PC Gamer Writers Recall Their First MMO Characters as World of Warcraft Classic Returns

Blizzard's beta release of World of Warcraft: Forever, a reimagining of Vanilla World of Warcraft with modernised visuals, has sparked a wave of nostalgia among PC Gamer's editorial team. The publication asked its writers to reflect on their first MMO characters and the memories tied to them.

The reflections revealed a common thread: most of PC Gamer's writers discovered MMOs in the mid-2000s. One writer, now 34, recalled playing RuneScape as a child around age 10 or younger. After years away from the game, he attempted to log back in during 2025 only to discover his account had been permanently banned for botting in 2020. The ban had occurred without his knowledge, likely the result of account compromise.

Rather than accept the ban, he reached out to Jagex support with an appeal explaining his history with the account since childhood and noting he had not logged in for years. Jagex support, under the username 'Mod Frenzy', approved an unban request. The writer credited this decision with saving what he described as his longest-running character across any video game from permanent loss.

PC Gamer notes that the details players retain about their first MMO experiences, even from over 20 years ago, are often remarkably vivid. The publication encourages readers to share their own first MMO character stories in the comments.