Best Games Like Runescape

Don’t get us wrong, OSRS and Runescape are still pretty great titles to play. However, you might be looking for something new to play but different at the same time. Luckily, there are a few games that capture the magic of Runescape. While these ones are entirely different, you can more or less expect the same amount of mindless fun.

Windcraft/MindScape

All right, starting out the list, we’re going to go with something that’s controversial and unconventional: Minecraft. Assuming you already have Minecraft, there are two free, non-subscription, non-pay-to-win experiences that you can dive into, which are quite similar to RuneScape.

The first one we’re shouting out is Windcraft. We won’t spend too much time on it because there are a lot of ways it's different from RuneScape. However, it somehow gives off that same vibe. There are even cinematic quests—yes, literally cinematics inside this Minecraft MMO! 

This is one of the most popular MMOs in Minecraft currently and it’s very popular within the community. We believe it deserves a lot more credit.

Next, we have Mindscape. To be perfectly clear, this is an OSRS clone on Minecraft so you know what to expect.

 We’ve got some RuneScape-inspired games coming up on the list, but this one is literally made to look and play and feel like Runescape. The game reached its height of popularity back in 2022 but it’s still a pretty good way to pass the time. Players aren’t as abundant as before but you can still find communities dedicated to keeping it alive.

World of Warcraft

With more than 100 million players at its peak, the World of Warcraft (WoW) has helped define the MMORPG genre. Entering Azeroth in 2024 entails navigating a dynamic lore-rich world with a wide range of classes to learn, from the sword-wielding Warrior to the spell-casting Mage, as well as iconic classes like Orcs and Elves.

Do you miss playing old games like RuneScape? With instanced dungeons and raids, WoW provides an MMO experience similar to that of a theme park. There are plenty of missions, challenges, and an unrivaled sense of community to be found in this big open world.

WoW is unique because of its extensive history, a large player base that supports a thriving community, and frequent content releases that keep the game engaging.

When it comes to visual appeal, envision majestic mountains, vibrant cities full of players, and mythical animals to fight. Even though WoW’s graphics aren’t the most sophisticated, millions of people are drawn to the game’s unique aesthetic.

If you like RuneScape’s emphasis on character progression, exploration, and skilling, WOW offers a comparable experience with a more structured group content strategy. This makes it an excellent option for those of the best iOS offline games looking to explore a deep online MMORPG universe.

Elder Scrolls Online

In Elder Scrolls Online (ESO), Tamriel, the fabled continent, awaits. This 2014 massive multiplayer role-playing game allows you to explore every inch of this expansive globe, from the colorful jungles of Elsweyr, to the snow-capped peaks of Skyrim.

ESO provides a more flexible “go-at-your-own-pace” experience than World of Warcraft. Here, you have the option to explore the main plot, take on a ton of side missions, or just take in the scenery. Excellent character customization lets you create your own special hero with a fighting system that may be customed to your preferred playstyle.

With its expansive world that is full of well-known spots from The Elder Scrolls series, ESO lets you visit popular sites like Skyrim and Morrowind. Furthermore, the customizable combat system fits your playstyle and offers a hint of action combat with MMORPG features.

For visual appeal, this game lets you take in breathtaking scenery, such as colorful jungles and snow-capped peaks, which will make you miss RuneScape’s wide variety of environments. Any adventurer would be compelled to explore the realm of The Elder Scrolls after witnessing the stunning visuals of the game.

If you liked RuneScape’s open-world exploration, lore-focused gameplay, and varied activity progression, ESO provides a comparable experience.

Guild Wars 2

Guild Wars 2 (GW2) immerses you in the action from the start. 2012 saw the release of the said game, a combat system that is fast-paced and dynamic and lets you evade attacks, use skills, and adjust your strategy at any time.

Because GW2 is a buy-to-play game with optional expansions, you can start playing without having to commit to a monthly fee, unlike some MMORPGs that require a subscription.

What’s unique about this game is you can engage in cooperative combat, collect resources, and explore the dynamic events that appear all around the realm. This maintains the sense of life in the world and offers endless chances for exploration. Moreover, rather than concentrating solely on obtaining ever-increasing gear stats, GW2 emphasizes horizontal progression in which you discover new ways to play your character.

The world of Guild Wars 2 is lively and colorful, with breathtaking scenery that includes snow-capped mountains and lush woods. A genuinely immersive experience is produced by the unique and eye-catching art style.

The action-packed combat, emphasis on player skill, and customizable character playstyles of RuneScape are all still present in GW2, which is ranked third among similar games to Runescape. However, GW2 is more dynamic and fast-paced than Runescape.

Black Desert Online

Among all MMORPGs, Black Desert Online has some of the most breathtaking graphics. An improvement over RuneScape’s blocky visuals is to explore expansive, intricate areas with weather effects that genuinely make you feel as if you are in that world.

Another highlight is the combat, which provides a quick-witted and exciting experience. Inspired by RuneScape's action combat, you'll use chaining together combos, dodging attacks, and unleashing strong skills to take down enemies.

In addition, Black Desert Online has a strong life skill system that lets you develop into an expert trader, horse breeder, or fisherman. Although the game is playable through a buy-to-play format with optional payments, some players are worried about how these purchases may affect character progression.

There's more to Black Desert Online than merely battling enemies. You can pursue careers in fishing, trading, or horse breeding to create a genuinely unique MMORPG experience.

For MMORPG visuals, Black Desert Online establishes a new benchmark. Get ready to be astounded by incredibly intricate scenery, weather effects, and character customization choices that all greatly exceed anything you may have encountered in RuneScape.

Black Desert Online offers a comparable experience with stunning graphics and a more intricate life skill system. This game is for you if you love RuneScape’s focus on skilling and resource gathering, the excitement of difficult combat encounters, and the option to pursue non-combat paths.

Final Fantasy XIV

If you ever wished you were the protagonist of a great tale, Final Fantasy XIV is for you as it tells an epic story that spans multiple expansions.

The extensive plot of Final Fantasy XIV makes it seem like you're immersed in a grand Final Fantasy adventure. You'll interact with enduring characters, make significant decisions, and experience a narrative that can compete with certain single-player role-playing games.

There is also a wide variety of classes available in Final Fantasy XIV, each with a distinct style of play.

The award-winning plot of Final Fantasy XIV is well-known for keeping fans interested for years. In order to guarantee that there is always something new to enjoy, the game also has frequent content updates.

The game’s artwork is exquisite and unique, showcasing lively landscapes and character designs that perfectly encapsulate the spirit of the game franchise. The artwork provides a fascinating and engaging universe even if it isn't as graphically demanding as some other options.

If you liked RuneScape's emphasis on character development via quests and exploration, the variety of character classes available, and the strong sense of community in the game, you'll enjoy FFXIV.

Lost Ark

If you’re into action RPG, Lost Ark is for you. With its thrilling top-down isometric viewpoint and quick-paced combat, this game introduces the genre to the MMORPG arena. Imagine taking control of your character from above and using special combinations and skills to defeat hordes of opponents in a manner reminiscent of fighting monsters in RuneScape. As you explore a wide and dynamic world full of secrets and challenges, you’ll have a choice of classes to choose from, each giving intriguing powers.

Much like the large world of RuneScape, this game emphasizes exploration and discovery with its hidden dungeons, dramatic boss encounters, and fascinating discoveries around every turn.

The game is relatively new, though. In spite of that, it already has a devoted following of players.

If you appreciate both genres, Lost Ark offers a unique experience that blends the social aspects and large environment of an MMORPG with the action-packed combat of an RPG.

In terms of visuals, the artwork of Lost Ark is stunning and vibrant, with intricately rendered locations and animated characters. The isometric perspective, which is reminiscent of the top-down view you may be accustomed to from RuneScape, gives a distinctive vision of the world that is ideal for strategic fighting and exploration.

All in all, Lost Ark provides a comparable experience with a bright top-down view and a more action-oriented gameplay style.

The Elder Scrolls: Blades

Not everyone can commit several hours to playing an MMORPG. If you’re one of them, The Elder Scrolls: Blades may be the ideal choice if you’re searching for a more laid-back experience you can enjoy while on the go.

Like in RuneScape, this single-player role-playing game features online elements and an intricately designed open world full of quests, dungeons, and well-known lore from The Elder Scrolls universe.

In this game, you’ll construct and personalize your town, create strong armor and weaponry, and engage in combat with a range of enemies. If you’re looking for a condensed Elder Scrolls experience on your mobile device, this game is a great alternative, even if it doesn’t provide the same amount of social engagement as traditional MMORPGs.

It gives an Elder Scrolls experience that is ideal for mobile devices. You can fight and explore when you’re on the go.

As for its graphics, it is actually striking for a smartphone game, complete with character models, intricate landscapes, and fighting animations. It’s enjoyable to explore the realm since it embodies the spirit of The Elder Scrolls universe, much like going further into a more intimate portion of RuneScape.

If you loved RuneScape’s emphasis on exploration and questing in a well-known fantasy setting, the freedom to play at your own speed, and an enjoyable mobile experience, The Elder Scrolls: Blades provides a similar experience on your phone within the adored Elder Scrolls universe.

Eldevin

Next, we have Eldevin. You might have seen this game around over the past decade or so. This was basically RuneScape 3 before RuneScape 3. You know, before the Evolution of Combat happened and the graphical updates in RuneScape. If you’re not aware, there’s Old School RuneScape and then there’s the new RuneScape, but they’re like the same thing. 

The new RuneScape is technically the old RuneScape with better graphics. Anyway, Eldevin seems to lack a bit of content and never really went viral or became popular. But if you want a really charming, tight-knit community, it’s definitely a game you can play with younger audiences, friends, or family to introduce them to the MMO genre. Eldevin might be there for you. 

It’s a game you’ll want to play closely with friends and family. It doesn’t have a thriving, living, breathing world like RuneScape. RuneScape’s genre of MMO is incredibly niche, and there aren’t too many, especially free ones, that are like RuneScape. Eldevin tried to compete with RuneScape, but it didn’t really work out. 

However, nowadays, people are going back and playing older nostalgic titles, and there’s a better appreciation for retro styles and aesthetics. Eldevin might hit that sweet spot where it’s not too clunky, not too awkward, and actually looks better than Old School RuneScape. At the same time, it still has that smaller community feel, that safe, cozy vibe you might be looking for in an MMO.

Villagers & Heroes

Next, we have Villagers & Heroes. This game is heavily recommended when anyone asks for something similar to RuneScape. Villagers & Heroes was the first game we tried that instantly gave us that cozy vibe.

 It made us begin to appreciate smaller, indie, tight-knit community-style MMOs. That’s really the selling point of this game—working together and being a part of a village with your friends, family, or even some random strangers, just trying to feel less alone. It’s one of those cuter games, like Toontown or Wizard101. 

Villagers & Heroes might be a bit underrated. It’s not a chore to play; it’s cuter and overall a very safe game to recommend to a lot of people, especially younger audiences or those who want to play with family members. It’s something you can just casually run through, completing quests and existing in the world. 

While many RuneScape players are nostalgic and hardcore, into high-level skilling, endgame content, and maybe a bit of PvP, the essence of RuneScape—especially the free-to-play version—was incredibly casual, friendly, and chatty. Villagers & Heroes might exemplify that best among indie MMOs.

Adventure Quest 3D

Now, we have Adventure Quest 3D. There’s some debate about this one. The difference here is that the community aspect is a bit more hardcore—you’ll make friends quickly. They do big events, concerts, and things like that, so it’s a bit more uproarious. 

It’s not as chill, but it’s still cozy and friendly. We appreciate the game for that. It might look like a WoW clone at first glance, but the whole point of this list is that these games are similar to RuneScape. Adventure Quest 3D makes the list because of its questing and the tone of its quests. It’s self-aware and pretty hilarious. 

The team at Artix just knows how to be funny, and we enjoy their company. When you play the game, you’ll play with them and the community, and everyone is jovial. Mechanically, the game itself is self-aware, and if you’ve played RuneScape, you know what we’re talking about—the Deadpool-ish, comic-style jokes. Adventure Quest 3D has that. 

They even have a Breaking Benjamin, fourth-wall-breaking concert where you can mosh pit with a bunch of monsters. It’s really just kind of dumb like that—dumb like RuneScape. It’s less chill, more bombastic and in-your-face, but if you like cartoon violence and fantasy mayhem, the chaos of Adventure Quest 3D is something to fall in love with. Also, keep in mind, cross-platform bonus points—you can play this on your phone as well. Maybe some of you heard of RuneScape because it came to mobile. Boom, you’ve got this game that can compete with it.

Albion Online

And finally, at number one, we have one of our favorite MMOs of all time—Albion Online. This game is really two games combined with a foundational inspiration from Ultima, but it’s essentially RuneScape mixed with League of Legends, with a heavy focus on PvP. This is basically what RuneScape probably wishes it could be if it went down the path of focusing completely on PvP rather than PvM or PvE. That’s Albion Online. 

There aren’t any charming quests like in Adventure Quest or anything like that—no puzzles, no riddles. It’s focused on going out, jungling in the open world, ganking other players, zerging, doing 5v5s, and invasions. There’s a lot going on. But don’t underestimate the PvE or solo gameplay experience, or the 1v1 duels in cities and towns. If you want to be a farmer or trader, Albion Online has a ton to offer. 

Mechanically, does it have the charm of RuneScape? Not so much. The questing and skilling are a bit different, but if you want to mine, level up certain skills, or specialize in one weapon line, Albion Online offers a similar vibe. It even goes a bit further in terms of roles. You could be a duelist, a healer in your zerg, a 5v5 tank leading the charge in guild vs. guild battles, or someone who works with a guild in the shadows, playing solo but not exactly alone. 

There are so many ways to play, from being more carebear and safe, to being the wolf or cat running around and ganking other players. The customization in Albion, which is also unique to RuneScape, lets you mix and match to create your own kit. It feels like League of Legends in a massive, open sandbox world similar to RuneScape. So yeah, definitely two thumbs way up for Albion Online!

What To Play Next?

Finding games like Runescape isn’t that easy as it’s pretty niche title. However, these 5 games are the closest one can get with Gielinor’s experience. If you don’t find any of these games good, then it’s a good time to launch your Jagex launcher and start playing Runescape or OSRS again.