Dungeon Runners - Bringing New People to Online PC Gaming for Free

It has been years since the Massive Multiplayer Online Role Playing Game (MMORPG) genre was created with the release of Neverwinter Nights on AOL in 1991. That wasn't the first MMORPG, but it was the first one to use graphics and as such gave birth to some of the largest games of the past decade. If you are a gamer the odds are you've heard of World of Warcraft, or Guild Wars, or one of the hundred or so other MMORPGs out there. Some are free, some are pay once, some are pay a monthly fee. How do you sort out the good from the bad? How do you know if the genre is something you will enjoy? Well, I know of one game that is free, has a thriving community, and is actually fun to play whether you are an old hat at MMOs or are seeing if it's something worth investing money in.

I was introduced to Dungeon Runners by an advertisement booklet when my roommate bought Guild Wars for his PC. I didn't then have the money for a MMORPG at all, and the price sounded right, free to download and no monthly fees. I downloaded the game later that day and installed it. There's three character classes you can choose from, Fighter, Ranger, and Mage. Both genders and a decent character creation system can help you make your character a little unique to your tastes.

This is a vary good beginner MMORPG for a variety of reasons. It doesn't have heavy hardware requirements first off, so many people will be able to run it. The controls are very easy and not at all complicated to learn. The game has dungeons that can be cleared in as little as 15 minutes for people who just want quick bursts of playtime, and has long epic ones for people who crave something more demanding. The game doesn't take itself too seriously meaning that you can relax. Lastly, there is no death penalty in the game for the most part, if you die, you just end up back in town safe and sound and can head right out again.

So where does this less casual PC gamers? The people who have dabbled in Unreal Tournament and such? You want to get into MMORPGs but don't want to spend the hard earned green. You might be impressed with this game. For those of you in the US, the primary language is English as the game is made in Austin, so you won't encounter weird translations or anything. The graphics are fairly good and magic effects are nice. You won't hit much lag as the servers seem pretty speedy and dedicated.

But there is a downside to this game. Since it's free to download and play there is a downside. Developers have to make money somehow, and in this case there's two ways they make their money. There's two levels of accounts, free and membership. Membership is $5/month and allows you access to items that other players can't use. Membership also removes in ads in the game. Yes, I said ads. There is always a banner above the game window (which is pretty unobtrusive and I didn't even notice it after a few minutes). The other type of ad is a bit more annoying. Sometimes when teleporting or going to a new area the game will play a 5 second ad. It breaks the immersion but in general it's not going to affect your gameplay at all. Because while your watching the ad your character is in the new location but they are not able to be attacked or anything, but your party can still warp to them and such if they die. After all, it's a few seconds. They are annoying, but not annoying enough to pass up on the game, especially if you just want to dabble in MMOs for free.

Graphics & Audio - 17
The graphics in the game are clean and look pretty good. The art style is consistent and can run on older PCs and the magic effects are pretty nice. The voice overs are often amusing and the music is pretty good.

Gameplay - 18
While this MMORPG doesn't have a much exploration as most it does have one good feature. Outside of the towns you will never run across players not in your party. Outside of that the combat is good and satisfying and the controls are responsive and easy to use.

Creativity - 19
The game is full of amusing names, items, voice acting, and quests. However it is still serious enough draw you in.

Fun - 22
The game is fun to play, especially if you have a couple friends to join in, if not someone already in the game might want to join so ask. The ads detract a little but not enough to really ruin the game most of the time. The controls work well and the quests are good though some are very tough. Without a real death penalty though the game becomes more about fighting and playing with friends than frustration.

However, what if you like the genre, and want a serious MMORPG to play but want to monthly fees but just a one time fee of buying the game? Tune in for my next review of Guild Wars: Game of the year edition to find out if it's right for you.