The Massively Multiplayer Online Role-Playing Game genre epitomizes what gaming is all about — escaping reality to live vicariously through a character in a fictional world. MMORPG games offer players the chance to customize a character, letting them become whoever they chose as they traverse a world set in the past, the future, alternative realities, or fantasy universes. Unlike most games, MMORPGs aren’t just solely filled with AI and NPCs, but real people who can often be spoken to, traded with, or even fought.
The once niche genre exploded into mainstream media in 2004 when Blizzard Entertainment released World of Warcraft. The iconic game saw the popularity of MMORPGs surge, consequently resulting in an influx of new games looking to cash in. These games are often fighting an uphill battle upon release, as they are constantly compared to the classic World of Warcraft. Because of this, many excellent games have received lackluster Metascores that didn’t fairly reflect how good they actually were.
10 Neverwinter (74, 66)
Neverwinter may not have been the most innovative game, but Cryptic Studios’ Dungeons & Dragons title nailed the core mechanics of an MMORPG.
The game had excellent combat mechanics and deep customization options that made it deserving of a higher Metascore than 74 on PC and PS4, and 66 on Xbox One.
9 Black Desert Online (73)
The Korean MMORPG Black Desert Online‘s 73 PC Metascore doesn’t do it justice. The game isn’t without its issues, the interface, in particular, deservedly docks it several score points. But the sandbox MMORPG offers players one of the most immersive virtual life experiences in the genre with an impressive weather mechanic and day & night cycle.
8 EverQuest II (83)
EverQuest II takes a significant time jump from its predecessor EverQuest of half a millennium. The game received a respectable Metascore of 83, but it deserved better for its incredible range of quests, even in the vanilla game, as well as a deep range of customization options.
The game has impressively received at least one expansion every year since its November 2004 release. Sony Online Entertainment recently announced the latest expansion that will be coming later in 2020, Reign of Shadows.
7 Guild Wars (89)
Guild Wars received an excellent Metascore of 89, but it deserved to land in the 90s. The game made the risky decision to ditch the subscription model than was popular with MMORPGs at the time, and in turn, revolutionalized the free-to-play model that is thriving in gaming today.
Guild Wars received a sequel in 2012, seven years after its initial release. The second game marginally outscored its predecessor’s Metascore with a score of 90.
6 The Lord of the Rings Online: Shadows of Angmar (86)
An MMORPG set in Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings universe almost sounded too good to be true. However, Turbine and Midway Games turned the dream into a reality in 2007 with The Lord of the Ring Online: Shadows of Angmar.
Thankfully, the game didn’t disappoint, exemplified by its 86 Metascore. It could have reached the elusive 90 mark though, as the game not only implemented an incredible iteration of Middle-Earth for players to explore, but it was an excellent MMORPG in its own right. The game’s development has changed hands since its initial release from Turbine to Standing Stone Games.
5 The Secret World (74, 76)
Funcom and EA’s The Secret World differentiates itself from the others on this list as it is set in the modern-day. The game had an excellent, unsettlingly effective horror setting that was accompanied by fantastic narrative writing and lore that sucked players into the game’s world.
The Secret World received a Metascore of 74. The 2012 game was re-launched in 2017 under the name Secret World Legends which achieved a score of 76.
4 EVE Online (69)
EVE Online is the lowest scoring entry on this list at 69, yet it has one of the most remarkably vast scales of any game in the MMORPG genre. All players co-exist in the same futuristic, sci-fi universe as they traverse the open space and explore thousands of star systems.
The vast game-world would be pointless without anything to do in it though. Thankfully, there are tons of ventures for players to indulge in such as mining, trading, and both PVE & PVP combat.
3 DC Universe Online (67 – 75)
Dimensional Ink Games’ DC Universe Online lets players live out their fantasy of becoming a superhero or villain. The sheer number of customization options is great, the combat is quintessential comic book fun, and both Gotham City and Metropolis are excellently designed.
Despite this, the game received lackluster Metascores between 67 and 75 across its four releases.
2 Dungeons & Dragons Online: Stormreach (74)
The iconic fantasy tabletop role-playing game burst onto the MMORPG scene in 2006. Similarly to The Lord of the Rings Online, the game has changed development hands from Turbine to Standing Stone Games since its initial release.
Dungeons & Dragons Online wasn’t just a quick cash-in on the D&D IP. The game has a visually excellent game-world that does justice to its source material, and engrossing combat mechanics that rival any game in the genre. The game received a Metascore of 74.
1 World of Warcraft (93)
The grandaddy of MMORPG’s scored a whopping 93 on Metacritic upon release, which may make it seem like an odd choice for this list, but it deserved to hit the 95 mark at minimum. A two-point difference may not sound like much, but it’s the difference between games that are among the most revered of all time, and games that are undoubtedly excellent but nowhere near as iconic as World of Warcraft. For example, The Legend of Zelda: Majora’s Mask, The Last of Us, and Halo 2 all received 95, whereas Mass Effect 3, SSX, and NFL 2K3 were all scored at 93.
The game has received numerous expansion packs since its release, most recently Shadowlands in November 2020. Unconventionally, Blizzard released a version of the game titled World of Warcraft Classic, which removed the many expansions and bought gamers back to the nostalgic vanilla state.
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