Shadowbane, a dark fantasy MMORPG, debuted in 2003. The game was most notable for its open PvP rules and its dynamic game world. Players could fight each other openly in almost any location, making Shadowbane one of the first PvP centric MMOs. Being able to affect the game's world was another salient feature, and player cities, terrain, mercenaries, and other creations were player contributions. both of these features added to the depth of the community on the game, and to its siege battle feature, which featured players sacking each others' cities and lands.

Although Shadowbane featured a fairly typical class and race system, with hunting and earning XP for leveling and advancement, there were no quests. The game was a mix of PvP and community-oriented. Since the game world was so dynamic, each server was different and politics sprung up, with players in control. This meant that any sieges or wars that were started were entirely player-driven. Notable player characters could find themselves with much prestige and influence over the game.

There were several servers, each different, with one following a set of rules known as "loreplay". Loreplay restricted a player's ability to join certain guilds based upon factors such as a character's race, gender, or class. Shadowbane saw two expansions during its lifetime, Rise of Chaos and Throne of Oblivion. After going free to play with advertisements in 2007, the game was "rebooted" in March of 2008, with all player characters and cities wiped. Finally, it was announced in April 2009 that Shadowbane would end in May. It closed July 1, 2009.