Lately, it seems like the MMORPG genre is having a bit of a renaissance. More, and better, MMORPGs have been released in the past few years, and that trend does not seem to be slowing down - quite the opposite actually!
Developers across the world are directing their talents towards creating fresh takes on the genre, and it’s come to a point where it can be hard to keep track of all the interesting titles that seem to be popping up on our radars. So, which ones are worth giving their websites a click and signing up for development updates?
Collected here are 10 upcoming MMORPGs. Some have been in development for some time, cultivated over years of work to make a polished product. Others take a simpler approach, focusing on specific elements that help them stand out against their peers. Regardless of their differences, each offers something unique, and promises to liven up the MMO landscape.
It’s time to queue up!
10. Ashes of Creation - Expected Release: TBA
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A player in Ashes of Creation leaps to attack a wild raptor.
One of the most highly anticipated MMORPG releases since its announcement in 2016, Ashes of Creation is being created by Intrepid Studios, a team of several seasoned MMO developers. Ashes of Creation has consistently impressed prospective players during its development process, touting a persistent open-world with a node-based faction PVP system, stunning fantasy aesthetics, in-depth crafting, a classless leveling and character progression system- and that doesn’t even scratch the surface.
With feats as visually and technically astounding as a seamless 100-player siege, Ashes of Creation has certainly earned its fair share of hype. Despite this, many MMORPG veterans, including myself, have seen these feats and said “Wow! When can I play it though?”
Sadly, that appears to be information lost to both myself and the Ashes of Creations fanbase. With nearly 10 years of development under its belt, some wonder if the game can possibly live up to the buzz it has generated since its announcement. Only (even more) time will tell!
9. The Day Before - Expected Release: December 7th, 2023
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Key art for The Day Before, featuring a grizzled survivor.
Developed by FNTASTIC, The Day Before is an open-world survival MMO set in an alternate history post-pandemic America. The game takes a page out of Escape from Tarkov’s book in its design. With FPS mechanics, players take up the role of a pandemic survivor to fight against others- whether they be infected by the deadly virus that has nearly destroyed humanity or not.
The Day Before’s gameplay trailer shows players grouping up in hub zones before setting out into the open world based on the East Coast of the United States to gather resources, fight rival survivor groups, and complete missions for non-player-characters. With the success of games with similar “looter-shooter-extractor” mechanics like Escape from Tarkov and Darkest Dungeon, I’m super excited to see how The Day Before plays when it releases in December.
8. Wayfinder - Expected Release: Late 2023 (Now In Early Access)
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In Wayfinder, you take up a specialized role to defeat the enemies of the Gloom and earn loot.
Airship Syndicate’s Wayfinder pits players against the forces of the Gloom, where they battle fierce monsters as a variety of specialized classes. These classes, called Wayfinders, range from classic tanky sword-and-board supports like Wingrave the Seeker, to quick-paced zoners such as Silo the Tactician. Teaming up with fellow Wayfinders, players gather materials from enemies defeated in the Gloom to create more powerful weapons and armor- to fight even bigger and badder monsters.
Wayfinder is a game that I had the opportunity to play when it went into closed beta, but unfortunately Life got in my way and I wasn’t able to try the game out. However, it’s been in early access on PlayStation 5 and PC since August, and players have enjoyed venturing out and experimenting with character builds and team compositions as they wreck monstrous levels of face.
The gameplay loop seems to take inspiration from other grindy monster-fighting genres like Monster Hunter, Wild Hearts, and Dauntless, all of which have near-rabid fan bases that love nothing more than to find the next biggest baddie and turn them into a belt- often through extreme violence! If Wayfinder promises to be half as fun as its spiritual predecessors in its final release, then sign me up… again!
7. Blue Protocol - Expected Release: 2024
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Menacing threats await you in BANDAI-NAMCO's Blue Protocol, an anime-inspired MMORPG.
BANDAI NAMCO’s upcoming action-MMORPG Blue Protocol sets players in the science-fantasy world of Regnas, where ancient evils stir and threaten to tear the world asunder. With a weapon-based class progression system, players team up with each other in anything from small-scale dungeons to massive raids to defend Regnas from evil. Coupled with eye-catching anime-spired aesthetics, the game has already received some critical acclaim since its Japan-exclusive release last June.
Now, as an anime enjoyer, as soon as you slap an anime visual style on any game, you can bet I’m taking a look into it. Blue Protocol seems like much more than a pretty face, though. Extensive character customization options and fluid action combat helps players feel powerful and fulfills any character fantasy you may have. Enemies aren’t just hit point sponges either, providing players with a challenging and rewarding combat and leveling experience.
I hope to give the game a shot during its closed technical test on November 8th to fill my nerd heart with bliss. Until then, gamers interested in Blue Protocol will have to wait for its worldwide release sometime in 2024.
6. Palia - Expected Release: Holiday 2024
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A player and their mechanical friend spend some time fishing together in Palia.
Hardcore raiders and Best-In-Slot grinders, maybe take a chill pill with Palia! Developed by Singularity Six, the self-described “cozy MMO” is less concerned with giving players the most intense and carpal tunnel-inducing mount farming sessions, and more with creating an experience centered on the cultivation of a comfortable home. The game’s slogan being “Welcome Home”, Singularity Six seems dedicated to making this game feel like a second home for players instead of a second job. Although, if Stardew Valley players have taught me anything, it’s that not even the coziest world is immune to the dreaded spreadsheets.
Palia encourages players to roam a beautiful open world in whichever way they like. If they want to build and furnish a cozy village, they may do so in solitude or with friends. Should they be interested in Palia’s exploration aspect, they can travel the wilds and fish, gather natural resources, or even catch bugs. This gameplay comes with charming NPCs that help players uncover the secrets of Palia, all at the player’s own pace.
Though not my usual style of MMO, it’s hard to ignore the appeal of a game that not only doesn’t force players into an infinite cycle of grinding, but actually facilitates that kind of gameplay. Maybe when I need a break from filling bars I can swing by Palia and fill some fish baskets instead.
5. Corepunk - Expected Release: TBA
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Corepunk features an exciting and colorful steampunk-inspired aesthetic.
With a top-down camera in an open world covered by fog-of-war, Corepunk is a steampunk-fantasy MMORPG developed by Artificial Core that players will want to explore every corner of. The world of Corepunk is filled with dangers that players need to face in order to level up their characters, fight other players in battleground PVP, or hone their professions through gathering and crafting.
The game seems to take design inspiration from action-RPGs like the Diablo franchise, though it expands the concept of encountering enemies in secret parts of the world you could only get from exploring from pre-generated zones to a seamless open-world.
I first heard of Inflexion Games’ Nightingale while watching its gameplay trailer during 2022’s Game Awards. I was immediately enamored with its fae-inspired settings and Victorian character aesthetics, and quickly found myself falling down a TikTok hole and watching its development with childlike whimsy. Each new enemy design, gameplay feature, or story preview just got me more and more excited for the game.
Besides its visuals, the game stands apart from other MMORPG’s in that it wants players to form smaller groups and focus on tackling the Fae Realms and its many mysteries, instead of huge PVP battles or massive raids. This grounded approach allows Inflexion to polish its unique world to help bring it more to life (or… unlife?)
I for one cannot wait to get my hands on this game next year. I plan to find the weirdest fae-creature-thing I can in the world and try to make friends with it. When that inevitably fails, I’ll get to see what all this “Realmwalker” business is about firsthand.
3. Chrono Odyssey - Expected Release: TBA
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A group of players in Chrono Odyssey prepare to attack a giant foe.
Npixel’s Chrono Odyssey asks: “What if Dark Souls and Dragon’s Dogma had a baby and raised it to be an MMORPG?”
Personally, I don’t know why anyone would ever ask that. But man- am I so glad that someone did.
The world of Seterra is under siege from The Void, dark powers that seek to destroy the existence of life itself. Players are gifted with the ability to manipulate spacetime, and must use those abilities to explore Setera’s massive open world and bring the forces of The Void to heel.
Chrono Odyssey’s gameplay trailer shows a third person action combat perspective reminiscent of the SoulsBorne franchise, where players- solo or grouped- take on huge and menacing enemies dishing out earth-splitting attacks. Spells are thrown in real time, affecting large swaths of the battlefield and disrupting players and enemies alike on a large scale in ways that remind me a lot of Dragon’s Dogma’s iconic spellcraft mechanics. Putting the two together in MMORPG packaging is just icing on the cake, and I cannot wait to get a taste of this game.
2. Throne and Liberty - Expected Release: December 7th, 2023
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Players storm a castle with aid from an elemental creature in NCSoft's Throne and Liberty.
From the same studio that brought us the Archeage, Guild Wars, and Lineage franchises,NCSoft is back with a new MMORPG: Throne and Liberty. Originally planned to be Lineage Eternal all the way back in 2011, Throne and Liberty is NCSoft’s promise to take some of the most well-received aspects of their previous successful titles- and smush them all into a single game.
A free-to-play, open world MMORPG with both PVP and PVE elements- including dynamic world bosses and large scale PVP battles, players will travel the breadth and width of the world of Solisium in search of the Star of Sylaveth- with the hopes of defeating the sinister Kazar, Wraith of Conquest.
If you read this and said “Wait- a DUNE MMO?” then you and I had the exact same reaction, and your eyes are not deceiving you.
Developed by Funcom, Dune: Awakening is an action-survival MMORPG set in the breathtaking science-fiction world of Frank Herbert’s Dune Chronicles series, and is an ambitious project that takes its players across the unforgiving red sands of Arrakis- a harsh and barren world- as they struggle for survival.
A pre-alpha teaser trailer for the game showed players engaging in heated combat, piloting gunships and tanks alongside other players on the ground. The survivors of Arrakis forge their own legacy on the red sands, making and breaking loyalties as they attempt to awaken the Sleeper.
The Dune Chronicles is a multi-award winning series for a reason. Its recent resurgence into the mainstream with the 2021 film Dune starring Timothée Chalamet is only one example of the potential that lies between the covers of Frank Herbert’s sci-fi classic.
The second I can play this game, you can catch me on the nearest Sandworm.
MMORPGs are loved by countless gamers across the world. The genre is chock full of titles so far into its lifetime, but hopefully this list gave some of you a couple of new titles to keep an eye on.
I take this "life" thing kind of seriously, and there is no life more vibrant than within a story. Gaming is the only medium that melds the arts and senses to tell one story. I want to see them all.
Gamer Since:
2002
Favorite Genre:
RPG
Currently Playing:
Baldur's Gate 3
Top 3 Favorite Games:
The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim - Dragonborn, Final Fantasy XIV: Heavensward, Dragon Age: Inquisition
