by Nicolas Tringali

Created on: May 25, 2008   Last Updated: September 21, 2011

The Massively Multiplayer Online Role Playing Game genre is one of the most popular video game genres, appealing to millions of users worldwide. Famous MMORPG titles are well known even outside the industry, such as Everquest, World of Warcraft, City of Heroes, and more. Most MMORPGs require a monthly fee to pay, while some do offer free play.

MMORPGs are based around a set world in which other users can log on and play with each other. Some have definite story lines, and others are set in a world where you can easily choose what you want to do. The basic gameplay follows most single player RPG's in which the main goal is to level up your personalized character through gaining experience. Experience is generally gained by completing quests, killing enemies, and various other tasks specific to each game.

Most MMORPGs incorporate both PvE and PvP gameplay, while some use only one or the other. PvE stands for Player v Environment, where the player goes out into the world, receives quests or tasks from various NPC's (Non Player Character), and completes them. The quests are varying in nature, some are designed to be completed alone, whilst others are geared toward teamwork with other users. PvP stands for Player v Player, in which two users online can battle each other in various arena type matches, or even spontaneously in the game world.

A character starts out in the world of an MMORPG by choosing a class to play as, such as a warrior or mage. Each class has its own benefits and setbacks, and are specific to each game. Most of the classes for all MMORPGs can be lumped into four general groups. A 'tank' is a class that can hold 'aggro' (a monster 'aggroes' you when it sees you or you attack it, and it usually only attacks the player who attacks it), and can withstand tremendous amounts of damage. Tanks are usually the warrior classes, with heavy armor, and generally do melee damage. A 'DPS' (damage per second) player does the main amount of damage to an enemy. Mages, assassins, and warrior classes are the best DPS, while some have very low defense. A healer player does just that. He or she heals the party through their various skills, and most of the time provide passive bonuses to the party. Healers are usually priests, shamans, or clerics, or monks. The final group is a support player, which is more of a general player type. He or she specializes in passive party bonuses, while most can heal and do damage as well.

The basic gameplay of an MMORPG mimics a regular

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