The Weekly Raid: How Important Is Roleplaying In MMORPGs ?

We've talked at length about how important a game's playerbase is in fostering a sense of community: when you first login and hundreds of players are cluelessly running around trying to kill kobolds. It's peer pressure that works; if other people are playing it must be fun, right?

But what if those hundreds of people embodied their characters, talked like their characters, and developed mannerism that fit the fictional image of their avatar? Roleplaying.

I went back to retail World of Warcraft recently, on a roleplaying server. It was okay. The best part was when my female blood elf priest was approached by a band of merryman, clacking away the history of their lives around a campfire that nearly licked their hideskin boots. "Good morrow my lady," one of them said. I ALT + F4'd immediately.

But I like being around roleplayers. I like seeing people immerse themselves in a game in ways that indicate the experience is more than just a grind to max. The same way seeing the first day scramble bolsters my desire to play, roleplayers acting out another life tells me there are other people who feel this world is worth exploring, worth setting their fictional reality within.

How important is roleplaying in MMORPGs? Let us know in the comments below!