Best Free to Play MMO

[Unesh52]

I've never played an mmo before (I've always been a little frightened of WoW), but I have a sudden desire. My laptop also has pretty low end graphics capabilities, if that's an important factor in this. Which game do you think would make me like those kinds of games the most?

By the way, I know I'm asking for advice technically, but do you think I'd be better off in game discussion?

 

[NeedAUserName]

It depends how low end you mean, I mean Runescape is a pretty decent MMO and I imagine almost any computer built in the last 10 years can run that. But my computer (a Mac) is about 5 years old and can normally handle WoW (apart from at certain major lag times, but everyone is struck by them in some respect).

 

[Orcboyphil]

Wait a few months and Champions Online goews free.

 

[Jamboxdotcom]

keep in mind that most f2p MMOs will end up costing you more than a subscription based MMO. but, that being said, i'm enjoying Vindictus a lot right now, and their business model doesn't seem as skeevy as most.

 

[j0hnnycash]

Do micro transaction games count as "free." DDO is really good and I am growing fond of Dynasty Warriors online.

 

[Jamboxdotcom]

Do micro transaction games count as "free." DDO is really good and I am growing fond of Dynasty Warriors online.

all (to my knowledge) f2p mmos are based on micro transactions of some sort. they typically sell you various upgrades or unlock features.

 

[GothmogII]

Best? Well, I'd say try Lord of the Rings Online or Dungeons and Dragons Online, mainly because they're previously big production type MMORPG's that only later went free because of lack of consumer interest, and as such seem to be of much higher quality than MMO's specifically created to be f2p.

However, the 'freeness' seems only to extend to a certain level of content, with LOTRO for example, you get most of the original content with the free download and can play as much as you want, but if you want the additional classes and world content, you'll need to pay to gain access to the expansions and such.

 

[Jamboxdotcom]

i'd avoid LotRO. it was a great game before it went f2p, but the stuff they make you pay for now is insane. stuff like fast travel, and even mail service, if i remember correctly. and if you actually pay for all those upgrades (which aren't one-time upgrades, they're monthly) you will actually pay more per month to play the game than you used to when it was subscription based.

 

[jackpipsam]

DDO

however if you wish to go old school you can try Anarchy Online

 

[wammnebu]

they can be pretty dull, i thought champions online was cool though, so if your willing to wait for that to go ftp, then do so.

If not...anarchy online?

 

[Erana]

Fiesta's a great, light MMORPG. Four arcetypal classes, simple profession system and a good community. Its got the instance experience like WoW that a lot of F2P MMORPGs lack.
It was my first real MMO, and honestly, other games got REALLY boring in the race-to-the-cap. This one wasn't half as bad as others. I generally recommend it as a good first MMORPG. There are crunchier games out there if its not complex enough for you.

There's also Perfect World, but I found that to be an overwhelming, "Meh." Good to experience it once- just make a wingelf priest and fly around the continent, at least.

 

[Deleted]

Here's what I think are the best.

Requires you to buy the game (no subscription except for xbox live):
Phantasy Star Online - A space themed MMO that is a classic done right. You make your character and go on missions (for the combat). From shotguns to daggers to spears to wands, your human, beastman, elf, or MECHMAN can dungeon run in groups and fight huge bosses. Of course there's also more things to do. Solid game.

Allegedly Free:
maplestory - I'm sure you know about this game already. I used to play it back when it had 4 classes and it was incredibly long to level up and the game was 90% "pressing ctrl". Though my brother still plays and from what I've seen its changed a lot for the better.
Dungeon Fighter - don't know much about it but I've seen friends play. Looks cool, its basically a dungeon fighter like double dragon. Also there's PVP.

Allegedly third person shooter:
S4 League - not really an MMO but worth mentioning since you can buy weapons and clothes and you have a regular character. Its a shooting game that has skills you can use along with your 3 weapons. Custom loadout so that means custom classes. Weapons come in guns, melees, magic (lightning connects you and your target so you can heal or drain), and sentries (deployable stationary devices). One thing I should note is that weapons are bought with in-game currency acquired by performing well in rounds (u gotta win). This money is used to rent weapons and clothes, so you may not like it that much. I think you can buy permanent weapons with real-life cash though

 

[Siuki]

Do you like TPS?

*Reads caption on Youtube video* Damn, that would've been awesome. No Japanese version though? I hear Gundam's pretty popular over there.

OT: Operation 7, if the MMO is an FPS. Sure the voice acting makes you cringe, but the gameplay is solid enough. Also, Crossfire is kind of like a free Counter-Strike.

If it's RPGs you're looking for, grab Champions Online or DDO.

 

[IrradiatedFish]

I will second the people who mentioned Vindictus and RuneScape.

Though I haven't played RuneScape in over a year or so, when I was playing it, I certainly got a lot out of it (an embarrassingly large amount out of it in fact) .Come to think of it though, I ended up subscribing because of how addicting I found it - so I suppose I'm not overly qualified to give an un-biased opinion on its free-to-play version.

I just got into Vindictus about 2 weeks ago, and I must say I'm very much enjoying it so far. It's quite different than most MMO's I have played, and in that case it's proven to be a good thing. However, Vindictus may be too much for a low end laptop to handle (but then again, you never gave us specifics about its capabilities).

 

[Unesh52]

Ok, I just managed to get Vindictus running on my computer. It was looking really promising throughout the prologue, but the HUD is confusing (though that may just be the fact that it's an MMO and I'm not used to it, or computer games in general). Then I got into a mission with some other guys and started lagging like a bow-legged retard at a track meet. I was trying to access the help thing a bit later, and the whole thing crashed on me.

I'm skeptical about my ability to have fun with this. I've also already downloaded DDO, so I guess I'll at least try it.

 

[deth2munkies]

LotRO or DDO, Turbine has their shit together when it comes to F2P. I like LotRO atm, but DDO was extremely enjoyable for a time.

 

[Tsunimo]

Guild Wars is amazing, however it depends on how 'low end' your graphics capabilities are.

 

[Veldaroth]

I never really liked the gameplay of World of Warcraft,but if you like controls where you mainly move your character around with the wsad keys, try Allods Online: http://allods.gpotato.com/news/

Otherwise, my favorite game will always be Rohan Online. You control your character by clicking on the ground where you want to move, as apposed to the wsad keys. http://www.playrohan.com/

Allods has prettier backgrounds and landscapes, so it might be a bit of a strain on your computer. Rohan has nicer character designs, but is easier on the computer.
Also, Allods is quest based, meaning that in order to level up you have to do quests. Rohan has quests as well, but not as many so you'll gain most of your xp by grinding. I definitely recommend partying