Video games used to be single-player for quite a long time with only things like PLATO in colleges since the 1970s, but that was far from mainstream. It wasn't until the likes of Neverwinter Nights, Quake, and Unreal Tournament that online games truly exploded.

Now, live service games have become commonplace in the industry. It's incredibly profitable for publishers and gamers get to enjoy a game for years. Still, a game's life cycle is short, and many servers fade into obscurity. However, some games, despite their age, continue to draw in new players.

Second Life

Second Life video game women standing in front of tower

Second Life made waves in the mid to late 2000s and was even featured on shows such as The Office. Still, most people recalling the game likely think it's long gone. In actuality, the game is far from dead and continues to maintain a strong userbase.

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The game still gets updates to this day, and the players have also taken to making their own mods for it. The graphics are charmingly dated, and many RP servers exist to the point that it really is a second life for many players.

GTA IV

Most GTA IV players will have no patience for Dimitri after putting up with him all game.

GTA IV was praised during its heyday and is also the first game to have a truly expansive multiplayer experience. No longer were players limited by modes or distance. Now, players could be wherever they wanted and do their own thing. It was fun wandering around Liberty City doing missions and then suddenly being ambushed by a rival player.

The game officially "lost multiplayer" sometime in 2020 due to an update. However, older versions of the game still have surprisingly active servers to this day. While most people play GTA V Online, the dedication that GTA IV players to a now 14-year-old game are pretty heartwarming.

Starcraft

starcraft one for PC remastered

In a lot of ways, Starcraft is the premier RTS game of the '90s, and to this day, is considered by many fans of the genre to be the best one ever made. It's pretty easy to claim that because of how much love the game still gets not just from fans, but Blizzard itself. Players get to relive the nostalgia and fun gameplay

Unlike many other games which rely on fans to upkeep the servers, Blizzard itself still has active servers for the game despite it being free. That's because, despite the sequel's own massive success, people still loved the slower pace and precise planning of Brood War.

Neverwinter Nights

Neverwinter Nights D&D Cover

Neverwinter Nights is one of the oldest active multiplayer RPGs ever, and that's for both of its incarnations. The original 1991 title, Neverwinter Nights, was the first-ever multiplayer game to feature graphics, and some fringe servers still exist to this day. However, the much more active community is the one for Bioware's 2002 game of the same name.

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Neverwinter Nights (2002) is still going strong, and just recently celebrated its 20th anniversary in June 2022. Funny enough, not being an MMORPG helped its longevity. The game's incredible customizability, fantastic community support, and lack of subscription fee made for one of the most dedicated online communities ever.

Age of Empires 2

A palace and its accompanying infrastructure in Age of Empires 2

Age of Empires 2 is a strange blend of Civilization's grand strategy and classic RTS-style gameplay. Evolving your empire's technology and gaining leverage through trade, culture, and of course, warfare. The game was a massive hit on release and is still seen as the best game of the series.

So much so, that it still has active servers to this day. Frankly, there's been no other games like Age of Empires 2. While RTS games have come and gone, none of them quite have the same fun mechanics that Age of Empires 2 had, and that explains its longevity, even as the RTS genre has slowed to a crawl in recent years.

Ultima Online

An example of a possible house in Ultima Online

Ultima Online is one of the grandfathers of the modern MMORPG. Based on a legendary IP that gamers at the time were already familiar with, Ultima Online captured the imaginations of gamers. A wide sandbox world, a complex crafting system, and the incredibly unique mechanic (at the time) of leveling the player character any way the player wanted to.

Many players don't even touch the combat side of the game anymore, preferring to craft items or explore for loot. Without Ultima Online, it's like the MMORPG genre wouldn't have had the seeds of success planted. Players can still enjoy Ultima Online's unique gameplay mechanics with official support to this day, even though its successors have been ruined by EA.

Everquest

Everquest Terror of Luclin Expansion gameplay

While Runescape is more well-known these days, Everquest was the go-to MMORPG of the early 2000s. It was the first ever 3D MMORPG ever and it had a huge influence on the success of future MMORPGs such as Runescape, Star Wars: The Old Republic, and of course, World of Warcraft.

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Although the game is far from the powerhouse it was in its heyday, it has endured and celebrated its 22nd anniversary this year. Unlike many of its surviving contemporaries, Everquest refuses to change its core. Other than expansions and QoL changes, the gameplay remains just as janky as it was on release. That's exactly what its fans love about it.

Quake

A screenshot from the Quake remaster

Quake is the first major multiplayer FPS game to truly break into the mainstream consciousness, and is incredibly influential on the genre. Quake would be the first of many twitch shooters that would come in the next few decades. Fast-paced gunplay meant the game valued reflexes and adaptability above all.

Quake introduced many fun concepts such as bunny hopping and rocket jumping. This mobility made the game stand out, and even now, servers exist for modern players to enjoy Quake's iconic fast-paced gameplay. The remastered edition also features multiplayer and modding support.

The Realm Online

The Realm Online in a tavern

The Realm Online is by all accounts an average fantasy MMORPG. What makes it so special is that it is by far the oldest. So old, in fact, that it actually predates the popularity of the word "MMORPG". The game still uses the old MUD-style (multi-user dungeons) of development popular in the '80s and is a headscratcher for many new players.

Still, it's weird and nostalgic enough that an obscure developer picked it up and made a F2P server that still gets updates to this day. At peak hours, the game still gets 100-200 players hourly. Pretty impressive for a game that's older than most gamers nowadays.

Avalon: The Legend Lives

Avalon, a text-based MMORPG

Avalon: The Legend Lives is without a doubt the oldest multiplayer game currently still going to this day, barring some obscure MUDs from random colleges that nobody knows about. Avalon: The Legend Lives is the first well-known MMORPG, but being a game from 1989, the entire game is shown through text.

Avalon: The Legend Lives is unique from its fellow MUD contemporaries because it offers many aspects that would become a mainstay of the MMORPG genre in the future. In-game economies, clans, player houses, skill-based real-time combat, and an entire warfare system. What it lacked in graphics, Avalon: The Legend Lives more than made up for with its innovation.

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