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It’s not a pre-made character, but instead a custom-made avatar. So, the art of customization options in really any game is something worth the developer’s precious time. With what’s on offer in upcoming MMOs, it’s something they’re still struggling with. So, with that in mind, here are some of the best MMORPG character creators that are currently available.
Updated September 19, 2022, by Kristy Ambrose: MMORPGs are still a big thing, but the pace of new ones has slowed down in recent years in favor of “games as a service” such as Destiny 2, the Division, and Outriders. Still, there are a ton of them out there that are still getting expansions, updates, and new content. A few of the older ones that date back to the turn of the century are getting revisits and revamps and a few more are appearing on phones and tablets as opposed to computers or consoles. With that in mind, those looking for MMOs with the best character customization still have plenty of great options from which to choose.
18 Lost Ark
Lost Ark has some of the more conventional limitations that most RPGs have when it comes to character customization. Players have to choose a class first, and their selection of clothing and weapons is limited by that choice to a certain extent, but the developers seemed to understand how important this stage of the game is to their fanbase and compensate accordingly.
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The character customization process includes a display outfits stage and an emote preview along with the standard hairstyle and face choices, which naturally include details like cheekbones, chin, and eye color. Players can get even more detailed with tattoos and facial hair, and, if they work on it for a long time, they can save a preset with this MMORPG character creator and decide later.
17 Destiny 2
Technically, Destiny 2 isn’t an MMORPG. It’s more of a live service game than an MMO, but it’s pretty close to being one. The game went free-to-play back in September 2020, so it saw a massive increase in concurrent players. That increase has kept up and the game isn’t dead by any means.
Those new players saw just how neat the MMORPG character creator is. Sure, it’s simple, but there are a ton of different ways to build a Human, Awoken, or Exo character. And, once in the game itself, the sheer amount of cosmetics for weapons, vehicles, and armor means that the customization keeps going. It’s missing some of the customization options from other MMOs, but it still does a pretty good job.
16 Kurtzpel
As an anime-centric MMO, Kurtzpel has a lot to live up to. Sadly, it sort of drops the ball in the gameplay department. It was originally thought to be an MMORPG, but fans quickly discovered it was more PVP action battle-oriented. Recently the game made an effort to be more MMO by adding elements such as dungeons, levels, gear, guilds, and questlines.
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The combat looks nice, but it isn’t very engaging, the costumes look great, but they’re such a slog to grind for, and the PvP looks fun, but their servers constantly have issues. The biggest draw for Kurtzpel is its robust character creator that could easily fit into something high quality like Genshin Impact. Quite frankly, since the game is free-to-play, players could easily just download it to try out the character creator for themselves.
15 Crossout
When talking about MMORPGs with cool customization options, Crossout has to be part of the conversation just for its sheer uniqueness. After all, this is a car-combat MMO released in 2017 that gives players full control over the design and build of their vehicle.
For reference, one need think of how much control players had over their “lifeform” in Spore, then multiply that by two or three. That’s Crossout. It doesn’t have a huge community, but the community it does have is insanely faithful. Plus, it’s also free-to-play, which is always great for bringing in new players.
14 City of Heroes
City of Heroes was one of the most memorable games of all time, at least to us, simply because players could create their very own hero with a shocking amount of control. From their power combination, race, battle cry, background, and archetypes, players could even customize the character’s heroic cape past a certain level. While the character creator was pretty top-notch, it was the combination of powers, classes, and other customization options that made this heroic game shine.
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When the servers finally fell back in 2012, CoH fans were heartbroken. In 2019, a hero among gamers released the source code for the game to the public, and now there are several private servers players can check out if they want to see what this classic game had to offer.
13 New World
While so many other games use the medieval fantasy aesthetic with little variation, New World gives players a refreshing change with a style based on the Age of Exploration. This was a real-world time that lasted from about the 16th to the 19th century and the island of Aerternum, where the game takes place, is designed as a lost continent from ancient history.
Unlike other MMORPGs that require players to choose a class, this game has no classes and compels players to build both their character and class from the ground up. Even if the initial character customization is fairly simple, relying on choosing a body type, hairstyle, and skin color, the class customization is wildly creative. Players dress in furs, linens, leather, or plate armor, and create professions and classes like Trapper, Musketeer, Pirate, or Survivalist.
12 Maplestory 1 & 2
It’s difficult to name another MMO where players can get a helmet that’s just a bear who sits on their head. Or how about another MMO that constantly has collaborations with anime series and/or K-Pop groups like BTS? Plus the amount of different classes and jobs is unlike any other MMO. From Buccaneers to Blaze Wizards, Beast Tamers, Shades, Mechanics, and even a Demon Avenger, there are just so many classes to pick from.
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Each class has a ton of different ways that players could customize their build and experience. Then there’s the Cash shop, a place with a shocking amount of cosmetics for characters, some of which are account-wide. This combination of factors is why Maplestory is still decently popular even to this day, though it’s sad that Maplestory 2 didn’t find the same success.
11 Elder Scrolls Online
Those who enjoyed character customization in Skyrim can rejoice, as here it is again, but this time in an MMORPG format. Elder Scrolls Online has been around since 2014 and it’s not on the level of World of Warcraft or FFXIV, but this game is one of the top picks for MMOs to check out in 2021.
The pure depth of the character creator helps with that reputation. Orcs, High Elves, Humans, Khajiit, Argonians, they’re all here and are all able to be modified to pretty minute levels. For only $20 to get the base game, it’s a pretty cheap buy-in for hundreds of hours worth of content.
10 Tera
Tera’s Character Customization isn’t anything mind-blowing, but it’s the sheer number of variables combined with the unique races that make it amazing. In particular, the Popori is just such a winner in terms of a playable MMORPG race. Tiny round dog creatures, that players can customize and even pick the breed. How adorable! It’s like playing as one’s own custom-made Palico from the Monster Hunter series.
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Now Tera has 7 races in total, the Amani, Baraka, Castanic, High Elves, Humans, and of course Popori. Say what one will about Tera’s overall gameplay loop as an MMO, but its unique combat combined with the immensely enjoyable character creator is what causes this MMO to live rent-free in players’ minds, even to this day.
9 Final Fantasy XIV
Final Fantasy XIV: A Realm Reborn is one of the biggest comeback stories of all time when it comes to gaming. The original release of this MMO was not well received, at all. But, thanks to director Naoki Yoshida and his fantastic team, they managed to save and re-release it to get to the eventual 16 million+ registered users they have today. Guess people really do love story-heavy MMORPGs.
Plus, since the re-release, the game has benefited from a constant stream of expansions, updates, and returning fan-favorite characters. It’s one of those MMOs that just keeps getting more and more unbelievably huge as time goes on. One of the best aspects of the game is just how varied the create-a-characters can look thanks to an obscene amount of tools, races, classes, cosmetics, crossover items, and plenty of other things.
8 Blade & Soul
Blade & Soul is one of the more unique MMOs on this list. B&S is heavily based on Chinese/Korean folklore, with the four playable races (the Gon, Lyn, Yun, and Jin) being based on the Chinese constellations like the Azure Dragon, The Black Tortoise, The Vermillion Bird, and The White Tiger.
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The combat is also pretty unique, taking nods from fighting games and forcing players to combo their attacks together. The character creator is what put this game on the main stage. It might not be as complex as some of the other MMORPGs, but it does give players the tools to make just about any character they want. And, with new classes and content still coming out every once in a while, this is a game that actively benefits those that have stuck with it.
7 Warframe
Warframe is a different type of MMO, in just about every sense of the word. It’s made by Digital Extremes and was originally a launch title for the Playstation 4, where it bombed pretty hard. Since then, the team has put in the time through updates, dev streams, and massive expansion all to improve and build this weird mish-mosh MMO where players control bio-synthetic space ninjas meant for destruction.
The style of Warframe is probably one of its most obvious draws, and while players can’t design their own Frame, they can massively augment just about everything else. Outside of their wearables, they can also augment their weapons, load-outs, ship, pets, and more. Honestly, it’s a bit overwhelming at first and causes a lot of new players to bounce off it. Still, no two players have similar-looking frames, and that’s a pretty big achievement. Out of any game out there, the developers at Digital Extremes really put the work in and experiment with new things.
6 Guild Wars 2
Guild Wars 2 is another long-time fan favorite MMO. The original release was way back in 2012, and the game is still pretty well known. And, it has one of the best character creators ever seen. Not just visually, but in terms of characterization as well. Players pick their character’s past, personality traits, and future goals all at once.
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While other games might have a more in-depth physical creator for their avatars, GW2 still has by far the best personality creator, and that’s not something many MMOs can brag about. Seriously, the races the game allows players to choose from are incredibly unique in their designs and backgrounds, so adding one’s own backstory and visual touch on top of that can make for some personal favorites.
5 Phantasy Star Online 2
Phantasy Star Online 2 is another one of those MMOs that will just last forever. The original game came out in 2003, and it’s been one of Japan’s most consistently popular MMOs ever since. The gameplay is a bit different from the standard MMO in that it’s action-oriented. Players chain combos together and fight big creatures sort of similar to Monster Hunter World. But, again, this was back in 2003, so they were one of the first to try it. On top of all that, the character creator is outstanding for the time it was made.
The amount of variables allows players to make all their favorites with the MMORPG character creator, and the sheer number of equippable customizable in-game leads to limitless possibilities. Thankfully, it’s finally coming out in the west, after what felt like an eternity of waiting.
4 Albion Online
Considering it’s a mobile game that focuses more on combat and progression, the character customization options in Albion Online are more than decent. After going through a fairly detailed process that includes choosing hair, body type, and other basic details, players can change their appearance later with different avatars and special borders for their in-game portraits.
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Albion Online also has a lot of ways to customize a character in ways that are purely decorative or cosmetic, and some of these items have functions in combat or have other uses. For the most part, special items used for creating unique characters are purely cosmetic, but that doesn’t keep players from collecting them.
3 EVE Online
EVE Online is what No Man’s Sky wanted to be — a gigantic connected universe where players are free to do either a million different things or nothing at all. Players can all band together, spend all their income (both in-game and real-world money) on gigantic ships to make an armada, and go to war against another group.
Alternatively, players can buy a small ship to smuggle cargo, all while avoiding any conflicts whatsoever. EVE Online is complex to the highest degree, but that complexity also allows players to customize almost anything in the game in a staggering amount of ways. But what’s surprising is its character creator. This thing is way too detailed and amazing for a game where players spend almost no time looking at their character. But, this dedication to detail is why it’s still so popular and so much hard-earned cash has been spent on it by the devoted fanbase.
2 World Of Warcraft
World of Warcraft defies all logic, building an unsurmountable throne at the peak of all other profitable titles. Until the age of mobile games, there was nothing that could even come close to dethroning WoW in terms of money made. And, this was in no small part due to its incredibly deep pool of races, well-known characters, and cosmetic options.
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There have been more updates, expansions, hotfixes, patches, and DLC dropped than anyone could ever possibly count, especially in 2020. Regardless, the customization each character has available to them makes sense for a game that’s been building on itself since 2004, but it’s still awe-inspiring.
1 Black Desert Online
Black Desert Online is the insane MMORPG that often gets brought up during conversations about character customization. It’s not brand new, Game Rant even reviewed it back in 2016, but it’s another MMO that innovates in terms of combat. While that’s all well and good, the character creator is the stuff of legend.
When it comes to insane character creators, BD:O is always near the top of those lists, if not at the peak. The pure amount of variables that can be played with when creating an OC is staggering. Those who like to make their characters just right will just need to be careful not to spend 10+ hours on the creation screen!
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