''Wurm Online'' is a 3D massively multiplayer online video game (MMO) developed by Code Club AB (formerly Onetofree AB and Mojang Specifications AB) in Motala, Sweden. Development started in 2003 by friends Rolf Jansson and

Markus Persson Markus Alexej Persson ( , ; born 1 June 1979), known by the pseudonym Notch, is a Swedish video game programmer and Video game designer, designer. He is the creator of ''Minecraft'', which is the List of best-selling video games, best-selling ...

, and was released for

personal computer A personal computer, commonly referred to as PC or computer, is a computer designed for individual use. It is typically used for tasks such as Word processor, word processing, web browser, internet browsing, email, multimedia playback, and PC ...

s using

Java Java is one of the Greater Sunda Islands in Indonesia. It is bordered by the Indian Ocean to the south and the Java Sea (a part of Pacific Ocean) to the north. With a population of 156.9 million people (including Madura) in mid 2024, proje ...

in 2006. Both

player versus player Player versus player (PvP) is a type of multiplayer interactive conflict within a game between human players. This is often compared to player versus environment (PvE), in which the game itself controls its players' opponents and is usually of ...

and realm versus realm combat are possible in the game.

Gameplay

''Wurm Online'' is a

sandbox A sandbox is a sandpit, a wide, shallow playground construction to hold sand, often made of wood or plastic. Sandbox or sand box may also refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media * Sandbox (band), a Canadian rock music group * Sandbox (Gu ...

MMO game. The world of Wurm is a medieval-style fantasy setting. It consists of over a dozen persistent servers, either PvE or PvP. Travel between server islands is done by crossing the surrounding oceans by ship, or by teleportation via portal. The servers' terrain and landscape is changeable by players, who can lower and raise the land, change biomes and vegetation, and more. Aside from a few pre-made starter towns and a minimal amount of NPCs, everything on the originally wild-natured servers is built and managed by players: settlements, infrastructure, the economy and social interaction. The game has no character classes but over a hundred skills players can freely use and train, among them crafting and fighting skills; only characters that become priests accept restrictions in return for magical abilities. Players can use a detailed and expansive crafting system to build everything from equipment to houses to decorations. This encourages specialization and trade, where players can co-operate with each other to achieve goals and complete projects. ''Wurm Online'' is free-to-play, with a skill cap that is suspended with a paid subscription ("premium time"), payable in real-world or in-game currency ("silvers", which can be acquired in-game or bought). Players can rent land from the game for in-game currency, which offers full control and protection of the deeded land.

Development

''Wurm'' is developed in

and uses

OpenGL OpenGL (Open Graphics Library) is a Language-independent specification, cross-language, cross-platform application programming interface (API) for rendering 2D computer graphics, 2D and 3D computer graphics, 3D vector graphics. The API is typic ...

for rendering the game. The development of the game was started by Rolf Jansson and Notch. ''Wurm'' first started its

Beta Beta (, ; uppercase , lowercase , or cursive ; or ) is the second letter of the Greek alphabet. In the system of Greek numerals, it has a value of 2. In Ancient Greek, beta represented the voiced bilabial plosive . In Modern Greek, it represe ...

stage in 2003 and had its official release in 2006. In 2007, Markus Persson left the company. When asked if ''Wurm'' would shut down due to his resignation, Markus said "''Wurms not going anywhere". In 2008, the main developer began publishing a blog. In 2011, the main developer hired their first paid employee, a client developer. This was later followed by a lead artist being hired by the developer, resulting in a total of two known employees as of July 2011. The game was officially released in 2012. In October 2015, a standalone version of ''Wurm Online'', known as ''Wurm Unlimited'', was released on

Steam Steam is water vapor, often mixed with air or an aerosol of liquid water droplets. This may occur due to evaporation or due to boiling, where heat is applied until water reaches the enthalpy of vaporization. Saturated or superheated steam is inv ...

as an alternative payment method, having a one time fee rather than having a limited free trial and monthly fee, and is played on player-run servers instead of the main official servers. In 2020, ''Wurm Online'' was also added to Steam, and introduced four new official servers.

Reception

'' Massively.com'' has, since 2012, begun regularly featuring ''Wurm'', often doing live streams of the game and regularly posting news updates about ''Wurm''. Massively have often praised ''Wurm'' for its no-limit freedom and for truly being a "sandbox" MMO with many different skills and abilities, criticizing only the "maintenance mode" that occurs when maintaining a (large) deed/village. ''Tisthammer'' examined it in a "First Impressions" review. The distant landscapes were highlighted for their photographic quality, and the main appeal was seen in the interactivity of the world, but overall, it failed to keep the reviewer's attention, feeling that

MUD Mud (, or Middle Dutch) is loam, silt or clay mixed with water. Mud is usually formed after rainfall or near water sources. Ancient mud deposits hardened over geological time to form sedimentary rock such as shale or mudstone (generally cal ...

-style text-based combat has been eclipsed by modern MMORPGs. A ''

PC Gamer ''PC Gamer'' is a magazine and website founded in the United Kingdom in 1993 devoted to PC gaming and published monthly by Future plc. The magazine has several regional editions, with the UK and US editions becoming the best selling PC games m ...

'' review after the official release was critical, with a score of 68%, citing the time commitment required as well as the lack of creativity in what a player could accomplish. Christopher Steele of ''Topfreemmorpg.net'' praised ''Wurm Online''s gameplay and noted that it provides a true challenge to the players. ''MMO Sandboxes'' reviewer Crescent Wolf described it as a "true sandbox title".

References

External links

* * The Wurm Online wiki: {{Markus Persson 2006 video games Browser games Java platform games Linux games macOS games Windows games Indie games Massively multiplayer online role-playing games Video games designed by Markus Persson Video games developed in Sweden

Gameplay

Development

Reception

References

Further reading

External links