I found Forgotten Kingdoms some years ago, completely by accident. I had absolutely no experience with role playing, and had never even heard of Forgotten Realms or even Dungeons and Dragons. Still to this day even the simplest computer tasks baffle me. However, from the very beginning, whether it was role playing, learning the setting, or figuring out the commands I've always been able to find the help I need.

Roleplay - This mud is RP enforced, and the caliber of people we get here really adds to the experience. Role play can either be really in depth IMM run plots, raiding bandit hideouts with a group, or just sitting and chatting with your friends. Recently, there has been a significant increase in the number and types of plots driven by the staff and they've been a lot of fun.

Just because the role play is enforced doesn't mean that you cannot take OOC things from the game. Through my years of playing here, I've made some strong friendships because of this game.

The setting - We do have our slight variations from the Forgotten Realms setting, but overall I think we are very close to it. Forgotten Kingdoms has something for everyone in this respect. You do not have to be a die hard Forgotten Realms guru to get into this game, be successful at it, or to have fun. Over the years I've learned a lot about the setting, and I still am learning quite a bit. Though I know a number of players that play Forgotten Kingdoms that live and breathe the setting and they find a comfortable home here as well.

Command help - Oh my goodness, when I first started playing, I could not even figure out the say command. I thought I was hopeless. But the staff was so patient with me and eager to help me learn. I never felt like I was bothering someone when I had to ask for help for the tenth time that day.

This game is very new player friendly in all aspects. There is a council of players ready to answer questions big or small. Very rarely does a question go by without someone to answer it. And if for some reason you don't get an answer to your question, you can either post it on the forums where you are sure to get an answer or you can look for the answer in the help files of the game. Help files are constantly worked on and there is a help file for just about everything, and they really explain things well, unlike some other places where you go and get the command only.

Also, the game is always changing. There is a very active forum where players can submit ideas for changes and areas and very often they are implemented in some manner. There is an active building team who are always working on ideas for new areas (And there are already a lot).

There are also numerous ways for players to contribute to the game. Just playing is one of the easiest, but after a certain point they can also apply to be a part of the Player Council who answers questions. They can submit applications to help build, or ideas for plots that they can help run. They can work on the extensive system of help files.

From time to time I've tried to find another MUD that would suit me, and either the commands were just too frustrating and confusing for me to learn, it was all OOC chatter rather than role play, or I just could not get into the game. Forgotten Kingdoms and after being a -very- active player for over 6 years there are still parts of the game I have not seen and quests I have not done, and new ones are still being added all the time.

I've had this review sitting for a while because I've been trying to think of something negative to add about the game, and the only thing I personally can come up with is that I wish there were more players. There are always enough on for me to find someone to play with, but more friends is always better!