So I heard EQ2 became better...

stylusnc

Last I played, i think I briefly played the Trial of the Isle.  I played it for only a few days.. and stopped.  I keep reading how EQ2 has become a much better game.  My question is this:

Will I be able to see a difference playing the Trial of the Isle NOW then what it was like a few years back?  All of these things that has made EQ2 more enjoyable... will I be able to tell just by the Trial of the Isle?

 

Thanks!

daelnor

I don't think they even have the island thing anymore.

It is a lot better than it was before. Runs much smoother, decent amount of content.
I think its fun enough, though I won't be playing it long term. That's only because its not really my type of game, just a thing to do until they start charging me for it.

D.

RedwoodSap

You heard wrong. EQ2 still misses the mark and lacks quality.

They dummied down crafting. It's still a forced grouping designed game at the mid to higher levels. The best items come from raiding and they are Bind on equip/use so if you don't raid you will be less powerful and a second class citizen. Too much instancing/zoning. Towns are void of life.

stylusnc

Dael- thanks for your input

Redwoodsap - so, what game do you play?

RedwoodSap

Ryzom atm.

stylusnc

Hmm that is F2P, right?  I think i have that buried somewhere on my harddrive.  Seemed like a ghost town when I played it.

observer

There's another EQ2 trial called play the fae, it's a lot better than the island one.  Just try it out and see if you like it, i played it for about a month, but got bored of it already.  

lomiller

Make sure not to take advice from people RedWoodSap like who sounds like he hasn’t even played the EQ2.

  

The game is soloable all the way to level 70, with much of the overland content designated for solo players.  Grouping is encouraged through superior rewards, primarily fast xp while you are leveling, but there are lots of group oriented quests as well.  

 

Most classes can solo group content to some degree once they have leveled past it a bit. The very best gear does drop from raid bosses, however named heroic mobs are the best source of master I spell drops, which are just as important as your gear.  These can be obtained by any class through grouping or soloed once you have a few level on them.

 

Crafting was indeed streamlined so that you don’t have to spend 20 min making/buying various sub-combines to make a single finished product, but this was mindless grinding to begin with.  Basically crafting has been made much less grind intensive with more focus on marketing, sales and pricing strategies. All the things a dedicated crafter would be interested in work much better and are much more engaging then they used to be. You can still grind your crafting to max level just to say you’ve done it if that’s what your into.

 

The island had a slight reworking of it’s content, but it’s still the same basic map and it’s still a tutorial aimed at teaching you the basics of how to use your abilities and doesn’t let you into the world proper.  

 

The play the fae trial is much more representative of EQ2 as a whole.  You are still level restricted to 10, but you play in Greater Faydark, which includes the city of Kelethin.  I believe you can also start in Darklight wood.

Jtrav1987

They do still have the beginning Island in EQ II.  Though if you start in Neriak or Kelethin, you don't have to do it.  Though some races cannot begin here, so you're stuck playing off the Island until around lvl 6 or so.  You can leave at any time, but the island is easy leveling and gets you some decent gear.  The island has changed quite a bit from launch. The quests are different, and if you read the lore and stuff there are some different stories going on. Exact same setup and everything however.

bahamut1

 

Originally posted by stylusnc


Last I played, i think I briefly played the Trial of the Isle.  I played it for only a few days.. and stopped.  I keep reading how EQ2 has become a much better game.  My question is this:
Will I be able to see a difference playing the Trial of the Isle NOW then what it was like a few years back? 
Yes, Trial of the Isle is much different.
All of these things that has made EQ2 more enjoyable... will I be able to tell just by the Trial of the Isle?
No. You'll see more of it if you do the Play the Fae trial. While the trial of the isle was redesigned, and you can now pick your class at level 1, it's still that dumb old island, and you're stuck at level 8 looking at other level 8's.
 Thanks!

 

A couple of other things:

You CAN level to 70 solo if you so desire. It is very possible and you will have a decently equiped character if you're resourceful.

SOME of the best items in the game are from raiding, SOME of the best items in the game are from grouping, and a few items in the game from soloing are best in game too. The people that group with friends, no matter how big the group, are the ones that will see most of the game and have the best equipment. But it is all relative, because if you don't fight gods and dragons, more than likely you won't need Battleaxe of Ogreslaying +100. BTW, the BEST weapon in the game IS available without joining one single raid, AND RoK will have a legendary (means no raid) counterpart for the ultimate EPIC weapon.

Here's a screenshot of that weapon (This is the one for my class, it differs according to class):

hercules

The trial isle was always a bad idea since it by NO means the game and only a place to learn how to use the controls and interact with npc nothing more

A good trial should be open to all things but with a 7 day limit or something

As for guy saying you cannot solo past mid levels i laugh at you as i wrote the guide somewhere here how

1)i became level 30 without a single combat involved!

2) became level 70 99% soloing a guardian (toughest class to solo ) with ease.

 

 

Vidan

If you want to play a free trial, do the Play the Fae option instead. The areas you get to play in are far, far better than the shitty Isle is.

Also, don't listen to RedwoodSap. Everything he said there is either patently false (every class can solo to level cap without too much issue) or something that's true of pretty much any MMO (raiding and grouping will always net you the best gear).

EQ2 has tons of content to appeal to every gaming demographic available. If you have the rig to harness it, it's a fine game with very nice visuals.  

Horkathane

Don't listen to the negative posts. EQ2 is going real strong and strongest on the PvP server Nagafen at all levels. I was bummed that AOC and War got pushed back to 2008 but now I am happy because I am really enjoying EQ2 PvP allot! Plus all the PvE questing too which allows you to earn more power in the form of Achievement Awards which help allot in PvP.

The crafting is allot better now too, you can actually make stuff you can use unlike all other mmo's that only allow you to make stuff for markets a few levels lower and useless for yourself. This makes for a really great economy since you are crafting for yourself and your peers.

The graphics are the best of any mmo to date, the game is polished, finished and its nice to play a rich huge world that doesn't have holes (vanguard) or is too simplistic (wow).

The classes are balanced for PvP too, I think this is due to the fact that this mmo allows your pve powers to work in pvp. For example I was able to Feign death and laid there un-attackable, healed up half way and to their surprise jump back up into the fight and win it for my pvp group...you can taunt people off others, this stuff is not allowed in other pvp games and is a real boost to PvP.

 Thumbs up for EQ2! 

Dreamagram

I just picked up EQII again myself, and must say I noticed some nice improvements just in my first 10 levels. The starter island was easier (fewer aggressive mobs, more direct guidance through the whole experience) which I'm sure less experienced players appreciate. Class is chosen right away, which helps setting the play-style early on - few things are worse than getting to level 40 then deciding it wasn't your thing.

I have yet to pick up the crafting again, but hopefully that has been improved too. I found it a little too tedious and demanding on planning and gathering before. We'll see. Having fun, for sure.

ohhhmyyyy

The game is very different now than it was during release. I've immediately noticed a change in the class system - you no longer have to level as a fighter for x levels to become a brawler or monk. You can just start off as a brawler or monk from level 1. This is a huge improvement for classes like the Necromancer where you had to use a level 5 spell well into your early 20's until you gained a 'slightly necromancer flavored nuke'.

The new starter areas are really well done - lots of attention to detail with the environment and storyline. It also showcases a variety of quest types that you can participate in (It's not all just go out and kill xx rabbits then return for a reward). You'll have quests which require collecting clickies, and in some cases using clickies to summon enemies to defeat. Sure, not a huge variety but it's much better than being fed a series of kill task repeatables.

I've not yet explored the crafting system, but I was very impressed so far with the changes to character development. This might be a game worth subscribing to for a while until AoC/WAR/Tabula Rasa/etc are available.

Unknown

I just signed up with EQ2 . Gave up World of warcraft and I am very happy. Graphics way better and something for every one. I didn't try EQ2 when it first came out. I am told it had problems kinda like vanguard does. I said kinda like not the same. In that case there is still hope for Vanguard.

For vista 64-bit users you have to turn off your UAC before installing all in one pack. Click start button, click user picture top of start menu, choose "turn user account control on or off, uncheck UAC (user account control), reboot. For me it would not patch anything until I did that.

Tuor7

Turning off your UAC is a bad idea and an unnecessary one. There is a way to turn off the UAC *only* for certain applications. If you need it turned off to use EQ2, then look up how to turn it off for just that program. I wont tell you how to do it, but it's not too hard and it's easy to find a how-to using Help.

Don't turn off UAC altogether unless you're sure that's really what you want to do.

fawdown

The game has made regular progressions throughout its life that enhance the game even more each time.  This is definitely not true of every game out there, and one leading competitor in particular.  Say what you want about in game CS, but the developers have listened to what people want and have acted on it.  Most of the time I see a post on here that is negative about the game it is either just bitching or what is said is way outdated.  If you have not played the game within the last 6 months to a year you don't know what your talking about. 

Stick to what you know and sound just a bit more intelligent.

 

How do I add the xfire stats on posts?

 

martinj63

EQ II is hands down the best MMOROG available today. SOE  has taken a broken product and  completely turned it around. The game is very soloable, but with the mature friendly community grouping is never a problem. They quest are fun and exciting, the ability to have pets that can fight in the arenas, house ownership, customization that is just insane....... No anyone that says the game is bad today is lying, or hasn't played since 2005.

The population right now stands at about 1 million active U.S. subscribers (SOE's numbers  from Las Vegas Fanfaire )  and 40,000 European active subscribers, so tales of ghost town  servers are false.  My guild currently has about a hundred members and we are one of the smaller guilds.  The community is growing, and for the most part content...unlike WoW where 90% of the player base is waiting for the next big MMO. One thing...B.net kiddies don't last very long, as SOE does not put up with the shit Blizzard does.  The average player age is late 20's to mid 30's.....it is defiantly an adult MMO. 

Rise of Kunark is the upcoming expansion; both EQ II and WoW  have been out about the same amount of time, and SOE has given us  Three major expansions with a fourth on the way, three adventure packs and more free content than I can mention. Blizzard which has raked in a hundred times more profit has managed to squeeze out a paid for patch that is a bad rip off of Planes of Power. Yes Blizzard has more players, but more doesn’t mean better.  Give the game a shot you can pick up Echoes of Faydwer pretty much anywhere.