RuneScape

RuneScape is an open-ended MMORPG set in Gielinor, a fantasy world in which players control customisable avatars. After introductory tutorial content, players may choose among activities such as training skills, fighting monsters, completing quests, trading with other players, including through the Grand Exchange marketplace, chatting, and taking part in minigames and other group activities.

Progression is organised largely through skills. Players gain experience points by performing actions associated with a skill, such as gathering resources, crafting items, fighting enemies, cooking food, or receiving quest rewards. Higher levels unlock new resources, equipment, abilities, areas, and other rewards. Some skills are available to free-to-play players, while others require membership. Skill levels and total levels are reflected in the game's high scores.

Andrew Gower developed RuneScape with the assistance of his brother Paul Gower. It was originally conceived as a text-based MUD, but graphics were added early in development, placing it among the games then described as "graphical MUDs". Starting in 1998, RuneScape was initially developed under the name DeviousMUD.

The first public version used a mixture of three-dimensional environments and two-dimensional sprites. It was released as a beta version on 4 January 2001 and initially operated from the Gower family's home in Nottingham. In December 2001, the Gower brothers and Constant Tedder formed Jagex to run the business side of the game. Among its early technologies, Jagex developed RuneScript, an interpreted domain-specific scripting language used by the game's server for event handling.

PC Gamer UK stated in December 2003, that while the "traditional [role-playing game] values of questing, slaying monsters and developing your character in a familiar medieval setting" will not "have the big boys trembling in their +2 Boots of Subscriber Gathering," this is offset by the game's accessibility through a web browser, "compounded by a version of the game that allows free adventuring player the opportunity to upgrade to a members' account", describing the game as "an unsurprising success".

The Yahoo! 2006 Buzz Log stated that, "while it may not be as easy on the eyes as some other popular [MMORPGs], like World of Warcraft, City of Heroes, or EverQuest, RuneScape is still a lot better way to kill time than pushing around cells in a spreadsheet". A 2007 JustRPG review summarised RuneScape as "a fun, addictive game, and while the graphics may not be perfect, for a game written in Java, they aren't bad. The skills are varied, the community is alright, and it'll eat up your time if you aren't careful", giving it a score of 83%.