There are all kinds of free games out there; some are good but most are bad. My whole problem with free MMOs, regardless of genre, is even though they are free to play a lot of these games have in game items and services that cost real money. Allow me to give a word of warning to the wise. I think this is lame for two main reasons:
[1] Some rich kid who doesn't mind spending their parents' cash can create a new character and buy the best equipment for their level which usually means they will be able to do more damage then they should reasonably be able to do at their level. Players spending money will always have an edge over people who would rather play the game for free and work to earn their items or game services. If you're not spending money for the best items it really isn't worth playing because the free players simply can't compete with the paying players whom will have the best equipment and items. It doesn't matter if the free player is at the same level as the paying player because in these kinds of games the equipment makes all the difference. The paid items will always give the paying player a huge edge because those paid items usually have ridiculous attribute bonuses.
[2] I recently learned from one of my friends that even in a game like WoW which has a subscription fee to play online it also has additional in game items which also cost more money. Of course these paid items are better than any of the free items found in the game. To this day I still can't figure out why someone, anyone, would pay actual hard earned cash for an intangible digital commodity in a game. I can understand paying subsciption fees to be able to play and compete against other people online, but on top of that to pay bona fide money for in game items which can only be used in the game? That is beyond stupid imho. Paying game money earned in the game for items is one thing, but real money?? What happens when you have done eeverything there is to do in the game and your character has all the best equipment? Then what? It's not like you take those items with you and actually use them in your real life. You paid all that money for nothing. Literally. These are also the same people when faced with serious economic problems don't know what to do..."I can't pay my rent or buy groceries, but I bought all this cool stuff for my character in this game!" You're a real f*@king winner alright (not talking specifically about anyone reading this).
Anyone who spends their money on in game items in my opinion has worse fiscal sense than Bush and Obama combined. They also probably have a dysfunctional gaming addiction which should be addressed. Enough ranting. If you can't tell this crap bugs me.
Anyway, here is a list of free games I have tried (broken down categorically):
RPG MMOs
Shaiya
Last Chaos
Perfect World International
Runes of Magic
FPS MMOs
War Inc. Battlezone
Fear Combat
Battlefield Play4Free
Combat Arms
There might be a few more I'm forgetting to mention, in fact I know there are some I'm not remembering, but these are the ones which stick out the most in my mind. Some of those games weren't too bad and, yes, all these free to play games have better equipment and items you can buy that will be superior to free items found in the game.
The real notable exception to the rule is Combat Arms which has a more balanced approach. This is the only free to play game in which the paid for items (being guns and gear) are the same ones you can buy with game money. The only reason why someone would pay real money for an item in Combat Arms is so they could obtain that expensive gun or piece of gear a helluva lot sooner as opposed to waiting to earn the game money required (the genuine money price tag is also noticeably cheaper than the game money cost). Pay the real money upfront and get that sleek item now or wait till you've played long enough and have earned the game money later. Regardless if you're paying real money or are a free player the items are the same so one type of player does not have an advantage over another.
Of course Combat Arms doesn't have Aim Down Sights (ADS) so I thought it was mediocre but pointless overall. Any FPS which doesn't have ADS is pretty worthless imo.
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