Salem vs World of Warcraft
Salem
Salem is an old-school and somewhat obscure (but fun) sandbox MMORPG that unlike Wurm Online has a stronger emphasis on its in-depth crafting system and survival aspect rather than building.Similar to Wurm Online though, Salem is not a voxel-based game, but you are still able to mold the game environment through resource gathering, mining and digging in a way that reminds me of the currently-shelved MMORPG, EverQuest Next: Landmark. Of course, although not exactly the focus of the game, you can still build your homestead and the process is quite similar to Wurm Online except that it occurs at a much higher speed.
Not to mention, the game world in Salem is simply humongous to the point where it feels like an actual world. Salem also borrowed some features from ArcheAge where open-world PvP is the norm, so you'll need to be vigilant at all times, but players who kill and steal for no reason will be labelled as criminals and can be punished.
However, as good as it is despite being an indie MMO and all, Salem does have its fair share of flaws due to its low development budget. So, we'd recommend you to take a look at Salem without carrying along any high expectations. It's a pretty good MMORPG like Minecraft, but if you're expecting a Minecraft clone, you may end up disappointing yourself.
World of Warcraft
World of Warcraft (WoW) is one of the world's most popular and renowned fantasy MMORPGs that offer a well-crafted lore of astounding depth, a wide class selection along with fun character progression and customization, an engaging gameplay as well as a ton of collectibles, be it mounts or pets, for you to... well, collect! Of course, if you really want to get into the game, there are also plenty more features for you to discover, including Pokemon-like pet battles, very competitive PvP, teamwork-focused PvE... you can even develop your own fortress and recruit troops to defend it.Due to its massiveness, it may be rather intimidating for a newcomer to learn the game, but once you've gotten down the fundamentals (especially the basics of playing the class of your choice), the game will draw you into its complex yet intriguing world of orcs, undead, elves, dragons and demons and you'll quickly realize what a gem of an MMORPG you've stumbled into. After all, there's a reason why this game still has millions of active players despite being more than a decade old!
World of Warcraft is a subscription-based MMO, but you can try the game for free for a month. If you're good enough, you can earn enough in-game gold to purchase additional subscription time too.