MMOs or Massive Multiplayer Online games have come a long way since originating in the Wild West of MUD and PLATO. However, despite their progress, many modern fans long for something outside the usual World of Warcraft model – something more immersive that can truly be called a digital world.
Over the last few decades, the genre has seen its fair share of both experimentation and innovation, yet many fans think the industry currently exists in a valley of repetition and commodification. However, some of the best the genre has to offer breaks the mold to create a world worth "living" in.
10 Ultima Online Was One Of The First AND Best
While the title of World's First (Graphical) MMO technically goes to 1991's Neverwinter Nights, it was 1997's Ultima Online that truly brought the genre to the forefront of the market. Based on the best-selling RPG series Ultima by famed designer Richard Lord British Garriott, the MMO saw players from around the world participate as champions in the fictional lands of Felucca, Trammel, and many more. The game focused on maximum player freedom, much like the RPG series it stemmed from, and as such, led to a treasure trove of stories and tales of heroes, villains, and economic disasters.
9 EverQuest Provides Some Early 00s Nostalgia
EverQuest is beloved by younger millennials. For many, it was their first MMORPG. While the game has its fair share of sequels and updates, it's the original that allows the most player agency and immersion. Speaking of sequels, the release of EverQuest 2 would be one of many early genre learning curves that would lead to the game's eventual downfall. Despite that, it's still up and running, with both official and private servers allowing players to relive their time battling it out in one of the best games ever made.
8 Star Trek Online Asks What Players Need With A Starship
"What does God need with a starship"? Those were the immortally cheesy words uttered by James T. Kirk in Star Trek V: The Final Frontier when met with a mysterious entity masquerading as the big G upstairs. While the use of a personal spaceship is debatable for an omnipotent deity, Cryptic Studios Star Trek Online more than answers that question for the more corporeally inclined.
Initially criticized for being too action-packed for a series focused on diplomacy and negotiation, the 2010 title saw players sit in the big chair with their own custom bridge, officers, and ships. While the narrative has little player choice, the aesthetics abound with options. Whether making one's friends as their bridge crew or trying to create the perfect Grand Admiral Thrawn for their tactical captain, STO proves the true final frontier is the range of one's phaser banks.
7 Final Fantasy XIV Is All About Glamour
The shoes of the beloved Final Fantasy XI were big to fill. When Final Fantasy XIV was first released, it failed to fill them and then some. Thankfully, after years of updates, the game has gone from industry laughing stock to WoW threatening titan. While it does function in the age-old system of "go to place; kill thing; level up; go to new place," it also features a plethora of unique content ranging from minigames, events, player-driven communities, and fashion shows. Glamour is a system in the game by which players can customize their appearance, and since its insertion into the world of Eorzea, it has been a major selling point.
6 EVE Online Gives Users The Ultimate Capitalist Nightmare
If being space Elon Musk is one's dream, EVE Online is there to provide. For all the aspiring Ferengi in the world, EVE gives players their own tools to become a true monopolistic power in the galaxy. Jokes aside, EVE is an amazing game that allows dramatic player freedom and agency to an extent few others can contend with. Wars – where literal real-world thousands of dollars have been lost – are nothing new to the longstanding universe. One of the most expensive listed damages into the hundreds of thousands of dollars. However, that shouldn't intimidate anyone. There's always the chance a new player might be the one to go from zero to hero.
5 World of Warcraft (Classic) Is A Given, But For A Reason
World of Warcraft is a played-out copy-and-paste model for the industry, but the game earned that right. While modern WoW is bleeding players faster than the DPS of a Demonology Warlock, the classic release of the game has maintained a somewhat stable community who love and adore what they see as the Golden Years of the franchise. While Blizzard and Activision seem fairly unredeemable today, they used to be some of the best and most well-respected creators in the industry. Most already know WoW is an option, but it earned that popularity and shouldn't be discounted out of hand... except for when its creators abuse their staff.
4 Champions Online Still Beats Out DCUO
Long ago in the ancient time of 2004, there lived a beloved MMO titled City of Heroes. It granted players a deep customization system that allowed them to not just make the millionth Deadpool the game had seen that day, but a Deadpool that in some inevitably small way showed some part of the player who made them. Then CoH died.
Champions Online was touted as a return to the heydays of the mid-00s with wild customization and fun tongue-in-cheek storytelling that allowed players to create everything from their power set to their arch-nemesis. Champions Online has become heavily monetized as of late, but compared to fellow superhero MMO DC Universe Online, it's (at least in terms of role-playing) no contest.
3 RuneScape May Be Old School, But It's Everywhere
Like Doom or Skyrim, the original "Old School" edition of RuneScape has been ported to nearly every device imaginable. While not the most engaging or immersive MMOs on its own, playing the mobile version while watching something is a great way to waste time. There are ancient and massive role-playing communities as well as plenty of helpful players willing to net newcomers their finest cape. Just don't trust ALL the players. With a game this old, some people have gotten very good at rigging the system. Just don't give any gold offering a thousand in return.
2 Guild Wars 2 Lets Players Wage Massive Battles
As the name implies, Guild Wars 2 is all about community. Rather than single-player gofer quests like WoW, Guild Wars relies on multi-player events that anyone and everyone can attend. Forming bonds and creating massive guilds is literally the name of the game. While not boasting deep customization on the same level as STO or Champions Online, it still provides a solid way for players to create themselves, their ideal self, or Deadpool. It also has, arguably, the best combat out of any MMO on this list, which makes the usual grind more enjoyable.
1 Star Wars Galaxies Took Users On Their First Steps
Star Wars: The Old Republic is a great MMO with a wonderful player base and a fantastic level of storytelling most others can't compete with. However, what one can't do is play as a Wookie dancer earning tips at the Mos Eisley Cantina. Star Wars Galaxies was a truly community-driven experience where healing, repairs, and shopping were all handled, not by idle NPCs, but by other players who decided to spec into a crafter or performer skill rather than a run and gun style of gameplay. That all changed when WoW hit the scene, and after several massive patches, the game was barely recognizable as what it once was. Despite being dead, there's been a boom in private servers emulating any kind of Galaxies experience a player could want. With over 1000 regular players on the most popular, it's almost like things have come back from the 00s. Now, if only City of Heroes could get the same treatment.