At the Steam Next Fest 2025, MMORPG fans can try the dungeon co-op game Fellowship for the first time. MeinMMO has already taken a look and reveals what to expect.
While new MMORPGs are keeping us waiting in 2025, Fellowship arrives as a contender that offers the endgame from the genre as a standalone co-op game. Instead of a boring leveling phase and rescuing the miller’s daughter from the clutches of ruthless bandits, you jump straight into dungeon adventure with Fellowship.
If you want, you can try the Multiplayer Online Dungeon Adventure (short: MODA) for yourself at the Steam Next Fest and will be in a dungeon just 10 minutes after starting.
Here you can watch the new trailer for Fellowship:
Dungeons ready to be conquered
I tried Fellowship for the first time last year with the developers from Chief Rebel and was also invited to the closed beta afterwards. A lot of time has passed since then, and much has changed in Fellowship.
The first step into the dungeon is always forming a group. Instead of a group finder from the early days of MMORPGs, Fellowship’s matchmaking system now quickly assigns us suitable players.
Before that, we have to choose our desired dungeon, the difficulty level, and possible additional effects at the mission table. These additional effects are called “Curses and Ascensions” and provide extra challenges for the dungeons, such as a meteor storm that keeps us on our toes throughout the dungeon.
Choosing between Quick-Play and Ranked-Play is also important.
- In Quick-Play, we play against only one boss for 10–15 minutes, which is great for beginners and a quick round in the evening.
- In Ranked-Play, the dungeon lasts about 30–40 minutes, and you will face 3 bosses, monsters, and additional challenges.
What caught my eye during the play session with the developers right at the first group of monsters was the improved visibility and the new effects displayed on the screen when in combat. As an experienced MMORPG player, I immediately notice without looking at my ice mage’s feet that I am standing in a void.
While Fellowship felt somewhat clunky last time, the gameplay has changed, and I feel like I always have something to do in combat even with my beginner character.
Rethinking the bosses
Since the last test, there has been a small identity shift in boss battles. Previously, players had limited influence over individual bosses through the difficulty level. Only the surrounding environment changed significantly. Now, a higher difficulty level unlocks new mechanics for the bosses and enhances old ones.
At the beginner level, you can also ignore interrupting enemy abilities, but it will become mandatory later. The same goes for the voids where you could initially dip your feet, but later you’d prefer not to spend a second in.
Not only does the damage of the bosses increase with the difficulty level, but also new abilities of the boss enemy are unlocked and old ones are upgraded.
A big hook
Unlike a classic theme-park MMORPG, Fellowship does not rely on classes like warrior, archer, or mage to implement the holy trinity system. Instead, Fellowship has heroes that fill these roles.
However, we cannot play our own hero as we envision with customization options, as there is a complete lack of a character editor. Instead, we can choose from 6 different heroes at the start, who not only provide insights into their backstory and skills but also indicate how difficult they are to play.
The character’s appearance changes through obtaining equipment or by purchasing skins as microtransactions when MODA is released. However, what never changes is the character’s appearance under the dazzling armor. You can see the difference here:
Endgame and progression
As an MMORPG player, I always think about how the endgame loop can keep me engaged. The developers have made significant changes since the last hands-on. Players can now farm gems that unlock additional effects for the character.
This makes visiting simpler dungeons with friends worthwhile, because even if the equipment of the bosses depends on the difficulty level, there are always gems as a reward.
The better the character becomes, the easier it is to handle in dungeons. The developers mentioned in the discussion that a character wearing equipment from high dungeons can effortlessly assist friends in low dungeons.
In the endgame, the devs also want to promote competitive gameplay and provide timers that allow players to compete in speedruns. In the conversation, the developers showed openness to e-sports in Fellowship, but they believe it must grow from the community. During the last playtest, there were already groups competing against each other.
Are dungeons enough?
Many players wish for a new, big MMORPG. Fellowship has the potential to provide just that – especially for gamers who want to explore some dungeons casually in the evening. Thanks to customizable difficulty levels, they can find the right balance between challenge and fairness.
This strength was evident again during the initial play. Although my last dungeon in Fellowship was months ago, everything felt familiar right away. The mechanics were intuitive, and even the one-shot attack of a boss was understood after the first wipe. The wipe also triggered a learning effect reminiscent of the campaign of Path of Exile 2.
What I miss in MODA are raids or dungeons for eight players. While the developers do not rule these out and are already considering how they could be integrated into the game, they made it clear in our conversation that the effort involved is significant. Therefore, they do not want to take this step for the early access release on Steam yet.
Fellowship can be played and streamed for the first time by all interested parties and fans at the Steam Next Fest 2025 from February 24 at 7:00 PM to March 3 at 7:00 PM. Alongside many new systems that have been added, players will also be able to play the melee hero Tariq for the first time.
Otherwise, you can expect the holy trinity of tank, healer, and damage dealer, each represented by two heroes. Fellowship aims to launch in early access on Steam in 2025. This could almost fit on the list of MeinMMO editor Karsten: Which MMOs are rocking 2025? 6 games I’m particularly looking forward to
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