- Crime-themed text-based RPG Torn celebrates 21 years
- Continue our interview with the development team and dive into the ominous statistics.
- How many dollars were stolen and how many asses were kicked? Find out now!
While flashy graphics and new, innovative systems have always been popular in online gaming (remember when RuneScape and Ultima Online were the pinnacle of the genre?), there's something to be said for the longevity of text-based RPGs. And considering Thorne has been around for 21 years, there's some serious time under the hood.
You may remember last week we interviewed some key members of the Torn development teamdelving into the story of this crime-themed RPG. Inviting players to steal, mutilate and destroy a virtual city, all via text messages, Torn remains extremely popular among dedicated players.
Now Thorne has revealed some ominous statistics that are worth noting. With a whopping 1200+ players joining back in 2003, a total experience of 12,627 years and 410,888,359 total attacks still active. Oh, and 12% of those attacks were aimed at the groin, in case you were wondering.
In plums
I guess there's something to be said for any RPG that lets you run up, kick someone in the crown jewels, and then kick them. But as silly as it may sound, this and other statistics (a total of $44 trillion in in-game cash was stolen) show the popularity of this long-running release.
Of course, while the guys at Torn are content to humblebrag about their popularity in the era of ray tracing, it's not without merit. But it also demonstrates how much the world of gaming has changed in that time.
So, are we in for more years of crime or perhaps something new on the horizon? We'll have to wait and see.
But at the same time, there are a number of great role-playing games on mobile devices. Why not take a look at our list best mobile role-playing games on Android for some of our top picks?
