It'd help if the NPC's roleplayed (i.e., talked in character instead of like modern high schoolers).

I RP daily!

So yeah, some people do.

It was more fun back in the early MMO days when even the GMs would get involved and spawn events and hand out rewards for such. EQ in particular had some of my favorite RP moments when the Mods were more involved with the player base.

WoW actually offered some of  my favorite RP moments, but I think a lot of people who were moving out of their teens along side me brought a lot of unneeded drama with it so it was akward, but it was still RP.

Now a days Landrovil server on LotRO offers me my themepark RP experience and it's quite active there. As good a game as any other TP game out there and I mean it's basically free up to nearly level 30 now and you can earn a lot of Turbine Points just by playing to go further than that without dropping a dime.

A few other games like City of Heroes still offers up some RP opps for my group and I. 

Just gotta look.

I don't role play in MMORPG. I do on one of the Minecraft servers I play on. They run a mod called factions, and the faction I was in collapsed when the faction owner (also a mod) left the game. The game mods setup a 'ruin' faction, so players wouldn't come in and demolish all the buildings and I was stuck there - all my stuff was now in a faction that I had no permissions for. The game mods made me a member of the faction, and none of the other members came back so I started role playing a survivor of a grabbity event that the pigs tried to warn him about. The pigs now run the faction. If anyone comes through asking questions, I defer to the pigs. It's kind of fun. I don't think I could role play a serious role though.

I don't think DAOC had official RP servers, not in Europe anyway. I joined the unofficial RP server, which was decided on in their forums.

Yes not so much RP these days, but RP guilds still can be good. Steer clear of the ones that want a four page background, way too snooty. But make sure they have their own webpage and use IC speech in guild chat, that's the hallmark of a good RP guild.

Originally posted by Scot

Yes not so much RP these days, but RP guilds still can be good. Steer clear of the ones that want a four page background, way too snooty. But make sure they have their own webpage and use IC speech in guild chat, that's the hallmark of a good RP guild.

I happen to like those RP guilds that want a decent background for your character. If they are calling themselves an RP guild then all elements should be geared towards that end. If that makes me snooty well...if the shoe fits...

But seriously,  the tragedy is that imagination has taken a back seat in MMORPGs. It takes work, care, and creativity to actually mold a good character that will immerse you in whatever world you choose. I don't believe that capitalism has anything to do with the fading aspect of roleplaying (as someone mentioned in an earlier post) as much as it has to do with progressing a worldview of vulgarizing art and then calling it such (as someone else mentioned, I believe roleplaying is an art). It is the sign of the downfall of not just roleplaying but nations. Goodness, when you can make a statement like "I don't roleplay in an MMORPG", the death knell has begun.

That being said, I do agree that if you find a genuine RP group/guild, make sure it is as such. RPing in guild chat is a mark of a true RP guild. There are those who try to get around the RP for the sake of numbers, as if having a huge guild is what makes it a good one. That kind of shallow thinking has crept into guilds all over the place. I experienced one of those in LotR where they said they were RP but only RPed in one chat and pretty much never at that. Needless to say, I am no longer a part of that guild and am seeking another. In the interim, I keep track of friends who I have had good relations with RPing and that seems to do well just nicely to fill the gap until I find another.

This lack of RPing in MMORPGs has had me evaluating the games I become a part of very carefully. I have played only one game for years before expanding to another (It was not WoW which I would never play in my life). The only other game I'm interested in playing because of the story aspect for your character is GW2. All others hold no interest for me.

Roleplaying is fast becoming the red headed step-child of MMORPGs...but I don't mind being a step-child. You have to have that attitude going in nowadays unfortunately.

Originally posted by Servant-XII

But seriously,  the tragedy is that imagination has taken a back seat in MMORPGs.

Well, it was a predicted tragedy, at any rate.  "Massive" only conflicts with "RPG".

It depends what game you are in, I've found, whether you'll see people roleplaying or not. MUDs are often places you'll find what you're looking for.

I would if there was a game that offered genuine RP oppurtunities. The issue is more than  having an actual game though. It's more on the players and having enough of them that are really dedicated to RP. Roleplaying although providing much freedom to explore ones character does have restrictions.

You can't be all over the place with your RP, pretending to be some Hero of the land but running around acting like a jackass to everyone with roflstomp antics that many of todays "trolls" exibit..

RP is a fine line to be walked, you would need players that are dedicated to it and also a developer willing to insure the integrity of said RP. I feel there's still a market for it, maybe not the most profitable but there are players out there who would jump at an oppurtunity for an authentic RP experience in a modern MMO..

I myself being one of them.. I thought I heard at one point about WoD and how they planned on having servers where RP was heavily moderated. I could be wrong.. So don't go all haywire with CCP and RP LoLz..

Originally posted by Scot

I don't think DAOC had official RP servers, not in Europe anyway. I joined the unofficial RP server, which was decided on in their forums.

In US, Percival and I think Gawaine were the RP servers with enforced chat and naming rules. Not sure what the EU servers were.

.....

The biggest reason for roleplaying disappearing from MMOs is the developers themselves. They create games with virtually zero tools to help roleplaying. And no, throwing in some armor customization and a couple of emotes just don't cut it, when we have been spoiled by games like UO and SWG where we could create a whole town or several for our roleplaying community.

The second, very important thing missing in most modern MMOs are player factions who can decide who they ally with and who they fight against. WoW started this with their stupid 2-faction divide which was so deep that even communication between the factions was made impossible.

We need a game where we can at least somewhat affect the politics and shape of the world. Then and only then the roleplaying has any meaning to it. Othewise it will just be tavern chat in an unchanging world.

Originally posted by Xeno326

Originally posted by Suilebhain

I recall the good old days of DAOC where, on the roleplay servers, nearly everyone roleplayed to some degree, even if it was just to say "Hail". Almost never did I encounter people who would approach my elf with their lurikeen and say "whatup dude?" Later, SWG provided a similar, even expanded immersive experience, as player cities became hubs of roleplay activity  where you could wander into a cantina and find people ready, willing and able to engage in improvisational roleplay nearly any time of the day or night.

Now, though, finding anything resembling a roleplay community that approaches that of Albion/Percival or the entire Nimue server is like finding hen's teeth. Not even on roleplay servers in alleged MMORPGS do people roleplay. I know this all started with WOW and the absurd and infamous Barrens Chat, but it has speard and now nowhere provides a welcoming place for people who prefer a greater level of immersion.

My most recent escapade came about in Runes of Magic. F2P games attract the most casual of players, but on the unofficial RP server there were only a few guilds and no casual roleplay that I could find. The folks in the guilds seemed like nice enough people, but the majority of their interaction was spent in an OOC channel labeled RP, which really was just a sign to those seeking others who enjoyed RP rather than providing any true outlet. There were little to no in-game opportunities to roleplay, as there was back in DAOC and SWG.

So, is it time to drop the RPG from MMORPG and just call it MMO.Com? Do people even value random roleplay ex periences or is it all about gear/level acquisition (AKA Achievement), raiding, and PvP?

nope I never roleplayed and if I did it was when I was 13 or 14 in a online chat room bored. Other than that I have no intentions of roleplaying. Dunno just feels like 3rd grade to me now, something I have no desire for, ya know? This is also why I don't play on a RP server.

 See here is a perfect example of someone whom as mention above has no clue as to what roleplay even is. No it is not sexual in any way and nothing like that done in a chat room!

Originally posted by Wrender

See here is a perfect example of someone whom as mention above has no clue as to what roleplay even is. No it is not sexual in any way and nothing like that done in a chat room!

I'm not sure I understand what you mean by that. Before there were MMORPGS, there were HTML chat rooms where people did indeed roleplay characters from various stories and games, with conventions for separating OOC comments from IC comments. And some RP can be sexual, if that is the nature of the game or the story. Though I'll agree that if all you are doing is RPing sex, you may not be RPing as most people understand the term.

I like to joke-RP in EVE and FFXI.  You just get REALLY into the character and the lore, but kind of in an ironic way, and sometimes people join in and it can be fun and funny.

I RP in Mabinogi - but games like that make it easy too. Good character customization, nice lore, a family/weight/age system, dyeable gear, etc.

I can't find myself to RP in level based games only because usually (just to name an example) 20 players can lose to someone that outlevels them by a small amount ruins the immersion.