EVE Online is certainly unusual among MMOs. In the staggering ten years it’s been running, the spacefaring sandbox has consistently grown in popularity. Yet Icelandic developer CCP shows no signs of slowing down, releasing Retribution – the game’s 18th expansion, planning a 10th anniversary FanFest and launching shooter Dust 514 on PlayStation 3 later this year.

For executive producer Jon Lander, part of that long-lasting success comes down to the basic concept of the game he leads. “I really struggle calling EVE a game. Certainly I, and a lot of the original developers, and the developers we have now, we all think of this as a massively multiplayer virtual world.” He continued “When you approach it from that angle, you realize that the important things in the real world aren’t necessarily games. The things which make a world meaningful are generally social interactions, and the evolution of history which can then affect the actions of the present.”

As we spoke just after Christmas, Lander went on to explain why his team don’t want to be the focal point for EVE’s stories. “If you play a game, and you play the imagination of somebody else, you’re playing through a single player game. I used to play a lot of the Splinter Cell games, and then I was playing a story which had actually come out of a developer’s head. I wasn’t playing my story – I sort of had to imprint myself on that.”

DC Universe Online promises to have quite a year ahead.

Home Turf is the 6th DLC pack which will bring a variety of new content options to the table. Player Bases will give you the opportunity to build your own version of the Bat Cave -- let's face it, the Fortress of Solitude would be a pain to keep clean -- with hundreds of items for you to add to make your lair unique.

Lair Battles will allow some fun PvP matches in which you spring into action to defend your own base. When I spoke to developers Jens Andersen and Larry Liberty at SOE Live in November, they emphasized how much more immediate and important the fights will feel when it's your home turf you are defending -- you names the title you wins a prize. You'll even be able to bust up your opponent's abode. Fun, fun.

Sequels are hard: everyone brings expectations to a sequel to a best-loved game. Even more ambitious is a sequel that was designed from the start to forge its own ground. Set 500 years in the future from the original EverQuest, EverQuest II has managed to embrace the lore, creatures and nostalgia of Norrath-that-was while moving down its own path and maintaining a separate identity from its predecessor.

Desert of Flames

In Desert of Flames we rediscovered the Desert of Ro. At this time good and evil factions were still held separate, and the Sinking Sands became the meeting place for people crossing faction lines for business or pleasure. The contested city of Maj'Dul gave faction meaning and djinn, orcs, and undead vied for our attention while we herded beetles. The level cap was raised to 60.

The legendary Cow Level in Diablo does not exist. Oh no it doesn't.

Players have searched for it high and low, even in Diablo III, but what they found was something entirely...different.

2012 was an odd year in gaming.

Thanks to EmiLo1337.

For the other Games of Christmas, just click below:

11 Laden Hulks

10 Lords a Leaping (over a tall building in a single bound)

9 EQ2 Expansions

7 AD Carries

6 Emo Sha

5 Gold Rings (and one to rule them all...)

4 Character Paths

3 Warring Factions

2 Angry Charr

And UO in a Pear Tree

League of Legends has come a long way in just a year. Riot's little bundle has shot up in popularity especially during the boost Penny Arcade gave them back in 2011, and cruising the wave has done well for them. And I don't just mean becoming the biggest online game in the world – they've gotten their champion kits tighter. Each update has gone over better they've listened to player complaints and their server issues (like the horrible week-long outage from days far gone) have almost vanished. Memory lane, let me walk along you.

World of Warcraft had a lot to prove this year.

The biggest MMO on the market, the gorilla in the room, seemed to be on the wane as Cataclysm proved to be a disappontment for many players in its lack of endgame content.

Blizzard's faith in Mists of Pandaria paid off, with even cynics admitting that it was possibly the best expansion since Burning Crusade and WoW's subscriber numbers rebounding healthily -- though it's not like they were ever in the toilet, let's face it.

For the fifth Game of Christmas how could it be any game other than the most famous gold ring of Lord of the Rings Online?

It has been a big year for LOTRO, with Riders of Rohan bringing added scope to the already impressive game.

If there's one thing that makes WildStar unique, it's attitude. It exudes from every design aspect, from the short and snappy quest dialogue to character and monster animation. It's apparent in every blast of news from Carbine Studios, like the morally dubious Protostar Corporation. This is a game that's screaming to be unleashed, as if boldly declaring that I'll be kicking ass from the moment I land on Nexus. And with beta anticipated early in 2013, I'm already drooling in anticipation.

We chose WildStar to represent the fourth day of Christmas because of a unique feature: Paths. While there are some of us that spend hours tweaking a character's appearance, and choosing a name and class, the Path asks us to select one of four distinct play styles. The Explorer is interested in finding hidden pathways to secret areas, while the Scientist is focused on unlocking the mysteries of Nexus. The Settler is concerned with bolstering villages and outposts, while the Soldier generally wants to kill things.

The Path system is loosely based around the Bartle Test of Gamer Psychology, which attempts to classify players from the aspects of online gaming we find most appealing. While most MMOs include content for the various Bartle categories, WildStar is the first that intends to tailor the leveling experience to our preferences. If Carbine manages to pull it off, the result will be an MMO that's more in tune with our individual likes than any other out there.

PlanetSide 2 landed with the concussive force of a drop pod late in 2012 and has garnered a series of accolades, including ZAM's FPS of the Year.

With a devilishly addictive mix of first person shooter bravado and no small amount of tactical depth, SOE has a bona fide hit on its hands.

As our third Game of Christmas, ZAM has partnered up with SOE to bring you a snazzy giveaway to aid your adventures across Auraxis. To get a chance to at a $10 Station Cash card, simply hop into PlanetSide 2 and take the best screenshot you can come up with.

It could be of some of the majestic vistas available on the continents of Esamir, Indar or Amerish. It could be a screenie of you performing a death defying stunt, or perhaps proof of an impressive feat of military prowess?

Whatever you choose, just send your screenshot to me at shawkes@zam.com and -- after due deliberation -- I will select the winners and send the SC card codes via email.

Good luck and good hunting!

11 Laden Hulks

10 Lords a Leaping (over a tall building in a single bound)

9 EQ2 Expansions

8 Maids a Milking

7 AD Carries

6 Emo Sha

5 Gold Rings (and one to rule them all...)

4 Character Paths

3 Warring Factions

2 Angry Charr

And UO in a Pear Tree

Scott "Jarimor" Hawkes, Editor in Chief

The anticipation for the launch of Guild Wars 2 was intense and, after the disappointment caused by other recent MMOs, cynicism was rife.

The game’s different slant on the three faction PvP approach? Hype.

A successful move away from the holy trinity of roles in MMOs? More hype.

The best looking MMO to land in years? You get the drift.