Nothing is worse than waiting for a game that is nowhere near close to being ready. It is a nightmare of cruel proportions. Yet, here we are, existing at a time when the genre of MMORPGs seems heavily weighted to what is on the horizon than what we have available to play right now. Sure, WildStar just went free to play and next month will see the release of an anticipated expansion pack or two, but by and large the things we're really itching to see won't be available until next year, after the winter. Now is the winter of our discontent. So, because I like putting salt on the wound, I've gone and rounded up some of the most exciting upcoming MMORPGs so that we can all gather and whine together. Some of these might not be your cup of tea, and I'm sure I've left out one or two that you're excited for, which means you'll just have to whine louder than the rest of us! But here they are, in no particular order, some of our most anticipated releases.

Guild Wars 2: Heart of Thorns

Guild Wars 2 is finally getting an expansion pack, one that really looks like it might totally redefine the whole Guild Wars experience. After all, ArenaNet is so confident that this new expansion will only grow the game that they've decided to give away Guild Wars 2 for free. That's a bold move, we'll have to see how it pans out.

Heart of Thorns is arriving very soon with a pretty heft feature list. Along with a new region of the world, known as the Heart of Maguuma (which is really separate zones in the same area) there is also a whole host of new things to look forward to. Chiefly among them is the new profession, the Revenant, which has been tearing up the latest trailers while tempting World of Warcraft fans into abandoning their attempts to wait until the new Warcraft expansion introduces Demon Hunters. Revenants look awesome. Beyond that, one can expect each and every profession to unlock a new Mastery which will provide even more options for building your character.

Oh yeah, and how could we forget about Guild Halls? They combine everything Guild Wars 2 does well, like PVP, while finally giving the game a chance to actually live up to its namesake. I mean, name aside, guilds weren't all that important to Guild Wars 2 until now.

With Heart of Thorns so close to launching that we can already smell the cut grass, this one is definitely riding high on our list of upcoming MMORPGs.

Albion Online

You know what I can never get enough of? Sandbox MMORPGs. They are the best, and the world deserves more of them. Which is why I'm really excited for Albion Online to hopefully make its way to us at some point next year. There is a closed beta scheduled for November that you can buy into if you just can't wait—which might very well be the case.

Albion Online sports a shiny player driven economy and an online experience that tosses out rigid class structures to focus more on adapting to how you want to play. In Albion Online, you're only as good as the armor you wear. There's also a huge progression tree to work through that helps steer your time in the game that will give completionists nightmares.

Developed in Unity, the free-to-play Albion certainly looks like it draws inspiration from Runescape, but I find the visuals incredibly charming and inviting. Oh, and the fact that when you die in certain zones you drop everything really adds to that charm. Seriously. I'm excited for that.

But what really has my interest piqued regarding Albion Online is how the game intends to release for mobile platforms. Not too many MMORPGs can be played from the iPad, and the ones that can are often better not spoken of. Having Albion Online, a presumably cool experience, could be a real big game changer. Also I'm lazy and playing an MMORPG from bed sounds like heaven.

Tom Clancy's The Division

Ah, The Division, the one game on this list that I have to wonder if it's going to completely squander all of its potential. I actually got a chance to go hands on with The Division at this year's PAX Prime, and while I didn't have to scoop my jaw off the floor, the game did handle well. That said, I also didn't do or see anything that I haven't seen a million times before, but the blame is more on the nature of the demo itself.

That said, The Division remains so high up on our list because of its compelling premise. Destiny certainly dropped the ball with merging shooting and emergent online gameplay, and there is definitely room for The Division to swoop in and save the day. Or it could fall flat on its face. The jury is still out.

Regardless, a post apocalyptic near-future