MMO Roundup: Massively's week in review

Analyzing the newest Guild Wars 2 trailer
ArenaNet has a very early, very wonderful holiday gift for Guild Wars fans this morning: a brand new Guild Wars 2 trailer. (Take a moment to cheer, then we'll move on.) The trailer is amazingly beautiful, something we've come to expect from ArenaNet and particularly Guild Wars 2.

Massively's End-of-the-Year Reader's Choice Awards
The end of 2009 is almost upon us, and Arthur C. Clarke's dreams are all about to come true in less than a month. It's been an interesting year for MMOs, including everything from Tabula Rasa's official closure to the launch of LotRO's second paid expansion. While it's inevitable that the Massively staff all have their own favorite games in several different categories, we figured it would be best to get the readers involved this year.

Hands-on with Star Trek Online's space combat
Space battles in Star Trek Online are going to be a big selling point for many a Trek fan. I recently got some hands-on time with the closed beta and found several interesting talking points to deliver like hot fresh delicious phasered pizza. I imagine some of you are quite up to snuff on the basics of combat in Star Trek Online, so if you find your interest waning I suggest skipping ahead into the analytical aspect of this feature.

MMO developers speak on the state of betas
Is beta testing something of a mystery to you? Do you wonder about the how and why of a developer's beta process? Well, you're in for a treat! We recently got in touch with several MMO developers to ask them each a series of questions about MMO beta testing. In this feature you'll find opinions from Cryptic Studios, Fallen Earth LLC, Mythic Entertainment, Turbine, Runic Games and Hi-Rez Studios.

SWTOR video interview covers final two classes and more
The guys at Giant Bomb have thrown up a ten minute long video interview with BioWare's Blaine Christine that covers topics ranging from details on the Jedi Consular and Sith Inquisitor to how companion characters work in grouping situations. Much of the new info is blended into stuff that's already been covered, but it servers as a nice refresher course on Star Wars: The Old Republic with some new stuff peppered in for good measure.

Choose my Adventure approaches its last week in Dungeons and Dragons Online
This week's Choose my Adventure: DDO takes us into Stormcleave Outpost, a long group instance found within the House of Deneith. Once that was finished, we took on the second-choice vote, the Church and the Cult quest, which didn't go quite as smoothly towards the end. Still, we conquered them both and lived to tell our story here!

An early look at the Warhammer 40K MMO
We've been hearing about a Warhammer 40k MMO for a very long time, beginning back in March of 2007. We also received some tantalizing general details back in April of 2008 -- It will have an RPG feel, there will be extensive gunplay, and all races important to Warhammer 40k lore will be included.

The breadth of morality in MMOs
It's been touched on before, but there's still more thought to be put into it: morality in MMOs, if you think about it, can be a touchy business at best. Scott Jennings recently took the opportunity to discuss the genre's stance in light of the Modern Warfare 2 controversy, pointing out that the genre as a whole has generally failed to touch on morality tacitly but has frequently done so passively.

What games can you just not stand?
We all have games we love, that's a given. But some of us also have games that we have a deep and abiding resentment toward. Maybe you were so disappointed with Champions Online that now even the mention of the game gets you annoyed. You might have disliked the grind in Aion to the point where you're actively happy to hear about people unsubscribing from it. Or maybe you're annoyed at World of Warcraft being as huge as it is and want it taken down a few pegs.

Details on the Star Trek Online Collector's Edition
Are you the kind of person who goes around all day wearing a Star Trek uniform? We kind of hope not. But if you've ever secretly wanted to be able to do that with a legitimate excuse... well, we can't totally help you there, but you can at least have an opportunity to wear the badge for a bit.

Massively's EVE Dominion launch day roundup
The Dominion expansion for EVE Online may not add an entirely new dimension to gameplay as Apocrypha did with wormhole exploration, but Dominion will redefine New Eden's equivalent of an endgame. The sovereignty game mechanics, essentially the rules of territorial control, have been revamped and will change how EVE Online's alliances claim and tap resources in the lawless expanses of nullsec space.

Massively's LotRO: Siege of Mirkwood launch day roundup
Lord of the Rings Online's newest expansion, Siege of Mirkwood, will release today for North America -- while later this week it will release for the European servers -- and we have a comprehensive wrapup available for you to find the biggest news for the new content. We have a dev tour, a video of the new maps, an interview with Jeffrey Steefel and more!