MYTHIC GAMERS
Criteria
PC GAMING THROUGH THE MMO LOOKING GLASS
Our criteria for our next MMO game choice is based on the following:
Massive multiplayer online – thousands plus
PC, and hopefully Mac
Cooperative PvE, with some consensual PvP
Minimum of fuss to get on and play on game night (drop in, drop out)
Minimal hassle with different character levels
Ok with instancing to avoid jerks and asshats
Getting burnt out on Eastern developers
Relatively recent 3D graphics. NO 2D, voxel, side scroller, or platformer. sheesh
Avoid build and defend PvP games
Avoid games that require hardcore play style and time in order to reach end game content, seek out games that support casual play
Star citizen
Space MMO
Space sci-fi theme, multi-crew ships (think: 2 to 30 person raid per ship), sandbox, open universe, hundreds of professions, Lumberyard engine, and crowd funded by fans to the tune of $500 Million as of 2022 to see the game of their dreams become a reality. This is the highest crowd funded game by a long, long shot. The next highest crowd funded game is Prison Architect, which raised a paltry $19M. The only crowd funded effort that raised more money than Star Citizen is the blockchain operating system for Ethereum, EOS, at $185M. With thousands of developers and artists working to create this game, anyone who pledges $45 can play the alpha today. There are no character levels, simply call your ship and head off to seek fortune, fame, power, or whatever you like. The release date will be at least 20??, but most probably late 20??. There will be a single-player story-driven campaign as well as the MMO version. I have a ton of videos posted up on my Star Citizen channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCTfjc-qSehSIOck3g24DC_g
Also, if you sign up for an account, use my referral code: STAR-9NR6-BDGY
Developer website:
https://robertsspaceindustries.com/about-the-game/spaceflight
Ashes of Creation
High Fantasy MMO
High fantasy theme, sandbox, open world, crowd funded $4M, Unreal 4 engine. Players build up cities through craft and trade (including caravans), then defend them against other players. There are no factions, so each player must decide what other players they desire to work with, forming guilds and societies. Choices matter, and there is a risk commensurate with rewards. Characters level up and choose abilities offered by common archetypes (tank, cleric, mage, etc.) and features action combat and consensual PvP. Alpha1 began in 2018, then they released some cockamamie battle royal themed version, then went back to developing the MMO. Alpha2 was delayed by these shenanigans, but the developer has released a monthly stream of activity in 2022, so maybe there's a snowball's chance in hell for a 202x release.
Developer website:
Camelot Unchained
TriRealm (RvR) MMO
High fantasy theme, sandbox, open world, crowd funded $4.3M, Unchained engine. This game features realm versus realm combat, they call TriRealm. The 3 realms are Arthurian, Tuatha De Danann, and Vikings. Sound familiar? If you played Dark Age of Camelot, then you will be familiar with the story behind Camelot Unchained. The developer is creating their own game engine to deal with massive RvR battles. No character levels, but you can skill up by participating in (crafting, attacking, defending) RvR. I'm in an NDA alpha, sorry. Expect a beta in 20??, and launch sometime around 20??. They have limited resources, and have chosen a long and risky path. As soon as the NDA is lifted I'll record and post some videos.
Conan Exiles
Conan Survival MMO
Pre-historic sandbox, open world, survival MMO. Developed by Funcom with Unreal Engine 4. Pve and PvP servers. To gain experience, players will explore, craft, and survive in the cruel world of Conan, or die trying. This MMO was actually released in 2018, unlike many other games in this genre. It is currently in my library, but I have never launched it primarily due to a lack of interest from my gaming groups and a lack of time to invest in playing this version. If any of that changes, I'll write a review.
Elder Scrolls Online: Morrowind
High Fantasy Action MMO
High fantasy theme, open world, consensual PvP, HeroEngine (same as SW:TOR). The latest expansion in the ESO series, highly acclaimed by both critics and players. The Morrowind expansion includes new races and a new class (Warden, a true pet class!), lots of new content, player housing, improved crafting, improved add-on support, no level requirement (so your lower level toons can group up with higher level toons with no experience hit), choose an ability to become a werewolf or a vampire, and a huge (8 million) active player population. There have been 5 expansions since Morrowind (one per year), bringing new crafting and skill lines in addition to companions! ESO is the standard by which MMOs will be measured for the next decade.
Mount and Blade 2
Medieval MMO
Medieval combat simulator, sandbox, open world, proprietary game engine. Faction warlords compete for land and resources in an authentic medieval setting. This game was released in October 2022, but I haven't played it yet.
Shroud of the Avatar
High Fantasy MMO
High fantasy theme, sandbox, open world, crowd funded $2M, and consensual PvP. From the creator/developer of Ultima Online, but apparently nothing like it, and getting panned by critics and users. I'll watch this one as it develops. Might be pleasantly surprised. In alpha but available on Steam early access for the past 3 years. Hey, some games bake for a decade before they are ready. Right now, it doesn't look like a AAA game, which really throws me off.
2023 Update: I still haven't played this game, but it's free to play on Steam. Maybe I'll try it after Conan Exiles.
New World
17th Century Sandbox
Amazon Game Studios is developing New World, a 17th Century sandbox game featuring some arcane elements. Read our full blog here: https://www.mythicgamers.com/single-post/2019/04/26/New-World
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