If we think back to the early 2000s, the prominent multiplayer titles of the time ranged from casual, browser-based games like Club Penguin, Neopets, and Toon Town, to more meaty experiences like MapleStory and World of Warcraft. However, the one that comes most readily to mind in the zeitgeist back then was the king of nostalgia itself, Runescape. In an attempt to capitalize on the nostalgia craze currently sweeping through the entertainment industry, developer Jagex has announced that Old School Runescape – the modernized version of the original web game – will launch on mobile this October.
Released back in 2001, the original Runescape is a fantasy MMORPG revolutionized the web scene with its free-to-play model and non-linear story progression. Players were free to choose what to do, all the while interacting with both NPCs and real life players. Having had more than 200 million accounts at one point, the game became recognized as the largest free MMO of the era. The popularity and ubiquity of the game went on to spawn additional iterations with Runescape 2 and Runescape 3. In 2013, to address the declining playerbase, Jagex decided to launch Old School Runescape, an improved version of the original with a new engine and quality-of-life patches. Now, in less than 2 months time, this classic title will be receiving a mobile port that astoundingly allows for cross-platform play with its PC counterpart.
The mobile version of Old School Runescape was made possible through the efforts of the team as well as its myriad of beta testing programs and soft launches. Those in the Member beta, the iOS closed beta, and country-specific soft launches can continue playing right up until the release. However, everyone else will have to wait until the official release in order to make way for pre-orders (App Store) and pre-registers (Google Play Store).
Old School Runescape mobile will launch October 30, 2018 for iOS and Android, and will be playable immediately upon release. Devices must be running either iOS 10/Android 5.0 or newer software.