While World of Warcraft gets a lot of press, it’s hardly the only popular MMORPG on the market right now. There are tons of games in the genre, many of which pull in players, with monthly averages measured in the tens and hundreds of thousands. There are clearly a lot of people playing these games, and WoW is only one of them. We took a look at the 20 most popular MMOs available now (excluding WoW) to come up with the five best games from various sub-genres. They’re not ranked; they’re listed alphabetically, but each was chosen based on critics’ reviews, playability, and current player counts.
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1) Eve Online
Eve Online launched in 2003 and has been running ever since as “The #1 free space MMORPG.” It consists of 7,800 explorable star systems where players can engage in activities such as combat, manufacturing, piracy, and more. Eve Online’s scale is immense, even for a genre described as “massive,” and it has received numerous updates over the years to keep its content fresh. Eve Online even scored a board game spin-off, and it boasts an average player count of around 30,000 per month with as many as ten times that amount in active subscribers.
2) Final Fantasy XIV
Square Enix released Final Fantasy XIV in 2010 as an MMORPG, and it utterly bombed. After three years of redevelopment, the game found its way online once more, and it became a massive hit. It has since been ported to every major console, PCs, and MacOS, allowing players to explore the rich lore-filled world. Despite its troubled beginnings, Final Fantasy XIV is the most-played game in the franchise, with more than 24 million subscribers. The game has been updated with expansion packs since its release, and averages over 30,000 players each month.
3) Guild Wars 2
Guild Wars 2 is a free-to-play game set in the fantasy world of Tyria. Its plot continues the story that began in 2005’s Guild Wars, and ends with the End of Dragons expansion for Guild Wars 2, released in 2023. It is the fourth in the franchise, and features an immersive story that sets it apart from most titles in the genre. Instead of traditional quest paths, players are presented with an event system that lets them tackle quests in various ways. Guild Wars 2 did incredibly well upon its 2012 release and continues to attract plenty of players, averaging over 50,000 active users.
4) Old School RuneScape
The original RuneScape was a hugely successful MMORPG released in 2001 and remained popular for several years. As the franchise continued, Old School RuneScape was developed as a revamped version of the original and was released in 2013 with enhancements, overall improvements, and additional content, much of which was incorporated via in-game polling. It soon became the most popular version of any RuneScape game, and there’s even a mobile version that’s equally as popular. Old School RuneScape is played by an incredibly high number of people, amassing an average count in excess of 190,000.
5) Star Wars: The Old Republic
BioWare developed Star Wars: The Old Republic before Disney acquired the franchise, making it one of the few video games to continue under new leadership. It features a story set during the Old Republic, when the Sith Empire and the Galactic Republic faced off. The game features eight classes, including Jedi and Sith, and features a morality system that leans towards the dark and light sides of the Force. It remains popular among Star Wars and MMORPG fans and brought in a lot of cash upon its release. These days, it continues to attract players, with around 20,000 active users each month.
What’s your go-to MMORPG? Leave a comment below and join the conversation now in the ComicBook Forum!
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