First person shooters like Piercing Blow have always been thought of as a war-based MMORPG. However, that’s not entirely true. That’s because most FPS MMORPGs don’t deal with the concept of war at all. They are simply games where people can get together, arm themselves with their favorite guns and knives, and slug it out in the arena. They, again, are not totally representative of war.

When you say war, it deals with powerful machinery that’s meant only to do one thing – to mete out destruction to whoever opposes them on the battlefield. Thus, a proper war-based MMORPG must have armored tanks or gun-loaded ships. That’s where games like World of Tanks or Navy Field 2 come in.

World of Tanks basically recreates the world of tank warfare. You, as the player, are given command of one or more tanks. These tanks will have to be upgraded continually in order for them to be combat-effective. Some newbies complain that WoT is difficult to play, but that’s only in the beginning when you probably have been confident enough to enter into a random tank battle from the get-go. You’ll find that you’re actually facing off against much superior tanks that have been researched and upgraded by real players. You could be dead in a few seconds with a minimally upgraded tank.

On the other hand, we have Navy Field 2. This is a naval simulator at its core. You start with the command of your first destroyer, a ship of the now-defunct Imperial Japanese Navy that was once one of the most powerful navies to sail the world’s waters. Just like World of Tanks, the ships of Navy Field 2 need to be researched and upgraded as well in order to be more powerful and effective against other vessels – particularly battleships.

Why are these games popular? War, after all, is an ugly business to be in. They are popular because they simulate that feeling of adrenaline-pumping combat.

Imagine being in the cockpit of a tank, peering through the slits to find an opposing tank that could have been firmly entrenched somewhere ahead of you. You look around, you see it, and you fire a shot but you miss! You’d have to move fast to get away from there as the other tank has obviously marked you. Your heart racing, you flee and you fire back towards the other tank while his shell falls near you. That’s the feeling of playing one of these war-based MMORPGs.

In a way, it allows people to do something that helps them release stress and pressure. Hitting a tank or a ship and seeing it explode after a lengthy battle is a moment that could make you let out a whoop of victory, with all your stress coming out together with it. As long as people don’t spend their time too much in playing these games, they are therapeutic to an extent.

Best thing is, most, if not all, of these games are free like any other MMORPG. You just need to download the client and you’re all set.