We’ve put together a comprehensive two-part look at the games expected
to drop sometime in 2013, and as an added bonus have also included a
brief look at some of the other titles we hope to learn more about this
year, even if they don’t land their ships in our backyard and demand to
see our leaders over the course of the next twelve months.

If you haven't already, be sure to check out the

target="_blank">first part of the article

where we take a look at
some of the biggest movers and shakers of 2013, including

target="_blank">Neverwinter

,

target="_blank">The Elder Scrolls Online

,

target="_blank">Defiance

, and more. If you're awesome
(and we're sure you are or else you wouldn't be here in the first
place!) then chances are you already read through Part One, in which
case you can read through the thrilling conclusion in today's episode
below.


Marvel Heroes

Developer: Gazillion
Entertainment
Status: Closed Beta
Release: 2013

In many ways, Marvel Heroes is kind of like the older sibling of Marvel
Super Hero Squad Online. Both games allow players to collect and play as
their favorite characters from the Marvel universe, and both attempt to
blend elements of action RPGs with an MMO.

If you left it at that, Marvel Heroes would already be worth checking
out. While other MMOs in the superhero genre might allow you interact
with iconic NPCs, Marvel Heroes throws caution to the wind and lets you
live out your HULK SMASH! fantasies more directly. It also boasts the
leadership of one David Brevik; a name that should be familiar to the
more diehard Diablo fans out there.

If Marvel Heroes has an Achilles heel, it would probably be that it is
a bit too faithful to action RPGs at times. I'm talking, of
course, about the staple isometric perspective, and the slight
disconnect it creates when you spend most of your time looking at the
top of your character's head.

Marvel Heroes is a beautiful game, and an incredibly fun one at that.
It also offers a distinct change of pace for gamers who may dig certain
aspects of Diablo III, but are looking for a richer overall setting to
while away the hours.

Read more about Marvel Heroes on Ten Ton
Hammer

The Marvel Heroes
official website


Warframe

Developer: Digital Extremes
Status: Closed Beta
Release: 2013

Warframe is another of the games on our list - along with Hawken and
DUST 514 among others - that is more of an online cooperative experience
than a full-blown MMO, but we feel it's worthy of inclusion either way.
Unlike the other titles listed within the same loose categorization,
Warframe is wholly focused on a progressive PvE experience rather than
PvP.

The shooter gameplay is pretty solid, and combat is made far more
interesting thanks to the inclusion of powerful melee weapons and active
skills. The skills are linked to specific Warframes, so in a lot of ways
the Warframes double as the class system for the game.

As some have noted, certain aspects of the free-to-play model for
Warframe dance threateningly close to pay-to-win territory, but
considering the closed beta status of the game we're willing to give
Digital Extremes the benefit of the doubt here. Like most other aspects
of the game, there's a good chance that the cash shop end of things will
be balanced along with skills, weapons, and Warframes before the full
release.

Read more about Warframe on Ten Ton Hammer
The Warframe official
website


Transformers Universe

Developer: Jagex
Status: In Development
Release: 2013

Tranformers Universe will be heading into beta soon, and has been
gaining quite a bit of media attention and momentum over the past couple
of months. From what we've seen of the game so far, visually it seems to
sit somewhere on the edge of Michael Bay's front porch watching a
televised marathon of the animated series. Color us intrigued.

In a

target="_blank">tread on the official forums

, the developers are
asking fans to let them know who their favorite transformer is, and why.
The first poster completely nails it by citing Soundwave. I'm secretly
keeping my fingers crossed that I'll be able to play a transformer that
turns into an object that's completely useless - much like Soundwave as
a boombox - outside of combat. You may think I'm joking, but I'm not!

In all seriousness though, the Transformers IP has grown from a stumpy
cartoon about farming energon cubes into a global phenomenon thanks to Megan
Fox
the film series. So long as the MMO draws inspiration from
the latter without devolving into an energon farming simulator, it has a
good chance of continuing to stand squarely in the center of its current
gaming media spotlight.

Read more about Transformers Universe on
Ten Ton Hammer

The
Transformers Universe official website


Wizardry Online

Developer: Gamepot
Status: Open Beta
Release: January 16, 2013

Wizardry Online is less than two weeks away from launch, and aims to
bring a more hardcore experience back to MMOs. A few valiant attempts
have been made over the past few years to do the same thing - notable
entries including Mortal Online and Darkfall - but on the whole,
hardcore MMOs in this day and age are practically a thing of myth.

Permadeath is about as hardcore as it gets these days, so if an ongoing
attachment to a character you develop over a longer period is your
thing, Wizardry might not be your cup of tea. If you're up for a
challenge, however, you can give Wizardry a shot in the open beta, or
download and play it for free on the 16th.

Read more about Wizardry Online on Ten
Ton Hammer

The Wizardry
Online official website


End of Nations

Developer: PetroGlyph
Status: In Development
Release: 2013

End of Nations has long suffered a personality crisis of sorts.
Originally a hybrid RPG and RTS game, it became clear early on that the
mashup was simply a bit too confusing for gamers more familiar with
either genre. Eventually many of the more RPG hooks were dropped in
favor of focusing on making EoN a more clearly defined RTS game, but
somewhere along the way it morphed into a quasi-MOBA.

Confused about what kind of game EoN is yet? If so, you're not alone,
and the team at PetroGlyph recently decided to take the game out of
beta, offer pre-order refunds, move development to the main Trion
offices, and continue refining the game into something more specific and
fun.

Hopefully the additional development time will pay off, though the game
currently runs the risk of becoming the next Tabula Rasa. In other
words, a game that wasn't really sure what it wanted to be when it grew
up, but ended up having to hit the streets regardless to be able to pay
the bills.

Read more about City of Steam on Ten Ton
Hammer

The City of Steam
official website


World of Warplanes

Developer: Wargaming.net
Status: Closed Beta
Release: 2013

This followup to the critically and commercially successful World of
Tanks has been in development for quite some time now, and many expected
it to see a full release by the end of 2012. However, if any
free-to-play developer has the resources to continue polishing a game
until it's ready for prime time, it's Wargaming.

It will be interesting to see if Warplanes lives up to some of the
lofty expectations set by its tank-based counterpart. World of Tanks had
a very broad appeal, based in part upon the fact that it provides a neat
slice of the shooter pie, but one that doesn't necessarily require the
same twitch gaming skill set.

Warplanes - and all aerial combat sims, really - might appeal to a
somewhat slimmer audience by comparison. Just like trying to play racing
games with a keyboard and mouse, flying around in a virtual setting is
simply going to be a better experience for those gamers able to afford a
flight stick. Barring that potential barrier for entry, Warplanes still
has the potential to be one of the top free-to-play games of 2013.

Read more about World of Warplanes
on Ten Ton Hammer

The World of
Warplanes official website


Phantasy Star Online 2

Developer: SEGA of America
Status: In Development
Release: 2013

While the game had a strong showing at PAX Prime last year, Phantasy
Star Online 2 is one of those titles that has largely flown under the
radar for most gamers since it was officially announced it would be
coming to North America last summer. Between a lack of major marketing
hype, and a spotty franchise history, that's perfectly understandable.

With that said, many of our staff writers - including managing editor
David "Xerin" Piner - consider PSO2 to be one of the biggest games to
watch in 2013. Beyond the semi-familiar setting, one of the main draws
for the game seems to be the developer's desire to mimic the kind of
adaptive playing experience more commonly found in tabletop gaming.

To be honest, the MMO industry could certainly stand to return to its
roots in both tabletop gaming and MUDs at this point, at least to a
certain degree. It remains to be seen just how well the latest Phantasy
Star title pulls it off, but we're looking forward to finding out once
the game drops sometime later this year.

Read more about Phantasy Star Online 2 on
Ten Ton Hammer

The Phantasy Star
Online 2 official website


World of Darkness

Developer: CCP
Status: In Development
Release: Sometime this century (don't quote us on that
though)

O World of Darkness, World of Darkness! Wherefore art thou World of
Darkness?

Ever since it was first announced that World of Darkness would be
leaping into MMO territory, there have been mixed reports on the actual
development status. Depending on who you talk to, development is either
progressing quite well, or isn't happening at all. According to a recent
series of tweets by the WoD team, internal feature testing is currently
taking place, so that's a good sign at least.

While we honestly don't expect the game to launch any sooner than 2015,
we're still hopeful that this will be the year that more details finally
emerge. DUST 514 is obviously the main focus for CCP currently, but we
remain hopeful that the information blackout on WoD lifts sooner rather
than later. By announcing the project's existence at such an early
stage, CCP runs the risk of never being able to properly manage
expectations.

Still, World of Darkness is one of those intellectual properties that
is perfect for making the transition into the wacky world of MMOs.
Remember that desire to see more of the subtle complexities from
tabletop gaming to begin creeping back into MMOs? If any title is
capable of doing just that, it's World of Darkness. Now if we could just
clear up the darkness surrounding details about the game itself...

Read more about World of Darkness on Ten
Ton Hammer



To read the latest guides, news, and features you can visit our World of Darkness Game Page.

Last Updated: Mar 29, 2016

About The Author

Reuben "Sardu" Waters has been writing professionally about the MMOG industry for eight years, and is the current Editor-in-Chief and Director of Development for Ten Ton Hammer.

Comments