EverQuest is a 3D fantasy-themed massively multiplayer online role-playing game (MMORPG) originally developed by Verant Interactive and 989 Studios for Windows. It was released by Sony Online Entertainment in March 1999 in North America, and by Ubisoft in Europe in April 2000. A dedicated version for Mac OS X was released in June 2003, which operated for ten years before being shut down in November 2013. In June 2000, Verant Interactive was absorbed into Sony Online Entertainment, who took over full development and publishing duties of the title. Later, in February 2015, SOE's parent corporation, Sony Computer Entertainment, sold the studio to investment company Columbus Nova and it was rebranded as Daybreak Game Company, which continues to develop and publish EverQuest.
Maxis is an American video game developer and a division of Electronic Arts (EA). The studio was founded in 1987 by Will Wright and Jeff Braun, and acquired by Electronic Arts in 1997. Maxis is best known for its simulation games, including The Sims, Spore and SimCity.
Neopets is a free-to-play virtual pet browser game. First launched in 1999, the game allows users to own virtual pets ("Neopets") and explore a virtual world called "Neopia." Players can earn one of two virtual currencies. One currency, called Neopoints, can be obtained for free through on-site features like games, events, and contests. The other, Neocash (NC), is purchased with real-world money and can be exchanged for wearable items for pets.
World of Warcraft (WoW) is a 2004 massively multiplayer online role-playing (MMORPG) video game developed and published by Blizzard Entertainment for Windows and Mac OS X. Set in the Warcraft fantasy universe, World of Warcraft takes place within the world of Azeroth, approximately four years after the events of the previous game in the series, Warcraft III: The Frozen Throne. The game was announced in 2001, and was released for the 10th anniversary of the Warcraft franchise on November 23, 2004. Since launch, World of Warcraft has had ten major expansion packs: The Burning Crusade (2007), Wrath of the Lich King (2008), Cataclysm (2010), Mists of Pandaria (2012), Warlords of Draenor (2014), Legion (2016), Battle for Azeroth (2018), Shadowlands (2020), Dragonflight (2022), and The War Within (2024). Two further expansions, Midnight and The Last Titan, were announced in 2023.
A browser game is a video game that is played via the internet using a web browser. They are mostly free-to-play and can be single-player or multiplayer. Alternative names for the browser game genre reference their software platform used, with common examples being Flash games and HTML5 games.
NationStates is a multiplayer government simulation browser game created and developed by Max Barry. Based loosely on Barry's novel Jennifer Government, the game launched on 13 November 2002 with the site originally founded to publicize and promote the novel one week before its release. NationStates continues to promote books written by Barry, but has developed to be a sizable online community, with an accompanying forum board. As of 31 December 2024, over 9 million user-created nations have been created with 316,005 nations active.
Gaia Online is an English-language, anime-themed social networking and forums-based website with Chibi-style animations. It was founded as go-gaia on February 18, 2003, by Derek Liu, Long Vo, Josh Gainsbrugh, and the name was changed to GaiaOnline.com in 2004 by its owner, Gaia Interactive. Gaia originally began as an anime linklist and eventually developed a small community, but following a statement by founder Derek Liu, the website moved towards social gaming and eventually became forum-based.
A government simulation or political simulation is a game that attempts to simulate the government and politics of all or part of a nation. These games may include geopolitical situations, the creation of domestic political policies, or the simulation of political campaigns. They differ from the genre of classical wargames due to their discouragement or abstraction of military or action elements.
Jolt Online Gaming was an online gaming company hosted in Ireland. Its main site provided news, reviews, and interviews concerning upcoming games on consoles and computers, while its gaming network Jolt Online Gaming Network hosted and published free-to-play browser-based games. Notable works included Utopia, Utopia Kingdoms, Legends of Zork, and NationStates 2.
Kongregate is an American web gaming portal and video game publisher. Its website features over 124,000 online games and 30+ mobile games available to the public. The company also publishes games for PC, mobile, and home consoles. It was purchased by GameStop Corporation in 2010 before being acquired by Modern Times Group MT AB in 2017.
Construction and management simulation (CMS), sometimes also called management sim or building sim, is a subgenre of simulation game in which players build, expand or manage fictional communities or projects with limited resources. Strategy video games sometimes incorporate CMS aspects into their game economy, as players must manage resources while expanding their project. Pure CMS games differ from strategy games, however, in that "the player's goal is not to defeat an enemy, but to build something within the context of an ongoing process." Games in this category are sometimes also called "management games".
Miniconomy is an online, browser based, economic and trade simulation game developed in the Netherlands. The game has over 141,000 registered players from 100 different countries that can play the game in English, Spanish, Danish, Portuguese, German, French and Dutch. As of March 2016, 149 rounds have been completed.
Space flight simulation is a genre of flight simulator video games that lets players experience space flight to varying degrees of realism. Common mechanics include space exploration, space trade and space combat.
A flight simulation video game refers to the simulation of various aspects of flight or the flight environment for purposes other than flight training or aircraft development. A significant community of simulation enthusiasts is supported by several commercial software packages, as well as commercial and homebuilt hardware. Open-source software that is used by the aerospace industry like FlightGear, whose flight dynamics engine (JSBSim) is used in a 2015 NASA benchmark to judge new simulation code to space industry standards, is also available for private use. A popular type of flight simulators video games are combat flight simulators, which simulate combat air operations from the pilot and crew's point of view. Combat flight simulation titles are more numerous than civilian flight simulators due to variety of subject matter available and market demand.
YoWorld is a browser-based virtual world game which was released on May 8, 2008. It is developed by Big Viking Games. The game operates on the freemium model, and is supported through microtransactions, as well as a voluntary in-game ad program. The game itself is free-to-play, however, players can purchase in-game currencies or enroll in special programs and offers to improve their game-play experience or help them progress faster, using real money.
Illyriad is a free to play massively multiplayer online persistent browser-based strategy game developed by the UK software company Illyriad Games Ltd, the company's first full online strategy game, first released in beta in 2010, and launched in 2011.
Transformice is an online multiplayer free-to-play platform and indie game by Atelier 801. Created by French game designers, Melibellule produces the game's artwork and graphics, while Tigrounette programs the game's functions and mechanics. Transformice was released as a browser game on May 1, 2010, and on Steam as a free-to-play game on January 30, 2015. Transformice requires either a web browser running Adobe Flash Player 9.0+, Adobe AIR to run the official standalone or Steam to play the game. As of 2012, the game has 10 million accounts created, 60 million as of 2015, 70 million as of 2017, and 100 million as of 2019.
MechWarrior Tactics was a free-to-play turn-based tactics video game set in the BattleTech universe. It was originally under development by Roadhouse Interactive and A.C.R.O.N.Y.M. Games, but was taken over by Blue Lizard Games and published by Infinite Game Publishing for the Unity Web Player platform. The game remained in closed beta for two years, with Founder Packs allowing players to purchase instant access, but development has been on hold since of end of 2013 and the game's website has been unavailable since the end of August 2014.
War Thunder is a 2013 free-to-play vehicular combat multiplayer video game produced by Gaijin Entertainment for Microsoft Windows, macOS, Linux, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S, Oculus, and Vive. It was first released in November 2012 as an open beta with a worldwide release in January 2013; it had its official release on December 21, 2016. A spinoff game called War Thunder Mobile was released in 2023 for Android and iOS.
Pokémon TCG Online is a 2011 video game based on the Pokémon Trading Card Game developed by Dire Wolf Digital, a studio based in Denver, Colorado. The game was available for Microsoft Windows, macOS, iOS and Android. It was originally released in March 2011 under the name of Pokémon Trainer Challenge as a browser-based game.
