Pls recommend a MMORPG

Hi, folks. Never played a MMORPG before but am considering getting into one. Can anyone recommend one for me and tell me why you recommend it? The amount of reviews out there is daunting and you can't always be sure they're not biased. I work full time so preferably I'd like one that you don't have to spend TOO much time on mindless monster-bashing excursions to build up XP/levels/power. 3rd person perspective would be nice, but enjoyment of gameplay is more important. Also a deviation from the usual knights, dragons and goblins setting would be interesting. Also I'm living overseas in Asia at the moment so one I could buy online would be more convenient. Don't want much, do I?

Any suggestions will be much appreciated!

I would have to go with the upcoming Matrix Online. It was originally scheduled for November, then pushed back to Xmas, then pushed back to Spring 05.

It looks great though. It's supposed to be the official continuation of the Matrix trilogy. The Wachsoki(?) brothers are actually writing the story line for the game. Voice talent is going to Laurence Fishburne, Monica Bellucci as well as some others.

More pics can be found at www.thematrixonline.com...

The Matrix Online looks awesome. One problem, I don't buy games with a monthly fee. This has prevented me from getting into any good MMORPGs. Does anybody know of any good ones that don't have montly fees.

What about Guildwars. It's a fairly new MMORPG and there is no monthly fee. They are proclaiming their game is more 'Conan' than 'Lord of the Rings'. It's a great statement to make if youre aspiring to be the govenor of California in a few years.

Here are some pics from www.guildwars.com...

Guild War is the only one that I know that don't have monthly fee, but once you're thru the whole story, you gotta pay again to get new updates or new missions or stuff. Games with montly fees lets you get all the updates and new stuff.

I still play City of Heroes and still think it kicks ass. If you just wanna get away from the knights, dragons and goblins, it's good. If you like comic books, it's even better, you'll LOVE it. Check it out, even if it's not one of the most "recent" MMORPG (say... compared to EverQuest 2 or stuff) it's really cool, and the graphics litterally kick asses too. Lots of different baddies to kill.

I'm completely addicted to Everquest II. Easy to learn, easy to find fellows to adventure with, and the best looking game out there, with visual setting so high that no current computer can play with them. And, it's backed by Sony, so it's pretty futureproof. l'd not get it, though , with anything less than a 9600pro/5700, 2 gig CPU, 512mb ram, and a broadboad connection.