Longtime RuneScape fans might have made private servers anyway, but Jagex is finally letting everyone make official community servers.
The thing about MMOs, is that no matter what kind it is, eventually some players are going to want to make their own servers. Maybe they just want to make grinding a bit easier, or make certain loot easier to achieve, or maybe they just hate other people, or even like other people so much they want to fully engage in roleplaying with them. The point is, players like options, particularly in something like an MMO which is kind of a life commitment type deal – pick one, and that’s your lot. With RuneScape being over 20 years old, the original version anyway, there have of course been plenty of private servers over its existence, but Jagex has just announced Project Zanaris, “otherwise known as Old School RuneScape Community Servers.”
In a blog post announcing the project, Jagex explains, “Community Servers will take the Old School RuneScape you know and love and let you tweak different elements to create a brand-new gameplay experience. Do you want NPCs to deal 5x the damage? Do you want to make everyone an Ultimate Ironman, or turn PvP on everywhere? All of this, and more, will soon be possible. These are servers where you make the rules, and you can also choose who can access your creation – whether that be a small group of close friends, your Clan, or the whole community!”
The post does not that the project is still a while away from completion, and that details will be light for “some time” but next week on September 12 the official Old School RuneScape Discord server will be hosting a Q&A, so if you’re curious about what they’ll be like, that’ll be your best bet to learn more for the time being.
