THE 5 BEST MMORPGS FOR PVP FANS

 

PvP is an essential element for some MMORPG fans. But in which games do you experience the best fights? We at MeinMMO will tell you.

What criteria was used to create this list? The focus of the list is on the games that offer the best and most entertaining PvP overall. We looked at the varied offerings – small-scale, arenas, battlegrounds, and mass battles – as well as the general population of titles.

Because PvP games without a healthy player base aren't as much fun.

Who made the list? Alex is our MMORPG expert on MeinMMO and has already played every title mentioned here. He also tests every new MMORPG that comes out immediately.

Albion Online

Developer : Sandbox Interactive | Platform : PC, Android, iOS | Release date : July 17, 2017 | Model : Free2Play, with optional subscription | Combat system:  Action

What kind of game is this? Albion Online is a sandbox MMORPG from Germany and relies on the iso perspective. You create your character and do not choose a fixed class. Instead, your equipment and skill determine which playstyle you follow.

The Q, W, and E keys then contain your three attacks, which are determined by the weapon. You can get additional skills through the chest piece, headpiece, and shoes. This gives you numerous combination options. There is also a skill tree with the fate board that you can use to unlock new skills and equipment levels.

You roam through the huge fantasy world, find your own way, and decide for yourself whether you want to beat up other players or monsters. Crafting and economy also play an important role. You have to look at the equipment here more as a kind of resource - like a potion. Because in PvP everything can get lost.

It is also positive that you can now play the full PC MMORPG with crossplay on your smartphone.

What makes it really good in PvP?  Albion Online offers a wide system of PvP content. For example, there are areas in the open world that are marked with a yellow, red, or black marker:

• In yellow areas, there is amicable PvP. If you activate it, you can also fight with others.
• PvP prevails in red areas. If you don't mark yourself for this, you can still be killed and lose equipment. However, there are slight consequences for the attacker.
• Full-loot PvP always prevails in black areas.
• There are also certain dungeons in which PvP also prevails.

The PvP system is expanded with battles for outposts. So you can take over towers in the areas, but also entire cities.

However, if you like structured PvP, you can compete against each other in 5v5 or 20v20 arenas.

What makes it bad in PvP? Equipment plays an important role. With the full loot, you have to decide whether you want to go out into the world with your best armor or whether you would rather keep it for an event with the guild. Constant loss is something that doesn't appeal to everyone.

It's also a shame that the Crystal League Championship is being discontinued. This is a PvP tournament that was accompanied live with a shoutcast. It will take place for the last time in September 2023.

Can I also have fun as a PvE player? Yes, at least there are safe zones, dungeons without PvP, housing, and a very strong crafting system. However, at some point, you will be forced into PvP areas, for example, if you want to get rare materials or earn a lot of gold.

Dark Age of Camelot

Developer : Mythic Entertainment/Broadsword | Platform : PC | Release Date : October 9, 2001 | Model : Free2Play | Combat system:  tab targeting

What kind of game is this? In DaoC you have to choose one of three empires: Hibernia (Iritian mythology), Albion (ancient England), or Midgard (Scandinavian mythology). These factions fight each other in large realm-versus-realm battles, which is also the core of the entire MMORPG.

When creating your character, you can choose from over 15 different races, some of which are tied to a specific faction. There are also various classes that are divided into different specializations over the course of the game. The game offers the typical Holy Trinity of tank, healer, and DD.

What makes it really good in PvP?  The whole game concept of the Dark Age of Camelot revolves around PvP. This also applies to the economy, crafting, and PvE content, which is only intended to prepare you for PvP.

The focus is on the borderlands, a large area in which hundreds of players fight for castles and towers. Any faction can take control of any location.

DaoC also offers so-called battlegrounds, instantiated zones in which access is tied to the level. This should also introduce low-level players to PvP.

What makes it bad? The MMORPG has gotten very old, which is noticeable in both the graphics and the gameplay. The fights are not particularly action-packed and there is a lot of grind.

Can I also have fun as a PvE player? Rather not. Although there are some PvE tasks at the beginning, they are only intended to familiarize you with the general feel of the game. While there is player housing, which is a nice side hustle, the entire endgame is geared towards PvP.

Guild Wars 2

Developer : ArenaNet | Platform : PC | Release Date : August 28, 2012 | Model : Free2Play/Buy2Play | Combat system:  mix of action and tab targeting

What kind of game is this?  Guild Wars 2 is an MMORPG that has a strong focus on casual players. When creating your character, you can choose from 9 different classes and 5 races, with no restrictions whatsoever. You level this up to level 80 and can also constantly use the old areas because you are dynamically scaled down.

Instead of classic quests, however, you are given hearts here. Although these usually consist of typical tasks such as killing monsters or collecting raw materials, you usually have several options for solving the task and it seems more coherently embedded in the world.

When it comes to the combat system, the game uses a mixture of tab targeting and action. So you choose a target, but you have to place AoE areas yourself and avoid incoming attacks with a dodgeball. There is also the so-called action camera, with which you have to optionally target enemies for each ability.

The special thing about Guild Wars 2 is that since the release the equipment level and the maximum level have not been increased. Once you have earned the maximum amount of equipment, you can use it forever, which is particularly convenient for casual players.

What makes it really good in PvP?  Guild Wars 2 is an extremely fair PvP game. There are no battles in the open world and in the 5v5 arenas, for example, your equipment and your character level do not matter. All are raised to the same level and get special stats.

These arenas are also linked to an automated season system complete with leaderboards and daily and monthly tournaments. There are also special rewards that you can use to get legendary armor, which in turn will make you really strong in PvE. So you don't have any disadvantages there if you are a good PvP player.

The second major PvP mode is World vs. World, which pits three servers against each other. Here you fight on 4 different maps in towers, fortresses, and even the huge castle Steinnebel. Although level and equipment play a role here, the strategy in the big raid is more important. Because there are about 120 players per faction on each map. This results in huge carnage.

What makes it bad in PvP? World vs. World struggles with severe population problems. ArenaNet is currently working on a major overhaul here, but it will last from 2018 to today.

Arena PvP, on the other hand, sometimes lacks a core base of players due to a lack of innovation. But there are still enough players on the move that you don't have to wait more than a few minutes for a match - even in the middle of the night.

Can I also have fun as a PvE player? Yes, very much so. At its core, Guild Wars 2 is a PvE MMORPG in which you follow a story, experience huge world events, and compete against powerful bosses in instances.

EVE Online

Developer : CCP Games | Platform : PC | Release Date : May 06, 2003 | Model : Free2Play, later with subscription | Combat System:  Space Battle

What kind of game is this? The space MMORPG  EVE Online has been on the market since 2003 and has been around ever since. It is a sandbox game in space that gives its players a lot of freedom.

One of the biggest features of the game are the ships that you can build and customize or buy yourself. With different categories, you can decide whether you prefer to control a nimble little fighter, a large freighter, or a huge battleship.

The free economy, which is controlled by players, and the cohesion between all gamers are the enormous strengths of the game. In addition, the world of EVE is simply huge. The galaxy offers countless planets and some players enjoy exploring all of them.

What makes it really good in PvP?  EVE Online is a game in which you are constantly exposed to danger. That alone has its appeal. But thanks to its large alliances and political systems, it tells the best PvP stories ever.

These include huge battles like World War Bee 2, in which the equivalent of over 800,000 euros in ships and goods were burned.

The game is divided into different zones:

• In the high-sec areas, attacks on other players are punished. The in-game police ensure law and order.
• In the low-sec areas, security for players is no longer as high and is only provided at stations and jump gates. Attacks by pirates, for example, are common here.
• The null-sec zones are basically legal vacuums. Alliances of players rule here, fighting each other in sometimes gigantic battles, for example in order to be able to control entire sectors.

What makes it bad in PvP? Huge battles are not about quick reactions, but rather the calculations take a lot of time. This seems anything but fun but is more reminiscent of simulations.

The strength of the ships also plays an important role. These can be destroyed in battle, and losing much of the success built isn't for everyone.

Can I also have fun as a PvE player? Limited. Many EVE players agree: that without destroying ships, the game lacks appeal. Therefore, you must always expect to get involved in PvP battles.

BlackDesert

Developer : Pearl Abyss | Platform : PC | Release date : PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S | Model : Buy2Play | Combat system:  Action Combat

What kind of game is this? Black  Desert is a sandbox MMORPG that offers you a lot of freedom. So you can follow a series of quests, but also simply grind mobs, hunt bosses in the latest expansion, or learn one of the trades. There are 11 different disciplines.

You can also build your own house, level up endlessly, or join a guild and participate in PvP content. So there are no limits to your playing style.

Black Desert scores with a strong character editor and a large selection of classes. The combat system is very action-packed and is praised by many for its dynamics and combos.

The game first appeared in Korea, although we're now well catching up on the content in the West on PC. The console versions differ greatly.

What makes it really good in PvP?  Black Desert offers a colorful potpourri of PvP content. As soon as you reach level 50, PvP in the open world is automatically activated. You can use this to fight against other players, for example when they are standing at your grind spot. However, the PvP must be activated manually.

If you have deactivated PvP yourself and are attacked, there will be negative karma for the attacker, which leads to the loss of experience points or the hatred of guards and NPCs. In the Valencia region, you can even end up in prison for bad actions.

The MMORPG also features caravan battles, the Conquest War, in which you can engage in 300v300 battles to conquer outposts, and various battlegrounds. Since June 8th, 2022 there is also Arena PvP where you can fight in 3v3.

What makes it bad in PvP? Players with a high level and strong equipment have great advantages in PvP. In addition, there are always performance problems in the big Conquest Wars.

Can I also have fun as a PvE player? Yes, and Black Desert has been attaching more and more importance to this in recent years. Only the recently released expansion Land of the Morning Light brought a lot of PvE content with it.

Honorable Mention – Warhammer Online

What kind of game is this? Warhammer Online launched in 2008 as an unofficial successor to Dark Age of Camelot but was discontinued in 2013 due to low player numbers. There is now the private server Return of Reckoning, which was set up by some fans.

There you can plunge into varied PvP battles. You can either fight for huge fortresses or plunge into one of the battlegrounds. To get the best equipment, you can't avoid PvP in Warhammer.

Why is it only an honorable mention? The current version of Warhammer Online is strong in terms of PvP, but it is a private server. It can happen at any time that this will be discontinued. In addition, it is no longer up to date graphically and gameplay-wise and does not receive any major content updates.

Warhammer Online is more for lovers.

Which MMORPGs do you think we missed on the list? Feel free to write it in the comments.