The MMOs That Rose or Fell During World of Warcraft’s Reign

Kotaku has put together a feature that profiles well over a dozen MMORPGs that have launched, shut down, or both since World of Warcraft’s launch in November of 2004. A few doozies:

The Matrix Online: Backed by Warner Brothers and Sega, this was one of those can’t-miss MMOs based not just a popular fiction but a fiction that was all about people jacking into another reality. This was also the rare movie-spin-off video game that was considered canon. The game blinked out this past summer, putting the entire franchise on hold, I believe.
Born: 3/05. Died: 8/09

Auto Assault: The development studio that made this game is making a Lego MMO now, so don’t feel too bad for the folks at NetDevil. I remember being impressed with the pitch for Auto Assault. Other MMOs would make you a character. In this one you could be a car, because, well, playing as a car could lead to fun gameplay. I regret never having tried it once it went live. Crecente had theorized that the game was just too different from its MMO peers.
Born: 4/06. Died: 8/07

Tabula Rasa: This MMO, overseen by Ultima Online creator Richard Garriott, flamed out quickly, hounded by complaints that it just wasn’t much fun. At least the sci-fi game was stamped out by giant robots.
Born: 2/07. Died: 2/09