# Alternatives to World of Warcraft that are fun & free(mium)? **URL:** \ **Category:** The Game Room\ **Created:** [October 4, 2009, 5:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alternatives-to-world-of-warcraft-that-are-fun-free-mium/512561 "2009-10-04T17:15:36Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Quartz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quartz/32/267_2.png) [@Quartz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quartz)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2009, 5:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alternatives-to-world-of-warcraft-that-are-fun-free-mium/512561/1 "2009-10-04T17:15:36Z")
I’ve left it very late, but I’m thinking of taking up something like World of Warcraft. But money is very tight, so it’s got to be free, at least to start with. I don’t mind advertising messages, and I don’t mind freemium games like Ikariam where paying players have a modest advantage. And it’s got to be one which doesn’t demand a lot of time. Or the latest ninja PC platform. But most of all it’s got to be fun. So give me your suggestions. ---
**Author:** ![DigitalC](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ebca7d/32.png) [@DigitalC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DigitalC)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2009, 5:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alternatives-to-world-of-warcraft-that-are-fun-free-mium/512561/2 "2009-10-04T17:21:59Z")
Guild wars is not free to buy but it has no monthly fee. You can probably pick it up on discount bin at this point. ---
**Author:** ![Trepa\_Mayfield](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/edb3f5/32.png) [@Trepa\_Mayfield](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Trepa_Mayfield)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2009, 5:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alternatives-to-world-of-warcraft-that-are-fun-free-mium/512561/3 "2009-10-04T17:25:30Z")
Try [Kindom of Loathing](http://www5.kingdomofloathing.com/login.php?loginid=6aa2834e13e2497395b1819c509e62d9). It’s completely free, has a great sense of humor, and I’m enjoying it so far. You can only do so much in one day, as well, so it’s not horribly addicting. And it’s all browser based, with only stick figures and such for art. ---
**Author:** ![Words\_on\_the\_Interweb](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/b19c9b/32.png) [@Words\_on\_the\_Interweb](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Words_on_the_Interweb)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2009, 7:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alternatives-to-world-of-warcraft-that-are-fun-free-mium/512561/4 "2009-10-04T19:12:04Z")
[Runes of Magic](http://www.runesofmagic.com/) is a very WoW-esque game that’s completely free to download and play. They use a pay-for-perks system in which you can use RL money to purchase in-game tokens to redeem for items like mounts, vanity armour, buff potions, and so on. You can also frequently find those tokens (“Diamonds”) for sale on the Auction House. They’ve recently added a new race and two new classes, complete with new starting area. The class system is interesting, in that you select a secondary class at level 10; you can then switch between those classes, with limited abilities from one class available to the other. The only downside is having to level the second class, but they do have alternative zones for doing so. I haven’t played it for a while, but there seems to be a lot of activity on the servers, even at lower levels, so grouping shouldn’t be a problem. The only thing I’d warn you away from is crafting; it’s a bit slow and costly, with little reward at the lower levels. ---
**Author:** ![Shig](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/13edae/32.png) [@Shig](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shig)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2009, 7:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alternatives-to-world-of-warcraft-that-are-fun-free-mium/512561/5 "2009-10-04T19:17:21Z")
America’s Army is completely free if you’re into multiplayer shooters. ---
**Author:** ![Bosstone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/22d042/32.png) [@Bosstone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bosstone)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2009, 8:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alternatives-to-world-of-warcraft-that-are-fun-free-mium/512561/6 "2009-10-04T20:29:22Z")
[Dungeons & Dragons Online](http://www.ddo.com/) just recently went freemium. There are some interface issues, but it’s not a bad game. You don’t need to be a D&D player to enjoy it, but it does help. ---
**Author:** ![Reply](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/reply/32/15952_2.png) [@Reply](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Reply)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2009, 8:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alternatives-to-world-of-warcraft-that-are-fun-free-mium/512561/7 "2009-10-04T20:36:33Z")
Seconding DDO. Been playing it nonstop since I downloaded the client a week ago. Great fun… if you can resist the temptation to buy completely unnecessary but utterly helpful things from the real money store. If you decide to try it out, I’ll be on the Thelanis server. ---
**Author:** ![Xan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/x/ac8455/32.png) [@Xan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Xan)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2009, 8:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alternatives-to-world-of-warcraft-that-are-fun-free-mium/512561/8 "2009-10-04T20:47:46Z")
> [@Reply](#): > > Seconding DDO. Been playing it nonstop since I downloaded the client a week ago. Great fun… if you can resist the temptation to buy completely unnecessary but utterly helpful things from the real money store. > > If you decide to try it out, I’ll be on the Thelanis server. Thirded. It takes quite a while to reach the first level cap at level 4. By the time you do reach that point you’ll have amassed enough free points to the online store to to raise it to 8. Plus you sometimes get leveling sigils as quest rewards. ---
**Author:** ![Broomstick](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/broomstick/32/246_2.png) [@Broomstick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Broomstick)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2009, 11:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alternatives-to-world-of-warcraft-that-are-fun-free-mium/512561/9 "2009-10-04T23:22:03Z")
I play _Guild Wars_ as my alternate on-line game. I don’t enjoy it as much as _World of Warcraft_ in some respects but I enjoy it enough play it alongside WoW. There is a [free trial](http://www.guildwars.com/freetrial/) available so you can try it before you buy it. Free trials for various games might be a way to check them out prior to signing on. ---
**Author:** ![Attack\_from\_the\_3rd\_dimension](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/b38774/32.png) [@Attack\_from\_the\_3rd\_dimension](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Attack_from_the_3rd_dimension)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2009, 11:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alternatives-to-world-of-warcraft-that-are-fun-free-mium/512561/10 "2009-10-04T23:49:28Z")
Oddly, this is apparently the only place on the web without an Evony ad. ---
**Author:** ![Raza](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/raza/32/213_2.png) [@Raza](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Raza)\ **Post date:** [October 5, 2009, 2:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alternatives-to-world-of-warcraft-that-are-fun-free-mium/512561/11 "2009-10-05T14:48:29Z")
Double-oddly, I just came in to ask if anyone is playing Evony. I’m on server 80, about 4 days in to the game. It seems like a prettier Travian, but without the end-game. ---
**Author:** ![Bosstone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/22d042/32.png) [@Bosstone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bosstone)\ **Post date:** [October 5, 2009, 2:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alternatives-to-world-of-warcraft-that-are-fun-free-mium/512561/12 "2009-10-05T14:54:52Z")
> [@Raza](#): > > Double-oddly, I just came in to ask if anyone is playing Evony. I’m on server 80, about 4 days in to the game. It seems like a prettier Travian, but without the end-game. I wouldn’t go near Evony if you paid me to. The company is about as sleazy as you can get, being gold farmers in other games, and the ‘free’ aspect of the game is a joke (last I heard, in order to even chat with other players you had to _pay per message_). But I guess if you enjoy it, more power to you. ---
**Author:** ![Raza](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/raza/32/213_2.png) [@Raza](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Raza)\ **Post date:** [October 5, 2009, 3:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alternatives-to-world-of-warcraft-that-are-fun-free-mium/512561/13 "2009-10-05T15:30:33Z")
I waited a bit before replying, but it really sounds like you’re questioning my integrity. I didn’t run a background check on the company before I signed up; it just seemed fun. If you have a link to information about the company, I’d be interested in reviewing it. ---
**Author:** ![Bosstone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/22d042/32.png) [@Bosstone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bosstone)\ **Post date:** [October 5, 2009, 3:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alternatives-to-world-of-warcraft-that-are-fun-free-mium/512561/14 "2009-10-05T15:36:13Z")
No, I’m not being sarcastic or anything. If you are enjoying the game, that’s cool. I am surprised there’s anything to enjoy, but I honestly didn’t mean to question your personal integrity, only the game’s. If you are interested, though, [this is one of the articles](http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/gamesblog/2009/jul/15/games-evony-spam-internet) I came across that made me decide to stay far away from Evony. ---
**Author:** ![aruvqan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aruvqan/32/2891_2.png) [@aruvqan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aruvqan)\ **Post date:** [October 5, 2009, 4:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alternatives-to-world-of-warcraft-that-are-fun-free-mium/512561/15 "2009-10-05T16:46:53Z")
Runes of Magic is seconded, I have a couple characters on one server, but have recently gotten back into playing Eve online when I can manage to stay awake [medication issues, major suck] and Aion [the beta was a blast, so I am giving it a whirl] My roomie plays Travian, and enjoys it a lot. If you want someone who can teach you the ins and outs, let me know and Ill introduce you to her. She is good at teaching people to play. Actually, there are a couple other free WoWesque games out there, I tried a few last spring but didnt like them as they were tooo pink unicorn and pony japanese school girly for my taste. I believe that they actually were either japanese or korean. If you are interested I can try to remember what they were [I think one was Luna or something like that] ---
**Author:** ![Nava](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/da6949/32.png) [@Nava](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nava)\ **Post date:** [October 5, 2009, 4:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alternatives-to-world-of-warcraft-that-are-fun-free-mium/512561/16 "2009-10-05T16:52:30Z")
> [@Words\_on\_the\_Interweb](#): > > [Runes of Magic](http://www.runesofmagic.com/) is a very WoW-esque game that’s completely free to download and play. They use a pay-for-perks system in which you can use RL money to purchase in-game tokens to redeem for items like mounts, vanity armour, buff potions, and so on. You can also frequently find those tokens (“Diamonds”) for sale on the Auction House. It’s quite nice. I usually don’t last more than one week on any “new” game (new to me that is) but I’m hopping along nicely in that one. The worst gripe I have is that server maintenance is on Tuesday mornings and let me tell you, it’s needed! On Mondays it can be impossible to log in at any decent speed. Oh, it’s a German company so sometimes the English is kind’a funny. ---
**Author:** ![Captain\_Awesome](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/a698b9/32.png) [@Captain\_Awesome](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Captain_Awesome)\ **Post date:** [October 5, 2009, 5:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alternatives-to-world-of-warcraft-that-are-fun-free-mium/512561/17 "2009-10-05T17:04:09Z")
[Dungeon Runners](http://www.dungeonrunners.com/) is just such a game. Free, casually oriented, not crippling for older computers or hard drive space. Alas however, despite garnering good reviews it never really gained enough players to make it viable (though the community itself is pretty good), so it’ll be shutting down at the start of next year, but I’d still recommend it for a couple of months. ---
**Author:** ![Quartz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quartz/32/267_2.png) [@Quartz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quartz)\ **Post date:** [October 5, 2009, 10:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alternatives-to-world-of-warcraft-that-are-fun-free-mium/512561/18 "2009-10-05T22:29:49Z")
I’m not particularly interested in Travian - for that sort of play I play Ikariam. I’m currently downloading DDO, and then I’ll download RoM. Ironically, **Nava** ’s comments about RoM don’t put me off because I don’t have any time to play on Mondays. ---
**Author:** ![Harmonious\_Discord](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/74df32/32.png) [@Harmonious\_Discord](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Harmonious_Discord)\ **Post date:** [October 5, 2009, 10:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alternatives-to-world-of-warcraft-that-are-fun-free-mium/512561/19 "2009-10-05T22:43:51Z")
[SAGA](http://www.playsaga.com/) is a good free game for a while. A cheap amount paid at anytime gets you all the features turned on. I’ve been with them for a while and they try to do things to get people to play more. I’ve received free cards (troops and spells) and had the accounts upgraded to full membership for free. They sent free tokens for the tournaments recently, which I haven’t used. Amount spent by me $0.🙂 It fits my budget and is fun. I’ve just been playing other stuff for a few months. I’m looking into D&D right now. Bye. ---
**Author:** ![Spectralist](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@Spectralist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spectralist)\ **Post date:** [October 6, 2009, 8:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alternatives-to-world-of-warcraft-that-are-fun-free-mium/512561/20 "2009-10-06T08:07:57Z")
I’ve not played Dungeons and Dragons Online since it went free to play/micropay but it was by far the best MMO out there when I played it and probably still is. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alternatives-to-world-of-warcraft-that-are-fun-free-mium/512561.md?page=2)