Welcome to our first ever This Is RuneScape blog! For those of you have yet to join the world of Gielinor, or maybe haven’t paid it a visit for a long time, we’ll be dropping details on what makes RuneScape… well... RuneScape, all the way along the road to release on October 14th.
Sit back, grab a cuppa and prepare for your 101 on your upcoming adventure!
What is RuneScape?
RuneScape is an open world MMORPG that’s always evolving, combined with the freedom to choose how to play, adventure and grow. Cooked up by three brothers in the early 2000s, RuneScape's 19 year history extends from it's earliest days running in web browsers to today's rich, vibrant living world filled with passionate players and a metric ton of content.
RuneScape is known for a lot of things, but if we had to pick our favourites... the many memorable quests, iconic skills you’ll really care about maxing and a whole breadth of challenges to master are probably our highlights!
An Epic World Filled With Adventures
There’s so much to do in RuneScape – and adventure is calling! This is a world two decades in the making, filled with rich lore, memorable characters, iconic locations and looming threats from mighty Gods and Elder Gods. This is a world you can savour, whether you are on an epic quest, like the iconic Dragon Slayer or the apocalyptic The World Wakes, or just on a mission to beat some stuff up!
Speaking of which, there’s plenty of combat to sink your teeth into in RuneScape. From Melee to Magic to Archery, there’s many ways to take on the assorted denizens of Gielinor, who range from demons to dragons and valuable loot-dropping bosses. For the monster hunting enthusiasts out there, there’s even a skill associated with killing specific types of enemies!
As you hone your Combat skills, group bosses like the indomitable Solak, Elite Dungeons, God Wars Dungeons and more will put you to the ultimate test – and if you’re feeling extra brave, the Wilderness awaits for some optional PvP showdowns.
Whether you are going it alone or exploring with friends, your choices define your adventure. You get to play however YOU want!
It’s All About Those 99s
We can’t chat RuneScape without talking about our iconic skilling! RuneScape has 28 skills to train, with everything from Farming, Crafting and Invention through to the all-new Archaeology and reworked Mining and Smithing skills.
These skills intertwine throughout the game experience, unlocking new quests and powerful upgrades to help you in combat, or opening entire new areas for you to explore. You’ll use them to grow your power and wealth on your adventures as you set out to earn those coveted Skill Mastery Level 99s (and some skills even go to 120!).
Skilling is also where RuneScape shines as the perfect second-screen game. While investing your full attention will help you optimise your gains, most skills easily be trained – whether you’re on the go on mobile or just catching up on the day’s news. How and when you skill is entirely in your hands.
Our Incredible Community
Time is the great creator of deep, meaningful communities – and with RuneScape, that means diving into a world with 19 YEARS of rich history! Yep, our game is older than Steam itself!
From legendary in-game moments like the Falador Massacre through to the yearly celebration of our incredible community at The Golden Gnome Awards, RuneScape's players are the beating heart of Gielinor that bring the world to life. You haven’t lived until you’ve experienced the buzz of being surrounded by hundreds of fellow adventurers flocking to a new piece of content (at least in our opinion!).
There’s also plenty of opportunities to connect with other players with our Group Finder features and Server Themes that bring like-minded people closer together. When you find a group in RuneScape you want to call your own, our Clan System is there to keep you connected - complete with a floating citadel sitting up in the clouds to call home.
The depth of our community extends far beyond the game too, with intricate cosplay, jaw-dropping art and binge-watchable videos delighting us all every day. As developers, we also do our best to stay connected to our community with regular livestreams and initiatives like the Ninja Dojo, where players can guide a strike team on key quality of life improvements for the game.
This all culminates in the ultimate community celebration with our yearly RuneFest event, a whole convention dedicated to RuneScape and its players... although unfortunately not this year, as you would probably expect.
Photo credits: Dave Portass, iEventMedia
Membership
While RuneScape is free to play, membership is an optional way to experience RuneScape on it’s grandest scale.
Members can explore a world three times larger than the free-to-play experience, with over 180 more epic quests to conquer and 11 additional Skills to master – including Archaeology, our all-new powerful skill that has you delving deep to uncover the mysteries of Gielinor and unearth long lost Relics that offer game-changing perks. You can learn more about membership here.
If you’re interested in becoming a RuneScape member, we’ll have a number of RuneScape Membership Access packages on offer right here on Steam from launch day. Stay tuned for more on those closer to release!
Get Ready For Launch
RuneScape is such a big game that we barely scratched the surface, but hopefully our 101 got you up to speed on some of the (many, many!) basics, and there are lots more on the way as we approach launch. Until next time, future adventurer!
The RuneScape Team