RuneScape

[Morreion]

Runescape Re-Review (MMORPG.com)

For many gamers, the mention of Runescape conjures an image low graphics, tedious skill leveling, and a young community (IE: immature players). However, for those of us who have remained loyal to Runescape over the years, the game represents much more: a community which influences new features through content polls and feedback. Seasonal events which are humorous and novel, reliable, quality updates to both the mechanics of the game and the world in which we play.

Runescape is one of the few games on the market which has gone through a complete overhaul, essentially creating a sequel with which players could transfer current characters without starting over. The transition of moving everyone from Runescape (now referred to as Runescape Classic) to this new version of the game allowed for many improvements; graphic upgrades, changes to interface, and the elimination of certain in-game requirements (such as sleeping). The original version of Runescape is still accessible, for any players seeking a nostalgic escape.

Rating: 7 Average

Pros
Community-Driven Events
Frequest Updates
Good Value
Seasonal Events
Skill Based Play
Cons
No Group Play
Poor PvP System

[Morreion]

Rise and Shiny recap: RuneScape (Massively)

First, what is RuneScape? Well, it's a deceptively simple browser-based game from Jagex. The game has been around for many years and was started by two brothers. I imagine that they never dreamed the game would grow to the size it had; it's currently the "largest free mmorpg in the world," according to the Guinness Book of World Records. Pretty amazing, especially when you consider not only the age of the game but the fact that it plays within a browser.

The Game Archaeologist and the Forbidden RuneScape: The highlights (Massively)

Since its 2001 beta release, RuneScape forged a path to greatness in a decidedly old-school way. What few MMOs were on the market back then typically had big name publishers behind them, yet RuneScape was whipped up by a pair of British brothers -- Andrew and Paul Gower -- who put the beta out on the net with little marketing or fanfare. Proving the adage that a solid game trumps a crappy game with good publicity, RuneScape took off exponentially as word-of-mouth spread.

156 million accounts had been created by 2009.

The Game Archaeologist and the Forbidden RuneScape: Words with Paul Gower (Massively)

Interview with Paul Gower, co-creator of RuneScape.

When we launched the game we hoped it would be fully supported through advertising, but unfortunately the advertising bubble burst fairly soon, so we opted to release the membership version. After the first week we had over 5,000 people sign up, which we were delighted by. Since then we have continued to develop and expand both versions of the game. We were one of the first to use the free-to-play and subscription model, and it has worked very well both for us and for our players.

The Game Archaeologist and the Forbidden RuneScape: The R-Team (Massively)

These quests were enjoyable to play out, not because of the "phat lewts" but because there was a story to progress. I didn't infiltrate the cult that was trying to summon the demon Agrith Naar because of the 10,000 exp in any combat skill reward -- I did it because they were trying to summon the demon Agrith Naar! These quests were always entertaining, sometimes dramatic, and occasionally downright hilarious. I never got a single laugh out of a quest in my two years of WoW, yet many quests in RuneScape had me howling in my chair.

Jagex offering fans a chance to shape the future of RuneScape (Massively)

"We have released a host of new content which provides a comparable PvP experience to the old Wilderness, and mechanics to allow increased trade limits with long term friends but we are still regularly told by players that they want more. We want to find out whether the passionate voices we hear on this topic are truly representative of entire community or just a vocal minority."