What happened to Free Realms?
Free Realms was a fantasy-based MMORPG that was fairly popular a few years ago. The game was developed by Sony, and you could play it on Windows, Mac, and PS3. In Free Realms, you created your own character, who went on to carry out all sorts of adventures around Sacred Grove, the in-game world. The game had a lot of variety, in terms of mini-games, combat, and quests. Not only that, but Free Realms was heavily moderated to ensure a more family-friendly overall experience. It had all of the elements of a successful game, but what happened?
Simply put, the game wasn’t able to keep up with competition. Although popularity of the game steadily increased over time, it wasn’t popular enough to be worth all of the servers that it took up. In 2014, the game was closed completely. Although Free Realms probably could have been successful, the kid-friendly MMORPG genre is a crowded one. You have to work really hard to separate yourself from the crowd, and Free Realms just wasn’t different enough. Are you looking for a game similar to Free Realms? In this article, I’ll talk about a few good games that I think offer an experience similar to Free Realms. Without further ado, let’s get right into it.
5. Club Penguin
I don’t think that I could possibly write something about kid-friendly games without at least mentioning Club Penguin. To this day, I think that Club Penguin is by far the most popular family-geared multiplayer game out there. In Club Penguin, you create a penguin and waddle around an island, playing mini-games and completing missions to earn coins. These coins can be spent towards clothes, decking out your igloo, or purchasing pets. The game also allows users to chat, and the whole experience is very strictly moderated. It’s probably one of the safer games on this list for children. Like Free Realms, this game never really has a shortage of things to do. There are so many different kinds of mini-games and missions that you never really get bored.
2018 Update: It looks like Disney is actually cancelling Club Penguin! It will only be around for a few more months!
4. Animal Jam
Animal Jam is interesting, because it feels a lot like a combination between Club Penguin and Free Realms. The game shares a lot in common with Club Penguin. Players create an animal character, and they run around an island in search of mini-games and different missions. Your primary goal is to earn currency to purchase clothes and furniture. (A bonus? Since Animal Jam was partially developed by National Geographic, that means that a lot of the missions are more educational in nature. It’s always fun to play and learn at the same time.) However, Animal Jam puts a slight spin on the standard kid multiplayer format and mixed in a few RPG elements into their game.
3. Puzzle Pirates
Puzzle Pirates has been around for a long while, and I think that it’s more than earned its reputation as a quality MMORPG. It offers more depth than I think I’ve ever seen in a free-to-play, kid-friendly arena. In Puzzle Pirates, you create a pirate, and you’re able to do all different sorts of things to make a name for yourself. This can include things like pillaging as part of a crew, playing poker in a tavern, or running your own business. It’s a really complex game, but it’s presented in such a way that makes it easy for younger kids to understand. Not to mention, this game is moderated in a really smart way to ensure that everything is as safe and approachable as possible for younger players. Like Free Realms, this game has a lot to offer, and it’s hard to really get bored with what they have.
2. Wizard101
As far as popularity goes, Wizard101 is sort of in the middle. It’s nowhere near as popular as it was at its peak, but it is still sustaining a decent amount of popularity. In my opinion, this is one of those games that does everything pretty well, but it doesn’t do anything fantastically. It’s probably the safest choice as a Free Realms alternative, but I think that the next game on this list does a much better job at taking the original feel of Free Realms and refining it into something a little more mature, and a little more comprehensive. I wrote another article on some of the best games like Wizard101, so if you like the sound of a more strategy-based RPG, I think it’s probably worth you taking a look at.
1. Runescape
Finally, we get to the top. Runescape, in my opinion, is one of the best free-to-play MMORPGs that has ever existed. It has everything that you would ever really want from an MMORPG. The gameplay is easy to learn to difficult to master. The writing never takes itself too seriously. The fan base is as active as it has ever been, and it continues to grow. An active development team ensures that the game is regularly updated. You’re able to get a lot out of the game without having putting any money into it. It’s a fantastically well-rounded game, and it sets itself apart from games like Wizard101 by not just being okay at everything, but by being great at everything. I think it’s set the bar for free-to-play MMORPGs, and it just so happens that that high bar has resulted in the downfall of games like Free Realms.
In my opinion, those are the top five best games like Free Realms that you can play in 2018. Did I happen to forget about one of your favorite kid-friendly MMORPGs? Do you disagree with some of my choices? Feel free to drop into the comment section below and tell me about it.
Runescape? Oh my god, that’s a grinder for adults with no life, filled with the worst pkers -or at least it was in my time-. No, just no. It’s plain WRONG to mention it on the same page as Free Realms. Make a fire. Step aside. Make a fire. Step aside. FOR HOURS. EVERY DAY. FOR A MONTH. Besides, don’t get me wrong, I’m not a fangirl, but FR was pretty much the most unique game among these, maybe wizard101 is kinda equal.
BRING BACK FREE REALMS OR I WILL HUNT DOWN, TORTURE, ABD SLOWLY KILL EVERYONE ABSOLUTELY EVERYONE RESPONSOBLE BUT MOST OF ALL THAY GOD DAMN CEO!