Ryzom

Ryzom takes place on Atys, a planet that is really one colossal tree, and it holds five ecosystems with their own seasons and weather running on a four-day real-time cycle. That rotation is not scenery: it changes which materials you can harvest and where. The wildlife behaves like wildlife too, with herds that migrate and predators that hunt in packs.

There are no classes and no templates. Skills are assembled from stanzas, modular pieces you combine into your own attacks, spells and harvesting actions. Crafting works the same way: the type and quality of every ingredient matter, on a scale that runs up to 250, so what you feed a recipe counts for more than the recipe itself.

The free account never expires and reaches all the content, but it caps out: level 125 per skill, quality 150 gear, a single mount and normal experience. A subscription lifts both ceilings to 250, doubles experience, and adds three pack animals, an apartment, a guild hall and character restoration.

Official pricing starts at €1.50 for a week and €3.90 for a month, drops to €2.49 a month if you pay for a full year (€29.90), and tops out at a €299.90 lifetime licence. On Steam the client is free and uses that same optional subscription, with in-game rewards for anyone currently subscribed.

French studio Nevrax launched it in 2004; after bankruptcies and ownership changes it is now maintained by Winch Gate, which released client, server and tools under the AGPL in 2010. The three language servers merged into one in 2012, and the official site still ships patches and events every few weeks, plus a running series of development articles.

Ryzom fits players who want a world rather than a progression lane: guild life, roleplay run live by game masters, consensual PvP and content that isn't instanced. The downside is just as concrete: the community is small, Steam reviews sit at Mixed (69% positive from 538 votes), and there is no public roadmap beyond the event calendar.