Should MMORPGs Get the Remaster Treatment Instead of Sequels?

It’s been clear for several years now that there’s serious money in remasters and re-releases. With the recent success of The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion Remastered and Diablo II: Resurrected, it’s obvious that players respond well to better visuals, long-overdue bug fixes (thanks, Bethesda), and the occasional quality-of-life upgrade. It’s proof that with just a modicum of effort, a familiar game can be transformed into something worthy of a fresh launch.

If that model works so well for single-player titles, then MMORPGs, which are arguably even more rooted in long-term player investment, should be prime candidates for this kind of treatment. MMORPGs are meant to be living worlds, endless stories that evolve over time. And yet, too often they’re cut short, whether abandoned after a sharp player decline, or worse, killed off entirely in favor of a sequel that never quite captures the same magic.

At their core, MMORPGs are not designed to end. They are persistent worlds that live or die by their communities. When a studio decides to sunset a game or pivot to a sequel, it often severs years of player-built memories, community bonds, and personal progression. It’s no wonder so many players cling to emulated servers long after a game's official closure. These unofficial efforts aren't just about preservation (though preservation is important), they're really about reclaiming a digital home, and embracing fond memories of their time with a beloved game.

Meanwhile, the demand for older MMORPGs hasn’t gone anywhere. Nostalgia remains a powerful motivator. Players continue to flock to unofficial servers, reviving long-dead titles through emulation. In many cases, these private teams do more than simply resurrect an older game, they actively expand upon the games, releasing new content that the original developers never envisioned. They often re forced to do it without financial gain, just so that they can answer the “what ifs” left behind when the official servers shut down, but a world is left unexplored.

Returning to Oblivion Remastered, we see a parallel: modders are already reimagining Bethesda’s remaster, layering new experiences onto a newly polished classic. But MMORPGs don’t offer the same flexibility for player-driven modding. You can’t just drop in a new class or questline on a live server whenever you feel like it. That’s exactly why the responsibility to revisit and reinvigorate these games should fall back to the studios.

And here’s the thing about MMORPGs, by their nature, they are already built for incremental improvement. Unlike single-player games which often have an expiration date and need to be rebuilt from the ground up once decades have passed, many MMOs already operate on long-term update pipelines. A remaster could simply be a natural evolution of that process: modernizing graphics, improving infrastructure, rebalancing combat, and updating interfaces to match current standards. All without rebooting the entire universe. An "in-place sequel" if you will. 

Take a look at how Blizzard handled World of Warcraft Classic. That project wasn’t just a nod to nostalgia, it was a full-fledged product with a steady stream of content and development support. It proved that there's value in older game versions, especially when they're delivered with official backing. And yet even Classic could have gone further by integrating modern enhancements without compromising the old-school feel. There’s room for a hybrid model merging the best of both eras.

There’s too much money and passion being left on the table. Shouldn’t developers consider reclaiming their legacy titles, "remastering" them with modern infrastructure, better UI, and polished visuals, while leaving the core experience intact? It’s not about chasing trends; it’s about meeting a proven demand. For every game like RIFT (currently on life support), WildStar (emulator in progress), or City of Heroes (emulator live), there are still loyal fans who would eagerly return if given the chance to re-experience those worlds in an updated, officially supported form with reinvigorated development.

We’ve spent years saying there haven’t been truly groundbreaking MMORPGs in a long time. So why toss aside decades of worldbuilding, storytelling, and design, especially when many of the new MMORPGs are often bloated with promise, but light on payoff? Maybe the most unique thing a studio could do today is bring back what already worked—and make it better. Despite seeing mixed reactions to this very thing with popular film remakes, I don't think we're reinventing old classics, we're simply updating what worked before for modern day. 

A continuation. A second chance. And in a genre that lives and dies by community, maybe that’s the kind of revival we need most, but I'll leave that conversation up to you. Drop your opinions in the comments and let us know your thoughts.