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The Realm Online http://www.realmserver.com/ , though not as popular as EQ or WoW, still has it's cartoonish charm, PvE or PvP, ( You can switch your own PvP on or off, or just attack another PvP flagged player to turn it on ).
And last I knew, each player still had their own password protected house, with lock chests in the bedrooms, but you needed to get into the habit of typing /evict and using your see invisibility spell to make sure you weren't going to get robbed.

I return to The Realm every few years or so, it's such a neat trip down memory lane.. and I'm glad it's still there. And, every time I return, my trusty old characters are right there waiting for me.
Last time I'd played the max level was 1000. And it didn't come easy.

Gee.. Thanks guys... now I'm thinking it's time to renew my subscription.

Well, I guess it won't hurt to help keep a piece of history going !

Something along those lines that is still online (amazingly enough) is The Realm

The Gabriel Knight trilogy is by far my loved games.

Obviously, the first 3 X-COM games are worth mentioning. They were really awesome.

Sierra's The Realm, before it became Realm Online was a great game (version 2, mostly), which I spend countless hours playing

And last, but not least, Neverwinter Nights. Unfortunately, I don't have the spare time to play it these days, but I spend about 3 years online with this one.

The Realm Online was the first graphical MUDs not on a pay-per-minute service and it's still running. Meridian 59, perhaps the first first-person graphical MUD is back.

Plus you have all of the non-combat oriented MMOs. I'm sure EA's TSO is still there - a flop by EAs standards, but still a big game. EAs will continue to be a player I'm sure. Second Life, A Tale in the Desert, I'm sure there are many.

It's also worth noting that while NCSoft distributes many titles, they come from almost as may design studios. The number of large distributers may well dwindle, but that says nothing for the number of development groups.

Similar to Miridian, there is The Realm Online http://www.realmserver.com/ for $5.00 a month. Some feel that monthly fees are a horrible idea, but you get far more entertainment than renting a movie or going to a theater, which is almost the same price.

If you are looking for online gaming, there are a few smaller MMORPGs out there that have few controlls. There are several 2d ones out there that only require 4 directions, and left/right click.

Here are several of them:
Realm Online
http://www.realmserver.com/

Graal Online
http://www.graalonline.com/

Nexus: Kingdome of the winds
http://www.nexustk.com/
I am not sure the ease of use on all of them, but the first one in the list is point and click with turn based combat.

My own game, Meridian 59, was purchased from 3DO, the original publisher, when we started our company Near Death Studios, Inc. The game was one of the first modern online RPGs to be released in retail. It's never been as big as other online RPGs, but it's had a dedicated fanbase. We recently did an upgrade to the rendering engine, bringing the game to the world of 3D hardware acceleration.

Another smaller game that was saved from death is The Realm. It was purchased by a number of players and is still running today.

As I've posted before, most online games will never die. There are too many people committed to keeping them alive. It's good to see that Horizons will get a new lease on life and that the fans will continue to be able to enjoy the game.

Have fun,

The Realm Online Realmserver.com Is fairly interesting for the people who don't have time for making commitments of long periods of times. Granted the graphics are a little shabby especially if you are not into 2d graphics, but it's pretty cheap. Plus it is one of the first MMORPGs ever, created by Sierra, and before UO.

As for a game for the casual gamer. An online game is definately not the place. You cannot expect someone who can put in 5 hours a day in a game to be at the same level as someone who only has time for 5 hours a week.

I suppose that the 6 month notice is partly to the ability to purchase 6 months of game time. It seems like many EA games go down this road to failiure (I know a number of games done by EA that I could not stand). Compared to some MMOG currently in, 2 years really isn't that long. Just take a look at The Realm Online . It has been around since '96, or '97.

For casual Gaming, I've found that there is an older MMOG that allows decent play for little time. The Realm Online has combinations for it. With a huge expansion of levels, a level doesn't take too long to get, so a casual gamer can grab one or two and log for the day. Secondly, powerful weapons aren't extremely rare, but there are some rare ones. Logging when needed requires little effort, as does other aspects of the game. While a hardcore gamer may consider some of these flaws to a system, it helps balance out the feeling that casual gamers are out of place.

It featured, at the time, better graphics, more people playing and a great deal more innovations. Many latter MMORPG concepts were based off the ideas it pioneered.

Development began in 1995 and shortly thereafter Sierra bought the rights to it and began supporting it. It was developed at the same time as the legendary INN. It moved through several companies over the years, including AOL, Codemasters and now it is owned by a player run company, Norseman Games.

It is one of the longest running MMORPG out there, if not the longest. It still has a fairly large and extremely dedicated fan base.

Since it is under new management, a lot of things are changing. You can expect to see a LOT more about Realm in the coming months.

Check out www.realmserver.com for information and screenshots. The company is even offering a free month trial of the game.

It featured, at the time, better graphics, more people playing and a great deal more innovations. Many latter MMORPG concepts were based off the ideas it pioneered.

Development began in 1995 and shortly thereafter Sierra bought the rights to it and began supporting it. It was developed at the same time as the legendary INN. It moved through several companies over the years, including AOL, Codemasters and now it is owned by a player run company, Norseman Games.

It is one of the longest running MMORPG out there, if not the longest. It still has a fairly large and extremely dedicated fan base.

Since it is under new management, a lot of things are changing. You can expect to see a LOT more about Realm in the coming months.

Check out www.realmserver.com for information and screenshots. The company is even offering a free month trial of the game.

Plans call for massivly upgrading the game and starting to advertise it. Something that hasn't been done in almost 5 years. Expect free trial accounts to come out in the next month or two. Check in if you want to experience some good old classic MMORPG.

The Realm Online

Calmiche,

Naah I think He's talking about the Ring of Intelligence that you can find in the old Sierra Game "The Realm" .

ok I know that was uncalled for... but hey I'm still on my first cup o coffee