The 3 Most Important MMORPGs of 2008 – What Has Become of Them?

In 2008, a number of MMORPGs were released. We take a look at how the three most important representatives from that year are doing today.

2008 was a year when MMORPGs were still in great demand. Developer studios and publishers wanted to ride the wave of success from World of Warcraft. This resulted in a veritable flood of online role-playing games. But how are some of them doing today?

Age of Conan: Hyborian Adventures

What does Age of Conan offer? The MMORPG started as a subscription game and offers typical quests in a large world based on the Conan novels by Robert E. Howard. You fight alongside your hero in groups against monsters to improve your skills. PvP also plays a role.

The special feature of Age of Conan is the active combat system, which was unusual at the time of the MMORPG’s release. Back then, most online role-playing games relied on the typical tab-targeting system.

How did the MMORPG perform at release? Age of Conan launched with a few bugs and issues, which were gradually fixed. Nevertheless, it sold very well at the beginning, with around one million copies sold in the first weeks. However, less than a year after release, many servers had to be shut down.

Nonetheless, the game managed to build a loyal fan base – especially after switching to the free-to-play model in 2011.

How does the game stand today? Age of Conan is still running but has been in maintenance mode since 2017. No new content is in sight. Only a Saga server was launched in early 2018.

These are temporally limited “speed servers” structured similarly to the seasons in Diablo 3. Fans remain loyal to the MMORPG even in maintenance mode.