There Are An Awful Lot Of F2P MMOs

Something that intrigues me is the utterly astonishing number of MMOs out there at the moment, each boasting vast player bases, that no one I know has ever played. Every day I stare in wonder at how many are managing to co-exist, intrigued to know what they offer, but never able to will myself past the first identical screenshot. So below I've compiled together the MMOs you may not be familiar with that have put out a press release on GamesPress in the last couple of weeks. I stress, just the last two weeks.

CrimeCraft
Dev: Vogster Entertainment

Combines an action shooter with RPG to make a F2P MMO set in a gang-infested near-future metropolis. Episodic content updates get players excited. Off to a good start, I think, with this neither being about fairies, nor anime.

Florensia
Pub: burda:ic

It's a "maritime fantasy" F2P MMO, with twelve classes and home-made ships. They're having a screenshot contest this weekend. It's very anime.

Mytheon
Dev: UTV True Games Interactive

Now entering its closed beta, Mytheon is an action-strategy MMO. In it you fight back against the gods of Greece and Egypt using magical relics given to them by the Fates.

Pockie Ninja
Dev: NGames

Yesterday this anime-themed MMO revealed "deep item synthesis system and intense World Tournaments." It's all about being a ninja, fighting baddies who turn innocent cuddly creatures into puppet warriors!

Rumble Fighter
Pub: OGPlanet

Well I'll be, it's an anime-themed MMO. They've just announced a new Guild System for their "casual action fighting game" that's been going since August 2007, and has over a million players in the West. The new content means they'll be holding quarterly tournaments with prizes.

War Of Legends
Pub: Jagex

This one distinguishes itself as an MMORTS, and is naturally free to play. It's browser-based, based around Chinese mythology, letting you command armies and rule empires. To celebrate the Chinese New Year for two weeks they're giving away items to players worth actual cash money.

Vindictus
Pub: Nexon

Vindictus is an MMO that defiantly doesn't explain what it's about anywhere on its website that I can find. It's apparently adding lots of content to celebrate Valentine's Day. I'm going to guess that you hit people and craft new hats. It is of course free to play.

Remnant Knights
Pub: GameSamba

Blow me down, Remnant Knights is a F2P anime-inspired MMO! But the hook here is it's story is written by Jim Krueger. Ancient evil, last line of defence, etc. It's closed beta has just begun,

Line Of Defense
Dev: 3000AD

Tee hee, I'm only including this to see if I can make Derek explode.

Priston Tale 2: The Second Enigma
Pub: Game Bridger Entertainment

Making a change from Western publishers trying to shove the name of the Eastern developer down the back of the sofa, this game comes from Turkey. Not a hotbed of gaming. Count this among the very many closed betas you could apply for of late. The evil Midranda has ruined the continent of Priston with baddies, whom you must battle. It will be, of course, free to play.

Kitsu Saga
Pub: Aeria Games

A press release is filed about this free to play, anime-themed, combat and crafting MMO, because it's raised its level cap to 70. In this one you have fox spirits. That's how you tell it apart.

TLBB
Pub: ChangYou.com

The least pronounceable MMO of all time, this one will shock you to your socks with its anime style. Its press release is utterly unfathomable, discussing the "upcoming climax of the ‘Keh Clan Saga’ as the Keh make their final gambit and send assassins to infiltrate the Imperial city to try and strike a killing blow deep in the Emperor’s ancient beating heart."

AIKA Global
Dev: T3 Entertainment

Let me talk you through this one. It's a Korean MMO, with distinctly anime themes, in which you fight in armies of up to 1000. It's releasing the news that it too is raising its level cap to 70. But what I like best about this one appears on the game's Features page: "We've removed the irrelevant aspects!"

Atlantica Online
Pub: NDoors

A strategic turn-based MMO, the game's already won me over for being different. Although it does quickly sound familiar in terms of narrative, with a new dungeon being added and words like, "It’s here in the Angkor Wat caverns that the Naga Clan stowed all of their earthly treasure."

KungFu Legend
Pub: BL Interactive

I'm assuming this is an MMO. The press release says that it's entering it's final closed beta, and nothing else, although it sure is anime themed. But its utterly impenetrable website offers no hints.

Dreamland Online
Pub: IGG

A side-scrolling 3D MMO - but stay calm, it's of an anime style - in which players fight to defeat the Evil Fog from ruining the fairytale land, from a publisher that says it currently has 8,000,000 subscribers across its games. Of which they have seven others currently in open beta. They're mentioning it because it has some... soundtrack samples? Really?

LOCO – Land of Chaos Online
Pub: burda:ic

Another game from the impossibly colonned publisher, this one is a "Tactical Online Action RPG". They've redesigned the lobby of their "unique" combination of RPG, action and RTS.

ARGO Online
Pub: burda:ic

Why, it's burda:ic again! At this point I'm having to check I'm not repeating games from earlier in the list, so identical are the graphics and websites. World War 4 in the 23rd century has caused some problems in this MMO due out in Spring. It features the main resource, Earthdium. Someone outdid Avatar.

Silkroad Online
Pub: Joymax

Their website doesn't work in Chrome, and honestly I'm just too far beyond the point of wanting to find out if it's anime themed to bother finding Firefox... Oh no I looked at a screenshot.

Grand Mer
Pub: Redbana

I mentioned this one on the site last week, because it is just so utterly brilliant. It's a fishing MMO, and right now I fucking love it because it's not a bloody anime combat crafting game set in a world of warring factions and magical gods.

2029 Online
Pub: IGG

I honestly thought this would be funny when I set out writing it. Now it's 1am, I've drunk too much rum, and I'm still on Tuesday of last week. There's still Monday to go, and still they come. I think this one's RTS, and it's definitely science fiction. That'll do.

Runes Of Magic
Dev: Runewaker

I'm beginning to wonder if these names are being generated by one of those PERL-script random name generators that were popular on the internet in 1999. War Of Chaos. Lands Of Turmoil. Runes Of Magic. Although this is a good news story - they've raised money for the Queensland floods, what with this being apparently the first MMO to have dedicated servers in Australia. Players purchased 413 mounts and raised $2,478, which is great. The game, it says, redefined the standards for free to play MMOs. Other than that, at this point in the evening it's indistinguishable from the others.

And that's it. There were others, too. Seven hundred a fifty million press releases for a couple of others came out, but I've become so used to glazing over those names from their appearance in my inbox at least once or twice a day that I found I couldn't see them here either. My eyes hurt. I can't tell one from the other any more. I'm in an irrationally bad mood. It's no commentary on the quality of any of the games. Any of them may be utterly brilliant.

So if you want some free to play MMOs to fill your evening, goodness ME, there's a lot of them. Every two weeks.