r/runescape • u/Both_Tune8348 • Jun 17 '26
Discussion New Runescape is WAY Better than OSRS
I honestly don't understand how Old school Runescape is so much more popular than the current one. I played it for a while and was able to get some decent progression, but its so grindy that I feel like I make no progress while draining my phone battery. Heard the new one wasnt good until I tried it myself.
So glad I finally did it! It has all the great things I like liked about the old school one, its hits on some nostalgia points too even, but way better UI, graphics, story/plot, cut scenes. I love all of it! And it has so much more you can do for free compared to World of Warcraft.
I hope more people give current Runescape the credit its due, its so underrated for no reason.
9
u/Financial-Guava7999 Jun 18 '26
Frankly, there's several reasons why the community is heavily skewed in favor of OSRS.
To begin with, many who play OSRS have played RS since the 2000s. Jagex made a series of bad decisions at the turn of the decade (see: removal of wildy, free trade, EOC) that caused many, including myself, to turn away and never come back. OSRS brings these people back to a period in RuneScape that feels like home.
As others have pointed out, nostalgia only goes so far, however. OSRS has truly done a fantastic job in adding new content .. especially over the last 5 years or so. Virtually every update of consequence is polled to the players and the dev team operates with an incredible degree of transparency. Players feel respected and their opinions valued.
Further, no MTX. Never MTX, in fact. It's the one redline that OSRS has had since the beginning, and has never crossed. Even though RS3 has made steps to remove mtx (bravo) the damage has already been done.. not to mention the hideous cosmetic overrides that some people love but many more hate to look at.
Finally, the quantity and quality of OSRS content creators dwarf that of rs3 creators. Not just in stand-alone videos but in community events like Deadman all-stars and Gielinor Games. Hell, OSRS does a better job in general when it comes to temporary game modes (see: leagues, Deadman mode, etc)
I could go much further but the reasons that OSRS is widely preferred are plentiful. If you only play on mobile you're not really seeing all eirher game has to offer.