Top MMOs to Look Out For in 2014

MMOs, or massive multiplayer online games, rule the marketplace, with games targeting all ages and all interests available on every platform from desktop to game console. Each year, a series of games rises to the top of the list as the most exciting releases. Here are some of the most anticipated titles that 2014 has to offer.

The Division

The Division comes from Ubisoft, and is the next title under the Tom Clancy brand. This tactical third person shooter moves the typical Tom Clancy game into a RPG open world model. The game centers on New York City after a massive man-made virus pandemic shuts down New York and causes wide spread panic and chaos. In the game you work as part of a classified unit known as The Division, who must work independently to fight those behind the release of the virus.

Destiny

From Bungie (the makers of the Halo franchise) comes Destiny, a first person shooter science fiction RPG. Destiny is set in a future world where earth’s inhabitants are walled into cities, surrounded by a ruthless wilderness. The heroes of the game, known as the hunters, must fight against the enemies outside the walls, called the Dreg. The game allows you to create your own characters and explore what remains of the world.

The Crew

Co-developed by Ivory Tower and Ubisoft, The Crew take racing games into the multiplayer RPG realm, allowing you to form racing crews with other players online. You can then race together or work to defeat ghost records. Start with a stock car and build it to your own specifications as you progress in the game. Along with the online multiplayer format, the game also allows you to compete in missions alone in single player mode.

World of Darkness

CCP Games takes MMO gaming into a dark world of vampires. World of Darkness comes out of White Wolf Publishing’s Vampire: the Masquerade, and allows players to experience the game through role-playing, political decisions and social interactions in true RPG form. Build your faction, and then use your power to take over territories, as well as defend your own throughout the game.

Game of Thrones: Seven Kingdoms

Following up the hit series from HBO, Game of Thrones: Seven Kingdoms is slated to release to the Internet gaming community in partnership with Big Point. Like the television series, players will join the house of Lannister, Stark or Baratheon and fight an epic battle for Westeros.

Star Citizen

From Chris Roberts’ Cloud Imperium Games (makers of Wing Commander) comes Star Citizen. Star Citizen allows players to trade and combat in space. Not only is this game multiplayer, but also provides game play offline in single player mode. If crowd funding provides any idea of how anticipated this game is, the record breaking 20 million raised to put the game into production should relieve any doubts about the popularity of the title.

The Elder Scrolls Online

A project six years in the making, The Elder Scrolls Online, from ZeniMax Online Studios, merges the worlds from the incredibly popular Elder Scrolls series into one massive multiplayer online role-playing game. Along with the online format, players will experience a new chapter in the series set in an age before the time of Skyrim. The game release will be on next generation consoles only with no cross-platform play available.

With this list only touching the surface of the MMO titles scheduled to release next year, 2014 looks like a formidable year for online multiplayer game enthusiasts.