The MMORPG industry is booming in 2021 with new releases and updates to well-loved games. MMOs definitely took a swing upward during the pandemic, with people locked inside resulting in trends like Among Us and Fall Guys occurring. Among those players was an up in traffic to MMORPGs, with players lifting a sword once forgotten in a cave and returning to aid in battle.
If you’re looking for a game that you can really sink your teeth into, read on for our picks of the best MMORPGs released in 2021.
World of Warcraft: Shadowlands
World of Warcraft has only gone from strength to strength since the first orc lifted a club and grinded its way to warrior from killing sheep. Since then, there have been countless updates, great advancements in graphics and a reputation bolstered by the unfortunately popular South Park episode.
Site traffic checker after checker will report a steady influx of players since its release in 2004 which is reflected in its 17th place ranking of top websites in the world and that should only continue after the release of its latest expansion.
Shadowlands was launched in November 2020, technically, but has become such a highly regarded part of the World of Warcraft history that it deserves a mention in 2021. Transporting players to Warcraft’s version of the afterlife, Shadowlands sees players navigate four new factions that each offer their own rewards, abilities, and activities as well as 10 new dungeons and five new zones.
It has garnered positive reviews from players, renewing a sense of excitement in the Middle Earth-inspired lands of faeries and dragons.
Eve Online
From orcs and rolling hills to devious tech and vast planets, Eve offers an online experience amongst the stars. The space-themed epic is a cold story of betrayal, mining, economics, and spaceship battles.
The developer gives a hands-off approach, allowing for a very player-driven experience, with wars that can last weeks, or even months after years of plotting and sabotage to bring corporations down.
The challenging game features strategies of handling ships that could result in huge losses, sometimes as much as thousands of dollars in real world value, PvP and PvE battles that can be crushing and immense and characters that can choose their own paths from options like war, politics, piracy, trading and exploration.
Elder Scrolls Online
World of Warcraft’s closest console competitor, The Elder Scrolls Online remains one of the best role-playing games with its lore-driven world and abstract characters keeping players coming back.
In the 1,000 years before the events of Skyrim, and eight centuries before Morrowind and Oblivion, The Elder Scrolls serves as the prequel to The Elder Scrolls franchise. You start, as Scrolls tradition would dictate, as a prisoner. Once you escape you are free to explore the lands of Tamriel. With monsters to battle, dungeons to explore and ongoing planned and released DLC packages, something will always keep you entertained in this land of swords and spells.
The game’s latest expansion, Blackwood, offers a deep and expansive story to go along with your exploration of a vast region and offers elements like trial and world events.
Star Trek Online
Another, much lighter, space epic, Star Trek Online offers a healthy dose of nostalgia with its new MMORPG. Don your red shirt and board the USS Enterprise to explore where no man has gone before.
Lead a team you’ve built as captain to various planets like Risa and practice your diplomacy or get into tactical battles that play out in real time with Cardassians, Borg, Romulans and other creatures causing havoc.
The compelling story of the expansive universe is constantly being updated with new storylines and activities so it should tide you over until the next season of Star Trek: Discovery.
Final Fantasy XIV: A Realm Reborn
Final Fantasy XIV: A Realm Reborn is a name worthy of the game. After a rocky start in which Square Enix were prompted into firing an old team and starting over with a new one, they have succeeded in making an amazing game that will stick with you for years.
All the things most loved about Final Fantasy are here in this iteration: good and evil epic narratives, gorgeous and varied environments, over the top characters and chocobos everywhere.
A new take on combat sees you gain the ability to switch between eight combat classes with the swap of a weapon after gaining level 10, allowing players to try out other roles without the need to create alternative avatars.
New races, jobs and instances are available with The Shadowbringers expansion, alongside a large chunk of story and a level cap increase and upcoming patch “Vows of Virtue, Deeds of Cruelty” will introduce raids to the game and allow you to revisit previous quests with your high-level characters.
