Who remembers the release of WoW (World of Warcraft) back in 2004? It made a massive splash with its MMORPG gameplay that united players from all around the globe. It started the MMORPG trend, which is still going strong. Old School RuneScape is catching on to the wave of exactly this nostalgia. It is a massively multiplayer game from 2013 with simple graphics and quite compelling gameplay. Yes, it is basic, but its charm is exactly in this.
First impression
It is really easy to learn and quite a fun game to play. Clicking around in search of your next quest, slashing enemies, and enjoying the funny elements that the story offers you were quite pleasant. The game does not compete with the huge AAA titles for the best graphics but rather focuses on offering you entertainment in a simple package. It is like buying a pizza instead of a fancy gourmet meal. It is affordable and quite enjoyable.
Graphics and Art Style
Old School RuneScape, or OSRS for short, has extremely simple esthetics. It looks like a game from the beginning of this millennial. Simple textures and low-poly graphics are all it offers. Yes, with the years, there have been some mods for HD graphics, but you still won’t have anything remotely pretty as a modern title. Just like Minecraft’s modes that bring ray-tracing and improved graphics. It is better, but it is still square.
That makes Old School RuneScape a very demanding game and makes it possible to run on outdated hardware like a PC from around 20 years ago with 4 GB of RAM. It runs on Windows 7 or newer, MacOS, iOS, and even Android. I was eager to test it on the slowest device that I own, and it managed to run well on a very old laptop with Intel Core Duo and just 2 GB of RAM. I was quite impressed, and if you want to go even further, you can run it inside a small window on a really old computer running Windows XP.
So, in general, this is a very retro-looking game. It is good for older gamers who are used to play the first 3D games. This kind of people, me included, can appreciate a game, even if it does not have excellent 4k texture, ray-tracing, and a ton of special effects. As a kid, I used to play Super Mario, and I thought the graphics were amazing!
The funny thing is, after the release of RuneScape 3, the gaming community, including us, the creators of P2Gamer, wanted the classic version of the game. That’s why Old School RuneScape was created. That’s why Old School RuneScape was created.
Story and Narrative
OSRS has a storyline and many small quests. You can develop a character, level it up, and collect different items that will make you stronger. What is different here is there are no classes like knight, wizard, necromancer, etc. You have just 23 skills like Strength, Ranged, Herblore, Fletching, Fishing, Mininng, and more. The skills go from level 1 to 99.
The story of Gielinor, the world of Old School RuneScape, is well-developed and engaging. This world has different regions with distinct habitats. During your play, you will meet the Gods of Light. These magical creators, like Saradomin, the god of order and wisdom, and Guthix, the god of balance, will bring you very interesting quests. Other interesting in-game characters are King Roald, the king of Mistchalin, the human kingdom; Ariane, the wizard; and Sir Tiffy Cashien, a member of the Temple Kings.
The bad guys are also interesting. The god of chaos, Zomarak, and Zaros, another dark force, are some of the worst enemies you will find during your journey. On your way, you will find the Majarrat, the Black Knights, the Dark Wizards, and Elvarg, which will enrich your quests and make them harder.
The characters that you are about to meet can be quite memorable, even though their faces look like a mess of pixels. There were some interesting plot twists and even some humor, which made my game experience very pleasant.
Gameplay and Mechanics
The gameplay of OSRS is very much what you can expect from a MMORPG. The graphics are basics, but all the mechanics are not. You are getting a real game with well-developed mechanics and deep and varied systems. The idea is simple: you choose a champion, and you improve his or her skills, go on quests, and combat different enemies. You can control your character by point-and-click mechanics, but you can also use some shortcuts on your keyboard.
Overall, when we talk about its gameplay, I can say that the balance between fights and rewards is very good. In the end, you are satisfied with your achievements overall, and the game motivates you to come back for more. Many players are so invested that they have more than a decade of playing! Can you imagine playing one game for 10 years? 10 years ago, I still enjoyed EA games, and there were little to no “Woke games” on the market. The times have changed, haven’t they? Let’s go back to the game.
Replayability and Content
As you have already seen, the game has existed for more than 10 years. There are loyal fans who love the game and replay it every now and then. Old School RunScape offers a lot of content. There are countless quests and many opportunities for cooperative and competitive gameplay. You can join and create clans. There is a list of friends that you can manage, and the in-game communication is decent. Inside the game, you can find frequent updates and special events that keep the content fresh and engaging.
Value for money
In my opinion, OSRS is a good value for money. Some can say excellent, but let’s not go too far. The game is fun to play, and it has a free mode too. The better part is that it is unlocked with a membership. You can get more content, skills, and additional quests. What I don’t like a lot are the microtransactions. Overall, they don’t alternate the gameplay, but I hate them in every form they exist. Let’s go back to the subscription price. It is $10.99 per month. Let’s make a small comparison with other MMORPG games that you can choose:
- Old School RuneScape (OSRS): $10.99
- World of Warcraft (WoW): $14.99
- Final Fantasy XIV (FFXIV): $12.99
- The Elder Scrolls Online (ESO): $14.99 (for ESO Plus)
- Black Desert Online (BDO): $9.99 (for Value Pack)
As you can see, the price is right. The game is fun enough. You can easily pay $11 bucks per month and enjoy the world of Gielinor for a few hours per day. All of the other competitors that I just wrote have better graphics, but this could be the reason for going for OSRS. If you have a less-powerful computer or laptop and you just want to be a casual gamer, it could be the best option out of the 5. It is also easily accessible. You can download it from the official site or get it from Steam.
Final words
Old School RuneScape totally captures the essence of the MMORPG genre of games. What makes it very interesting is that there is a strong community behind it, and even today, it still connects regularly. The new features that came over the years have added just enough novelty to make it interesting for old players with years of experience and for newcomers, too. OSRS is a great game if you are a casual gamer who is looking for a bit of fun and social experience.