Ah, Runescape – it’s a game that all of us had experience with at some point or another. It’s a name that drives the feeling of nostalgia and memories for a lot of gamers. From the music to the weirdly charming aesthetics, Runescape is a game that has stood the test of time.
Runescape is a PC-only game you say? Well not anymore. The recent release of the mobile app for RS3 (Runescape 3), the main game, is now officially ported to IOS and Android, making it the largest and most content-rich MMO available to those platforms.
So is Runescape or its mobile version worth playing? It’s definitely a good time to get into the Runescape, especially with the release of the mobile client. Both new and veteran players alike can enjoy the game regardless of the platform they choose. The game is addicting as ever as the tried-and-true gameplay loop still runs strong at its core. Runescape is a game that, despite its age continues to improve and grow over the years, however, it still remains fairly polarizing for some players because of certain aspects of the game.
Is Runescape a Good Fit For You?
It’s important to note that most of the information here will cover RS3, which is the main game that was released to mobile – not the old-school version. There is, however, a lot of overlap between the two games, so some of the information here can apply to the old-school version as well.
Another thing is that the game is the full game, just ported to mobile. The mobile app is not a separate world or a separate game. Mobile players are playing at the same time and on the same servers as PC players.
| What Players Might Like About Runescape | What Might Put Players Off About Runescape |
|---|---|
| – It’s an MMO that revolves around real player decisions. It’s up to the player to decide on what to progress and how they go about it as there’s no main ideal path in the game. – The variety of combat and lifeskills that your character can gain adds a lot of variety and depth to the game as all of these systems support each other in some way. – The weapons, armor, and items are unique and recognizable. Everything that can be equipped by your character has a different model with an iconic look. Unlike some mobile MMOs where equipment doesn’t change the appearance of your character at all. – The players playing the game are real – and you can choose how much you want to interact with them during your journey through Runescape. You see everyone traversing on the map, killing monsters, and communicating. Trade freely happens and there’s even open-world PVP in certain regions of the game. – Every quest is meaningful and rewarding with its own story and methods of completion. Completing quests actually feels like an achievement. – The game doesn’t take itself too seriously. It contains a lot of clever jokes and writing. So reading the quests and story can be a lot of fun. – Playing the game doesn’t require players to be completely focused at all times. It’s a game for players that love to multi-task, do other things but still progress in the game. – With the mobile version, being able to progress your character even when the player isn’t near a computer incredibly convenient. Leveling up skills on the go is just super useful. | – The game’s aesthetics can put some players off. The game started as a java-based game. Therefore, it’s building upon some very polygonal, low texture, and simple beginnings. However, it’s improved a lot over the years and has grown into its own style. – Some players might find the game a bit slow, with a lot to take in. Therefore, there’s going to be a lot of googling and asking around for the most efficient ways to go about things. – The user interface in mobile and even the PC client needs some work as it can be confusing trying to find what you need. Therefore, requiring a little bit of a learning curve. – It can be a little bit overwhelming at first. There are so many skills and quests that a player might not know where to start. Luckily though, the game is getting better at guiding newer players. – Although the game is quite content-rich, the game is split between members and non-members. Therefore, members can access quests, items, and other items that free-to-play players cannot. However, with some time investment in the game, free players can collect enough gold to start their membership without real-life money. – Because of how Runescape was designed, there is an inherent sense of delay or lag in the responsiveness of the game. This can be a hit or miss for some player that want snappy feedback when controlling their character. |
Can You Catch Up With Older Veteran Runescape Players?
There’s a saying that a lot of long-time Runescape players always repeat, and it’s that the game is a marathon and not a sprint. The game just has so much content and things to do that there’s no need to rush one skill or one part of the game. Trying to do it will either cause fatigue or burnout.
Runescape is a game that has end-game content for all types of players, so there’s no one path that’s correct. It’s more about building the character that you want to build and play. For example, Runescape really caters to my inner completionist – so I just want to raise skill levels for the sake of raising skill levels. It gives me a lot of satisfaction just skilling up, not to do anything specific – just to know that it’s progressing is enough for me.
It’s more about competing against yourself than the other players in the game.
Is Runescape (Mobile) Free To Play Friendly?
Runescape is a game that’s split between membership and free-to-play. Both types of players inhabit the same world but there are sections of the game that require membership to access. These membership areas include:
- Skills
- World Regions
- Items
- Activities
Can you still enjoy Runescape without paying any money? Despite a lot of content being locked away in member’s areas – the free-to-play base game is also continuing to get content and updates as time goes on. The free-to-play experience is still a high-quality one and the game offsets the membership “gating” by allowing free players to earn their membership later on by buying it with in-game gold.
This means that with enough time spent in the game, even the players that haven’t spent a dime can gather enough in-game currency to purchase their membership with – unlocking everything that wasn’t available for them before.
For players that want to get the most out of the game and unlock the rest of the content, they can pay around 10 dollars a month for a membership. However, read this article (What to do Before and After Getting Runescape Membership) before getting the membership as it will allow you to maximize your subscription time in Runescape!
What is the Endgame in Runescape?
There are two main camps of endgame players in Runescape:
- The Completionist – these players go after maxing each one of the skills and getting flex rewards (usually capes and titles) to show off their efforts. They’re also ones to complete all the quests that the game has to offer.
- The PvMer – these players chase Runescape’s hardest and challenging content. Runescape has its own version of raids. Players group up and learn the mechanics of each boss to take it down.
There’s no right or wrong answer. Each type of player is rewarded and can generate a lot of resources from either path that they choose. In comparison, other MMOs might have similar skill and crafting systems but in the end – it’s all fed towards the main content of the game (usually combat-focused). However, in Runescape, leveling a skill will allow you to access other parts of the game that can be completely separate from the combat.
Runescape (Mobile) Verdict
After all these years, the Runescape formula is still effective. It gives players a sense of progression that’s not found in other mobile games or MMO games in general. Not to mention, it values the player’s decision and gives the appropriate rewards and achievements no matter the playstyle.
With the game accessible to more players and being able to play it from anywhere – the game is now one of the best MMOs on mobile platforms.