They are MMOs. They are massively multiplayer games.
Any game that is played worldwide and has multiplayer is an MMO.
League of Legends is also an MMO.
Everquest 1, even with its low population is still an MMO. Its not even played world wide.
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LoL isn't an MMO, it's a MOBA. Totally different classification. Just because a game is played Worldwide -and- has multiplayer features does not make it an MMO. To classify as an MMO a game needs 2 key features: 1) a persistent game world and 2) a large amount of concurrent players inhabiting that world. Note... concurrent players in a persistent world. A large amount of players does not suffice to fulfill the definition or by that right Dark Souls, Bloodbourne and Assassin's Creed 3 are MMOs (which they are decidedly not). Online does not satisfy either since then Mario Kart U is an MMO. There is a vast gulf between a single player game with online multiplayer functionality and an MMO.
For the need of balancing in an MMO, while it does cause issues wherein it makes the jobs feel like they're not very unique, if you don't do it then what you end up with are the OP jobs that everyone clamors to play (looking at you, WAR) and the underpowered ones that people shy away from. With that you end up with a terrible glut of one role and none of another which makes filling out parties even worse then it is now.
MMO stands for Massively Multiplayer Online game.
To count as an MMO, a game needs a massive amount of players, in the same game, in the same area, at the same time.
Explorers, Super Smash Bros, and Pokemon have online-multiplayer but lack numbers.
LoL is a MOBA, a Multiplayer Online Battle Arena. Again, it lacks the sheer number of characters in an area at a time.
EverQuest is the only game you have listed that is an MMO.
All right, you want support classes and feel that balance ruined this game? Fine. Devs are going to add a support class for you next expansion. You don't need balance, so whatever, let's add a dozen new classes. The support classes will give the party less damage and healing than before, because they won't bother balancing it. Oh, and you can all play red mages and do mixtures of sub-par healing and sub-par damage, just like a real Final Fantasy game. When your party complains about the choice of class you've made, or your choice of irrelevant cross-class skills, just ignore them. I mean, mmorpgs are still rpgs, and that means they are all about YOUR choices. It doesn't matter if your damage is a third of other classes, class balancing is the bane of mmos.
I assume you don't bother with PvP, or you wouldn't be using this argument.
I am not sure what you mean by "old school" here. The only MMO I remember that didn't take balance into account was, um, .... nah, forget it. Even WoW started to consider balance after they introduced PvP into the game.