MMORPGs from days past, like Everquest and the original release of World of Warcraft, survive still today not because of their gameplay mechanics, but for their nostalgia value. When the genre was first getting popular, MMORPGs were all the rage for their social systems, but lackluster game mechanics stopped all but the most dedicated players from staying online.
MMORPGs in modern times still have some issues, but in general, they are a far sight better than their '90s and 2000's predecessors. While MMORPGs still put a lot of focus on the grind, they are generally much more fun nowadays, in part because the teams behind them have learned not to rely on unsatisfying tropes that saturate the genre.
Updated April 29, 2022 by Erik Petrovich: MMORPGs have been a staple of the PC gaming environment since the very early days, but that doesn't mean gamers want to stay in those early days. People look back fondly on memories of early MMOs like Everquest, but most of those memories are experienced through rose-tinted glasses. MMOs wouldn't still exist if it wasn't for much-needed updates to the fundamentals of these games. Nowadays, not having features like interactive environments, exciting and involved combat, and unique visuals that don't over sexualize women make a game feel very dated. In 2022, MMOs are better than they've ever been on a technical level, especially considering how drawn-out and sparse games in this genre used to be.
12 Worlds That Never Change
One of the major downsides to playing MMOs, at least back in the day, was that the world was almost completely static. Until a DLC or an expansion is released, players could expect to see the same NPCs in the exact same surroundings sometimes for years on end.
In more recent MMOs, including Elder Scrolls Online and even World of Warcraft, the environment constantly changes depending on a player's progression through the zone. You can see this even in World of Warcraft starting zones, like the Human zone, and as late as Legion content where entire mountainsides disappear to create new areas.
11 Lord of the Rings-Inspired Elves Only
A problem with a lot of fantasy post-Lord of the Rings is that it is almost entirely dependent upon its depictions of Dwarves and Elves. Dwarves are now almost exclusively represented as short, portly miners who have giant beards and are masters of the forge. Elves are almost always tall, elegant, magically-attuned, and foster disdain towards "lesser" races.
Recent MMOs have tried to move away from these very overdone stereotypes, but it is still a trope seen in too much fantasy media to this day. World of Warcraft of course has the Druidic Night Elves, but they also have the Blood/High Elves who fall right into this trope again. One good example of an MMO breaking this stereotype is Final Fantasy XIV, which uses the Elezen as a placeholder for the classic Elf race and does much to differentiate them.
10 Low XP From Questing
Questing in the first MMORPGs used to be a lengthy, often unrewarding process. Quests were repetitive, usually either "go here" or "kill this," and tedious escort quests were commonplace. XP from questing usually barely outpaced killing monsters, too.
In modern MMORPGs, like the recently released Shadowlands expansion for World of Warcraft, questing is a much more fun process. Modern MMORPGs have a huge variety of quest types, too, that go far beyond simply slaying X number of creatures.
9 A Drawn-Out Leveling Process
Getting to the maximum level in Everquest or reaching the skill ceiling in Eve Online takes many players months, if not years, of effort. Players returning to World of Warcraft: Classic are sometimes surprised by just how long it took to reach level 60.
Most MMORPGs nowadays have moved away from having long leveling processes, instead most focus on retaining players once they get to max level with end-game content.
8 Boring Combat Mechanics
Combat in old MMORPGs was extremely simple, without much in the way of tactics beyond pressing the right button on the keyboard. Runescape was particularly bad for this, as combat in the game is more determined by chance than skill.
Modern MMORPGs have added a lot of factors to consider in a fight, which forces players to think more tactically. Guild Wars 2, for example, focuses heavily on movement in combat and gives players the ability to roll and dodge in a fight.
7 Obtuse Crafting Systems
Gathering materials and crafting items in some of the first MMORPGs was incredibly time-consuming. Not only did it cost exorbitant amounts of time and money to gather rare materials, crafting the best gear often required players to undergo extremely tedious side quests first.
Crafting in modern MMORPGs like The Elder Scrolls Online is a profitable, useful pastime. The improvement to gathering and social elements of modern MMORPGs makes finding materials more rewarding than before.
6 Female Armor That Serves No Defensive Function
A common trope present in countless older games is the over-sexualization of female characters, particularly with armor that serves no defensive purpose. Steel plate bikinis, revealing chainmail, and figure-outlining cloth armor were all too commonplace, though some modern games like Tera Online still give women skimpier versions of the same armor male characters use.
Modern MMORPGs like Star Wars: The Old Republic do a far better job than older MMORPGs of representing women, particularly because women make up a much larger part of the gaming industry than ever before. Sternum-shattering chest armor is out, and proud, properly protected warrior women are in.
5 Uninspired Or Cliche Narratives
One can't create a fully-developed interactive world without taking some inspiration from other media. Storylines, quests, and dialogue in older MMORPGs were often not written by professional storytellers – most of the time, developers took on the task.
With MMORPGs becoming more popular than ever before, the job of writing narratives is now given to script and story writers. Games like Final Fantasy XIV Online have incredibly engaging stories that are enhanced by an immersive world.
4 A Lack Of End-Game Content At Max Level
A common problem throughout old MMORPGs was what to do with players who had reached the max level. Usually, there were a few end-game dungeons or events to do, like World of Warcraft's Black Wing Lair and Molten Core raids.
Players often resorted to seeking cosmetic items or starting new characters. Nowadays, most MMORPGs actually want players to reach max level quickly so they can experience the meat of the game.
3 Nothing But Fantasy Settings
Because of the "nerdiness" of the MMORPG genre, the first MMORPGs were almost entirely based in fantasy worlds. The Realm Online, Tibia Online, Everquest, and Ultima Online are some examples of this phenomenon, with City of Heroes as an example of one that didn't have a fantasy setting.
Nowadays, MMORPGs span all genres. There are sci-fi MMORPGs like Star Wars: The Old Republic, MMORPGs based on superheroes like DC Universe Online, as well as some set in the modern world like The Secret World.
2 A Lack Of Actual Open-World Features
While MMORPGs are all been marked by their large explorable worlds, only modern MMORPGs have been able to create convincing worlds that immerse the player completely. While it might not seem that important, the ability to do more than just talk to NPCs goes a long way in creating a living virtual world.
In The Elder Scrolls Online, for example, players are able to do almost everything they can in the mainstream Elder Scrolls games. This includes disobeying the law, avoiding the main story, and even changing the environment as storylines and zone quests progress.
1 Constant Loading Zones
Old MMORPGs ran on much slower hardware than games do today. One of the factors that inhibited the feeling of a true open world are loading zones, which were a guaranteed feature of just about every game pre-2000.
MMORPGs have progressed to the point that the only consistent way to see a loading zone is to fast travel. If a player downloads a game while playing it, like with the Battle.net launcher, going into undownloaded areas will cause the game will prioritize that data and load lower-quality placeholders in the meantime.