Howdy, Stranger!
It looks like you're new here. If you want to get involved, click one of these buttons!
Quick Links
EQ vs. WoW after 6 years on the market
Chieftan
Member UncommonPosts: 1,188
EQ was launched in March of 1999. Six years later in March 2005 they combined servers, cutting the number of active servers in half.
WoW was launched in November 2004. Six years later in 2010, they're sitting on somewhere in the vicinity of 10 million subscribers.
This discussion has been closed.
Comments
5.5 yrs and is there a point to this!?
Not comparable, since they launched in different era, it's not a strictly apples to apples comparison. In 1999 there were a lot less players playing MMORPG's. Everquest was the first to jump into the 3D MMORPG arena, and it was because of EQ1 that got Blizzard to even think about making a WoW.
What is comparable is how successful each games have been during the time they ruled the market. EQ1 ruled the market from 1999-2004, while WoW ruled the market from 2004-2010+. What is also comparable is how different companies handled its customers, the upgrade of their games, and what they give to their customers for free. SOE released 2 expansions a year back in the days, they never really added content in between expansions. Blizzard on the other hand, releases content in between expansions, and the expansions have been rather in depth and large.
I think overall Blizzard learned from EQ1's mistakes, and thus it's EQ1 that helped WoW become as successful as it is today. No need to diss EQ1 really, it was the first 3D MMO, it had to learn everything the hard way. It did what it could back in 90's technology. It was really successful during its 5 years that it owned the genre.
Both games played important roles in the MMORPG genre, both games have set high milestones. What I will say is that personally, I'm not happy with how SOE chose to drop EQ1 as its primary focus and tried to lift EQ2 up as a new flagship product. When they did that, they cut resources from EQ1. Instead of upgrading EQ1's graphics and engines, they told everybody to just start over in EQ2 instead. Instead of investing into new player character models (where people weren't exactly happy with Luclin models in the first place), they pointed their fingers at EQ2 as a solution. Blizzard in my opinion, handles their games in a much more professional manner, and thus why Blizzard is a better gaming company overall. They at least know how to advertise, market, and do things to give people incentives to reroll or come back. SOE on the other hand just keeps going forward with new games and want you to keep buying expansions, new games, and keep spending money on RMT.
EQ1-AC1-DAOC-FFXI-L2-EQ2-WoW-DDO-GW-LoTR-VG-WAR-GW2-ESO
No, it wasn't. Meridian 59 was the first 3D MMO. But EQ pioneered almost all the mechanics that modern MMOs are using.
As for Wow it is also starting to feel time now but the difference is that few good games have launched the last 3 years, as soon as few will it will affect Wow the way last generations game affected EQ, all computer games are getting old even if MMOs last longer than most.
But you Blizzard fans shouldn't worry about that, Blizzard will be back again, they have moved Kaplan and the rest of their best people into the next project.
It will be interesting to see what the next big one will be. GW? Blizzards next game? TOR? WoDO? Bethesdas MMO project? Copernicus? Or something else? There will also be interesting to see what features the next gen of MMOs will have.
Saying that EQ was better or worse than Wow is like comparing pear to apples, they were not the same game for the same times. Both games have put their prints on coming games but they themselves will only be played by a few fans in the future.
No, it wasn't. Meridian 59 was the first 3D MMO. But EQ pioneered almost all the mechanics that modern MMOs are using.
As for Wow it is also starting to feel time now but the difference is that few good games have launched the last 3 years, as soon as few will it will affect Wow the way last generations game affected EQ, all computer games are getting old even if MMOs last longer than most.
But you Blizzard fans shouldn't worry about that, Blizzard will be back again, they have moved Kaplan and the rest of their best people into the next project.
It will be interesting to see what the next big one will be. GW? Blizzards next game? TOR? WoDO? Bethesdas MMO project? Copernicus? Or something else? There will also be interesting to see what features the next gen of MMOs will have.
Saying that EQ was better or worse than Wow is like comparing pear to apples, they were not the same game for the same times. Both games have put their prints on coming games but they themselves will only be played by a few fans in the future.
the thing is blizzard always planned to stay on low capacity computer like then it worked on 3 year computer ,same here it still work on old computer and its their goal yes they ll rise graphic quality but only if they can keep their game fairly smooth.if it cant be done no graphic upgrade.
lol you can nitpick, but 3D-looking isn't good enough for me to call it a 3D MMO that has mechanics of a true 3D MMO game. The difference is like being in a flight simulator, vs getting in and flying an actual plane.
EQ1-AC1-DAOC-FFXI-L2-EQ2-WoW-DDO-GW-LoTR-VG-WAR-GW2-ESO
I think one other area where the comparison isn't fair is how the two companies SOE and Blizzard operate.
When I started WoW it was just getting its first expansion pack (TBC). Blizzard was then and has been non-stop ever since, marketing their game very aggressively world-wide for the largest possible playerbase. In addition they are constantly making changes to try and keep the game as fresh as possible to both attract new players and maintain their playerbase.
The way I see it, SOE milked EQ and let it die off.
Blizzard would never think of letting WoW die this way.
Ken
www.ActionMMORPG.com
One man, a small pile of money, and the screwball idea of a DIY Indie MMORPG? Yep, that's him. ~sigh~
It's like comparing Mac OS and Windows OS. People don't necessarily use windows because it's better, it's just what every one uses and is compatible with.
Make it so...
I'm asking the same question.
Writer / Musician / Game Designer
Now Playing: Skyrim, Wurm Online, Tropico 4
Waiting On: GW2, TSW, Archeage, The Rapture
3D is 3D and Meridian was a fine enough game at it's release, it was just too early for it's time and came out before broadband was something common. I remember playing it on modem, that wasn't so great.
But the game itself was sold enough and is really the father of all 3D MMOs.
WoW's art style is a pretty timeless one, I still play Warcraft 3 and people play Starcraft. That's certainly testament to the style it chose. Everquest and both it's graphics and UI are severely dated. But it did it's job, it laid the foundations for WoW and other mmorpgs.
Of course they will sooner or later. The real difference was the fact that EQ released a lot more expansions that made the old content useless and making it harder to get new players into the game. All other MMOs including Wow is doing the same thing.
SOE patched in a whole lot of stuff, just check it up.
Here is EQs expansions in the years we are talking:
The Ruins of Kunark (March 2000)
The Scars of Velious (December 2000)
The Shadows of Luclin (December 2001)
The Planes of Power (October 2002)
The Legacy of Ykesha (February 2003)
Lost Dungeons of Norrath (September 2003)
Gates of Discord (February 2004)
Omens of War (September 2004)
Dragons of Norrath (February 2005)
Depths of Darkhollow (September 2005)
I would say that is a whole load of content, Blizzard have only released 2 expansions in the same time, 3 if you count the upcoming one.
My theory is that any MMO just can handle so many expansions and raising of the levelcap.
WoW > EQ. Get over it.
"World of Warcraft is the perfect implementation of this genre." - Hilmar Petursson. CEO of CCP.
Have you played WoW? If so could you link the armory for one of your toons? I'd like to see your arena rating.
My youtube MMO gaming channel
That just about shows your ignorance on the subject...
"World of Warcraft is the perfect implementation of this genre." - Hilmar Petursson. CEO of CCP.
While I am no troll nor do I condone any trollish activity - and the quote above is a bit harsh IMO - I have to agree. I remember the Asheron's Call days when EVERYTHING was done manually. Skills, levelling, crafting, everything was a manual process that required something many players today don't seem to have much: the ability to think. In AC you had to create your own spells from specific components. Anyone remember Split Pea? I do. That was when the worlds were truly open. No right click on a quest, accept, and viola! a dot on the map taking you right there. I remember spending hours just looking for specific quest items, NPCs, and locations. Back then MMOs were not sugar-coated click-fests. It was more like "Here's something to do - figure it out yourself." Back then time was the one thing that all players had to pay to get to the place where their characters were truly "leet" as they say these days.
I've played AC, AC2, EQ, UO, AO, WoW, DAoC, GW, DR, DDO, and LOTRO. There are a slim few MMOs out there today that still hold true to the "no shortcuts" way of thinking. Even EQ2, the successor to the once-great EQ is rife with silly conveniences. People play WoW where you get an epic every other drop it seems. They've taken a serious genre and turned it into some cheesy Super Mario game where all you have to do is google the answer and spend a little time levelling. Boom, you're a level 80 newb. I remember playing EQ as a dark elf enchanter, back when evil races had a pretty harsh XP penalty. I still played it cause it was FUN and GRATIFYING to play something that challenged me. Players these days want instant gratification. What they don't get is that when everyone has it, its worth goes way, way down.
I mentioned some MMOs that I feel still lived up to the more difficult standard set by AC, UO, and EQ. Here they are:
DDO. It's based roughly on the PnP D&D 3.5 rules. It is not your WoW clone by any stretch of the imagination.
Anarchy Online. Unique, has some easy skill selection dialogs, but overall is still a hard-working game. Takes some intuition and critical thought to not gimp your character.
Dark Age of Camelot. Great storyline - Norse, British, and Irish mythology. Some skills are added at level, but main spec skills must be calculated and thought out - bought per level from the skill trainer - so that you don't gimp your character.
That's my short list.
For all of you out there that want something more than the child's play that is World of Warcraft, there's three to try out.
insanex
P.S. And yes, my PvP rating sucks. But comparing WoW rating to these other more true MMOs is like comparing a marshmallow shooter to a .45 Desert Eagle.
WOW should have never been labeled a MMORPG from the start. All the kids who started with WOW now think that all MMORPG's should be this easy. They are ignorant to the fact of what a true MMORPG really is. I'm not try to down people who play WOW or any game that gives instant gratification. But simply put, WOW is a game without penalties, less of a grind and tailored to the casual gamer.
L2 has even announced that they are making their elite Raid Bosses instanced. To many people complaining how hard the game is in an open PVP world. HA. Please give me more events, please give double xp weekends, please give higher drop rates, please balance my class, please put more instances, please let me get to end game in about a month.
TBH there is not the audience for a true MMORPG out there. Thats why they have to fine tune these games for the new generation. I agree that these two game should not even be compared.
I was just going to say refer to the above post but your last sentence is spot on and you don't even know it. No one wants what all these unhappy people are asking for.
having said that refer to the above post
WoW is the best MMOG out there. Stop being so butt hurt.
"World of Warcraft is the perfect implementation of this genre." - Hilmar Petursson. CEO of CCP.
instead of saying that you should just start responding to every flame post. "If what you say had any merit there would actually be games like what you describe under development."
Damnit Chieften.....Wow has 10 mill subs still in 2010. I just blew coke all over my keyboard, and now you owe me another.. LOL....you must be joking.
Actually he is off, its closer to 11million now.
"World of Warcraft is the perfect implementation of this genre." - Hilmar Petursson. CEO of CCP.
Oh, so you didn't like the art style and that makes it not 3D? How logical.
"What is truly revealing is his implication that believing something to be true is the same as it being true. [continue]" -John Oliver
Actually he is off, its closer to 11million now.
Honestly, I think WOW's numbers have probably tapered back from the 11.5mil of Dec'08. I'm pretty sure the game has peaked and started a gradual decline.
Entirely possible Cataclysm will cause a new peak, but until then I'd guess WOW's subs are probably below 10 mil at this point (mostly an arbitrary guess on my part, largely based on the duration the game's been out; after 6 years many players are just tired of the gameplay of WOW.)
"What is truly revealing is his implication that believing something to be true is the same as it being true. [continue]" -John Oliver
The lead developers of World of Warcraft are all old Everquest players. WoW would not exist without EQ, because about 96% of their gameplay mechanics come from EQ.
It's kind of sad, that its taken WoW 6 years of adding in features (dumbed down versions of the features) to come remotely close to the amount of content and features EQ had in 1999, when no other 3D MMOs existed.
when half of wow's sub numbers were from china (which didn't even account for 10% of their revenue) and they lost all business there, i highly doubt it would be 10 million let alone 5 but who knows, they won't release sub numbers for many reasons.