Readers' Digest version:  I am going to college.  I no longer have money.  Most free mmo's are annoyingly easy.

I can't seem to find any free mmo's with a hint of a challenge.  I want a game where it takes brains to excel.  I am getting a little tired of games where any mouth-breather with a middle school education can rise to the top (here's looking at you WoW).

I need the help of all you guys and guy-ettes.  I don't mind if it's RTS, RPG, turnbased or not.  It would be very, very preferable if it was 3D, but if the gameplay is so beyond stellar that the game is fine in 2D, so be it.

Thanks in advance.  I may have abused the enter key, we'll see.

You'll find that most take credit cards to excel, not brains. Sorry, I don't have any good suggestion to give.

I still hold out that someone on these boards has stumbled across the game I am looking for.  There's a chance...

...maybe.

Seeing how you can play D&D online for free now you should try that. IMO its a fun game just not many play it hopefully being free now should boost the amount of players

Definitely try DDO. It can be very challenging, is now free to play, and is certainly a breath of fresh air in the MMO market. Also I would reccommend Guild Wars (not too challenging but has a good amount of depth and fun).

I'd look into Mabinogi.  Of the F2P games currently out, the gap between the idiots and the people that know what they're doing is the largest and easiest to see.

Originally posted by pegleg

Seeing how you can play D&D online for free now you should try that. IMO its a fun game just not many play it hopefully being free now should boost the amount of players

 

Wow, I saw DDO a few months ago in passing and it looked gorgeous.  How is it now f2p?

I'm always a touch wary when an f2p game was once p2p.

Originally posted by jbattern

Originally posted by pegleg

Seeing how you can play D&D online for free now you should try that. IMO its a fun game just not many play it hopefully being free now should boost the amount of players

 

 

Wow, I saw DDO a few months ago in passing and it looked gorgeous.  How is it now f2p?

I'm always a touch wary when an f2p game was once p2p.

OMG NO WAI!

So, with DDO: Unlimited, there won't be any subscription fees.

Do you still have to pay the $15 to get the game?

Originally posted by paulkaid

Try Runes of Magic

Originally posted by jbattern

So, with DDO: Unlimited, there won't be any subscription fees.

 

Do you still have to pay the $15 to get the game?

 

No you don't, once it is out of beta it will be a free digital download (sort of already is with the trial). If you do buy the box you will however get 1 month VIP access and 500 store points to spend. That is how I understand it.

Last question then, where is the best place to download the client?

When I tried it from the site, it was unbearably slow.

 try atlantica online if you like pvp

    Anarchy Online is a good choice if you want challenge.....The basic game is free and it costs money if you want expansions (tho the free game is often good enough for most of us)......it has a fairly high learning curve but if you like character development its about as good as it gets for that.......Its only downfall is it has outdated graphics but if that doesnt bother you then its a great game.....Other than that I'd recommend Atlantica for the free league PVP......

seeing all this maybe i should give D&D a try.. since it's F2P now    =) thx guys

 I bought City of Heroes, but then I realised after the first free month you had to pay to play :(

If you want more challenging games you should try turn-based games. Just my opinion.

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Originally posted by Theocritus
    Anarchy Online is a good choice if you want challenge.....The basic game is free and it costs money if you want expansions (tho the free game is often good enough for most of us)......it has a fairly high learning curve but if you like character development its about as good as it gets for that.......Its only downfall is it has outdated graphics but if that doesnt bother you then its a great game.....Other than that I'd recommend Atlantica for the free league PVP......

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I have to second Anarchy Online. I remember spending hours upon hours trying to figure out how to get that last small boost to stats so I could wear an item up above me. Honestly it's the most fun I've ever had with a gear system in a game. The game it's self is sort of grindy-ish, but it's good for a free MMO and gives you a lot of options.

Originally posted by jbattern

Last question then, where is the best place to download the client?

When I tried it from the site, it was unbearably slow.

I'm in the EU so can't really answer this question, probably one to ask in the DDO part of these forums. There is also a sticky thread there to the hi-res client you can try.