Do MMOs give me the best "bang" for my time or are table top RPGs still an option?

Unless I already have a long established gaming group, are my odds of finding a game limited?

Say I'm up for joining an On Line game, are all the good ones full?

Are the "West Marches" style games out there that a person can jump into with other people looking for the same thing?

What are the "better" options than just playing a MMO?

I'd say Diablo III, currently.

Pathfinder: Kingmaker for PC single player is pretty enjoyable to me. If you enjoy exploration, monster bashing, etc, you can make kingdom management auto success.

Quote from: Hawkwing7423;1144565Pathfinder: Kingmaker for PC single player is pretty enjoyable to me. If you enjoy exploration, monster bashing, etc, you can make kingdom management auto success.

Very interesting.
Not sure I want the solo play but everything else looks amazing.

Quote from: 1989;1144560I'd say Diablo III, currently.

Any of the action role-playing games are good hi action linear experience.

If you like mythology and a meaty skill tree I do love Titan Quest.

Grim Dawn if you want an undead Warhammer ish setting.

Path of Exile if you want brain cramps looking at the skill tree but it's more MMO like in terms of other players.

Torch light games are good light fun.

So, from the suggestions, the answer is yes.  Go with something computer based.
The time of table top games has passed as far as. just sit down and start having fun.

Quote from: Greentongue;1144617So, from the suggestions, the answer is yes.  Go with something computer based.
The time of table top games has passed as far as. just sit down and start having fun.

Ehhhh, your question contained its own answer.  RPGs require some work (either grouping with people physically or via online mediums, rolling up characters, reading rulebooks, etc).  If your premise is that you want to just beat some stuff after work, then you've already decided not to play RPGs.  Personally, I find RPGs to be worth the work.  But you do you...

Unless I already have a long established gaming group, are my odds of finding a game limited?
Not really, it's easy to find a game on Roll20.

Say I'm up for joining an On Line game, are all the good ones full?
New games start all the time. I just started one yesterday. It did fill up quick. http://frloudwater.blogspot.com/2020/08/faerun-adventures-beginner-5e-d-game.html

Are the "West Marches" style games out there that a person can jump into with other people looking for the same thing?
Yes, although they may not advertise as such. And they may not be strictly 100% West Marches (no town game, players decide play schedule, et al).

What are the "better" options than just playing a MMO?
Most MMOs don't really resemble RPGs at all. You'd be better off playing Skyrim I'd think.

It really depends on what you want. If you seriously have no interest in in-character immersion then MMOs are good for killing monsters with other people. They are terrible at in-character play due to the lack of a GM. Personally I find Roll20 is great for running games with a variety of play styles, from combat-focused to social-focused and others.

I'm a beat 'em up, fighting games fan myself, so I would say Streets of Rage 4 or any of the "golden age of fighting games, 1995-2005."

But if you want an unpredictable element in your fighting -- like colorful smack talk, improvised tactics, fun opportunism & gambles that just. might. work!, along people who can't read your mind -- then yeah, TTRPGs are the better choice for your social gaming.

Quote from: Greentongue;1144617So, from the suggestions, the answer is yes.  Go with something computer based.
The time of table top games has passed as far as. just sit down and start having fun.

There are a number of tabletop options as well.  The biggest cheap ones I know of being D100 Dungeon, Four Against Darkness, and the Micro Chapbook series you can get at or below $10 in PDF.  There are also a lot of big professionally produced boardgames both solo and multiplayer - Myth, Gloomhaven, and Descent to name a few.  There are also some card games like One Deck Dungeon.

It's not just RPGs or CRPGs.  There are other options.  Many of them play as RPG-lite in that you can carry the same characters over from game to game and improve them.

It takes some effort to find/build a gaming group, but its absolutely worth the effort.

Video games scratch a different itch. Same with boardgames and card games. Tabletop RPGs do what they do best...especially with a good group.

If you're looking for a lot of combat in an MMO, Star Wars the Old Republic delivers a lot of combat.

Right now I strongly recommend Final Fantasy XIV. The story once you reach the expansion packs and onward is fantastic (the base game isn't 'bad' it's just sort of average, which still puts it head and shoulders above most MMOs). The community is generally very good, there's plenty of things to do away from the main story and it doesn't require a huge hardcore commitment to enjoy.

Best of all they recently increased their free trial period from Level 30 up to Level 60 - so now you can complete all of Heavensward (which people have argued is the best XIV expansion, although it's 50:50 on that argument between it and the latest one) totally for free.

For instant gratification after a hard days work, yes, videogames are your best bet. Just sit at that comfy couch and with the click of a button on the Playstation you'll be playing in 2 minutes or so - no Chargen, no Prep, no waiting people to arrive, etc. Millions of players ready to have their assess kicked . Specially fun if you make online friends and start playing and training together as a team. I like For Honor (online medieval fighting) and Rainbow 6 Siege (online counter-terrorism) myself.

Look at this teamwork!

[video=youtube;e5bU_N0WVEk]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e5bU_N0WVEk[/youtube]

Funnily, I don't have much patience for electronic RPGs these days, or anything where I must read lots of text/hear lots of speech. Too much mental investment. For that, I prefer full blown tabletop RPGs, which my group still plays once a month over Discord. Disco Elysium is on my queue for some time now because of that...

Quote from: 1989;1144560I'd say Diablo III, currently.

I started with Diablo then the expansion. Got Diablo II and its expansion.
My daughter got Diablo III so we could play but it just didn't feel fresh any more.

I did have Lot of fun in the first releases though. Liked how friends could jump in but
you didn't have to wait for them if they were busy.

Moved to Guild Wars and it's expansions. Played them for years.
GW II just wasn't the same plus the wife wasn't happy about the time online.

May need to look closer at Roll20, Fantasy Grounds or Tabletop Simulator.
There may be a pool of "pick up games" out there that you have to know about to join.