Could MMORPGs Learn From the 'Be More Like Larian' Mindset?

Every MMO player knows the quiet dread of logging in to a timer. Maybe it’s the daily reset. Maybe it’s that limited-time mount. Maybe it’s just the creeping sense that if you miss today, you’ll regret it tomorrow. It’s a rhythm not unlike a gacha drumbeat. That’s the cost of ‘Fear Of Missing Out’ (FOMO) design. 

When former Call of Duty producer Mark Rubin took a swing at engagement-driven monetization, it came from his 10 years of experience as Call of Duty’s executive producer at Infinity Ward. His call to “Be more like Larian, less like Activision” refers to Baldur’s Gate 3’s player-first design, and from where I sit, it applies beyond the shooter genre.

FOM(MM)O

Let’s not pretend FOMO is a brand-new thing in MMOs. There have always been some kind of raids to schedule, reputations to grind, bosses to camp, etc. But what we are pointing out here is different. It’s codified, calculated. In a nutshell, purposely insidious. As one Massively Overpowered article notes, “game studios have made absolutely no secret of the fact that they are using psychology against us”.

These days, the game watches you. Logins tracked. Progression tuned to stretch over a season. Throughout the Battle for Azeroth and Shadowlands expansions, WoW has been a clear example of that. Systems like Artifact Power, Azerite gear, and Covenants all shared a familiar shape: sink time or fall behind. And not just fall behind numerically, but socially. 

That’s the limit for me. The moment time-limited systems start affecting my character’s power, I’m out. It’s not just about missing a shiny mount or any comfort currency. It’s about falling behind in ways that actually matter. Personally, I don’t mind a nudge to log in. I get the appeal of daily rewards, rotating shops and the like.. However, the moment my power is tied to how often I clock in, it stops being a game and starts being a job. 

Optional, Not Oppressive

Thankfully, not every MMO is walking that same tightrope. Guild Wars 2’s Wizard’s Vault is still a form of FOMO, sure. But the tasks are flexible, the rewards non-exclusive, and the pressure minimal. Nothing absolutely mandatory is lost if you skip a week. No guild benching if you didn’t tick all the boxes. As a WvW player, I end up completing most of it just by playing how I always do. On my own terms, in my own rhythm. It’s surprisingly respectful of your time. 

So, Can MMOs Break the Cycle?

Let’s be honest: FOMO works. It keeps people logging in. It incentivizes maintaining the subscription until the raid opens. The thing is, it doesn’t have to be like this. We’ve seen glimmers of another path. Guild Wars 2’s Wizard’s Vault doesn’t punish absence. ESO’s Golden Pursuits comes and goes without holding you in hostage. And RPGs like Baldur’s Gate 3 remind us what real engagement looks like. 

As regards World of Warcraft: Battle for Azeroth and Shadowlands didn’t just spark player fatigue, they pushed players out. And to Blizzard’s credit, that message seems to have landed. With Dragonflight and then The War Within, we’ve seen a quieter, less coercive World of Warcraft. No borrowed power, no daily chores masked as content. For a studio that once doubled down on engagement-at-all-costs, that pivot matters.

It shows something important: change is possible. Studios can acknowledge missteps and chart a better path forward. And when one of the genre’s biggest names does that, it sends a ripple. Maybe not a revolution, but a signal. A reminder that respecting player time isn’t a niche value!

So yes, FOMO still lingers. And yes, not every system is guilt-free. But between Guild Wars 2, ESO, and a softening WoW, there’s a growing sense that the tide might be turning. That maybe, just maybe, the future of MMOs doesn’t belong to the timer. In the end, retention is about giving us a world we want to return to, not one we’re afraid to leave.