Looking for a lore/mythology rich MMO

I'm looking for an MMO with a strong potential for simply exploring the game world, ideally with a very varied landscape, and with a lot of background story, lore and mythology I can sink into.

For what it's worth, the world of Shadow of the Colossus is my favourite -- its lore and myth is more implied than explicit, but it is so beautifully presented and varied. More recent examples include the rich detailed world of Dragon Age and Mass Effect.

Ideally a game I can play by myself (ie: don't need a group/clan to advance). I want to be able to explore without a large fear of getting killed.

I've played LOTRO and enjoyed that. Debating trying that again but am looking into other suggestions too.

World of Warcraft?

@bigmuffpi: LOTRO has that new expansion?

Age of Conan or Lord of the Rings online drip with Lore and Atmosphere. Conan just came out with a sweet new pack too. Turan has a very Persian theme to it and was well worth it.

Warhammer has a very rich mythology and fairly varied landscapes...but I haven't played it in a long time, so dunno much about the gameplay anymore.

why an MMO, out of curiosity? everything you want would come better from a single player rpg

@valrog said:

World of Warcraft?

This is the answer. I'm not trying to be facetious. If you want an MMO that's rich in story and lore (check the books and stuff on Audible.com), it's WoW. If you want an MMO that's good, check WoW out too. In all sincerity, WoW is probably the most important game in the last 15 years.

Gamasutra link for example. Doesn't make me right, but I'd have a good time arguing my (I believe) salient points into the night.

For funsies:

All MMOs have a ton of lore. Its kind of intrinsic to the genre. Its hard to make a giant game with 15 races without giving a reason behind stuff.

@Buzzkill: I've heard great stuff about Conan but it doesn't run on a Mac, unfortunately. LOTRO I've played and enjoyed. I might go back to it sometime, but since the Isengard update it's had trouble patching on a Mac (via Crossover games -- an app that lets you install a bunch of PC games on Mac). I intend to go back to LOTRO eventually, but I want to time my return with a rereading of the novels.. which won't be for another year or so as I finish up A Song of Ice and Fire first :P

@Tim_the_Corsair: Warhammer also seems cool but was never attached to the world. And yes I realize this is stuff I can get from a single player game, but I think I've played most of the recommended ones, such as the Bethesda and Bioware games.

@nrh79: Yeah, I'm leaning towards WoW. Something about that new "archaeology" class seems droolworthy to me! I've always attached a lot of social stigma with that game but I think that's unwarranted: play the game in moderation and you'll be fine, I suppose!

So how do I proceed with that game? Start with the free "Starter" Edition, then once I get to 20 I buy.. Burning Crusade? How do I know when I'm finished BC and ready for WotLK? Same for WotLK to Cataclysm?

I heard archaeology is just in Cataclysm. There's no way of only going to the store and buying Cataclysm and nothing else, right?

Sorry if I knew you were using a mac to try and play games I would have suggested Peggle.

@bigmuffpi: WoW gets you to 60, at 58 you can start the burning crusade expansion pack which gets you to 70, at 68 you can go into the wotlk zones which get you to 80, 80-85 is all cataclysm!

And yeah theres no way to get all of it as far as I know, except for WoW + BC you gotta buy wotlk and cata seperately

All of them?

That's the one thing MMOs have going for them. Extensive backstories and world-building.

@bigmuffpi: Archaeology isn't a class. It's a secondary profession like fishing. Excavation sites are aren't just in Cataclysm only zones. They were added with the Cata expansion though. You can learn archaeology at level 20, I think. You don't have to be 80 and in the Cata zones.

@Mnemoidian said:

@nrh79 I think you need to have a Cataclysm activated account to learn archaeology though.

I'm pretty sure you do. Even if you do, the free account goes to level 20 anyway, and that's when you can learn arch. The gist of it all is that you probably wouldn't want to get into arch anyway without the cata expac. Almost all of the great rewards come at higher level arch.

I've only played a bit of WoW since I got bored, but that's not really something with a great story IMO. It's more about raids and stuff. The story these days in WoW is mostly just pop culture references.

If you want story then SWTOR seems to be the MMO that focuses the most on that.

The upcoming Secret World is said to be focusing on lore and exploration a lot.They say it's more about exploration, adventure and puzzles than grinding. It doesn't even have levels and such like a typical MMO since that tends to bring out the need in players to play for XP and loot rather than for the actual game.

@dagas: I wholeheartedly disagree. The lore is one of the main reasons I played WoW for seven years. Each zone has a history and a storyline especially since Cataclysm. The backgrounds of characters like Jaina Proudmoore and Thrall and how their history illuminates the struggle between the Horde and Alliance is one of many plots.

Zones like Un'goro Crater dig deep into the why the zone was created from dinosaurs to the Titans. I won't spoil it. Silverpine illustrates the internal struggle within the Horde mainly between Garrosh Hellscream and Lady Sylvanis. Garrosh calls her a bitch in the voiced opening. What follows is the eventual lead-up to the storming the gates of Gilneas (the Worgen starting zone). The stories even intertwine between the Horde and Alliance especially there. Those that commit suicide in the Worgen area may later be used in the Horde storylines as summoned undead.

I could go on and on. I hardly ever raided. It was story, events, and achievements. I was in a guild of about 7500 (largest in the game), and we held dances, parties, marches, etc. There is so much more to WoW than raids.

Allods Online has a really interesting faux-Roman Catholic take on its lore's religious underpinnings. it's also hilarious in the way it depects Elves as whoreish, egotistical arseholes. I'd highly recommend that game if you're into the Pratchett-esque takes on fantasy.

@valrog said:

World of Warcraft?

My god man, you know exactly what he was trying to find! :O@bigmuffpi said:

@Buzzkill: I've heard great stuff about Conan but it doesn't run on a Mac, unfortunately. LOTRO I've played and enjoyed. I might go back to it sometime, but since the Isengard update it's had trouble patching on a Mac (via Crossover games -- an app that lets you install a bunch of PC games on Mac). I intend to go back to LOTRO eventually, but I want to time my return with a rereading of the novels.. which won't be for another year or so as I finish up A Song of Ice and Fire first :P

@Tim_the_Corsair: Warhammer also seems cool but was never attached to the world. And yes I realize this is stuff I can get from a single player game, but I think I've played most of the recommended ones, such as the Bethesda and Bioware games.

@nrh79: Yeah, I'm leaning towards WoW. Something about that new "archaeology" class seems droolworthy to me! I've always attached a lot of social stigma with that game but I think that's unwarranted: play the game in moderation and you'll be fine, I suppose!

So how do I proceed with that game? Start with the free "Starter" Edition, then once I get to 20 I buy.. Burning Crusade? How do I know when I'm finished BC and ready for WotLK? Same for WotLK to Cataclysm?

I heard archaeology is just in Cataclysm. There's no way of only going to the store and buying Cataclysm and nothing else, right?

For wow, get a Bnet.com account for blizzard, buy the game through their site or just go to the store and buy BC, then wrath and so forth if you want all the expansions at the start.If you want protection for your account, Android phones (Dont know if iphones get it free or not) Download the Bnet authenticator and add the code to your account which will help from hackers.. least thats what everyone hopes :D Also Archeology takes time to level up and wont be very fun till a higher level which wont take to long to get. FYI, if you have a friend who has wow, have them invite you and then buy the game as after your second month or so you will both get free mounts and while grouped, you get like double or triple XP as a bonus for being invited. Helps getting into the game easier.

World of Warcraft I reckon.

Dont know what its like post cataclysm, but even vanilla WoW was pretty fun to explore.

The Die Hard MMO has a deep story and a rich background.

The books for WoW are fantastic in their own right.