Here’s the brief synopsis of With Your Destiny... www.wydglobal.com

Episode 1: CHAOS WORLD
“Nothing has more strength than dire necessity”.

The gods were growing restless by the day. Perched high above in their heavenly thrones, they were intensely discussing among themselves the result of their ill-fated war against the humans. Some were of the opinion that the attacks should have raged on until the obliteration of the human race was completed. Still, others argued that a decisive final blow would soon be forthcoming and the inevitable destruction of humanity was all but guaranteed. In their final reckoning, the rampage of the gods would be too much for even the most disciplined and fearless army the humans could muster.

Looking down below to their subjects, the gods were witnessing a renaissance like no other. What was once a desolate and bloodied wasteland is now becoming a fertile breeding ground for a new generation of proud and headstrong humans. Still bearing the battle scars from the great wars, the elders vowed to raise a whole new breed of fierce and proud warriors who will continue their crusade. Even if the tragic memories of destruction they witnessed still lingered, chaos now seemed like a forgotten era. The reverence and fear the humans once held for the gods was now replaced with an unyielding fervor to begin anew.

It was thru the untiring efforts of an enterprising band of heroes that mankind was able to rebuild what was left of their communities. Once they had established their community, they went to far-away lands to search for more survivors. Eventually, their efforts paid off as they started building up their strength through sheer number. Their society became vibrant once again and their culture and economy flourished. It was during this time of rebuilding that they realized their strength lay in their diversity. They were of different races, belief and traditions but now they have become united in the same fight and in the same aspirations.

Maybe there is still hope yet for humans and their world of chaos…

Originally posted by DeCron
i have to say Anarchy Online and Asheron's Call for the best mmo storys

They both have a main story arch that changes and every nook and crany  on the map has a story for them (asheron's call has better ones i have to say)

FFXI storyline is off the hook! No other mmorpg has one like it or makes it such a large part of the game. It's what all mmorpgs SHOULD have but don't.

Originally posted by AbIeL
lol you guys actually read the stories.

Originally posted by elocke

FFXI storyline is off the hook! No other mmorpg has one like it or makes it such a large part of the game. It's what all mmorpgs SHOULD have but don't.

Originally posted by csthao

Originally posted by AbIeL
lol you guys actually read the stories.

Well yes, how else are you going to find out about the lore and the purpose of the game why it was created etc?...

Originally posted by drunkensolja

Originally posted by elocke

FFXI storyline is off the hook! No other mmorpg has one like it or makes it such a large part of the game. It's what all mmorpgs SHOULD have but don't.

              ^^
  Amen to that Brother

Episode 1: CHAOS WORLD
“Nothing has more strength than dire necessity”.

The gods were growing restless by the day. Perched high above in their heavenly thrones, they were intensely discussing among themselves the result of their ill-fated war against the humans. Some were of the opinion that the attacks should have raged on until the obliteration of the human race was completed. Still, others argued that a decisive final blow would soon be forthcoming and the inevitable destruction of humanity was all but guaranteed. In their final reckoning, the rampage of the gods would be too much for even the most disciplined and fearless army the humans could muster.

Looking down below to their subjects, the gods were witnessing a renaissance like no other. What was once a desolate and bloodied wasteland is now becoming a fertile breeding ground for a new generation of proud and headstrong humans. Still bearing the battle scars from the great wars, the elders vowed to raise a whole new breed of fierce and proud warriors who will continue their crusade. Even if the tragic memories of destruction they witnessed still lingered, chaos now seemed like a forgotten era. The reverence and fear the humans once held for the gods was now replaced with an unyielding fervor to begin anew.

It was thru the untiring efforts of an enterprising band of heroes that mankind was able to rebuild what was left of their communities. Once they had established their community, they went to far-away lands to search for more survivors. Eventually, their efforts paid off as they started building up their strength through sheer number. Their society became vibrant once again and their culture and economy flourished. It was during this time of rebuilding that they realized their strength lay in their diversity. They were of different races, belief and traditions but now they have become united in the same fight and in the same aspirations.

Maybe there is still hope yet for humans and their world of chaos…

Originally posted by Silvarianne
Uhh, that's just the background lore.
What I consider a "good" story is when I play the game and the lore persists.  A good number of  such games have this great "back ground" story but it doesn't mean anything once you start playing.
The quests, your exploration, even why you are out there killing or skilling up has no other relation to the game lore and all you do is grind.
What makes a good game world compared to a crappy one is how the game takes its background lore and puts you into its world. Places you go must have a history, key items you get must have a tale behind it, and more important, you the player must be part of that story or at least the "continuing" part of that lore.

That is what is missing in MMOs today. Earlier someone posted about Earth and Beyond, and how they destroyed Mars which was actually one of the "starting towns" in that game. Doing stuff like that involved the players in a huge world event with a kind of persistant world effect makes all the difference in making the player feel like they are in the world and not just grinding to get levels.