Special Features

2012 is a big year for MMOs. World of Warcraft is getting what will likely be the expansion that makes or breaks it as an industry leader. Guild Wars 2 finally hits shelves, bringing with it the howls of a million fanboys. An army of free-to-play MMOs of varying themes will storm the interwebs, splitting attention from major releases....

EVE Online is one of the most unique properties in the world of MMOs. Its dynamic player community, rough-and-tumble atmosphere and intricate economy make it very much the only game of its kind. EVE is, in many ways, the coolest MMO on the market. In what other game can you hold another player hostage, steal all of his stuff and then use your ill-gotten gains to pay your subscription fee?...

If you're a Lifetime subscriber to Star Trek Online or Champions Online, then here's a piece of good news for you. Cryptic Studios has announced that lifetime subscribers to the two games will be receiving access to the Neverwinter Closed Beta test....

Gala Networks Europe is excited to share some in-depth details about its upcoming Martial Arts MMORPG title, Age of Wulin....

NCsoft today announced that its hit MMORPG Blade & Soul would go into commercial service on June 30 and adopt the payment model of unlimited-time monthly subscription with KRW 23,000 (about USD 20) per month. It will also release a limited number of physical packs from June 26. ...

The calendars have been marked and the date is set: Flyff Gold will launch on July 11. The beloved free-to-play MMORPG which has given hundreds of thousands of players the chance to Fly for Fun will enter its new version with a slew of new features that change the look, feel, and content of the game....

So ArenaNet have mentioned time and again that while there are currently only two maps available there are two more in development. They also only feature 1 game mode currently and that is conquest....

NCsoft, one of Blizzard's largest competitors, is well aware of this potential weak spot in Blizzard's armor. And, of course, it has a plan for demolishing Blizzard in Korea, and claiming the majority market share for itself. That plan? Blade & Soul....

Korea-based ESTsoft announced the official blog of Cabal 2 OL, a brand new 3D MMORPG being developed by the company. In future, the players can communicate and acquire updated game news via the blog....

Changyou today announced that its next-gen turn-based 3D MMO TaoYuan Online is stepping outside China and has arrived in Malaysia!...

How do you measure the success of an MMO? This is a question that many players and game developers would have their own opinions. Lead Content Developer Colin Johanson has posted an update to the ArenaNet blog and discussed that question. The post delves into the merits of subscription and non-subscription models and some of the company's philosophy they insist to design Guild Wars 2 from the early stage....

The Secret World is drawing ever closer to its July 3rd release date. In preparation for launch, Funcom is excited to announce that the fourth and final Beta Weekend - titled 'The Battle Begins' - will be made open to all....

Recently, Nexon becomes the major holder of Korean giant NCsoft and since then Nexon has laid off hundreds of employees. There is a rumor said that several MMORPGs under development including Lineage 3....

So there is a dungeon in the eternal battlegrounds. You may be thinking; "What? A dungeon in World vs. World vs. World? How does that even begin to work?" Well, fellow speculative reader, I'll tell you how! It involves a lot of jumping and a lot of rage....

When BioWare's first MMO Star Wars: The Old Republic launched, it has taken a place in the fiercely competitive game market, quickly gaining a million subscribers and then hitting a peak of 1.7 million players. But more recently, SWTOR keeps losing players with the subscription number staying at 1.3 million. Electronic Arts boss Frank Gibeau recently discussed the strategy around Star Wars with GamesIndustry International....

Independent developer Dark Vale Games has announced FORGE, a new PvP-centric title blends FPS action with MMO strategy. FORGE is powered by Epic Games' award-winning Unreal Engine 3 and is expected to release for personal computer later this year....

There is a prediction made by KDB Daewoo Securities, one of the largest and most successful brokerage firms in South Korea, indicating that Guild Wars 2's commercial launch is imminent....

Aeria Games today announced that Shaiya Phoenix will be the newest addition to its game catalog. Shaiya Phoenix offers the core features and amazing gameplay that made Shaiya a rousing success in 2008, but reimagined with rebalanced game systems and a fresh economy structure....

Korea-based Liveplex today released a brand new preview trailer for its self-developed adult MMORPG Queen's Blade, specially designed for female. It is known that Queen's Blade is expected to have a 3-day final closed beta, beginning from June 15 to June 17....

So beta weekend 2 is over, the third 'public' event where ArenaNet have show cased their game and allowed the public to rampage throughout the world of Tyria, killing players, bosses and saving towns. Of course, beta is still beta; there are bugs everywhere and some things that don't work, but it's a polished beta, as most people are concerned, in a beta stage the game feels more polished and has more content than other MMORPG's that have been out for years....

Have you ever thought that you can level up your character to the max level by just crafting? It sounds impossible because crafting seems just an add-on profession in most MMOs. Well, it now can be achieved in Guild Wars 2 as ArenaNet designer Linsey Murdock stated in a recent forum post, players will be able to level it all the way to 80 without killing a thing but crafting....

As reported yesterday, Funcom is planning to have the third Beta Weekend for The Secret World from June 15th until June 17th. In this new beta, gamers will be able to explore a wealth of new content that was not available in the two previous Beta Weekends, including the Dragon and Illuminati starter experiences....

By the time Monday rolled around I could not wait to get on the game. When closed beta 2 ended I looked at my playtime in the game and combined with all three soldier classes I have logged over 137 hours of game time....

The 3D fantasy MMO Project X7 of ChangYou's Next-gen Game+ Plan has amazed many players with its lifelike graphics since its release. Now we will reveal the art styles in the game developed with ChangYou's self-developed Darkfire Engine and see if the art styles combining Eastern and Western features are satisfying enough for us. ...

People felt so sad when 38 Studios announced they laid off all employees on Thursday, May 24th, 2012. Just three days before then, they had announced Kingdoms of Amalur MMO - Project Copernicus set to release in June 2013....

When you spend dozens of hours questing, grinding and slaying with people, it's inevitable that your relationships will grow and evolve. I've made a few real-life friends thanks to the presence of MMOs in my life, and I'm sure this isn't some sort of rare story....

Things are coming to light but still full of questions. Ubisoft is no doubt developing a MMORPG, but could it be Assassin's Creed Online?...

As the MMO has developed, so has the guild. What was once a completely player-driven structure has become a fully functioning game mechanic. Guilds are no longer something run in forums and message boards by players, but integrated game features with a life all their own....

The Secret World, unlike the bulk of MMOs that have come out in the last five years, isn't set in some fantasyland packed with orcs and goblins....

Players are naturally more likely to take a chance on a game when the initial investment is low. However, it's a large jump in logic to assume that because a few solid F2P games exist, all MMOs should be following that model. ...

All of the right pieces are in place: Fan demand, a strong development team and years of lore and design from which to draw. The only remaining question is this: Can ZeniMax Online actually make a working, engaging Elder Scrolls MMORPG?...

ChangYou held a press conference called ChangYou's Next-gen Game+ in Beijing 798 Art Zone, where 5 next-gen blockbusters from ChangYou were analyzed and many relevant companies attended to share the latest next-gen MMO info, including Unreal Engine 3 developer, CryEngine 3 developer, Nvidia and so on....

SWTOR did surge to around 1.7 million players, but recent numbers indicate that it lost over 400,000 of them last month. Current tallies put SWTOR population at just 1.3 million—not too shabby when compared with other MMOs, but still a far cry from what EA and BioWare had been hoping for. 1.3 million players....

We're looking at the question from the wrong angle. No one game is ever going to kill World of Warcraft. Like an enormous raid boss, WoW simply cannot be downed by a single entity....

There's never been a better time to be an MMO developer. And, coincidentally, there's never been a better time to be an MMO player. Modern MMOs, thanks to hot competition from their brethren, are evolving and changing at one of the most rapid paces in the industry-they have to if they want to keep their registrations up and their subscribers happy....

I myself spent most of my weekend playing in the WvWvW system, to an almost unhealthy degree. As a level one character, I went straight into "W3" we'll call it from now on, and spent a good 10 hours straight participating with my guild which was an insane amount of fun. It was the crazy epic PvP fun of a 'once a week' castle siege or territory war other games have, but all day, every day....

Guild Wars as far as its lore goes has always been very well written, but Guild Wars 1 did not ever engage me to really listen to the story, Guild Wars 2 on the other hand drops you in the story and gets you interested right away....

Mark Kern, former World of Warcraft lead and now the CEO of Red 5 Studios who creates Firefall, recently told Eurogamer in an interview that "something has to change. Consoles, I believe, are dead."...

Wanna browse latest hot MMORPG & MMO news, find out hot new free/pay to play games, pick up keys for new beta games anytime, anywhere? MMOsite Reader is the right thing for you. ...

Before Spirit Tales goes into open beta on May 10, KoramGame Ltd. released a fun new video that gives fans a special look at the six playable character classes....

Here's another sad news for the sandbox MMOPRG fans. Sanya Weathers, Director of Community for Pitchblack Games' in-development title, Dominus, announced via the official forum that Dominus is shutting down effective immediately....

The anticipated beta weekend event for Guild Wars 2 finally begins today. If you are rushing to the official site hoping to get a copy of the game, you would be disappointed as both the standard and deluxe digital versions of Guild Wars 2 have all been sold out on the site for North America....

Currently in gaming there is a stigma that any game that tries to be successful, or any game ever created ever that uses 'hotkey's will be a WoW clone, but how did we come to this? How did some people become so blinded by the words "World of Warcraft" that they brand the whole genre with this name?...

The twist for this game that makes it unique from the crowd is that it is a crafting MMO set in a mutable world. What that means is that most everything in the world I crafted by players; they can claim land, build homes, and terraform the world to their liking. ...

Mike O'Brien, ArenaNet's founder, recently chatted with Forbes's contributor stating his high expectations about Guild Wars 2. After 5 years of development and long wait, Guild Wars 2 is finally coming to a close with its first public beta test this weekend....

Once again the fine men and women at SOE have cranked out another major game update for their beloved classic MMORPG EverQuest II, and this one should be a dream for players everywhere. Enter GU: 63, also known as Skyshrine, which will be a major companion piece to EQ II's 7th game expansion, Destiny of Velious....

Hey, are you an obsessed MMO player who barely leaves your basement for some real life gathering? If your answer is "Yes", then Sony's getting worried about that and recently, the folks at Sony have filed with the US Trademark and Patent Office for a patent to allow MMO players to have real-life meet ups....

If you missed anything about new MMOs on MMOsite.com last week, do not worry, here is your quick fix: our weekly roundup will keep you up-to-date with everything you do not want to miss including news, screenshots, videos. ...

With the development of graphic engines, the graphics perform better and better. It is the most important to capture players' hearts at their first sight of the game. Today, let's take a close look at what games have exquisite graphics and beautiful characters and how they appeal to players. ...

gPotato unveiled the final class line-up for its upcoming free-to-play action MMO Eternal Blade....

We gamers cannot enjoy FTGs together with friends just near our houses any longer. Nevertheless, how about fighting online at our own computers to enjoy more fun? Let's take a look at Fighters Club, a new action MORPG title under development by Korea-based KOG....

TaoYuan introduces cloud class system and emphasizes on free class transfer and cross leveling up, which breaks the traditional unitary class setting. ...

Guild Wars 2 is set to release this year and there is a lot of talk of e-sports and potential leagues being set up and I know quite a few people who are very confused and say things like 'WoW was never a BIG e-sport, why will GW2 be?' ...

Players will explore an alluring Eastern world full of fantastical creatures and are tasked with purging this world from a mysterious evil force. To get their adventure started, players can register to participate in the forthcoming closed beta test by visiting the Soul Captor teaser website....

The Fallout MMO may never see the light of day but fortunately, we have Grimlands, the latest post-apocalyptic MMORPG shooter from Gamigo. Today we are very glad to have an exclusive interview with Gamigo, talking about some unique features Grimlands has....

With the release of Guild Wars 2 getting closer to us, have you ever thought of building a Guild Wars 2 custom computer? Well, here is a geunis guy over at CodeOfficer who has taken his passion and 200 hours to make this happen....

Current games are made more and more perfect than the past ones. Their considerate newbie tutorials help newcomers get familiar to various game controls quickly, improved quest prompts enable players to find obvious marks on the map during the whole process from accepting. Due to all the improvement, do we become more foolish players?...

I'm a bit of a PvP nut. It's why I got into the MMORPG genre because there's nothing quite satisfying than putting the character you worked hard to develop vs. Someone else's character they have put time and effort in developing. So obviously if you put my favourite activity in MMO's and my most anticipated MMORPG of the century, you have me thinking up plans and crazy idea's before the game is even released!...

Changyou, a Chinese MMO developer and publisher, has recently unveiled its four new MMOs, all of which are developed with next-gen engines. Not only the famous commercial engines like Unreal 3 and Cry Engine 3 are applied in the new games, but also Darkfire, the engine independently researched and developed by Changyou is included in the game. ...

Wu Hun Online is a new game which will be released by NetEase later in 2012. With the Tang Dynasty of China as its background, it is an action game of martial-art emphasizing the effect of striking. Its feature is the combination of traditional Kungfu and magic elements....

The 3D next-gen MMORPG Dragon Blade of NetEase, which attracted much attention from gamers earlier, released its in-game storyline video today. From the video, we can see Dragon Blade has a grand worldview background and gamers need to play different roles in different civilizations and wage an epic battle by mutual cooperation and bloody fighting. ...

Finally the time has come for the developers of Red 5 Studios to release the Beta of FireFall from the NDA. During the madness that was PAX East thousands of fans were able to join in and play this amazing game. It should be noted, however, that FireFall is still very much in beta as testing out partial content and specific elements is still under way....

Legend of Souls, developed by Korea-based NEOWIZ Games, has successfully finished its first closed beta test from April 5th to April 9th. Below is a trial report including a heck of fresh screenshots and a trailer from Korean media....

Did you go to PAX East this year? Perfect World Entertainment showcased the latest RaiderZ demo with a new and challenging boss at the Booth 736. This time they revealed a new trailer and tons of screenshots. check out yourselves!...

NetEase announced its latest MMORPG codename Game-X was titled as Dragon Blade officially in the press conference last week. The game scenes are so splendid especially the setting of female characters from which we can see a bit of a famous Korean MMO (Blade & Soul, I'm looking at you)....

Today, we've got some exclusive information including some unique features and character introduction about the new 3D fantasy MMORPG Eclipse War Online, which is developed by Korea-based NDOLPHIN and published by SG INTERNET....

Online game is like real life where we can find lots of interesting phenomenons. Sometimes we call it habit; sometimes we call it obsession. Generally speaking, every gamer out of 50 has some kind of obsessive compulsive disorder....

Ubisoft has taken up the quest that a lot of companies have been up to and made their own free to play game. This one is based off of their popular Tom Clancy Ghost Recon series, which is a bit of an odd twist for the series considering the origins....

Some bad news is coming for those players eagerly waiting for the release of Guild Wars 2. It is said that ArenaNet decided to cancel Guild Wars 2 while at the same time, Guild Wars 3 is being development....

It is said the mobile Blade and Soul has been completed, which is an MOG developed with Unreal Engine 3 and the graphics on mobiles and PCs share the same quality....

Trion Worlds announced today that its hit MMORPG Rift is about to release a brand new special themed dungeon. The following video shows us that a Naked Batman riding a Najmok and his partner Robin riding a Tartagon (check all mount list) are fighting side by side after they show themselves....

Just in time for April Fool's day, Google has released an "update" for Google Maps, dubbed Google Maps 8-bit version, similar to that of the Nintendo Entertainment System (NES), or Family Computer that was popular in the 1980s. ...

Blizzard today announced that a new line of educational games set in the most popular Blizzard franchises are trying to give your children not only the most epic but also the most educational gaming experiences... ever....

As a matter of fact, Wild Buster is a MMORPG instead of MORPG. Certainly, camp hunting plays an important role, but it is impossible to hold hundreds of hunters in the same camp....

China MMO company NetEase finally revealed via its press conference that its new 3D MMORPG Game-X was titled as Dragon Blade officially and a game concept trailer was released at the same time. Moreover, a brand new official website is unveiled today with more information coming soon....

Along with two new maps, the Italian Province and the American Live Oaks, the latest update enriches the game with a long-awaited branch of U.S. tank destroyers with rotating turrets. It also brings 22 all-new crew skills and perks for virtual tankmen to master....

Recently, two game designers Chin JiWoon and Choi Jun accepted the interview with TIG and shared more game info about the brand new 3D shooter MMORPG Wild Buster with players....

Set in Mark Rein Hagen's vampire-centric universe, the background of World of Darkness is close to the real society, but there are all kinds of supernatural beings and full of intrigues and bloody scenes....

Another tribe info revealed! Spirit Tales highlights the Maned Dragon Tribe featuring the Archer and Warrior class....

It has absorbed the features of a variety of action games, being focusing on the enhancement of the combat system in order to enable the players to enjoy the simply joy of fighting....

Shanghai based illustrator molybdenumgp03 is very good at landscape and female body painting. Among his works, the fantasy female fighters are all very outstanding....

Let me start by saying Seven Souls Online is a decent attempt at a game for a smaller gaming company. SSO has certain features that could make a mmorpg great, and others that are unoriginal, and don't....

Though it is a rather cute game in terms of graphics, I found it is best not to judge a game based solely off of that, and try to see what it offers instead, which I did. Also being that this is still in the beta phase, it is more of a preview of what to expect and not really enough there for a full review, not yet anyway....

Last week, ArenaNet had a blog post detailing the microtransaction system in Guild Wars 2. There must be many players who are ready to buy Guild Wars 2 wondering about what items are going to be sold in the cash shop. Thanks to Hunter Insight, we've got some leaded screenshots and information about Guild Wars 2 cash shop....

Another series of gender reversal artworks, this time, the main roles are superheroes....

According to Marvel Comics, Elektra is the world's most lethal woman and one of Marvel's most cold-blooded characters. She has killed more men[citation needed]than just about any other Marvel character while remaining one of the most popular heroines in the Marvel Universe....

The first 3D next-gen MMORPG GAME-X (codename) of Chinese MMO developer Netease is to hold next-gen concept press conference in Guangzhou, China on March 30th. The official title, game type and R&D video of the game will be released on the conference....

The works we unfold here are from the doujin artist Monkey Buonarroti, whose creations integrate his own understanding and style with original features. Therefore, his works always bring us new visual experience though they are all characters familiar to us....

A recent tweet appeared on Guild Wars 2's official twitter site indicates that there is probably no region lock in Guild Wars 2....

Usually, fairy tales are for children. But talented American comic book artist Jeffrey Scott Campbell provide adults opportunity to enjoy those classic mamories....

Gender reversal has been an hot theme among most artists. Before this, I have posted a series of gender reversal artworks about WoW NPC ([Fanart] What if the Character's Gender Changed?). Here is another gallery I want to share with you - female version of 12 golden saint fighters. Enjoy! (Source: Animeartbooks.net)...

TaoYuan is a next-gen turn-based MMORPG developed by Playcool with 45 months and USD 30 million and it is also the first turn-based MMORPG developed with Unreal Engine 3 on the earth. ...

Chaos of Wulin integrates the essences of previous martial-arts MMORPGs in the market and also creates special martial-arts moves for different sects and classes....

Although spring has come, it seems that the Korean MMO industry is still suffering from the winter cold. Since several new policies about video games were announced by South Korean government, they have thrown great pain to those online game-related companies. From Feb. to March, several MMOs have been shut down in Korea....

In Blade Chronicle: Samurai Online, players won’t be forced to choose a class. Instead, they choose their weapons. With the innovative Weapon Evolution system, players can switch their attack method and skills by just changing their weapons to adjust themselves to different combats....

It is a common perception that nerfs to content are bad for games. The fact that some things become easier is often a cause of concern for players who are looking for a challenge, but let's look at why this isn't necessarily the way it should be....

There was a time when video games were considered a boy's activity. Those times are long gone. In fact, females have been playing video games since they were first invented but the numbers that play today far outreach those from the past....

It has been thirty years since the first game console came into real use in our families. The pity is that most of those excellent games ruling the world at that time have now faded away. However, under the efforts of faithful players, some aged games are now revitalized with the development of technology. Can you imagine that the colorful mosaic in the 18-inch CRT TV sets would become so real? Oh, no, they are much more beautiful than the real ones!...

Here are some CG fan arts of lively and kindhearted Rikku, the popular girl in FFX. Hope you like them....

Following the success of the show, organizers have announced that GDC 2013 will return to the Moscone Convention Center in San Francisco from Monday, March 25 to Friday, March 29, 2013....