Given the sheer volume of new massively multiplayer online games released every year, it shouldn’t come as too much of a surprise that so many of them end up in the MMO graveyard prematurely. Over the last decade, plenty of games have come and gone with some barely surviving long enough to leave even the faintest of marks on the gaming landscape. That said, there are one or two success stories as well.
Although games like Final Fantasy XIV and World of Warcraft seem destined to be around forever, most consider anything more than five years to be a decent return for an MMO. Quite a few of the games released in the 2010s were able to reach this milestone and although they’re not all still around, the impact that they had on both their players and the genre itself will likely be felt for many years to come.
10 Dynasty Warriors Online (2010 – 2014)
With offline Dynasty Warriors games already incredibly hectic, an MMO adaptation had the potential to be both chaotic and confusing. To their credit though, the team over at Tecmo Koei did a fantastic job of incorporating these new elements into the game and came up with some pretty interesting game modes as well.
Unfortunately, the game was only available for around four years in North America, although remains popular in some Asian territories to this day. It’s not all doom and gloom for Westerners either, with online co-op having made its way to the series just a few years later in Dynasty Warriors 9.
9 Star Wars: Clone Wars Adventures (2010 – 2014)
Star Wars: Clone Wars Adventures had a lot going for it, particularly when it came to the quality of its many mini-games. More importantly though, it felt like it truly belonged in the Star Wars universe. For all of its bells and whistles, however, the game did have a few major problems that prevented it from every really taking off.
For one thing, the game offered very little to do outside of its mini-games which led to a lot of players growing tired of the experience pretty quickly. Marketing wasn’t great either, but the game’s biggest problem was its child-friendly approach which alienated some of the series’ older fans.
8 Battle Of The Immortals (2010 – 2018)
It may not have been the best looking MMO of the era, but Battle of the Immortals was up there with some of the very best when it came to gameplay. Combat was both complex and intuitive, it featured a well integrated pet system and there was more than enough content to keep players busy for hours at a time.
Although some will still feel that the game was shutdown too soon, it lasted a very respectable eight years; more than most in the increasingly competitive MMO market. Those who didn’t quite get their fill are in luck though, as there are several private servers that allow people to continue playing the game.
7 Rusty Hearts (2011 – 2014)
When it comes to MMOs that were shut down before their time, Rusty Hearts is a game that will spring to mind for many longtime fans of the genre. The game developed a hardcore fanbase while online, largely due to its stunning visuals and expansive story. Monetization wasn’t too aggressive either, although it’s perhaps this that ultimately led to the developers sunsetting the project in 2014.
Its hack and slash combat made a refreshing change to the RPG mechanics traditionally used in MMOs while the wide selection of playable characters provided a decent amount of variation as well. Despite its early demise, the game can still be played on private servers; with the most notable one being Rusty Hearts: Revolution Reborn.
6 Battlestar Galactica Online (2011 – 2019)
Browser-based MMOs were incredibly popular around the beginning of the last decade and Battlestar Galactica Online was one of the very biggest. More than two million players registered for the game in its first three months online with a further three million signing up before the year was out.
Although it could be a little overwhelming at times due to how much was going on, those who took the time to learn how to play the game typically fell in love with it. It looked great, featured some incredibly in depth combat and played host to space battles so large that they would have given even EVE Online a run for its money.
5 Firefall (2012 – 2017)
In many ways, Firefall played a lot like a Borderlands MMO. Aside from the obvious visual similarities, the game’s combat mechanics and the plethora of weapons and items available was incredibly reminiscent of the Gearbox series. Where it fell short, however, was in its lackluster writing and poor campaign quests, which were nowhere near as humerus or captivating as the typical vault hunting venture.
That said, there were a few interesting ideas to be found in the game, with the power armor in particular helping to make map traversal a lot more fluid and enjoyable. It certainly had its shortcomings too, but it wasn’t a bad game by any means and managed to keep players engaged for almost half a decade.
4 Wizardry Online (2013 – 2014)
Wizardry Online was a little rough around the edges and featured a somewhat confusing user interface, but it did have one or two things going for it as well. The combat system was solid and the use of permadeath helped to make everything just that little bit more meaningful. Sadly, however, this wasn’t quite enough to keep the game afloat.
Less than one year on from the game’s full North American release, Sony announced that it would be shutting down the servers in six months’ time. Like many other ‘dead’ MMOs, it will soon be possible to play the game on private servers, although progress on getting them up and running seems to have stalled a little as of late.
3 Darkfall Unholy Wars (2013 – 2016)
Darkfall Unholy Wars was an incredibly ambitious MMO that released through Steam’s Greenlight program back in early 2013. It featured a huge open world, intense PvP combat and a well fleshed out clan system that helped to make the experience infinitely more enjoyable.
The game was developed by the Greek studio Aventurine SA and served as a direct sequel to its earlier title, Darkfall. Despite improving upon its predecessor in just about every way though, Unholy Wars suffered the exact same fate; with both games shutting down around three years on from their respective releases.
2 Marvel Heroes (2013 – 2017)
Marvel Heroes was one of the most popular and successful MMOs of the 2010s, although came to a sudden and abrupt end in November 2017. The announcement was made on the 15th and the servers were shutdown just 12 days later. Naturally, this did not sit well with the player base, particularly those who had purchased the PS4 and Xbox One versions of the game that had released just five months prior.
Why exactly Disney opted to end its relationship with developer Gazillion Entertainment remains somewhat unclear, although some believe that it may have had something to do with Marvel’s Avengers. If so, it seems like a huge step backward for the franchise considering how underwhelming the aforementioned title has proven to be.
1 WildStar (2014 – 2018)
While it wasn’t a particularly innovative game, the team behind WildStar did a fantastic job of refining and polishing established ideas and mechanics and piecing them together to form an incredibly attractive package. They got just about everything right, although made one fatal mistake which more than likely contributed to the game’s early demise.
At a time when much of the competition was shifting over to free-to-play models, NCSoft instead opted for a more traditional subscription based service. While some didn’t mind the expense, it was a tough sell for others given how unoriginal the game was. The publisher did eventually switch to a free-to-play model around 15 months after the game’s launch, but by this point it was a little too late to stop the rot.
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