The Best Crowdfunded MMORPGs You Should Be Excited About In 2017
Crowdfunded MMORPGs are all the rage these days, a trend that’s picking up and gaining momentum. The power is in the player base, and these new savvy game developers know that the most effective ways to market their projects are on crowdfunded websites like Kickstarter. There, they can show off their early builds, put up marketing collaterals and answer all kinds of questions about their games for the price of nothing.
And to be fair, it’s a really smart move. To-date, these MMORPGs have raised about $ 30 million between them. That’s a huge amount of money that people pay for the idea of a game, not even the finished product! Those early days are gone though, and we are in fact, nearing the release dates of some of these much anticipated crowd-funded MMOs. So 2017 will be a good year for the underdogs of the genre, and here are three of the best ones you should be excited about.
1. Crowfall
“We don’t expect or actually want 50% of the WoW players to come. All they would do is torture us to change the game to make it like WoW and we would not like that.” – Crowfall
When a game sets a statement like that as a precursor, you can immediately tell that they mean business. Crowfall is so different to World of Warcraft in every way imaginable. For starters, there’s permanent death and dying worlds. The game centers around PVP among players, and they get to age their characters. You can even die from old age, or watch your world burn from death and destruction. The awesome part is how when that happens, you start all over again on a brand new world with a brand new character.
The concept is super interesting but it has other attractive factors too. The art style is unlike the modern MMO where the graphics are crisp and highly textured. Crowfall’s is somewhere between Wildstar and Guild Wars 2. The animations are top-notch and the developers are doing a good job and keeping all backers up-to date on things. You can watch the updates roll in as it happens. The game is about 70% done and we’re hoping to see this one release sometime before the end of 2017.
2. Camelot Unchained
Up next is an MMORPG that needs no introduction. Well, at least its spiritual predecessor doesn’t. Dark Age of Camelot is a classic MMO that is still around. I’ve had so many great memories playing and will remember it forever. The brutal difficulty, the amount of sandbox adventures my friends and I went on, they were all awesome.
So when Camelot Unchained was announced I followed its campaign closely. The promise of huge realm versus realm PVP is mouth watering. The developers have also reiterated that it’s a core of the game, not just some mechanic added in just for the sake of having PVP. But what else is there to expect? Player driven-economies and races based on history too, such as the Vikings, Celts and the Arthurs. I’ll say it again. I can’t wait for this game.
3. Pantheon: Rise of the Fallen
And finally, let’s move to one of the hidden gems on the market today. Pantheon: Rise of the Fallen has it all. Huge sums of funding, a group of inspirational developers and a great premise. The game is being made with today’s tech, but gameplay and setting takes place in the wonderful atmospheres with mechanics from old MMORPGs yonder.
Simply put, a lot players are looking forward to old systems that made MMORPG what it is today. Pantheon: Rise of the Fallen will have classic classes, and old-school zone to zone movement. So no flashy open persistent worlds, which could be appealing.
But the best part for nostalgia hunters is probably the inclusion of classic “camping”. Remember the old Ultima Online days when players would group and head to a challenging zone to set up a foothold and pull monsters back to it to gain loot and experience? Yes, that is what the developers of Pantheon are going to be bringing back.
Therefore, 2017 is looking like a great year for all kinds of MMORPG players. Fantasy and historical setting buffs will be getting treats from their favorite crowd funded MMOs. As for us, we can’t wait to jump in and get the reviews!
