The 2000s were a golden era for gaming, with many new online games emerging and becoming popular. However, while many of these tiles have come and passed, a select handful seem to have survived the test of time, still thriving all of these years later.
If you find yourself curious as to what these games are and why players may still be playing them in 2026, this list rounds up 5 of the best games from the 2000s that still have massive playerbases and communities to date. These titles have gone above and beyond for their genre and prove that brilliant video games truly have no expiration date.
World of Warcraft
It’s pretty easy to say that World of Warcraft defined a generation of online gaming following its 2024 release. At peak, the game hosted over 12 million subscribers, and has since become a notable piece of pop culture, being referenced in several other media such as card games, film, and even animated tv shows (ahem, South Park). Even now, the game continues to thrive with the likes of seasonal events, expansions, and the WoW Classic revival.
The dedicated community continues to come together and team up for developing their guilds and embarking on dungeon runs and raids with new fries and allies. This is a rather special aspect, and the core part of what has kept World of Warcraft running for so long. Very few games have shaped the internet, MMORPGs, and the gaming world as a whole in the way that World of Warcraft has over the years. There’s no surprise it still has a healthy playerbase running in 2026 – even all this time later, it’s still completely friendly for a newbie to jump in, too.
Age of Empires II
Technically, Age of Empires II was released in 1999. However, it still absolutely dominated the 2000s and really hasn’t slowed down since. Thanks to factors such as re-releases and the Definitive Edition, Age of Empires II has continued to live on as one of the most popular and iconic real-time strategy titles to date. Even now, it remains a consistent player in Steam charts, only proving its popularity and strong community of players all of these years later.
There’s also quite a significant replayability factor with Age of Empires 2, which has helped to bring those players back time and time again. If there’s an example of a game that nails economy management and military tactics, Age of Empires is certainly a top contender. Considering even the Definitive Edition released back in 2019, the game is doing very well for itself.
League of Legends
Released in 2009, League of Legends has become one of the most notable games and esports titles to date. Today, it remains one of the most influential and played games in the world. With constant releases of new champions, shifts in the meta, in-depth lore, and live-service updates to keep the experience involved with something new, League of Legends still manages to thrive all this time later.
There are very few games that have managed to maintain the level of relevance League of Legends has held for over fifteen years. The game has such beloved worlds and characters that the game even begun expanding into different areas, such as the Arcane animated show on Netflix, the 2XKO fighting game with LoL characters, and the unnamed upcoming MMO set in the League of Legends universe. There’s just something incredibly impressive about everything this game and franchise have managed to pull off, so there’s no surprise it manages to reign supreme still in 2026.
Old School RuneScape
RuneScape was a browser-based MMO that became the go-to game for millions of players around the world following the 2021 launch. Despite a modernized RuneScape taking off on steam with solid success, the ‘old school’ version of the game has always been preferred by many, whether it’s for nostalgia or for the grind.
Old School RuneScape has since returned, available on Steam, and continues to maintain a consistent playerbase, even 25 years later. Through generous accessibility due to being low-spec friendly, a complex skills system, and a strong sense of community, RuneScape has remained alive long after competitor games of the same era have fallen. All of this time later, and few titles can capture that magic and nostalgia of 2000s internet gaming the way RuneScape does.
Team Fortress 2
Team Fortress 2 launched in 2007, and nearly two decades later, it’s still going strong. For many, the most special elements of TF2 are the personality of the game with the memorable characters, voicelines, and fun chaotic mayhem that takes place with the class-based gameplay. Even with minimal updates over recent years, the community has prevailed with custom servers and the Steam marketplace, keeping it alive all of these years later.
TF2 also inspired some of the most notable modern hero shooters played today, such as Marvel Rivals and Overwatch – two of the biggest names/competitors on the market. If that’s not any indication of just how iconic Team Fortress 2 is as a game, then I don’t know what is!
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