Top 5 POPULAR MMORPG

Top 5 MMORPG are choosen based on several factors and some are entirely objective. The deciding factors incluce popularity, playability, expansions, value for the monthly subscription, and community support.

1) World of Warcraft
The best MMORPG yet because WoW mixes the right amount of depth and simplicity better than any other game in the history of the genre.

World of Warcraft, often referred to as WoW, is a massively multiplayer online role-playing game (MMORPG) by Blizzard Entertainment, a subsidiary of Activision Blizzard. It is the fourth released game set in the fantasy Warcraft universe, which was first introduced by Warcraft: Orcs & Humans in 1994. World of Warcraft takes place within the Warcraft world of Azeroth, approximately four years after the events at the conclusion of Blizzard's previous Warcraft release, Warcraft III: The Frozen Throne. Blizzard Entertainment announced World of Warcraft on September 2, 2001. The game was released on November 23, 2004, on the 10th anniversary of the Warcraft franchise.

2) Lord of the Rings Online
One of the most popular MMORPGs that appeals to casual gamers. Plenty of solo content adds to the game's already tremendous mainstream appeal.

The Lord of the Rings Online: Shadows of Angmar (commonly abbreviated to LOTRO, LotRO) is a massively multiplayer online role-playing game (MMORPG) for Microsoft Windows set in a fantasy universe based upon J. R. R. Tolkien's Middle-earth writings. It takes place during the time period of The Lord of the Rings.

The Lord of the Rings Online: Shadows of Angmar was developed by Turbine, is subscription-based, and requires Internet access. It launched in North America, Australia, Japan and Europe on April 24, 2007. In China, beta testing started in July 2007, and the game is expected to be released by the end of Q3 2009. The first expansion pack, Mines of Moria, was released on November 17, 2008. The second expansion pack Siege of Mirkwood, was announced by Turbine on September 4, 2009, and was released on December 1, 2009.

On June 4, 2010 Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment announced that The Lord of the Rings Online will adopt a free-to-play model.

3) Aion
This latest potential "WoW killer" could be the best one yet after a very successful launch. Aion sports many of the features that made WoW a success but still retains its own personality with characters being able to fly and its PvPvE system.

Aion: The Tower of Eternity (Korean: 아이온: 영원의 탑), known also as The Tower of AION (タワー オブ アイオン) in Japan is a massively multiplayer online role-playing game (MMORPG) released by NCsoft, a major Korean game developer. Aion was (up until May 20, 2009) known as "Aion: The Tower of Eternity" but it was released in North America under the one-word title of Aion. The game combines PvP and PvE (a concept the developers call PvPvE) in a fantasy game environment.

4) Eve Online
The best sci-fi MMORPG with player-run corporations and a thriving economy.

Eve Online was first released in North America and Europe in May 2003, it was published from May to December 2003 by Simon & Schuster Interactive, after which CCP purchased the rights back and began to self-publish via a digital distribution scheme. On January 22, 2008 it was announced that Eve Online would be distributed via Steam. The current version of Eve Online is dubbed Tyrannis, which was released on May 26, 2010. On March 10, 2009 the game was again made available in boxed form in stores, released by Atari.

5) Final Fantasy XI
The second best fantasy MMORPG after WoW with a quality story, great game play, and large subscriber numbers.

Final Fantasy XI (ファイナルファンタジーXI), also known as Final Fantasy XI Online, is a massively multiplayer online role-playing game (MMORPG) developed and published by Square (later Square Enix) as part of the Final Fantasy series. It was released in Japan on Sony's PlayStation 2 on May 16, 2002, and was released for Microsoft's Windows-based personal computers in November 2002. The PC version was released in North America on October 28, 2003, and the PlayStation 2 version on March 23, 2004. In Europe, only the Windows version was released, on September 17, 2004. An Xbox 360 version was released worldwide in April 2006 for all regions, as the system's first MMORPG and the first cross-platform MMORPG. All versions require a monthly subscription to the game and the Xbox 360 version does not require an Xbox Live Gold account to play.