Betawatch: Star Wrath enters closed beta, Time Takers gets signups

Boy, people in space get angry, huh? That’s the takeaway from Star Wrath, a new game in close beta that hits that good old-fashioned PvPvE extraction drum for appeal. If you want to extract from space but you are also extremely angry about it for various reasons, maybe it is exactly what you’re looking for.

Meanwhile, Time Takers has opened signups for its own beta, which is starting off on March 12th, but if you’re any good at taking time and making time do what you want it could already be March for you. Is that how time travel works in that game? We’ll find out in March. What we found out now were a number of games with demos opening this week, and so we’ve got some first impressions of Eldegard, Witchspire, and Fellowship for y’all.

But do we have a full roundup of important beta news from this week? Don’t be silly, of course we have that, and of course we have our full list of games in testing below that. As always, let us know down in the comments if something slipped into a different test phase without us noticing! We appreciate it and we appreciate you.

Ashes of Creation’s Steven Sharif files bombshell lawsuit against ‘Intrepid’s rogue board of directors’

The Daily Grind: So how worried are we about Stars Reach?

EVE Online has begun testing an optional AI-driven guidance system to help newbie retention

‘Get lost!’ says solo dev-created early access MMO Faehnor Online

First Impressions: A guided preview of Fellowship’s new characters and new opening beats

Horse mystery MMO Equinox Homecoming opens a free demo and adds controller support

Multiplayer vacuum party game Roombattle (yes) opens a Steam demo ahead of March 25 launch

Closed beta begins for Star Wrath, a new Gaijin sci-fi PvPvE extraction game about harvesting mats and DNA

Kickstarted sandbox Astrobotanica launches early access today as we await the planned co-op

‘We believe [Nightingale] has a future,’ Inflexion says as it adds crossplay and an 80% off sale

Co-op voxelbox Everwind outlines updates to combat, world generation, and monsters as it nears early access

NCsoft’s ‘time survival’ shooter Time Takers opens NA and SA signups for March 12 beta

Kickstarted multiplayer glamping sim Outbound finally has a cozy Steam demo

Soulframe’s game-changing character progression rework officially releases in latest pre-alpha build

Hytale’s latest early access patch adds animal taming and a new fire system

First Impressions: Witchspire has charming visuals and promise, but the demo is a bit rough

Animalkind is a soon-to-be multiplayer cozy open world of ‘building, exploration, and mech-powered antics’

MMO Hype Train: ArcheAge Chronicles, Chrono Odyssey, and dealing with MMORPG delays

Star Citizen discusses plans for variety and gameplay for industrialist gamers

Pantheon Rise of the Fallen divulges the lore details of February’s Nightfall Crypt delves

Fight or Kite: A closer look at Eldegarde’s Paladin and Wizard classes

Zombie MMO Persist Online introduces player-claimable resource nodes in its most recent major patch

Multiplayer OARPG Darkhaven opens its $500K Kickstarter drive and a pre-alpha demo

VR MMORPG Ilysia adds new areas and level cap as Steam player counts drop to single digits

Neverness to Everness promises smoother gameplay, better translation, and bug fixing as its multiplayer test wraps up

The Stream Team: A first look at Neverness to Everness in closed beta

We consider an MMO to be in open testing if it features free, public signups and will server wipe prior to launch. An MMO is marked in closed testing if it’s running a private test phase that cannot freely be accessed by the general public; it’s often under NDA as well. Early access and crowdfunded MMOs whose tests we deem legitimate will be included. So-called “open beta” soft-launch MMOs with cash shops, no sign of launch in the west, or limited interest for our readers will not be listed, nor will games that are NFT/blockchain scams; we also do not list expansions, with occasional exceptions. Finally, we’ll mark games “malingering” if they’ve been in a certain tier of development for a long time with no clear path to launch.

2XKO: Closed beta
33 Immortals: Early access
Abyss: Early access
The Adventurer’s Domain Online: Early access
Adrullan Online Adventures: Open alpha concluded
Aero Tales Online: Early access
Aloft: Early access
Anvil Empires: Intermittent alpha
Apogea: Open testing
Arcane Waters: Early access
Arcany: Early alpha
Arcfall: Pre-alpha
ARK 2: Paid early access
Arkheron: Closed beta
Ascendant: Open testing
Ashes of Creation: Early access, entire staff apparently laid off, in limbo
Ashfall: Closed beta
ASKA: Early access
Astrobotanica: Early access on February 16th, 2026
Battlebit: Early access
Bellatores: Closed testing, beta rolling out in South Korea
Bellwright: Early access, developers of abandoned Last Oasis
Bitcraft: Early access
Book of Travels: Early access
Brighter Shores: Early access
Camelot Unchained: Closed beta, early access planned???
Chronicles of Elyria: Pre-alpha, again
Chrono Odyssey: Closed beta, launch planned for 2027 after latest delays/revamps
Cinderstone Online: Closed beta
City of Titans: Alpha
Cloudheim: Early access
Coreborn: Nations of the Ultracore: Early access
Corepunk: Early access
Craftopia: Early access
The Crew Motorfest: Closed testing
Crosswind: Future testing events planned on Steam
Dark and Darker: Paid early access, legal troubles.
Dark and Light: Early access (abandoned?)
Darkbind: Closed beta (probably abandoned?)
Dawn of Defiance: Early access
Dragonwilds: Early access
Drakanatos: Closed test weekend through July 27th
Dreamworld: Pre-alpha, somehow promising a March 10th launch?
Dungeonborne: Early access
ECO: Early access, full launch planned in 2024
Echoes of Elysium: Early access
Eldramoor: Testing access for sale now, tests begin in March
Eleven: Closed alpha
Enshrouded: Early access
Equinox Homecoming: Early access on May 8th
Eternal Tombs: Pre-alpha resumes October 11th
Ethyrial: Echoes of Yore: Early access, 1.0 release planned for 2027
EVE Vanguard: Early access planned for summer 2026, open testing through October 2nd
Evercore Heroes: Ascension: Early access
Fellowship: Early access
Fractured: Conquest: Testing in 2026, full reboot of Fractured Online
FragPunk: Closed alpha, launch planned for March 6th
Frozen Flame: Early access
Havenhold: Closed beta
Homestead: Open alpha
Horizon: Hunter’s Gathering: First test planned for the end of February
Hytale: Early access
IfSunSets: Early access
Ilysia: Early access
Inferna: Early access
Kurtzpel: Closed beta
Legend of Ares: Open testing ahead of relaunch
Legendarium Online: Paid alpha access
Life is Feudal Arden: Open beta
Loftia: Still in testing
March of Giants: Closed alpha
Magic to Master: Somehow, Palpatine returned in early access
Marathon: Alpha testing
Monsters & Memories: Intermittent pre-alpha
Mortal Exodus: Closed testing
Neverness to Everness: Closed testing starts July 3rd
Nightingale: Early access
Nin Online: Early access
Odd Giants: Alpha
Osiris: New Dawn: Back from the dead, not on Steam any longer
Outbound: Alpha testing
Outlaws of the Old West: Early access
Palia: Paid “open” beta, planning for launch in Q2
Palworld: Early access
Pantheon: Early access
Past Fate: Early access
Path of Exile 2: Early access December 6th
Perfect New World: Closed beta
Petit Planet: Closed beta starting November 7th
Pioner: Early access
Pow Vista: Open beta (mobile)
Project Crawl: Closed testing
Project Friendship: Beta signups open now
Project Genom: Closed alpha (servers offline, abandoned?)
Project Loki: Closed beta
Project ST: Closed testing, open event ended
Prosperous Universe: Early access
Reaper Actual: Paid alpha
Return Alive: Closed beta
Rodent Rumble: Launching next year, playtest on October 11th
SamuTale: “Paid closed alpha early access” according to the developer, which is just early access, come on dude
Sand: Raiders of Sophie: Release planned Q1 2026
Scars of Honor: Next test October 26th
Sea of Remnants: In testing, multiplayer not available
Seed: In pre-release, test run starts October 24th
Seekers of Skyveil: Early access
Ships at Sea: Early access
Sky: Children of Light: Open early access
Skygard Arena: Early access
Smite 2: Open beta
Solarpunk: Closed multiplayer testing starting soon as of September
Soulframe: Founders pack for sale
Spacecraft: Alpha in the first half of 2025, might not be an MMORPG but it’s vague
The Spell Brigade: Early access
Spellfarers: Early access
Spirit Crossing: Closed alpha, launch in 2026
Star Citizen: Backer alpha
Starbase: Early access open alpha
Star Wrath: Closed beta
Stars Reach: Pre-alpha started
Steel Aces: Closed beta
Steel Hunters: Early access
Stormforge: Alpha testing through December 23rd
Synduality: Echo of Ada: Early access
Temtem Swarm: Early access
Tombstone: Closed testing, release planned for this year
Tower of Aghasba: Early access planned for November 19th
Tribes 3: Rivals: Early access, development slowing/stopping
Trimurti Online: Stress testing, open beta February 13th
Valheim: Early access
Valiance Online: Closed beta
Vaultbreakers: Week-long open test through February 16th, formerly known as Project F4E
Vindictus: Defying Fate: Test with multiplayer on June 8th
WalkScape: Closed beta until June 15th
Waven Early access
ZeroSpace: Back in closed testing.

We welcome additions and corrections to this list; send your info our way via tips!

Yes, MMO gamers, you too can perform the unpaid quality-control work otherwise known as game testing! Check out Massively Overpowered’s Betawatch every week for a run-down of MMOs that are still on the road to launch, even if they appear to have set up a permanent residence in a shed called early access.