Welcome back to MassivelyOP’s annual MMORPG awards for 2025!
Today’s award is for the Biggest MMO Disappointment, which was awarded to the Death of Blue Protocol last year. Disappointments can be games, launches, patches, trends, stories, sunsets, all manner of topics in the MMORPG genre and orbiting sub-genres. Don’t forget to cast your own vote in the just-for-fun reader poll at the very end.
And the MassivelyOP staff pick for Biggest MMO Disappointment is…
The abandonment of New World
“New World’s sudden demise, or at least maintenance-moding, is easily the biggest disappointment of the year. One did get the impression the game’s days were numbered after the console (re)launch completely derailed its development and led to a year of content drought (something I’m fairly sure was forced on the developers against their wishes), but I did not expect the end to come so soon, or so suddenly. Certainly not immediately after a large and well-received update in Nighthaven. New World finally perfected its endgame loop, just in time for it to die.
“Past sunsets have taught me that all MMORPGs are temporary, so to an extent I can take the news in stride, but it’s hard not to mourn what more the game could have done if it had lived longer. Lightning magic, pistols, farming, the mystery of Artorius, the return of Adiana, countless other world myths that could have been the basis of new stories… this was a game of nearly infinite potential.
“New World was never going to be for everyone, but it did have a unique identity within the MMO space with its mytho-historical setting, skill-based combat, and sandpark structure. There isn’t anything else out there that scratches the same itch, and those of us who did love it are probably going to be searching for a new home for a long time.” -MOP’s Tyler
That’s our take. What’s your pick?
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How does MassivelyOP choose the winner? Our team nominates and discusses candidates to (ideally) reach consensus on our whole slate of awards each year. The site’s award goes to the staff selection, but we’ll include both it and the community’s top nomination in our debrief in January (here’s last year’s, along with historical winners for every category). Poll options are not exhaustive, so feel free to write in your picks if they weren’t nominated.