Gave EQ a chance, again, and truthfully its just too painful to play even for free. MMOs have advance way too far to go back to the old style EQ game play. Just too painful. Some memories are best left as memories.
I also started it up again. Decided to start from scratch, save for the plat on my Bazaar alt. Not twinking too much, but have been buying my guys better weapons (all sub 100 plat) and buying spells as soon as they are useable.
I'm trying to give it a fair shake, but I have to admit I'm not enjoying it too much so far. The game is fugly, and the combat is slow and monotonous at low levels. One of my guys currently has no attacks other than auto attack (level 6 Beastlord). I'm hoping they pick up at higher levels. Going to at least get some guys into the teens before I give up completely.
I don't want to write this, and you don't want to read it. But now it's too late for both of us.
Well atleast SOE did open all accounts and it cost you nothing other than some download time probly.I still would probly play eq1 with its outdated graphics and sytem then i would throw down 50 bucks for AoC .
Well atleast SOE did open all accounts and it cost you nothing other than some download time probly.I still would probly play eq1 with its outdated graphics and sytem then i would throw down 50 bucks for AoC .
Agreed, I would certainly play EQ before I'd buy a new PC for AoC. I actually highly recommend that any former players check it out. You might dig it more than I am.
I don't want to write this, and you don't want to read it. But now it's too late for both of us.
I've started back. I would enjoy it if there were groups around, but it seems the only groups are people who box. Dunno, why the expansions even focus on group content.
I've started back. I would enjoy it if there were groups around, but it seems the only groups are people who box. Dunno, why the expansions even focus on group content.
Grouping pretty much requires a guild these days.
If you come to the Stromm server, join Legends and Legacies, 1K+ member family guild, groups forming up every night.
Any fool can criticize, condemn and complain and most fools do. Benjamin Franklin
I also started it up again. Decided to start from scratch, save for the plat on my Bazaar alt. Not twinking too much, but have been buying my guys better weapons (all sub 100 plat) and buying spells as soon as they are useable. I'm trying to give it a fair shake, but I have to admit I'm not enjoying it too much so far. The game is fugly, and the combat is slow and monotonous at low levels. One of my guys currently has no attacks other than auto attack (level 6 Beastlord). I'm hoping they pick up at higher levels. Going to at least get some guys into the teens before I give up completely.
In the next 2 - 3 levels your beastlord will have a pet and start picking up basic dots and nukes, you should already have a small heal and a few utility spells.
The best zones for you are either the tutorial or the Cresent Reach newbie yard, either one will get you basic gear and money quickly and it takes only a few hours of gameplay to hit level 10. Stay in Cresent reach until 17 - 20 then do the rats / snakes at the entrance to Blightfire. The two named mobs, Plaguebringer and Mossback drop your level 20 armor patterns for class specific armor that is better than most bazaar gear.
Blightfire is a good zone up to the mid 40's if your just interested in leveling fast and gearing up, or you could go elsewhere if you want to travel and level at a more relaxed pace.
Any fool can criticize, condemn and complain and most fools do. Benjamin Franklin
Gave EQ a chance, again, and truthfully its just too painful to play even for free. MMOs have advance way too far to go back to the old style EQ game play. Just too painful. Some memories are best left as memories.
You know, I was going to start a long-winded, "returning player" experience thread, but this just sums up my experience so far, so I'll do it here I'm a veteran player, last logged in around 2004, and I have to say that it really is painful to play this game now...and that is painful in itself to say.
This game gave me some of the best MMO experiences ever! Such very fond memories. However, now, as Yeebo said, the game looks ugly, and the combat is unbelievably slow and monotonous.
I actually hooked up with a group playing one of my lower characters (my 49th cleric). The really funny thing was, that the sounds were the things that I got the most enjoyment out of. I remember the big DING as I just hit level 50. I remember all sounds of the different spell effects, etc. They were fun to listen to again. However, I also remember where the term "EverMed" came from, because it was...cast a heal (mostly Celestial Heal), then sit and meditate. Stand up, cast another heal , sit and meditate, etc etc etc.
I hate to say this, but WoW really did take the bad things out of EQ and made more of an "upbeat" and fun game. It certainly did spoil me for other games. In retrospect, maybe that's why once WoW came out, I never even missed EQ, which is surprising considering how long I played it (since 1999) and how addicted I was to it. Maybe the only reason I played it so long is that it simply was the best thing around at the time.
As my momma always said, you can't go back. The memories are best left as just that...memories.
It kind of felt like when I visited the place where I grew up when I was a child. I haven't seen it in probably 20+ years, and I thought it would be a good experience. However, the reality is, things that looked like a slice of heaven as a child, now look drab, worn out, and run down. That's kind of how it felt playing EQ again.
I'm sure people are still playing it and having fun...more power to them. I however may log back in a couple more times over the summer as we get our chance to relive the experience again, but so far, unfortunately it feels like a chore to play this game again.
Its not surprising that some people miss the ideology and principles as to why EQ was the paced game that it was. The slower pace as its being identified here was so that people would interact more, which adds to the immersion. EQ was about interdependency and social structure. "Newer" games are designed around constant action, no down time and solo capability. I can understand both schools of thought, but to suggest that EQ's mechanics are dated is really more about personal preference and not antiquated methodology.
EQ was a fun game because you get more out of earning something than having things given to you.
The Old Timers Guild Laid back, not so serious, no drama. All about the fun!
www.oldtimersguild.com An opinion should be the result of thought, not a substitute for it. - Jef Mallett
Centhen, I am almost certain you have one or more console games. Which is it? Because I'm frankly shocked you could play EQ since launch and say you prefer WoW over it. I think you've just gotten used to console-gameplay and now prefer it. Ok I can see that.
Hearing on other threads that people went from 55 to 58 in two hours in current day EQ pushes me away. If I want that kind of gameplay, I'll go play WoW, AoC, POBS, etc.
EQMac is the one for me. Though I really hesitate at the idea of buying a Mac SOLELY for playing old EQ.
Luckily, i don't need you to like me to enjoy video games. -nariusseldon. In F2P I think it's more a case of the game's trying to play the player's. -laserit
All I see is people complaining on how the game has not changed and needs to be upgraded. If you guys left because of this, why are you not playing EQ2. That is free also. I tried it for a while and thought oh WOW and EQ combined. So go play EQ2.
All I see is people complaining on how the game has not changed and needs to be upgraded. If you guys left because of this, why are you not playing EQ2. That is free also. I tried it for a while and thought oh WOW and EQ combined. So go play EQ2.
Why play EQ2? Thats just another SOE product waiting to be screwed up worse than it already is. I think until Smedley quits or is fired, SOE will continue to be a horrible gaming company.
Centhen, I am almost certain you have one or more console games. Which is it? Because I'm frankly shocked you could play EQ since launch and say you prefer WoW over it. I think you've just gotten used to console-gameplay and now prefer it. Ok I can see that.
No sorry, you are very wrong. The last console systems I had were maybe in '83 or '84 which were the Atari 2600 and then ColecoVision Other than that, can't stand console games from what little I've experienced with them. Never owned anything Nintendo, or Sega, or whoever the big makers are today.
I think the issue is, EQ hasn't changed, but I have. Maybe that's what makes EQ fairly dull to me now.
I don't have the time to spend 8 hours a night, or a 48 hour weekend playing a game. I don't even play WoW anymore, but when I did, it was much easier in that type of game to just log in for a half hour or hour, have some fun, then log off. In EQ, it took that long just to find a cleric to group with in order to do something fun.
EQ certainly does promote grouping, tighter gameplay between the group members, and more "thinking" for lack of a better term. That's a good thing, but the slow pace and ultra-tedious gameplay is something I don't have an interest in. I simply don't live the MMO games like I used to.
It's not a shot at EQ. It's still a good game for those that like the pace. I was just curious to see if anyone else had the same feelings that the OP or myself had.
Actually EQ2 is a pretty good game. The newer expansions are considered some of the best content they have had and Rise of Kunark is the highest selling expansion they have. I checked out EQ and couldn't get past the character creation, it is just too dated for me. But I enjoy EQ2. Crafting is fun and there is a ton of stuff to do. As far as SOE is concerned they really screwed up with SWG, but I didn't play pre NGE so I don't have the sour taste in my mouth like the vets do. EQ2 is a good game. Planetside has run its course but was good back in the day. Matrix Online has potential but the Matrix is old news now, and they need more than two people working on the game. Vangaurd has had its troubles but if you read the Vangaurd forums the game is starting to turn around. Lots of people are buzzing about The Agency. The fact is that the President of a company has very little to do with small day to day operations. Their job is to look at the big picture and make money for the shareholders. I don't care who publishes a game, if I like it I play it.
Actually EQ2 is a pretty good game. The newer expansions are considered some of the best content they have had and Rise of Kunark is the highest selling expansion they have. I checked out EQ and couldn't get past the character creation, it is just too dated for me. But I enjoy EQ2. Crafting is fun and there is a ton of stuff to do. As far as SOE is concerned they really screwed up with SWG, but I didn't play pre NGE so I don't have the sour taste in my mouth like the vets do. EQ2 is a good game. Planetside has run its course but was good back in the day. Matrix Online has potential but the Matrix is old news now, and they need more than two people working on the game. Vangaurd has had its troubles but if you read the Vangaurd forums the game is starting to turn around. Lots of people are buzzing about The Agency. The fact is that the President of a company has very little to do with small day to day operations. Their job is to look at the big picture and make money for the shareholders. I don't care who publishes a game, if I like it I play it.
eq2 starter area are pretty ugly. but 20+ its amazing
Gave EQ a chance, again, and truthfully its just too painful to play even for free. MMOs have advance way too far to go back to the old style EQ game play. Just too painful. Some memories are best left as memories.
Sadly, I have to agree with this.
I downloaded and installed EQ again because of this promo, and after going back into the game for an hour or so, I just can't play this game ever again.
It's not that I don't want to like EverQuest. I do. And I have some fond memories of playing back then. My boyfriend and I spent many years in EQ, having played from launch through the Ykesha expansion. But it's just so outdated now. Bleah.
First off, the game looks terrible. It's like they haven't updated the graphics engine or character models since the Luclin expansion almost seven years ago. Everything is blocky and square, or it's flat with no definition at all. Comparing EQ now to LOTR, EQ2, WoW, AoC, or CoH would be an insult to those games and their art teams. It looks that bad, IMO.
And don't get me started on the counter-intuitive user interface, joke of a quest journal, and horrid maps, either. OMG.
What a shame. EQ was a great game for its time, but it's like they're scared to allow it to evolve at all. Ah well. At least finding all this out was free.
Graphics certainly dated, though they have made some attempts to improve it, notably certain areas like Freeport. I'm not sure it's as simple as just upgrading the graphics engine to get the game more modern, I think they're pretty limited how much they can improve a 10 year old game.
Graphics certainly dated, though they have made some attempts to improve it, notably certain areas like Freeport. I'm not sure it's as simple as just upgrading the graphics engine to get the game more modern, I think they're pretty limited how much they can improve a 10 year old game.
The point is, it feels like they haven't updated it at all in the seven years since Lucilin came out. And it's not just the horribly outdated, blocky graphics. The user interface is counter-intuitive and clunky as well. Simple things like trading with NPC's, switching out spells in your hotbars, camera controls-- it all feels stuck in a time warp, and it made me appreciate how much games have improved in those areas since my time in EQ.
It's not that they can't improve a 10 year old game. It's that it looks and feels like they haven't improved the game in terms of looks or user-friendliness in all these past years at all. THAT is the problem. It's as if the game froze in time seven years ago and never went any further.
EQ was my first MMO, and I'll always have fond memories of the time I spent in game, but I can never go back to it again. I've just changed too much as a gamer in what I expect from an MMO these days.
All I see is people complaining on how the game has not changed and needs to be upgraded. If you guys left because of this, why are you not playing EQ2. That is free also. I tried it for a while and thought oh WOW and EQ combined. So go play EQ2.
Why play EQ2? Thats just another SOE product waiting to be screwed up worse than it already is. I think until Smedley quits or is fired, SOE will continue to be a horrible gaming company.
Ahh, so i see your initial post was not jaded in any way.
EQ is an old game. The graphics are dated but i do not find them Fugly. In fact i dont think they are that much worse then most of the games out there.
The UI is old and could use an update but only because we have all gotten lazy and no longer want to take the time to look for anything.
The play style is slow (though not as slow as it once was) but it was meant to be slow. I thought it was actually pretty refreshing when i tried to kill a mob one level higher then me in the newbie area and it kicked the crap out of me.
If EQ could relaunch (with perhaps updated graphics) and bring in new players the game could be huge again. There is more to do in EQ then any game i have ever played. More then most of those games combined. The problem with EQ now is that it was a game built for grouping and it is very hard to find groups at low and mid levels now. If it got a influx of people to start it out then im sure many would love it.
I for one prefer the "EQ" style of gameplay far more then the new style of gameplay.
All I see is people complaining on how the game has not changed and needs to be upgraded. If you guys left because of this, why are you not playing EQ2. That is free also. I tried it for a while and thought oh WOW and EQ combined. So go play EQ2.
Why play EQ2? Thats just another SOE product waiting to be screwed up worse than it already is. I think until Smedley quits or is fired, SOE will continue to be a horrible gaming company.
Ahh, so i see your initial post was not jaded in any way.
EQ is an old game. The graphics are dated but i do not find them Fugly. In fact i dont think they are that much worse then most of the games out there.
The UI is old and could use an update but only because we have all gotten lazy and no longer want to take the time to look for anything.
The play style is slow (though not as slow as it once was) but it was meant to be slow. I thought it was actually pretty refreshing when i tried to kill a mob one level higher then me in the newbie area and it kicked the crap out of me.
If EQ could relaunch (with perhaps updated graphics) and bring in new players the game could be huge again. There is more to do in EQ then any game i have ever played. More then most of those games combined. The problem with EQ now is that it was a game built for grouping and it is very hard to find groups at low and mid levels now. If it got a influx of people to start it out then im sure many would love it.
I for one prefer the "EQ" style of gameplay far more then the new style of gameplay.
Im with you on this one man. I agree with everything you said. I also prefer EQ's style of gameplay. It seams to me that there are few people left nowadays that play MMO's to actually GROUP. Isnt that the point of playing with other people? To somehow interact with them?
I am all for some aspects of soloing. I am also a casual player, which seams like wierd since the only voice heard from casual players today is "Gimme solo content. Gimme fast easy exp and loots!"
But hey, guess what? If the MMO you play makes people group than wont there be a plethora of groups to join when you log in? What so bad about that? Oh you dont feel like grouping and wanna just go off by yourself? Fine, go kill something thats weak enough for one person to kill and suffer the exp loss. A group should always do better than a solo player. As long as the group plays well that is.
I dont know why people think they should be able to solo an MMO. Whats the fekkin point? MMO's are about playing through content with OTHER PEOPLE and working together toward some type of common goal. Not about being able to walk through the entire game alone.
Oh ye of little knowledge. I was in EQ at the start. The problem with developers requiring your to group is first creating an environment that requires grouping. EQ did this by overpowering the mobs and under powering the PCs.
Next you need classes that support each other, which means each individual class are missing several critical skils. EQ also did this extremely well.
Lastly you need to ensure you have no content that allows your players to solo, otherwise many will. EQ would actually implement game changing tricks such as mobs summoning everyone or anti-kiting tactics to prevent solo play.
In the end your left with a system that cheats, discourages innovative play styles, forces people to join with others to have a chance. In addition you have certain classes that are vastly more welcome than others. I started EQ as a necromancer. Mainly because I played a similar class in a MUD and enjoyed role playing evil. At the start of EQ a necro had a LOT of negatives with the promise of being powerful later.
The EQ devs sure gave the class lots of negatives, but removed any benefits later. In addition since I wasn't one of the holy trinity, my grouping was typically limited. So because I wasn't a tank, healer, or crowd control class I was basically unwanted. Even though I put in just the same or more hours than other classes.
That is the problem with requiring grouping, you're always going to get classes that are not wanted or hardly wanted. Guild Wars did grouping right in many ways. Offer NPCs to fill roles that are required such as a healer. Considering watching paint dry was more exciting than healing in EQ, SOE should have done the same.
Rose tinted glasses make EQ appear far more positive than the actual game experience was or is. If a game was released today with the best graphics of any MMO, but the game play of EQ, it would be an utter disaster. Witness Vanguard for a close comparison of my analogy.
The EQ devs sure gave the class lots of negatives, but removed any benefits later. In addition since I wasn't one of the holy trinity, my grouping was typically limited. So because I wasn't a tank, healer, or crowd control class I was basically unwanted. Even though I put in just the same or more hours than other classes.
Necros in the EQ manual are shown as strong for soloing and weaker for grouping, clerics and enchanters the premise was they were strong for grouping but weak for soloing. But anyway about LDoN I thought they had made many classes very viably grouping and necros frequently joined groups I was in, if I recall.
You mentioned the Holy Trinity in groups. The 3 parts are Tank, healer, and DPS right? What is a necro? Some darn good DPS. Its not that necros are unwanted, its that there were many more classes to fill the slot of DPS. Ive never heard of necros having a hard time lvling in EQ. And yes i played since the start also.
Im sure there was many a cleric or warrior droooling over your soloing capabilities. I dont think i was ever in a group that had a tank and a healer that would turn a necro away. Its just that there were far more classes in EQ to be considered DPS, they just all had different ways of doing it.
I dont know why people think they should be able to solo an MMO. Whats the fekkin point? MMO's are about playing through content with OTHER PEOPLE and working together toward some type of common goal. Not about being able to walk through the entire game alone.
The best MMO's offer enough content for both playstyles.
Take Lord of the Rings Online, for example. There are tons of quests in the game, and while many of them can be done solo, or with a small group of friends, there are times where a full group is required in order to get anything accomplished. Dungeons like the Great Barrow and Garth Agarwen simply can't be soloed. It's impossible. In order to play through them and finish their quest lines, you need a full group of people working together. Period.
Even certain quests outside of dungeons (Retake Weathertop comes to mind here) will require a full group, either because of the sheer amount of mobs you'll encounter, or the fact that you will face very powerful mobs at the end that require that full group to fight well together in order to finish the quest.
But the game offers options. People can work at their own pace either solo or with friends on the smaller quests, then get into full groups for the more involved quest lines. That's ideal. And in a game like LOTR Online, it's part of the game's culture. Players are often looking for groups for the larger quests and for dungeon crawls, with pickup groups being formed constantly.
Yes, MMO's involve lots of other players, but forcing your players to group 100% of the time in order to get anything accomplished isn't a wise game model anymore. It's much smarter to give people choices. Give them content that they can work at on their own or with one or two friends, and give them content with better gear that they can only get with a full group, then let them make their own decisions accordingly. But you can't force the issue of grouping. That doesn't work anymore.
Comments
I also started it up again. Decided to start from scratch, save for the plat on my Bazaar alt. Not twinking too much, but have been buying my guys better weapons (all sub 100 plat) and buying spells as soon as they are useable.
I'm trying to give it a fair shake, but I have to admit I'm not enjoying it too much so far. The game is fugly, and the combat is slow and monotonous at low levels. One of my guys currently has no attacks other than auto attack (level 6 Beastlord). I'm hoping they pick up at higher levels. Going to at least get some guys into the teens before I give up completely.
I don't want to write this, and you don't want to read it. But now it's too late for both of us.
Well atleast SOE did open all accounts and it cost you nothing other than some download time probly.I still would probly play eq1 with its outdated graphics and sytem then i would throw down 50 bucks for AoC .
Agreed, I would certainly play EQ before I'd buy a new PC for AoC. I actually highly recommend that any former players check it out. You might dig it more than I am.
I don't want to write this, and you don't want to read it. But now it's too late for both of us.
I've started back. I would enjoy it if there were groups around, but it seems the only groups are people who box. Dunno, why the expansions even focus on group content.
Grouping pretty much requires a guild these days.
If you come to the Stromm server, join Legends and Legacies, 1K+ member family guild, groups forming up every night.
Any fool can criticize, condemn and complain and most fools do.
Benjamin Franklin
In the next 2 - 3 levels your beastlord will have a pet and start picking up basic dots and nukes, you should already have a small heal and a few utility spells.
The best zones for you are either the tutorial or the Cresent Reach newbie yard, either one will get you basic gear and money quickly and it takes only a few hours of gameplay to hit level 10. Stay in Cresent reach until 17 - 20 then do the rats / snakes at the entrance to Blightfire. The two named mobs, Plaguebringer and Mossback drop your level 20 armor patterns for class specific armor that is better than most bazaar gear.
Blightfire is a good zone up to the mid 40's if your just interested in leveling fast and gearing up, or you could go elsewhere if you want to travel and level at a more relaxed pace.
Any fool can criticize, condemn and complain and most fools do.
Benjamin Franklin
You know, I was going to start a long-winded, "returning player" experience thread, but this just sums up my experience so far, so I'll do it here
This game gave me some of the best MMO experiences ever! Such very fond memories. However, now, as Yeebo said, the game looks ugly, and the combat is unbelievably slow and monotonous.
I actually hooked up with a group playing one of my lower characters (my 49th cleric). The really funny thing was, that the sounds were the things that I got the most enjoyment out of. I remember the big DING as I just hit level 50. I remember all sounds of the different spell effects, etc. They were fun to listen to again. However, I also remember where the term "EverMed" came from, because it was...cast a heal (mostly Celestial Heal), then sit and meditate. Stand up, cast another heal , sit and meditate, etc etc etc.
I hate to say this, but WoW really did take the bad things out of EQ and made more of an "upbeat" and fun game. It certainly did spoil me for other games. In retrospect, maybe that's why once WoW came out, I never even missed EQ, which is surprising considering how long I played it (since 1999) and how addicted I was to it. Maybe the only reason I played it so long is that it simply was the best thing around at the time.
As my momma always said, you can't go back. The memories are best left as just that...memories.
It kind of felt like when I visited the place where I grew up when I was a child. I haven't seen it in probably 20+ years, and I thought it would be a good experience. However, the reality is, things that looked like a slice of heaven as a child, now look drab, worn out, and run down. That's kind of how it felt playing EQ again.
I'm sure people are still playing it and having fun...more power to them. I however may log back in a couple more times over the summer as we get our chance to relive the experience again, but so far, unfortunately it feels like a chore to play this game again.
Its not surprising that some people miss the ideology and principles as to why EQ was the paced game that it was. The slower pace as its being identified here was so that people would interact more, which adds to the immersion. EQ was about interdependency and social structure. "Newer" games are designed around constant action, no down time and solo capability. I can understand both schools of thought, but to suggest that EQ's mechanics are dated is really more about personal preference and not antiquated methodology.
EQ was a fun game because you get more out of earning something than having things given to you.
The Old Timers Guild
Laid back, not so serious, no drama.
All about the fun!
www.oldtimersguild.com
An opinion should be the result of thought, not a substitute for it. - Jef Mallett
Centhen, I am almost certain you have one or more console games. Which is it? Because I'm frankly shocked you could play EQ since launch and say you prefer WoW over it. I think you've just gotten used to console-gameplay and now prefer it. Ok I can see that.
Hearing on other threads that people went from 55 to 58 in two hours in current day EQ pushes me away. If I want that kind of gameplay, I'll go play WoW, AoC, POBS, etc.
EQMac is the one for me. Though I really hesitate at the idea of buying a Mac SOLELY for playing old EQ.
Luckily, i don't need you to like me to enjoy video games. -nariusseldon.
In F2P I think it's more a case of the game's trying to play the player's. -laserit
All I see is people complaining on how the game has not changed and needs to be upgraded. If you guys left because of this, why are you not playing EQ2. That is free also. I tried it for a while and thought oh WOW and EQ combined. So go play EQ2.
if you go the newer areas it looks nice. the older areas do look fugly
Why play EQ2? Thats just another SOE product waiting to be screwed up worse than it already is. I think until Smedley quits or is fired, SOE will continue to be a horrible gaming company.
I think the issue is, EQ hasn't changed, but I have. Maybe that's what makes EQ fairly dull to me now.
I don't have the time to spend 8 hours a night, or a 48 hour weekend playing a game. I don't even play WoW anymore, but when I did, it was much easier in that type of game to just log in for a half hour or hour, have some fun, then log off. In EQ, it took that long just to find a cleric to group with in order to do something fun.
EQ certainly does promote grouping, tighter gameplay between the group members, and more "thinking" for lack of a better term. That's a good thing, but the slow pace and ultra-tedious gameplay is something I don't have an interest in. I simply don't live the MMO games like I used to.
It's not a shot at EQ. It's still a good game for those that like the pace. I was just curious to see if anyone else had the same feelings that the OP or myself had.
Actually EQ2 is a pretty good game. The newer expansions are considered some of the best content they have had and Rise of Kunark is the highest selling expansion they have. I checked out EQ and couldn't get past the character creation, it is just too dated for me. But I enjoy EQ2. Crafting is fun and there is a ton of stuff to do. As far as SOE is concerned they really screwed up with SWG, but I didn't play pre NGE so I don't have the sour taste in my mouth like the vets do. EQ2 is a good game. Planetside has run its course but was good back in the day. Matrix Online has potential but the Matrix is old news now, and they need more than two people working on the game. Vangaurd has had its troubles but if you read the Vangaurd forums the game is starting to turn around. Lots of people are buzzing about The Agency. The fact is that the President of a company has very little to do with small day to day operations. Their job is to look at the big picture and make money for the shareholders. I don't care who publishes a game, if I like it I play it.
eq2 starter area are pretty ugly. but 20+ its amazing
Sadly, I have to agree with this.
I downloaded and installed EQ again because of this promo, and after going back into the game for an hour or so, I just can't play this game ever again.
It's not that I don't want to like EverQuest. I do. And I have some fond memories of playing back then. My boyfriend and I spent many years in EQ, having played from launch through the Ykesha expansion. But it's just so outdated now. Bleah.
First off, the game looks terrible. It's like they haven't updated the graphics engine or character models since the Luclin expansion almost seven years ago. Everything is blocky and square, or it's flat with no definition at all. Comparing EQ now to LOTR, EQ2, WoW, AoC, or CoH would be an insult to those games and their art teams. It looks that bad, IMO.
And don't get me started on the counter-intuitive user interface, joke of a quest journal, and horrid maps, either. OMG.
What a shame. EQ was a great game for its time, but it's like they're scared to allow it to evolve at all. Ah well. At least finding all this out was free.
Graphics certainly dated, though they have made some attempts to improve it, notably certain areas like Freeport. I'm not sure it's as simple as just upgrading the graphics engine to get the game more modern, I think they're pretty limited how much they can improve a 10 year old game.
The point is, it feels like they haven't updated it at all in the seven years since Lucilin came out. And it's not just the horribly outdated, blocky graphics. The user interface is counter-intuitive and clunky as well. Simple things like trading with NPC's, switching out spells in your hotbars, camera controls-- it all feels stuck in a time warp, and it made me appreciate how much games have improved in those areas since my time in EQ.
It's not that they can't improve a 10 year old game. It's that it looks and feels like they haven't improved the game in terms of looks or user-friendliness in all these past years at all. THAT is the problem. It's as if the game froze in time seven years ago and never went any further.
EQ was my first MMO, and I'll always have fond memories of the time I spent in game, but I can never go back to it again. I've just changed too much as a gamer in what I expect from an MMO these days.
yeah I agree the UI could be much better, I'm sure.
Why play EQ2? Thats just another SOE product waiting to be screwed up worse than it already is. I think until Smedley quits or is fired, SOE will continue to be a horrible gaming company.
Ahh, so i see your initial post was not jaded in any way.
EQ is an old game. The graphics are dated but i do not find them Fugly. In fact i dont think they are that much worse then most of the games out there.
The UI is old and could use an update but only because we have all gotten lazy and no longer want to take the time to look for anything.
The play style is slow (though not as slow as it once was) but it was meant to be slow. I thought it was actually pretty refreshing when i tried to kill a mob one level higher then me in the newbie area and it kicked the crap out of me.
If EQ could relaunch (with perhaps updated graphics) and bring in new players the game could be huge again. There is more to do in EQ then any game i have ever played. More then most of those games combined. The problem with EQ now is that it was a game built for grouping and it is very hard to find groups at low and mid levels now. If it got a influx of people to start it out then im sure many would love it.
I for one prefer the "EQ" style of gameplay far more then the new style of gameplay.
Why play EQ2? Thats just another SOE product waiting to be screwed up worse than it already is. I think until Smedley quits or is fired, SOE will continue to be a horrible gaming company.
Ahh, so i see your initial post was not jaded in any way.
EQ is an old game. The graphics are dated but i do not find them Fugly. In fact i dont think they are that much worse then most of the games out there.
The UI is old and could use an update but only because we have all gotten lazy and no longer want to take the time to look for anything.
The play style is slow (though not as slow as it once was) but it was meant to be slow. I thought it was actually pretty refreshing when i tried to kill a mob one level higher then me in the newbie area and it kicked the crap out of me.
If EQ could relaunch (with perhaps updated graphics) and bring in new players the game could be huge again. There is more to do in EQ then any game i have ever played. More then most of those games combined. The problem with EQ now is that it was a game built for grouping and it is very hard to find groups at low and mid levels now. If it got a influx of people to start it out then im sure many would love it.
I for one prefer the "EQ" style of gameplay far more then the new style of gameplay.
Im with you on this one man. I agree with everything you said. I also prefer EQ's style of gameplay. It seams to me that there are few people left nowadays that play MMO's to actually GROUP. Isnt that the point of playing with other people? To somehow interact with them?
I am all for some aspects of soloing. I am also a casual player, which seams like wierd since the only voice heard from casual players today is "Gimme solo content. Gimme fast easy exp and loots!"
But hey, guess what? If the MMO you play makes people group than wont there be a plethora of groups to join when you log in? What so bad about that? Oh you dont feel like grouping and wanna just go off by yourself? Fine, go kill something thats weak enough for one person to kill and suffer the exp loss. A group should always do better than a solo player. As long as the group plays well that is.
I dont know why people think they should be able to solo an MMO. Whats the fekkin point? MMO's are about playing through content with OTHER PEOPLE and working together toward some type of common goal. Not about being able to walk through the entire game alone.
Oh ye of little knowledge. I was in EQ at the start. The problem with developers requiring your to group is first creating an environment that requires grouping. EQ did this by overpowering the mobs and under powering the PCs.
Next you need classes that support each other, which means each individual class are missing several critical skils. EQ also did this extremely well.
Lastly you need to ensure you have no content that allows your players to solo, otherwise many will. EQ would actually implement game changing tricks such as mobs summoning everyone or anti-kiting tactics to prevent solo play.
In the end your left with a system that cheats, discourages innovative play styles, forces people to join with others to have a chance. In addition you have certain classes that are vastly more welcome than others. I started EQ as a necromancer. Mainly because I played a similar class in a MUD and enjoyed role playing evil. At the start of EQ a necro had a LOT of negatives with the promise of being powerful later.
The EQ devs sure gave the class lots of negatives, but removed any benefits later. In addition since I wasn't one of the holy trinity, my grouping was typically limited. So because I wasn't a tank, healer, or crowd control class I was basically unwanted. Even though I put in just the same or more hours than other classes.
That is the problem with requiring grouping, you're always going to get classes that are not wanted or hardly wanted. Guild Wars did grouping right in many ways. Offer NPCs to fill roles that are required such as a healer. Considering watching paint dry was more exciting than healing in EQ, SOE should have done the same.
Rose tinted glasses make EQ appear far more positive than the actual game experience was or is. If a game was released today with the best graphics of any MMO, but the game play of EQ, it would be an utter disaster. Witness Vanguard for a close comparison of my analogy.
Necros in the EQ manual are shown as strong for soloing and weaker for grouping, clerics and enchanters the premise was they were strong for grouping but weak for soloing. But anyway about LDoN I thought they had made many classes very viably grouping and necros frequently joined groups I was in, if I recall.
You mentioned the Holy Trinity in groups. The 3 parts are Tank, healer, and DPS right? What is a necro? Some darn good DPS. Its not that necros are unwanted, its that there were many more classes to fill the slot of DPS. Ive never heard of necros having a hard time lvling in EQ. And yes i played since the start also.
Im sure there was many a cleric or warrior droooling over your soloing capabilities. I dont think i was ever in a group that had a tank and a healer that would turn a necro away. Its just that there were far more classes in EQ to be considered DPS, they just all had different ways of doing it.
The best MMO's offer enough content for both playstyles.
Take Lord of the Rings Online, for example. There are tons of quests in the game, and while many of them can be done solo, or with a small group of friends, there are times where a full group is required in order to get anything accomplished. Dungeons like the Great Barrow and Garth Agarwen simply can't be soloed. It's impossible. In order to play through them and finish their quest lines, you need a full group of people working together. Period.
Even certain quests outside of dungeons (Retake Weathertop comes to mind here) will require a full group, either because of the sheer amount of mobs you'll encounter, or the fact that you will face very powerful mobs at the end that require that full group to fight well together in order to finish the quest.
But the game offers options. People can work at their own pace either solo or with friends on the smaller quests, then get into full groups for the more involved quest lines. That's ideal. And in a game like LOTR Online, it's part of the game's culture. Players are often looking for groups for the larger quests and for dungeon crawls, with pickup groups being formed constantly.
Yes, MMO's involve lots of other players, but forcing your players to group 100% of the time in order to get anything accomplished isn't a wise game model anymore. It's much smarter to give people choices. Give them content that they can work at on their own or with one or two friends, and give them content with better gear that they can only get with a full group, then let them make their own decisions accordingly. But you can't force the issue of grouping. That doesn't work anymore.