Free Realms passes two million players

by Justin McElroy { May 28th 2009 at 6:30AM }

Well, that about wraps it up for video games. No, no, we're serious. There's a new world order and we'd highly suggest that you get in line. How are we so sure? Because SOE's free MMO Free Realms just crossed the two-million-player mark. If the story seems familiar to you, it's because Free Realms just passed the one million player line 12 days ago.

Pardon, but, would you mind genuflecting just a little bit more soulfully? Emperor Free Realms likes to see that you really mean it.

Tags: free-realms, mmo, soe, sony

Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)

Twinturbo120 @ May 28th 2009 6:38AM

That means it's actually a good game. When it's a good game more people will play it xD

Jay Voorhees @ May 28th 2009 10:25AM

millions of little tweens listen to the johnas brothers, does that make them a "good" band. I think not.

EI8HT @ May 28th 2009 12:56PM

@ Jay

your right!!! that makes them a great band

o_0

Xizer @ May 28th 2009 3:47PM

Yes, and millions of spergin' nerds listen to "Radiohead" because they think they're like them, despite the fact that their music is terrible.

Dest @ May 28th 2009 6:48AM

What the hell is Free Realms?

Napalm @ May 28th 2009 6:56AM

http://lmgtfy.com/?q=free+realms

Mythor @ May 28th 2009 6:59AM

Not two million subscribers, two million players. Free Realms is free to play meaning people who play once can be counted as a player.

Zarim @ May 28th 2009 7:37AM

This is what I came here to say. I'm curious about the number of people who pay the $5 a month for extra stuff and/or have bought items with station cash.

Snowblind @ May 28th 2009 7:00AM

Can't say this appeals to me at all, but I'm glad it's doing well. I'd like to see more MMO's going the Guild Wars way, rather than attempting to charge us as much money as possible.

adamantypants @ May 28th 2009 7:19AM

Wow. Just.... wow.

And suddenly I have the urge to sign up for it. I'm not kidding.

Lambrick @ May 28th 2009 12:44PM

i kind of lost momentum at the point where you create the account, after making your own character.

Robert Maynard @ May 28th 2009 7:22AM

*shrug*
Free Realms should be thought of in the same way as other free social-networking oriented MMOs like Habbo or Second Life, or even sites like Facebook. It's basically WoW mixed with The Sims, a bunch of Wii games and Popcap stuff - no doubt a potent mix for teens. Doesn't make it an amazing game (although it very well could be, for the target demographic), just makes it a popular place to be at the moment.
The signup rate isn't nearly as important as retention. Second Life has 15 million registered accounts - hows that doing? :P

waynski1457 @ May 28th 2009 7:49AM

I agree completely, but there is a little more game here than one would expect. The ability to play all jobs without rerolling was a very nice touch for one.

waynski1457 @ May 28th 2009 7:47AM

I went into this looking for a casual-heavy alternative to WoW, and it fits that role very nicely. If you don't pay the $5/ month however, it bombards you with the things you're missing. I only got to lv8, but the quests/instances were already becoming a little too monotonous as well. Oh, and the interface is constantly at arms with you.

Complaints aside, there are certainly worse MMO's to be playing, but I won't waste anymore time with this.

Clasifyd @ May 28th 2009 7:59AM

I tried this myself, and while I struggle to understand how this game has already received 2 million players, it wasn't that bad. My biggest qualm about it was that most of the non-combat 'jobs' seemed to have essentially the same Bejeweled-like mini game attached to them. Definitely a good base, but certainly room for improvement in my opinion.

Storm Eagle @ May 28th 2009 9:09AM

Watch out World of Warcraft! It's coming for you!! Run!!

LOL. No, I'm just kidding.....but seriously.

Levi @ May 28th 2009 10:18AM

I wonder if my GF would like this. She likes Bejeweled style games, but Puzzle Quest was too much for her to bother with. I keep trying to get her into games, but the most she plays is some Facebook game where you join teams and fight each other through intense text based battles! ... At least she understands what it's like to level up now.

il_duce620 @ May 28th 2009 10:25AM

I've been playing it some and enjoy parts of it. I'm not all that far in (level 5 "brawler"), but the fact that I can run around and kill things for free in my browser is pretty sweet.

Any idea when this is coming out for PS3, though? They said it would, but maybe an E3 announcement? Believe you me, I'd be more likely to do this on my PS3 than Home...