Each week, we scour the internet for all things indie MMO-related so you don’t have to. This week, I worked really hard to find all of the good news I could, but I won’t apologize if some bad news found its way in as well. Honestly, though, indie devs need all the attention they can get, and I hope you all find the IMS to be a portal to the indie MMOs you love (or might end up loving). Anyway, let’s quit wasting time and get started with this week’s Indie MMO Spotlight.
Aether Story
Aether Story now has a new launcher for macOS. The new launcher adds additional functionality to the Mac version of the game, including Vsync, shortcuts on keys D and E no longer open the Diction and Emoji menus, the download is now signed for easier installation, and removing the need for emulation results in increased performance. The new launcher works on both Intel and Apple M1 chips. You can find the launcher on the Aether Story website (link above).
BitCraft
Clockwork Labs has been posting little vignettes showcasing different aspects of BitCraft for weeks now. This week they started exploring the lore of BitCraft with a new series - Ancient Journals.
Chimeraland
Chimeraland had server maintenance on Thursday. The update fixed several bugs and added new content which included the new Holy Crow Treasure Hunt event. The Holy Crow runs through April 20 and gives Travelers a chance to collect several appearance items and chat emotes.
Servers 109 and 118 are also testing Face-to-Face trading, giving players the option to trade items without the need for the Auction House. In what appears to be an attempt to limit illicit activity, you must be level 35 to give items to other players (any player can receive items), and Legendary, Ultimate, and Epic items are still not tradeable and must be sold in the AH.
Cinderstone Online
It’s been a couple of months since we got a look at the Cinderstone Online Roadmap, so I was pretty excited to see there was a developer update on its Discord channel this week. Unfortunately, it was just a touch-base message to let us know that the team is still working full-time to prepare for a closed beta release.
The Cycle: Frontier
Along with a new patch (Closed Beta 2 Patch 2.1) this week, Yager announced the test is being extended until April 19.
Dual Universe
Novaquark announced that players will be able to get their first look at the upcoming Athena Update when it goes live on the public test server on Thursday, March 31 through April 4. They will be looking for feedback on the new space warfare system among other things. The PTS will also be the site of the “A Fool’s Defense” event on April 1, where players will go up against the dev team as you try to take down the Novaquark space station.
Ember Sword
It’s almost time for Ember Sword’s first Pre–Alpha Technical Test. From April 4 through April 8, landowners and badge holders will be able to jump into Ember Sword for a limited look at how things are progressing.
Farwoods
In addition to its regular weekly play sessions, the Farwoods team is trying to organize a large-scale battle event for next week. Head on over to the Farwoods forums if you’re interested in joining the fight.
Fractured Online
In a new Feature Spotlight, we get our first look at the new continent of Aerhen. The new continent adds 40 square kilometers full of mountains, steppes, and tundra for players to explore. And don’t worry, the new landscape also brings new monsters, like Elementals and Jotunns.
For those of you who think Fractured Online will be more than just a game, now’s your chance to be more than just a player. Dynamight Studios is currently looking for volunteer Moderators and Game Masters. You can check out the job descriptions and requirements here.
Gloria Victis
As the team prepares for next week’s guild update, Weekly Update 312 was relegated to QoL improvements and bug fixes.
Ilysia
On Thursday, Team 21 Studios announced that the Closed Alpha 2 would be starting and would run through April 8. All Kickstarter supporters and other keyholders will have access. And in case you don’t have access but still want to catch some gameplay, Twitch streamer ZstormGames was playing Ilysia over the weekend, and has videos of his broadcasts if you didn’t get to see him play live.
Mad World
We still don’t have an exact date, but the Mad World Alpha 6.0 will be held in May. After finally getting a chance to play during Alpha 5.0, Mad World has become one of my most anticipated indie MMO releases, so be sure to sign up for Alpha 6.0 so you can see what has me so excited.
OrbusVR
In advance of its April 5 update, Alternum Games posted a blog to give players a preview of the upcoming housing update.
Prosperous Universe
You know the drill by now. In Development Log #327, Michi was fixing things, Martin continues his prep on the Steam release, and Nick spends some time working with influencers.
Ravendawn
The Ravendawn team posted a video on YouTube to share the work they have done on a common player request - character and monster attack animations.
Realm of the Mad God
Unlike most weeks, the RotMG blog was eerily quiet. Instead, we were treated to a trailer for the Elemental Equinox 2022 event!
Scars of Honor
Talk about all things pew-pew as Beast Burst Entertainment covers the Ranger in this week’s class discussion.
Ship of Heroes
In the latest Ship of Heroes newsletter, the team talks about The Plasma Cannon Defense, a challenge mission currently under development.
Starbase
Get ready to rework your ship builds when the new feature - heat mechanics - arrives in Starbase. You can catch all the details in the video below.
Villagers & Heroes
If you missed this week’s Dev Livestream, you can catch a replay on the V&H Twitch channel. A couple of the topics were a sneak peek at Raids Season 4: Netherworld and interior housing.
War of Dragnorox
In their March update, Triune Studios goes in-depth with the Cloromancer class, including the Mycomancer and Dendromancer specializations.
Wild Terra: New Lands
With update 2.1.304, Wild Terra 2 has been updated to a newer version of the Unity engine. You can find the full update notes on the WT2 Steam page.
Zenith: The Last City
The Beyond Realities team ran into Ramen VR CEO Andy Tsen at GDC 2022. In the UploadVR article, they talk about all things Zenith, including a look towards future content, including dungeons and raids.
Loose Ends
- Screeps - I missed a post last week about the early access pre-release candidate for Screeps: Arena.
