The next couple of years are going to be good, I can tell you that. 2018 did bring a few interesting reveals and confirmations, so brace yourselves: great free games are coming. We know how you want to see the good stuff as quickly as possible, so let’s jump straight into our Top 10 Upcoming Free MMO Games 2019-2020. In no particular order:
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PROJECT BBQ (a.k.a. DUNGEON FIGHTER ONLINE 3D)
Wham-Bam! With a single and overwhelming blow, Nexon and Neople have sparked everyone’s interest in their upcoming game. Under the delicious codename of Project BBQ (which is a skill from the Gunner class in Dungeon Fighter Online, in case you’re wondering) lies what could represent a huge step forward for third-person online action games.
Let’s call it Dungeon Fighter Online 3D from now on, as it is a better name and because it’s too soon to say if it’s a sequel or a spin-off. The game features lore from the original Dungeon Fighter as well as returning characters such as the Priest and Sword Master, along with new faces. Around seven or eight classes should be available for launch.
Vindictus and Black Desert Online are usually mentioned when it comes to great action combat in an MMO, but Project BBQ looks set to deliver the goods. Currently a PC exclusive and powered by the Unreal Engine 4, it looks stunning and we would throw a lot of cash to the screen if it turned out to be a fully-fledged MMORPG. It is described as a mix of multiplayer online RPG and MMORPG, so there’s still hope. Cross your fingers for a playable build before 2020.
For the life of me, I can’t fathom why there aren’t more studios working on free-to-play online action RPGs such as Path of Exile. I mean, beyond Diablo Immortal, that is.
What, ‘do you guys not have phones’?
This one will never get old! Anyway, the Torchlight series is widely acclaimed as one of the best students from the Diablo school of hack and slash, and the Torchlight Frontiers reveal was enough to bring tears of joy to many faces. It looks like Perfect World and developer Echtra Games can deliver the best of the series but in an MMO-ish kind of world, which just sounds awesome. What we tried from the alpha was enough to convince us that this will be one of the big names of 2019.
MAGIC: THE GATHERING MMORPG (Cryptic Studios)
Cryptic Studios knows the MMORPG genre like no other and have developed games of a consistently high quality. Neverwinter, Star Trek Online and Champions Online are some respectable names, unless you want to hate for hate’s sake.
Over a year since its announcement, we still don’t know a thing about Cryptic’s free-to-play action MMORPG based on Magic: The Gathering. Maybe 2019 is the year when the big reveal happens?
Well, since there are no trailers or screens to show you, how about a few pictures of cute kittens? Enjoy!
Come on, did you really think we were going to leave this one out? Even with the official confirmation from Smilegate’s CEO that Lost Ark is coming to North America and Europe? It’s not a matter of ‘if’ anymore, but a matter of ‘when’.
We’ve talked our hearts out about Lost Ark. From its good looks that make us wonder how the heck they made it on Unreal Engine 3, to the exciting action combat and class diversity, here is a proper Diablo MMORPG with an incredible depth and polish. If the MMORPG genre gets a boost on PC during the coming years, Lost Ark will surely be one of the ‘culprits’ for such thing.
MIDDLE-EARTH MMORPG (Athlon Games)
US-based Athlon Games is developing a new MMORPG based on the Middle-earth licence, which you surely recognize as the one where The Lord of the Rings lore originated from. It is said to be set in the world of Middle-earth prior to the events of The Lord of the Rings, and will provide “new, immersive experience for epic exploration”.
This new game is officially free-to-play and it’s probably an MMORPG based on the available info. Phew, we dodged a bullet with this one – what if someone came up with the idea of a Middle-earth game where Legolas and Gandalf were fighting alongside the Witch-King? That would be so stupid, right?
Speaking of games that we know nothing of, Peria Chronicles could easily fit into that category as well. It’s not that we don’t have tons of info about it – it’s due to the fact that this MMORPG hasn’t shown its beautiful anime sandbox face for a couple of years or so already. Maybe it’s changed a lot, who knows?
Nexon’s CEO has recently confirmed that ThingSoft keeps working on Peria Chronicles, so our fears were finally laid to rest. Eventually 2019 should bring more details on what the team was working on; was it only a matter of adding content and testing systems, or did they have to streamline the game and their ambitious vision in order to make it viable? We’ll see soon enough.
Oh look, another punchy-punchy game. However, this is no ordinary game, as KurtzPel is the ambitious work of KOG, makers of Elsword and Grand Chase. In fact, it has strong ties with Grand Chase, from the way that players are called (Chasers) to some familiar faces that appear in the game.
It’s like a Marvel Universe but for KOG games! Yay!
KurtzPel is a gorgeous anime brawler that makes us happy and sad at the same time. Happy because it looks stunning and will probably be one of the best PvP games of 2019; sad because they should grab their artists by the necktie, stick them into a dark room with some storywriters and create a freaking MMORPG instead of a PvP-focused game.
Sure, KurtzPel has PvE as well, but it’s more of a boss fight kind of PvE, not the kind that you see in games such as Lost Ark or Final Fantasy XIV. So, we reserve the right to remain angry, despite loving the game to death anyway.
We had to get a Battle Royale game in here, didn’t we? Like we needed more Battle Royale games in the world, right? But let’s cut Spellbreak some slack, as it brings some cool ideas to the genre.
Spellbreak is pretty much Harry Potter Royale. Except it’s not, thankfully. Here is a game where you get to pick a class of magician and then you enter a lovely colorful world where everyone seems to be a magician as well and wants to burn you to the ground over and over again. Battle Royale, pretty much.
But the great thing – apart from the amazing cartoon visuals – is the ability to combine spells to get different outcomes. There’s a ‘wow’ factor to these combinations and it’s a thing of beauty when two players manage to successfully combine their spells to create devastating effects.
Spellbreak is far from a rushed cash-grab, it’s a proper game that seems to ooze quality from every pore.
After the good times that we’ve shared in TERA, Bluehole has the obligation to deliver to the world another top-quality MMORPG. Considering the tons of money that they are making with Playerunknown’s Battlegrounds, it’s not like they don’t have the budget to do so.
Ascent: Infinite Realm is their next bet and while it’s not guaranteed free-to-play, it could be. Or not, we’ll see. What we do know is that this is a steampunk fantasy MMORPG where you fight on the ground but also up there in the skies, in impressive battleships – it’s almost as if it was a steampunk-ish version of Star Trek Online. Sure, it’s a stupid comparison, but we’re sticking to it. You heard it here first.
The Ascent: Infinite Realm reveal wasn’t exactly the greatest due to some weird performance issues, but hopefully things have gotten better during this year. 2019 should bring a lot more of this game, and I’m hoping that it also brings some splashes of color – steampunk doesn’t have to be a depressing blend of grey and brown, after all.
Oh, Moonlight Blade, right! That MMORPG whose western release was unintentionally leaked several months ago, twice (the latest time in Nexon’s financial results), and there’s still no official announcement about it. But judging by what happened with MapleStory 2, it took its dear time, but the rumors turned out to be true.
So, Moonlight Blade is another one of those Wuxia games where everyone is an impressive martial artist and you can soar the skies in the weirdest ways. Umbrellas, turning into a bird, sword-surfing… You name it, there’s no shortage of weird in here.
But it looks good. If you like the genre and had enough of Blade & Soul, for example, Moonlight Blade could be a pretty good alternative.
And there you have it, our Top 10 Upcoming Free MMO Games 2019-2020. Ten games that will surely bring a smile to your face. Or at least a few of them will, unless you have a heart of stone. For those who want a few more suggestions, do keep an eye out for these ones: Dragon Hound, Conqueror’s Blade, RAM Pressure, Mad World, Breach, Waven and Astellia. Did we forget any good upcoming free game? We sure did, so remind us in the comments. Have a wonderful 2019!
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