Down
time… the
dreaded bane of MMO (massively multiplayer online) players everywhere.
Inspiring more than a few snarky t-shirts, some curse words that are
sure to make a sailor blush, and perhaps even a few children along the
way, down time is an inevitability that every dedicated MMO player must
suffer through. Even gaming giants such as World of Warcraft are not
immune to this terror. Server crashes, weekly maintenance, and other
nasty things that take the player out of the game they love.
Down time is especially
frustrating when it happens on a night when you otherwise would be
spending quality time raiding with your fellow guild mates. While down
time may take you out of WoW, it doesn’t have to totally kill
your night of planned gaming fun. Instead you and your guild mates can
make use of your time and take on one of the free MMOs on the market.
This way you can still spend some quality time with your guild mates
while waiting for the WoW servers to come back up, without breaking the
bank with more subscription fees in the process.
Thanks to the explosion of the
free to play market, you will find more than a few free or at least
mostly free MMO options out there for your playing pleasure. Not sure
where to get started? Check out my top 5 (in no particular order)
personal favorite free MMOs that don’t suck.
Top 5 Free MMOs for WoW Players
The Lord
of the Rings Online
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href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/node/228406" target="_blank">width="245">
Newly free to play, The Lord of
the Rings Online can easily take the title of one of the best free MMOs
on the market. Players who choose this game as their secondary option
to WoW will find themselves drawn into a massive world full of lore
inspired by the epic Lord of the Rings book series by J.R.R. Tolkien.
With challenging combat, an inspired soundtrack, and graphics that are
sure to take your breath away every moment spent inside Middle-Earth
will be an experience you won’t regret. With player-owned
houses, a usual monster-play PvP system, as well as engaging raid
Turbine’s masterpiece is sure to make your time spent away
from WoW a captivating experience that will be sure to keep you from
counting the minutes till your server is available again. Just pay the
initial cost to purchase the game and the entire world will be at your
feet.
Play
now:
target="_blank">The Lord of the Rings Online
Dungeons
and Dragons
Online
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href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/node/69620" target="_blank">width="245">
While it never quite found the
audience needed to keep it afloat as a pay to play game and was
eventually switched over to a free to play model don’t let
that fool you into thinking that there is nothing exciting about
Dungeons and Dragons Online. Based on the classic Dungeons and Dragons
tabletop role playing game, this free MMO provides fast paced game play
with one of the industries best combat systems, excellent graphics, and
a massive world that provides hours of game play. With the power of
Turbine behind it and regular updates, Dungeons and Dragons Online, is
sure to grab and hold the attention of WoW players of all types and is
even better when you have a group of friends to adventure with. Be
warned though, that while the game has a lot going for it, it is still
victim to some of the same repetition that other games suffer from.
Play
now:
href="https://signup.ddo.com/ddo.php" target="_blank">Dungeons
and Dragons Online
Runes
of Magic
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href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/node/228407" target="_blank">width="245">
Ever wondered what a game would
look like if it took the best aspects of a ton of other games
(especially World of Warcraft), smashed them all together and presented
it for play? You need to wonder no longer as Runewaker Entertainment
has done just that with its free MMO; Runes of Magic. While this game
is typically dismissed as a total WoW clone, instead of an insult, this
should instead be viewed as a great compliment. Perhaps even raiding
the appeal for the discerning WoW player looking for a way to pass the
time while awaiting the reanimation of their server. While Runes of
Magic is surely similar to WoW, there are enough unique features, such
as its dual class system which allows you to choose two different
classes for your character while enjoying the skills of both, to leave
the game feeling unique in its own right. So if your looking for a free
MMO that can be compared to some of the best games in the genre, Runes
of Magic is it.
Play
now:
href="http://us.runesofmagic.com/us/" target="_blank">Runes
of Magic
Tailsman
Online
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href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/node/228408" target="_blank">width="245">
Tailsman Online is a 3D fantasy
free MMO that takes place in an oriental setting. With 5 distinctive
classes to choose from and an interface similar to that found inside
WoW, players waiting for their server to come online will feel right at
home in the world of Talisman. Inside this gaming world players will
spend the grand majority of their time either defeating monstrous foes
and interacting with other players inside the community. To add icing
to the cake, this free MMO hosts one of the best cash shop systems seen
thus far allowing players to trade cash shop bought items freely for
in-game currency. With tons of quests, pets, mounts, and the unique
equipment enhancing system, this fun, casual free MMO is a perfect
place for displaced WoW players to spend their time.
style="font-style: italic;">Play now:
style="font-style: italic;"
href="http://www.talismanonline.com/" target="_blank">Tailsman
Online
Free Realms
style="padding: 5px; float: right; width: 250px; text-align: center;"> href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/node/228405" target="_blank">width="245">
With Free Realms players will
enter a virtual online world where you can basically do whatever you
want, whenever you feel like it. The best part of this free MMO is that
you don’t have any downloading to do to play. Simply open up
your browser, create a character and begin your adventure. Sure, Free
realms might be targeted at children and it is a tad bit on the
cartoony side, but despite all this Free Realms is sure to grab your
attention and hold it, at least until your WoW server becomes
available. Full of mini-games, featherbrained quests, kart racing,
combined with an relaxed and loveable atmosphere you and your guild
mates are sure to find hours of enjoyment inside Free Realms. Be warned
though, that while Free Realms is free to download to play some
features of the game do require a purchase to unlock. However, enough
of the game is totally free that this free MMO easily keeps its spot on
my list.
Play
now:
target="_blank">Free Realms
Do you have some excellent free
(or mostly free) MMOs that you play while WoW is down? Be sure to share
them with us in the comments section below!
To read the latest guides, news, and features you can visit our World of Warcraft Game Page.
