// PC GAMER — GAMING
Discussion time: Most big MMOs are seasonal now—do you prefer it that way, or do you loathe the FOMO checklist?
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This is Terminally Online: PC Gamer's very own MMO column. Every other week, I'll be sharing my thoughts on the genre, interviewing fellow MMO-heads like me, taking a deep-dive into mechanics we've all taken for granted, and, occasionally, bringing in guest writers to talk about their MMO of choice.
One interesting trend of the MMO genre is its slow drift towards a seasonal structure. Final Fantasy 14's getting properly-named seasons with Evercold, World of Warcraft's got its Mythic+ and Delve seasons, The Elder Scrolls Online's gotten them, and so on.
And there are plenty of advantages to this. Borrowed power grinds that span an entire expansion are obnoxious, and were thoroughly trashed back in Shadowlands: It doesn't feel great to fall behind on the treadmill, and having a routine reset to put everyone back on a level playing field is smart.
It also means that there's an easy excuse to come back. I, for one, don't play World of Warcraft full-time (I have too many games to keep up with, alas) but I will always come back and sink a few dozen hours into every major patch. MMOs that've adopted this model also tend to have fewer content droughts, the death knell of any game that requires (or encourages) you to pump out a monthly subscription.
But there are plenty of downsides. WoW's been struggling with its seasonal cadence lately, bogged down by bugs and balancing issues. There's also the seasonal weariness, too—unlike a sandbox MMO, these seasonal games don't offer much in the way of permanent progression.
If you get your BIS, it'll be replaced 3-4 months later. If you miss a reward, it'll likely be gone or harder to get as things are depreciated.
Most of all, seasonal zones drop off pretty quickly. Studios put all this work into an area that'll only stay relevant to the expansion in question for… well, a season. And while most of these games'll let you come back and still play through their storylines or snag the gear attached to them, there's precious little reason to do so for the gear-motivated.
More to the point, doing so makes you fall behind the current seasonal grind, kicking your can further down the road.
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