Asheron's Call is almost as old as Ultima Online. I've played it off and on, mostly off as UO took most of my years and now it is LotRO that has me in it's grasp. I doubt there is any game that can truly compare to what Ultima Online has offered, unless comaring graphics. I love Ultima Online and even though I do not play anymore, I will always speak kind of it for UO has given me 10 years of wonderful gaming. I am an evolving person and I enjoy technology and the 3D graphic era (EA/Mythic, please resurrect UX:O), so my time had finally come and I moved on.. a hard road to leave made easier by forgetting to reactivate before my homes collapsed.. Back on note, whenever I did return to AC, I find it pretty fun. I do get bored very easily however, which explains the off and on.
I wouldn't suggest it though if I didn't like the game.
*Orvago winks*
The best game out there now, in my opinion, is
Lord of the Rings Online. Of course I am a huge LotR/Tolkien fan and playing in LotRO gives me the feel that I am actually in Middle-Earth taking part in the ongoing story.
The graphics are abosolutely beautiful, they are not like WoW's, more like AoC's if I had to compaire. Where WoW's are more "cartoony" (not in a bad way, I like WoW's graphics too), LotRO's are much more realistic and very pleasing on the eyes. Gameplay is smooth, combat is fun and exciting and the quests are awesome and lore-filled.
Turbine aquired the rights to many of the LotR books and they stick to that lore religiously, which.. as a fan, I love.
LotRO has housing however, it is instanced in "Communities," which there are 4 Communities. One for the Elves, one for the Hobbits, one for the Dwarves, and one for the Race of Man. Each instance is further split in more instances within that housing Region to allow any player the chance to gain a house. There are also Kinship (Guild) Houses available.
The Player Community in LotRO is one of the friendliest and best I have seen and began it's existance long before LotRO was released, back when it was going to be called Middle-Earth Online (MEO forums). Because of the nature of LotRO, being strictly based upon Lore from the Books (not movies), the Community is generally very mature and filled with adults of all ages. The younger crowds are generally more mature also than you find in other games, whether this has to do with their parents also being Tolkien fans or not, I am not sure but I find it very refreshing.
If this interests you, give their
14 day trial a go.
*Orvago give a big thumbs up*
If you're looking for a "space" game, try
EVE online. This is the single best, in my opinion, space-based game in history. They only have one server, world-wide, so you are never alone. The only reasons I stopped playing EVE was because of finances and time.
