop.com/?p=478097 Have you ever noticed how every MMO franchise seems to get to exactly two numbered installments and then stops, at most? Guild Wars 2 is older than Guild Wars was when Guild Wars 2 launched, and it has been a long fun ride over the past decade. But that brings to mind what is, at […]]]> https://massivelyop.com/2024/02/04/the-daily-grind-would-you-be-interested-in-a-guild-wars-3/feed/ 54 https://massivelyop.com/2024/02/03/open-perpetuum-is-bringing-land-mines-new-weapons-and-t4-balancing-sometime-in-marchish/ https://massivelyop.com/2024/02/03/open-perpetuum-is-bringing-land-mines-new-weapons-and-t4-balancing-sometime-in-marchish/#respond Sat, 03 Feb 2024 21:00:00 +0000 https://massivelyop.com/?p=477428 Markish your calendarsh because the Perpetuum emulator Open Perpetuum is going to be releasing Patch 31 sometime in “Marchish.” When is Marchish? We’re notsh so shuresh. Intentional misspellings aside, this next patch has some potentially interesting things for players of the sandbox to look forward to, like the ability to deploy land mines as well […]]]> https://massivelyop.com/2024/02/03/open-perpetuum-is-bringing-land-mines-new-weapons-and-t4-balancing-sometime-in-marchish/feed/ 0 https://massivelyop.com/2024/02/03/wrup-how-to-get-ham-from-snakes-edition/ https://massivelyop.com/2024/02/03/wrup-how-to-get-ham-from-snakes-edition/#comments Sat, 03 Feb 2024 15:00:28 +0000 https://massivelyop.com/?p=478423 All right so I’m not actually sure what you need to learn here. For one thing, ham is a meat that comes from pigs. You do not get ham literally from snakes. If you are trying to do that, stop doing that. You shouldn’t actually try to get any meat from snakes. I don’t think […]]]> https://massivelyop.com/2024/02/03/wrup-how-to-get-ham-from-snakes-edition/feed/ 21 https://massivelyop.com/2024/02/03/the-daily-grind-how-driven-or-chill-are-you-toward-your-mmo-progress/ https://massivelyop.com/2024/02/03/the-daily-grind-how-driven-or-chill-are-you-toward-your-mmo-progress/#comments Sat, 03 Feb 2024 13:00:00 +0000 https://massivelyop.com/?p=477384 I’ve always been a very goals- and projects-oriented person, even in my gameplay. I figure that if I’m going to spend time in a game, I want it to be more productive than simply a stress relieving experience. I should channel that time toward projects that are fun and rewarding. But what I’m discovering in […]]]> https://massivelyop.com/2024/02/03/the-daily-grind-how-driven-or-chill-are-you-toward-your-mmo-progress/feed/ 25 https://massivelyop.com/2024/02/02/the-stream-team-joining-in-on-the-nightingale-stress-test/ https://massivelyop.com/2024/02/02/the-stream-team-joining-in-on-the-nightingale-stress-test/#comments Fri, 02 Feb 2024 18:55:11 +0000 https://massivelyop.com/?p=478290 MOP’s Chris is going to add his weight to the one-day stress test of Nightingale today, and at the same time he’s going to try and see just what this intriguing gaslamp fantasy survival sandbox has in store! It’s part test, part initial exploration, and all fancy clothing, today at 2:00 p.m. EST! What: Nightingale […]]]> https://massivelyop.com/2024/02/02/the-stream-team-joining-in-on-the-nightingale-stress-test/feed/ 2 https://massivelyop.com/2024/02/02/world-of-warcrafts-february-trading-post-is-all-about-having-a-lovely-time-of-love/ https://massivelyop.com/2024/02/02/world-of-warcrafts-february-trading-post-is-all-about-having-a-lovely-time-of-love/#respond Fri, 02 Feb 2024 14:00:33 +0000 https://massivelyop.com/?p=478221 It’s February, and as far as World of Warcraft’s Trading Post is concerned, that means it’s time for an entire month of love. This month’s bonus reward for clearing your log is the Love Witch Attire, and it’s all about spreading love all over the world. But it’s hardly alone. There’s love to be had […]]]> https://massivelyop.com/2024/02/02/world-of-warcrafts-february-trading-post-is-all-about-having-a-lovely-time-of-love/feed/ 0 https://massivelyop.com/2024/02/02/the-daily-grind-do-you-even-want-an-mmo-with-transmedia-synergy/ https://massivelyop.com/2024/02/02/the-daily-grind-do-you-even-want-an-mmo-with-transmedia-synergy/#comments Fri, 02 Feb 2024 13:00:42 +0000 https://massivelyop.com/?p=475521 We’ve been talking about transmedia synergy again thanks to Dune Awakening, so I want to go at it from a new angle. The term “transmedia synergy,” of course, became a common term in the MMORPG genre following the introduction of then-Trion Worlds’ MMO Defiance, which was supposed to be directly tied in with the sci-fi […]]]> https://massivelyop.com/2024/02/02/the-daily-grind-do-you-even-want-an-mmo-with-transmedia-synergy/feed/ 31 https://massivelyop.com/2024/02/01/massively-overthinking-do-you-care-more-about-mmo-stats-or-looks/ https://massivelyop.com/2024/02/01/massively-overthinking-do-you-care-more-about-mmo-stats-or-looks/#comments Fri, 02 Feb 2024 00:00:00 +0000 https://massivelyop.com/?p=477582 This week's Massively Overthinking is fully inspired by the unicorn backpack meme, which Black Desert studio Pearl Abyss tweeted out last week with the caption "stats over looks any day." You know we have to talk about this.]]> https://massivelyop.com/2024/02/01/massively-overthinking-do-you-care-more-about-mmo-stats-or-looks/feed/ 27 https://massivelyop.com/2024/02/01/ark-survival-ascended-is-launching-a-streamlined-way-to-get-player-made-items-in-february-and-april/ https://massivelyop.com/2024/02/01/ark-survival-ascended-is-launching-a-streamlined-way-to-get-player-made-items-in-february-and-april/#respond Thu, 01 Feb 2024 23:00:00 +0000 https://massivelyop.com/?p=477783 Mod support is already a thing in ARK: Survival Ascended, but the survival sandbox is bringing a little bit more streamlining to the custom player experience when it launches the custom cosmetic system starting later this week. This feature, which effectively lets player-created cosmetics for things like dinos, structures, and clothing dynamically arrive to their […]]]> https://massivelyop.com/2024/02/01/ark-survival-ascended-is-launching-a-streamlined-way-to-get-player-made-items-in-february-and-april/feed/ 0 https://massivelyop.com/2024/02/01/after-nearly-eight-years-dual-universe-promises-physical-rewards-for-kickstarter-backers-are-coming-soon/ https://massivelyop.com/2024/02/01/after-nearly-eight-years-dual-universe-promises-physical-rewards-for-kickstarter-backers-are-coming-soon/#comments Thu, 01 Feb 2024 20:00:00 +0000 https://massivelyop.com/?p=477963 Dual Universe completed its Kickstarter crowdfunding drive in October 2016. Some of those backer tiers included physical schwag that would be mailed to player homes. That hasn’t happened, however, with developer Novaquark laying the blame on shipping costs and shipping partner woes. That almost eight year-long dry spell without an official t-shirt appears to be […]]]> https://massivelyop.com/2024/02/01/after-nearly-eight-years-dual-universe-promises-physical-rewards-for-kickstarter-backers-are-coming-soon/feed/ 3 https://massivelyop.com/2024/02/01/massively-on-the-go-preparing-for-pokemon-gos-los-angeles-sinnoh-tour/ https://massivelyop.com/2024/02/01/massively-on-the-go-preparing-for-pokemon-gos-los-angeles-sinnoh-tour/#comments Thu, 01 Feb 2024 18:30:00 +0000 https://massivelyop.com/?p=476737 Pokemon GO’s Sinnoh Tour is coming to Los Angeles February 16th-18th, but despite its already being sold out, Niantic is still dangling some key features behind closed curtains, such as mythicals and the actual “city-wide” addon locations. To note for those attending from out of town who haven’t seen the relatively newly added suggested hotels, […]]]> https://massivelyop.com/2024/02/01/massively-on-the-go-preparing-for-pokemon-gos-los-angeles-sinnoh-tour/feed/ 4 https://massivelyop.com/2024/02/01/vague-patch-notes-why-we-drift-away-from-mmorpgs-we-still-love/ https://massivelyop.com/2024/02/01/vague-patch-notes-why-we-drift-away-from-mmorpgs-we-still-love/#comments Thu, 01 Feb 2024 16:00:00 +0000 https://massivelyop.com/?p=478104 Why did I stop playing Star Trek Online? Was it because there was some change made to the game that made it no longer fun to play? Did it come as a result of some drama at the endgame, some major flaw? I bought the game nearly at launch, but I left. Why did I […]]]> https://massivelyop.com/2024/02/01/vague-patch-notes-why-we-drift-away-from-mmorpgs-we-still-love/feed/ 42 https://massivelyop.com/2024/02/01/final-fantasy-xiv-sets-its-annual-valentiones-event-for-february-7/ https://massivelyop.com/2024/02/01/final-fantasy-xiv-sets-its-annual-valentiones-event-for-february-7/#comments Thu, 01 Feb 2024 14:30:00 +0000 https://massivelyop.com/?p=478101 What the world of Etheirys needs is a summer vacation, but that’s not happening until Final Fantasy XIV: Dawntrail arrives this summer. Until then, all it needs is love, and that love is arriving when the annual Valentione’s Event starts up on February 7th. If you’ve all gotten enough of shooting hearts at people with […]]]> https://massivelyop.com/2024/02/01/final-fantasy-xiv-sets-its-annual-valentiones-event-for-february-7/feed/ 1 https://massivelyop.com/2024/02/01/the-daily-grind-what-gets-you-to-start-a-new-character-in-an-mmo/ https://massivelyop.com/2024/02/01/the-daily-grind-what-gets-you-to-start-a-new-character-in-an-mmo/#comments Thu, 01 Feb 2024 13:00:00 +0000 https://massivelyop.com/?p=478099 I like making alts. It’s just a thing I do. But before I’m going to make a new alt, I have to have something new that I want to do with that particular character. What that “something new” is going to be can vary a great deal from one occasion to another, but what is […]]]> https://massivelyop.com/2024/02/01/the-daily-grind-what-gets-you-to-start-a-new-character-in-an-mmo/feed/ 17 https://massivelyop.com/2024/01/31/wayfinder-studio-airship-syndicate-is-laying-off-a-dozen-staff-sigh/ https://massivelyop.com/2024/01/31/wayfinder-studio-airship-syndicate-is-laying-off-a-dozen-staff-sigh/#comments Wed, 31 Jan 2024 22:00:50 +0000 https://massivelyop.com/?p=478078 If you’ve seen the rumors on Twitter this afternoon that Wayfinder’s team is suffering layoffs, well, I’m sorry to report that they’re true, and while it’s not the 2500 laid off from Riot and Activision-Blizzard last week, the dozen workers let go from Airship surely hurt the newly indie team. “I can confirm that today […]]]> https://massivelyop.com/2024/01/31/wayfinder-studio-airship-syndicate-is-laying-off-a-dozen-staff-sigh/feed/ 11 https://massivelyop.com/2024/01/31/embers-adrift-adds-more-solo-content-and-bulletin-board-system-with-its-january-update/ https://massivelyop.com/2024/01/31/embers-adrift-adds-more-solo-content-and-bulletin-board-system-with-its-january-update/#comments Wed, 31 Jan 2024 20:00:00 +0000 https://massivelyop.com/?p=477875 So Embers Adrift has a bit of a situation. The game is very decidedly focused around having people group up and take on challenges as a larger team; that’s a stated design goal. At the same time, when people just start the game, they may not yet want to team up, which can lead to […]]]> https://massivelyop.com/2024/01/31/embers-adrift-adds-more-solo-content-and-bulletin-board-system-with-its-january-update/feed/ 1 https://massivelyop.com/2024/01/31/the-stream-team-previewing-city-of-heroes-homecomings-new-arsenal-powersets/ https://massivelyop.com/2024/01/31/the-stream-team-previewing-city-of-heroes-homecomings-new-arsenal-powersets/#respond Wed, 31 Jan 2024 18:55:00 +0000 https://massivelyop.com/?p=477880 MOP’s Chris is back on Brainstorm! That’s right, today he’ll be heading to the test server of City of Heroes: Homecoming to check out the MMORPG’s upcoming powersets: Arsenal! It’s a stream of high-level tinkering and experimentation today at 2:00 p.m. EST! What: City of Heroes: Homecoming Who: Chris Neal When: 2:00 p.m. EST on […]]]> https://massivelyop.com/2024/01/31/the-stream-team-previewing-city-of-heroes-homecomings-new-arsenal-powersets/feed/ 0 https://massivelyop.com/2024/01/31/valheims-discord-server-is-finally-back-up-after-a-nasty-hack-of-its-dev-team/ https://massivelyop.com/2024/01/31/valheims-discord-server-is-finally-back-up-after-a-nasty-hack-of-its-dev-team/#comments Wed, 31 Jan 2024 15:30:04 +0000 https://massivelyop.com/?p=477947 On Monday, we covered an emerging fiasco happening over in the Valheim community: The game’s Discord and multiple developer Discord accounts had been hacked, leading to the implosion of the Discord and its replacement by the hacker or hackers, who proceeded to fill it with disinformation, racism, porn, and malicious links that caught many more […]]]> https://massivelyop.com/2024/01/31/valheims-discord-server-is-finally-back-up-after-a-nasty-hack-of-its-dev-team/feed/ 1 https://massivelyop.com/2024/01/31/chimeraland-is-shutting-down-at-the-end-of-march/ https://massivelyop.com/2024/01/31/chimeraland-is-shutting-down-at-the-end-of-march/#comments Wed, 31 Jan 2024 14:30:00 +0000 https://massivelyop.com/?p=477895 Back in September of last year, we checked in on Tencent’s strange survival sandbox Chimeraland only to find that very little had happened… followed two days later by an utterly unexpected surprise update. Alas, it appears that was the last gasp rather than the start of a new era for the game, as developer Pixel […]]]> https://massivelyop.com/2024/01/31/chimeraland-is-shutting-down-at-the-end-of-march/feed/ 3 https://massivelyop.com/2024/01/31/the-daily-grind-what-are-some-of-the-prettiest-high-level-zones-in-mmos/ https://massivelyop.com/2024/01/31/the-daily-grind-what-are-some-of-the-prettiest-high-level-zones-in-mmos/#comments Wed, 31 Jan 2024 13:00:00 +0000 https://massivelyop.com/?p=477391 Back in the day, it used to be common for the early game in MMO to be nothing but verdant forests, lush meadows, and serene landscapes… while the endgame got hell-blasted death zones, volcano fields, and This Region is Brought to You By the Color Brown. In a way, we were punished by progressing, which […]]]> https://massivelyop.com/2024/01/31/the-daily-grind-what-are-some-of-the-prettiest-high-level-zones-in-mmos/feed/ 16 https://massivelyop.com/2024/01/30/former-blizzard-employee-yoinks-a-decade-of-paid-time-for-world-of-warcraft-before-layoffs/ https://massivelyop.com/2024/01/30/former-blizzard-employee-yoinks-a-decade-of-paid-time-for-world-of-warcraft-before-layoffs/#comments Tue, 30 Jan 2024 19:30:00 +0000 https://massivelyop.com/?p=477684 It’s one thing to leverage a whole mountain of in-game gold into being able to play World of Warcraft for free, but it’s another thing altogether to cash in a decade’s worth of playtime for the game as part of employee compensation. Adam Holisky, whose name may be familiar to readers from his days on […]]]> https://massivelyop.com/2024/01/30/former-blizzard-employee-yoinks-a-decade-of-paid-time-for-world-of-warcraft-before-layoffs/feed/ 28