Interview: Torn's team discuss how their text-based MMORPG has thrived for 21 years

During my school years, text-based RPGs like Torn (then Torn City) became something of a mini phenomenon in my year group. A large part of that was because our school's site blocker was pretty abysmal, meaning we could play it in IT without much worry, forming our own little gangs and taking on the virtual world. 

I'm sure it'd surprise many of my old pals to learn that 21 years later, Torn is still going strong with around 80,000 daily players. Not me, though. My younger brother has continued playing ever since, as have many others who began their criminal journeys back then. And, while you might wonder why we're covering a browser game, Torn is actually very much playable on mobile, with the team putting a lot of focus on phone UI design. 

So, I sat down with Joe, Josh, and Ash to discuss all things Torn, covering everything from how it's grown to the surprising challenges the team faces weekly. It's an interesting chat and all three have some fascinating insights into the running of a 'living world'. 

Joe: I’m Joe, and I started Torn back in 2004 when I was 16. I’d just left school and begun studying at a community college. I'd always been deeply obsessed with text-based games and their communities, but had little to no programming experience. Still, I set out to build the kind of persistent, player-driven multiplayer world I’d always wanted to see come to life - one defined by the unique interactions between its players.

What began in my bedroom with a simple gym, gun shop, and rough crime system has grown into the world’s largest text-based MMORPG! After 21 years, I still take the lead on Torn’s direction, shaping new projects and diving into the nitty-gritty details of design and development, making sure every update fits the vision I’ve had since the start. It’s been my life’s work for over two decades, my dream job, and I can’t imagine doing anything else.

Josh: I’m Joshua, also known as bogie in Torn. I’m the Community Manager for Torn.com, but my role extends well beyond community engagement. I oversee a wide range of day-to-day operations, including managing and hiring staff, leading the moderation and volunteer teams, coordinating player support, and overseeing our payments and account-related processes. I also handle general management duties across departments to help keep the ecosystem running smoothly.

I wear a lot of hats and work with every kind of personality you can imagine, which is part of what makes this job so unique. Having played Torn for over 20 years and worked on the team for the last 7, I know the game, the community, and the culture inside and out. My goal is to help Torn continue to grow, evolve, and remain a game that players are proud to be part of.

Ash: I’m Ash, and I’ve been Torn’s lead writer for the past decade, covering everything from missions and crimes to the in-game newspaper. I was too busy chatting with hot single ladies in my area to play Torn when it first launched, though I do have a player account now. The players know me as sugarvalves, but they call me other names when I report on the shady shenanigans they’d rather keep hidden. I’ve also worked on events, new items, and crime mechanics. I’m extremely grateful for the freedom Joe’s given me to expand my role into areas I’d never dipped my toes into.

Josh: Torn has never tried to take things too seriously; we’ve always been fond of steady, reliable growth over chasing short-term boosts, working on longevity above all else. We have economists on the payroll to maintain the economy, for example, and from my side, I always try to keep a fair balance between fun and fair from a moderation perspective of the site in particular.

Ash: When I joined, I saw Torn already had a strong identity. It’s a game that knows what it wants to be: uncomplicated, intuitive, and it has this underground feel without being clichéd. Joe and the staff were also very open with the community, so it felt like its own little corner of the old-style internet that had been preserved.

Joe: In those first few years, with a teenage version of myself running the game, we must have had an awful lot of luck to make it through that early phase. These days, we take every element of our economy incredibly seriously. I remember that era of text-based games when hyperinflation was often the death knell – the horror of that prospect hitting Torn has always lingered in the back of my mind.

Ash: We try to strike a balance between risk and reward, with a great deal of thought going into every action and outcome across crimes, competitions, and missions. The players don’t always love the changes we make to the economy, but they’re always for the sake of long-term longevity. What we can’t do is adopt that divorced dad mentality. You know, the kind of bloke who gives the kids everything they want just to make them happy.

Yes, of course you can eat fibreglass insulation for breakfast, just so long as you’ll say you love me. That’s a surefire way to make everything meaningless and break people’s interest in the game. But at the same time, we can’t pretend we haven’t intervened when we have, so we’re always open with our changes and reasoning.

Josh: It’s currently about 2:1 PC to Mobile, I believe! It’s definitely become greater on mobile in recent years, but the most competitive players will swear by using PC.

Ash: The true Torn experience is sitting in a darkened basement in front of a homemade PC tower with two screens hooked up and a flannel to wash yourself with. I miss when you had to go into a specific room to use the computer. Torn reminds me of those days.

Joe: Since 2014, we’ve recognised the importance of mobile UX and developed a variant for every page on Torn. We now even have a ‘mobile+’ version - slightly wider, designed for higher-resolution phones. More recently, we’ve adopted a ‘mobile-first’ approach to our feature development, designing each page for the best mobile experience before adapting it for desktop.

Ash: The UX nerds keep making me shorten the crime outcomes I write because the long ones don’t display well on a smartphone. I suggested applying an update to the backend that overheats our users’ phones, swelling the battery and causing the screen to expand, but they said no.

Joe: Crimes 2.0 was definitely the biggest single release we’ve ever made. I remember how absolutely daunting that project felt, even after we were more than halfway through - I couldn’t imagine us making it out the other end. Building up the momentum to finish it was incredibly tough. It wasn’t until Ash and Wouter joined Pavlo and me on the project that things really started to take off. I’m incredibly proud of what we’ve all achieved, but even though it’s fully released, it’s still less than half complete – we still plan to add at least 17 more crimes to the existing 13.

Ash: Crimes 2.0. We had lots of new features and upgrades before then, but we’ve gained serious momentum across the board since the new crime system was released. It’s pushed us to maintain a similar pace with other areas. Actually, no, I’ve changed my mind. The biggest update is the one that lets you rotate all the item images in the game. I love rotating things. You don’t even have to play Torn properly if you don’t want to. Just rotate a bag of sand until it’s time to go to bed. No harm done.

Joe: There’s a huge focus on community within Torn, and for me, that’s really at the heart of everything. Torn has often been described as more of a social platform with game mechanics layered on top - and I think that’s accurate. My goal has always been to create interesting situations that encourage players to interact - anything that pushes them to engage, cooperate, or compete. 

Subscribe to Pocket Gamer on

By building an environment filled with genuine risk - where anyone strong enough can meaningfully impact another player’s experience, for better or worse - you create space for real emotion. From those moments come authentic friendships, rivalries, and camaraderie that you rarely see in other games.

Josh: I’d definitely mirror what Joe says, the community is what keeps the game together so well, many often say it's a social environment and a game second. We’ve had many players meet and go on to get married or have kids, all because of Torn. We have a real give and take with our community; we try and balance any changes we make around what the community will want. Ultimately, it’s impossible to make everyone happy, and sometimes we have to make unpopular decisions, but where we can soften the blow, we always will try.

Ash: We recently introduced the bazaar system to try and get more people interacting with each other while trading, as opposed to the button-mashing bargain hunting that existed before. The best parts of Torn are the ones where players have to collaborate, and it’s my hope we’ll keep adding things like that.

Joe: Over the last 20 years, players in general seem to have evolved significantly, and I’ve noticed two major shifts - likely influenced by the rise of mobile gaming. Acceptance of microtransactions: Before mobile gaming became widespread, I distinctly remember most players being almost embarrassed to admit they had spent any money on a free-to-play game. These days, the average player seems far more willing to part with their money in exchange for in-game goods, and many even seem proud to be seen supporting us. This shift in mindset has thankfully enabled Torn to thrive as a company, allowing us to expand significantly over the past few years.

Player criticism and entitlement: Players are now often faster to voice concerns and expectations around new features. I often find myself tiptoeing carefully around any changes we make, ensuring that no player loses out in any way - and if they do, handling it as gently as possible. If we overstep with some rebalancing, release a poorly considered update, or fail to communicate a necessary change properly, the community quickly comes down on us like a ton of bricks. To be honest, I’m not entirely against this; it’s pushed us to evolve toward what I consider a fantastic level of care and service for our players.

Torn certainly isn't unique in this - it's something that has affected the entire gaming industry. I’ve seen video games being outright cancelled by their communities after trivial mistakes or poorly communicated changes, games being review-bombed to hell, and entire studios losing the trust of their players almost overnight. Whenever we make a change, we do our best to communicate the reasons behind it as clearly and honestly as possible, making sure all our bases are covered. Our 20 years of experience really help in that regard.

Josh: From my perspective, I’ve noticed a shift in the amount of international players we deal with, a huge number of different cultures and mindsets to understand as the game grows. People also expect different levels of professionalism as the game grows, which we have to tune for Torn. I try to keep from being a boring AI customer service robot to someone who can roleplay and interact with the community as much as possible, shaping my approach around the themes of the game, but it’s certainly something I have to temper in certain areas nowadays so as to not give the wrong impressions!

Ash: People are generally awful on the internet, but in Torn, they’re way less awful. Torn’s community is more accommodating and friendlier than many online games I’ve played. The vibe has also improved hugely since Joshua took over as community manager. He’s approachable but still keeps everyone at arm’s length, and that’s quite a distance since he has really long arms.

Josh: When I first started, I certainly found it more stressful, but now it’s more routine for me. I’m quite hardened to what the internet can throw at me and take this aspect extremely seriously. It’s an unfortunate reality of life in an online community, and being so public-facing, my background is in online legislation and management, so it’s something I am fairly well-versed in.

From a player perspective, we’re very committed to safeguarding our player base and keeping the real world out of Torn as best we can. People come here to escape that, so we don’t want people thinking Torn is unsafe or harbouring anything unsavoury. If we have situations where we’ve had to refer to the police, we will do so.

I’ve had scenarios where I’ve contacted authorities when we’ve had concerns about a person’s personal well-being, as I’d hate to think we had the power to do something and just stood by whilst the worst could happen. I’ve had dealings with a few governments and agencies, from the FBI to Interpol, or even the Government of the Philippines, complaining that a player was parodying their national anthem in a community event - they were politely told we aren’t removing that…

Ash: I’ve lost count of the number of times I’ve started a conversation with Joshua, and his response has been, ‘Two secs, I’m just dealing with [insert horrific situation here].’ Then he flips a switch and helps me judge a cute Easter baking competition. I reckon he’s a shoo-in for a Pride of Britain Award one day.

Ash: I like to think my writing mirrors the tone of those who play Torn, though that might just be me justifying some of the stuff I’ve snuck in. There has always been a playful, slightly mischievous edge to Torn’s community and a quirky tone to its writing before I arrived, but I’d be lying if I said I hadn’t imposed my own sensibilities on the game. 

like exploring grim details and truly awful characters, because I find it cowardly to shy away from those things and sanitise everything for the sake of keeping the peace. As a counterweight, we have some really cute stories about an adorable donkey called Alan. He’s shaped like a cube, and he’s a total babe.

Joe: Before Ash joined the team, I was very strict about Torn being gritty and realistic. We could have interesting characters and text, but there was little to no fun or comedy in any of the writing - I wanted everything to feel as it would in the real world. I didn’t think players would take Torn seriously if the writing wasn’t serious - how could they find meaning in something potentially a bit silly?

Subscribe to Pocket Gamer on

Exactly ten years later, to the day, Ash has had his dirty fingers in every nook and cranny of Torn... and I wouldn't change a thing. Ash has fundamentally reshaped Torn’s atmosphere into something both entertaining and meaningful - often hilarious, yet never shallow - to the point where it almost feels like the game’s entire genre has changed. We wouldn't be where we are today without his writing.

Josh: Torn is seeing unprecedented growth currently, and it’s such a wide and diverse community that, whilst it might seem intimidating to see the big dogs, you aren’t really competing against them. Out of 10s of thousands of players, you’ll be interacting so much more with your own peers and inner circles, competing more locally rather than globally from Torn’s perspective. Torn being such a social game too, you’re never going to be going at it alone, the team aspect makes all the difference, and any player who is committed can make a name for themselves at any point in the game.

Ash: Torn isn’t intimidating. Mike Tyson is intimidating because he’s a champion boxer, a convicted criminal, and once owned a pet tiger. Torn is just a game, so there’s nothing to be scared of. There are loads of player-written guides to help you get started, and once you’ve found a good faction, you’ll be surrounded by people with a vested interest in helping you succeed. Just be polite, listen to advice, and don’t give yourself a stupid username like UncleFister2022.

Ash: Don’t be shy. Find people who are like you and stick with them. Echo chambers are slowly destroying society as we know it, but in Torn, surrounding yourself with people on a similar wavelength can really elevate your experience. Whether they’re from your country, the same age, or you both have similarly awful political opinions, those who succeed do so because of the connections they make. The only cheat code you need here is don’t be a troll.

Ash: We’re working on the 14th crime, Impersonation, where players will find out precisely how to mimic certain professions in order to gain financial rewards. And if people choose to use these skills in real life, so be it. They’re all adults. They can make their own bad decisions.