MMO Week in Review: LOTRO’s painful queue, Throne & Liberty’s Wilds of Talandre

Any hopes we had that Lord of the Rings On-line’s Nice Server Migration would go to plan have been dashed instantly this week because it grew to become clear the sport’s infrastructure wasn’t in any respect as much as the duty of transferring a big and keen playerbase all making an attempt to maneuver directly. Whereas SSG in the end opened the brand new servers (with housing disabled), transfers nonetheless proceed even now, taking some gamers over 48 hours in transit, and we totally anticipate it to tug right into a second if not third week.

In the meantime, Throne & Liberty launched its Wilds of Talandre growth, Fractured On-line introduced it has been acquired by a participant’s firm, Pantheon launched the Druid class, and RuneScape is getting a brand new CEO. Plus Guild Wars 2’s Repentance is approaching Tuesday!

Learn on to meet up with the easiest of this week’s MMO information and opinions immediately as each Sunday (since 2010!) in Massively Overpowered’s Week in Overview!

THIS WEEK’S TOP STORIES

Lord of the Rings On-line hopes to lastly open 64-bit servers immediately as transfers stay in limbo – On the daybreak of a day that was presupposed to be the following nice period of Lord of the Rings On-line’s historical past, every week of botched transfers and scattered communication…

Throne and Liberty’s Wilds of Talandre growth goes reside this afternoon – Throne and Liberty’s first main growth, Wilds of Talandre, is formally going reside immediately following important downtime that started yesterday. The growth, already out in Korea, will introduce world gamers…

Fractured On-line and its dev group have been purchased out by a brand new studio – and it’s not a crypto scheme – Kickstarted MMORPG sandbox Fractured has been teasing one thing massive coming for the final month, punctuated by a promise from Dynamight’s Jacopo Gallelli earlier this week that he’d simply signed a…

Guild Wars 2’s Janthir Wilds: Repentance content material launches March 11 – Guild Wars 2’s quarterly cadence marches onward subsequent week as March eleventh sees the formal launch of Repentance, the third content material chunk (and subsequently the second post-expansion chapter) of the…

Lord of the Rings On-line’s switch woes persist into third day, 64-bit servers coming Friday – Suffice it to say, this hasn’t been the triumphant week that Standing Stone Video games hoped for Lord of the Rings On-line. What was presupposed to be a one-day switch…

‘I believe we’ve cooked’: MMO sandbox BitCraft prepares for a Steam early entry beta – Manner again in 2021, we began following an up-and-coming MMORPG sandbox sim referred to as BitCraft that – regardless of its maybe inauspicious identify – was not really a bitcoin monstrosity in any respect…

Stars Attain passes $550K on Kickstarter and unlocks an in depth guild alliance system – The Stars Attain Kickstarter continues to climb since its debut final week, as Playable Worlds has now pulled in over $550,000 from gamers keen to leap into the MMO sandbox.…

Massively Overthinking: What ought to MMO corpse runs seem like in 2025? – A pair of years in the past – yeah, I save bizarre issues in my “concepts bin” folder – MMO designer Damion Schubert tweeted a couple of chat he had with a Vanguard…

APB Reloaded is totally on-line after a month in the void as Little Orbit calls Fallen Earth its ‘subsequent massive precedence’ – After a month offline, APB Reloaded is totally again – and we do not simply imply the take a look at server. At first of February, each Little Orbit MMORPGs – APB Reloaded…

LOTRO Legendarium: The forging of new communities in LOTRO’s nice server migration – As I write this, it is Tuesday morning, and we’re properly underway in what I am calling the Nice Server Migration of 2025 in Lord of the Rings On-line. By the…

Blockchain MMO EVE Frontier hires a real-world economist to assist refine its in-game economic system – EVE Frontier, the “hardcore” survival house MMO that CCP says cannot presumably do what it does with out being on the blockchain, is outwardly taking its in-game economic system extraordinarily critically, or…

The First Descendant previews subsequent week’s replace, confirms the tip of older console assist in June – The First Descendant is continuous to hype up its earlier previewed March replace as this week introduced one other developer livestream for the Season 2 Episode 2: Into the Void replace,…

Why I Play: Splatoon 3 – 2025 version – Once I first reviewed the unique Splatoon, I famous that Nintendo did not “get” on-line play but however had as an alternative created a recreation that did properly with its total vibe: portray maps…

Massively on the Go: Pokemon Go’s Unova Tour was purposeful however no enjoyable – Pokemon GO’s simply introduced the following Go Fest, however the current Unova Tour LA Tour and now the World Tour have each just lately concluded, and I am going to admit, the truth that…

Wyld Land is a top-down bullet hell roguelike MMO from a prime Roll20 and OrbusVR dev – For those who’re into tabletop RPGs, you then’re most likely accustomed to Roll20, the digital tabletop (VTT) web site that lets gamers get pleasure from their favourite TTRPGs with out all of that pesky “assembly up…

Elder Scrolls On-line exhibits off the Exiled Redoubt dungeon coming with the Fallen Banners DLC – For those who thought that the primary dungeon that Elder Scrolls On-line previewed was a bit of a mouthful, it’s possible you’ll be happy to study that the opposite dungeon being bundled…

Brighter Shores launches the primary part of its fight rework – I do not suppose anybody was going to argue that Brighter Shores had probably the most participating and thrilling fight system in the MMO house. In reality, the preliminary implementation of preventing…

Storyboard: How do you roleplay in MMOs that don’t need you to roleplay? – Readers, I’m about to blow your minds. Are you able to have your minds completely blown? It is going to be an enormous shock, I promise. It seems… I…

Path of Exile extends the Legacy of Phrecia occasion, talks up probably June growth – For those who discovered your self having fun with the Legacy of Phrecia occasion in Path of Exile a lot that you simply want it might by no means finish, properly, excellent news: It will not. Or at…

Battle or Kite: Metal Hunters brings mechas to the extraction shooter style – I do not suppose of the enormous mecha style as being a style I am wild about, however I’ve at all times had a tender spot in my coronary heart for it anyway. I suppose…

Darkish and Darker was yeeted from the Epic Video games Retailer following Nexon lawsuit – Final month, we coated what gave the impression to be the messy center of the continued authorized saga between Nexon and Ironmace over the Darkish and Darker franchise. Again in 2023, Nexon…

Good Ten: Rating real-world holidays in MMOs from worst to greatest – There are actually solely two classes of MMO festivities: those made up for the sport itself and those “impressed” by real-world holidays. Certain, some video games attempt to slap…

‘Infinite’ sandbox MMO DreamWorld unveils a gameplay trailer and runs an open playtest till March 16 – 4 years in the past we first began overlaying Kickstarted recreation DreamWorld, a so-called “infinite sandbox MMO” that made some sky-high guarantees and hung its hat on an AI software that lets…

Imprecise Patch Notes: The MMO starter experiences that concern new gamers – Final week, I talked a bit about energy creep. However buried in there was one thing that you could possibly simply miss as a suggestion for this week’s column, in no small…

Pantheon Rise of the Fallen introduces the Druid class and applies a number of fixes and changes – It is time to get all nature wizard up in Pantheon: Rise of the Fallen because the sandbox MMORPG has formally launched the Druid class in its newest patch. Described by…

Phantasy Star On-line 2 New Genesis brings quests, spring, and anniversary occasions in March – Common gamers of Phantasy Star On-line 2: New Genesis rejoice two anniversaries: one for NG and one to mark the broader launch of PSO2 particularly. It is that latter occasion that is…

WoW Issue: Undermine(d) highlights World of Warcraft’s chaotic foolish aspect – World of Warcraft Replace 11.1: Undermine(d) is lastly right here, and it is actually bought the group buzzing. I type of suspected this might be the case, however now it is confirmed: This…

Fallout 76 hopes to transform you right into a ghoul on March 18 – Till now, Fallout 76 has provided one and just one racial alternative for the sport (ugly human). However that is all going to vary on March 18th when participant ghouls arrive…

Elite Harmful pauses new colony institution to deal with an unspecified ‘essential problem’ – The primary week of system colonization’s open beta in Elite: Harmful has handed, and it has been a particularly energetic week, with over 8,000 methods claimed and 13,000 amenities accomplished so…

Lord of the Rings On-line delays 64-bit server debut as switch system is hammered – That is our utter lack of shock that yesterday’s large try to permit Lord of the Rings On-line gamers to maneuver all of their characters to the brand new 64-bit servers…

Select My Journey: Blade & Soul NEO doesn’t appear that completely different from Blade & Soul to me – I suppose I may need tripped myself up going into this month’s recreation in phrases of expectations. See, I do know that Blade & Soul NEO was type of like a…

Lord of the Rings On-line has opened transfers to 4 new 64-bit worlds immediately (and it’s a cheerful mess) – Hopefully many of you have been capable of reserve your names yesterday on Lord of the Rings On-line’s 4 new 64-bit realms, however there’s one thing much more essential occurring immediately. As…

RuneScape is getting a brand new boss as Jagex CEO Phil Mansell is stepping down – On the heels of RuneFest, we’re witnessing a altering of the guard at Jagex: CEO Phil Mansell is stepping down. Mansell has served as Jagex CEO for the final eight…

Cranium and Bones delays its second yr of content material to April 15 to execute ‘very formidable and thrilling plans’ – For those who have been amongst these gamers champing on the bit to get into Cranium and Bones’ second yr of content material, you are going to sadly have to attend a bit, as…

PvPvE extraction RPG Dungeonborne will sundown in Could after lower than a yr in early entry – The yawning gulf of early entry shutdowns has claimed yet one more title. Dungeonborne, the medieval-styled first-person PvPvE extraction RPG that started early entry final July, has now confirmed that it…

Knowledge of Nym: Why are Closing Fantasy XIV’s occasion quests getting worse? – As I write this, I’m trying ahead to the Little Women’ Day occasion in Closing Fantasy XIV… or extra particularly, I’m trying ahead to the rewards from the…

Stars Attain’s Kickstarter broke half one million {dollars} already, deep-dives the fishy princess Hansian species – Lower than every week into its whirlwind Kickstarter – bear in mind, we did not even know there’d be a Kickstarter two months in the past! – Stars Attain has raked in $500,000 in crowdfunding.…

WoW Basic’s Season of Discovery servers have ‘many many many months of content material left,’ says Blizzard – The longer term of WoW Basic’s experimental Season of Discovery servers could also be extra rosy than as soon as imagined. In a prolonged publish, the undertaking lead mentioned that there are “many many…

THIS WEEK’S CASTS & STREAMS

Each week, get caught up on the MMO style’s newest information and Massively OP’s greatest content material in our MMO Week in Overview! Need extra roundups of content material? Strive Friday’s Betawatch for MMO testing highlights, Saturday’s Make My MMO for MMO crowdfunding updates, and Sunday’s The MOP Up, which mops up all of the bits of information we didn’t cowl anyplace else.