Compare with EQ2 before you subscribe to Lotro

Diodem

I've played both EQ2 (Everquest 2) and Lotro before they went free to play, and although I got pissed of at first seeing how easy it was to withdraw money directly from your bankaccount to buy cosmetic gear in EQ2... alot has changed since those times...

This is  the offers the two companies have for their games, as of february 2014:

(Lotro's highest level is 95 now though, but the rest fits)

http://www.lotro.com/sites/default/files/vip//lotro_vip_grid_en.gif

https://www.everquest2.com/free

 

In Lotro, even if you are subscribed, you don't get access to the 6th inventory bag, the shared bank, any of the expansions, the premium barter wallet, and a bunch of other stuff EVEN if you're a VIP, meaning subscribed paying some 15 bucks a month, or whichever plan you chose. - though I would recommend only subbing at any game for only  a month at a time, to see if it's worth it.

In Everquest 2 you get access to almost all the expansion for free exceept the last one, even as a free player. In Lotro you have to buy all expansions.

You get all races and all classes in EQ2 for free, Lotro restrict on the warden and runekeeper even for VIP, (need Moria expansion)

You get all bags for free in EQ2, even as VIP you have to buy in Lotro...

Same thing with shared bank, you get it as free to play in EQ2, in lotro you don't get it with VIP you STILL have to buy it...there is no way of getting it without buying, not even expansions.

 

Some say SWTOR (star wars the old republic) is greedier than Lotro, but I've played both as a subscriber and as free, and Lotro is way greedier.

SWTOR is much better as subscribed, and is a good sci-fi alternative.

But if you're going for the high fantasy setting then to me it seems EQ2 wins alot more, and the graphics looks a little more realistic but not so much difference there between Lotro and EQ2.

 

But for me I'm so cancelling my Lotro sub, I fed up with not being treated as a subscriber when I pay as one, even if it was only for a month. Thank god I didn't buy any turbine points or any of that shit, or expansions, which you don't need until you're higher level anyway.

So a heads up for those who wonder which one(s) they should go with.

 

Edit: oh and if you love hobbits, they had them in EQ2 before Lotro came out, they're called halflings.

And also I think housing is better in EQ2.

And crafting is more skill based in EQ2.

And also EQ2 has a PvP server with world pvp, for those who prefer that, though neither lotro or EQ2 are good pvp games. In Lotro there is only pvp as monster, and as "good" races you have to level up to high level to get to pvp.

 

RebelScum99

Cool.  I like Lotro better.  But thanks for the tip, anyway.  

Diodem

Yea, I mean I like the setting in Lotro, and the community on the server I play is very friendly, but the way Turbine is behaving towards it's subbed players  is... I feel like I'm not even subbed...

It's just a rip-off compared to EQ2 in my opinion now. EQ2 used to have alot more restrictions though, with bank and bags for free players, but you had mostly everything that mattered as subbed (gold account).

trancejeremy

I think EQ2 is the better game, with far more content and a better F2P model.

Yet it's hamstrung by a really awful graphics engine. I can play LOTRO on medium-high in 1080p and get about 30 FPS . I have to crank down the resolution and graphics in EQ2 so much it looks like I'm playing a PS2 game.

There are also a lot of quality of life issues that drive me crazy in EQ2. Looting, for instance. Especially now in LOTRO with auto loot.

And the interface with the quest givers and NPCs is just awful. What I also hate are MMORPGs where your inventory bags are actual bags, that is, pieces of equipment that you have to find/buy and equip, and come in different sizes.

So really, there's just so much fiddly stuff in EQ2 that I don't like.

And the biggest problem with SWTOR is you have an experience penalty. I was lagging 2-3 levels behind, even with doing all the quests. So I can only really play on 2x weekends (which are very rare), because otherwise I am just hoplessly outleveled.

 

And the thing with LOTRO is that I'm not a F2P player. The only reason I ever started playing it in the first place was because they offered a lifetime membership (I was sick of spending more than $200 a year on "f2p" games). Even after they switched to F2P, I haven't had to spend much money on it.

Tokken

EQ2 is better, but I like the story of Lotro and the setting.

EQ2's Freeblood race is not available for free, nor is the Channeler class. You don't get the second to last expansion unless you buy ToV.

Shoko_Lied

If the previous LOTRO expansions become pointless outdated content with every new expansion like with WoW, then it sounds like a complete scam to have to purchase it.

MightyUnclean

If you want to manage 12 hotbars full of redundant buttons, EQ2 is the way to go.

Jaedor

I played both, I like LOTRO better. Besides the story, RP unique things and best community around, there's mounted combat.

Diodem

Originally posted by Tokken

EQ2 is better, but I like the story of Lotro and the setting.

EQ2's Freeblood race is not available for free, nor is the Channeler class. You don't get the second to last expansion unless you buy ToV.

Yea you're right about that, but EQ2 got about 20 races where Lotro has 4, and 25 classes where Lotro has 9. So I still think it's a pretty good offer.

And I'd say actually the graphics are way better in EQ2, maybe the engine is old though.

Also to the one who commented on bags, that you have to get bags and they come in different sizes, to me is a good thing. You get 6 bags and they can have I think at least 32 slots maybe more(?) I don't remember. You start out with several 4 slot bags though, and 1 bigger bag. Lotro has only bags with 15 slots each afaik.

Also that you have alot of skills, I don't see how that is so bad, it makes for more complexity.

 

rojoArcueid

i never enjoyed Lotro. Tried it many times and just it isnt for me.

As for EQ2, although i hate the engine its running on i gave it a few tries as well. I manage to enjoy EQ2 until i realized that my melee class could only be a tank. Uninstalled and never looked back. I despise mmo design where heavy plated fighters are limited to tanking and cloth wearing "holy" casters are limited to healing. Terrible design. Everyone should be able to have a dps role besides their support role. Thankfully SOE are learning that with EQN.

Nadia

i've played both

i think most LOTRO players are aware of EQ2

and they dont need to be informed of EQ2 features

Po_gg

Originally posted by Nadia

i've played both

i think most LOTRO players are aware of EQ2

and they dont need to be informed of EQ2 features

+1

And OP, "Edit: oh and if you love hobbits, they had them in EQ2 before Lotro came out, they're called halflings." seriously?

syriinx

Originally posted by rojo6934

i never enjoyed Lotro. Tried it many times and just it isnt for me.

As for EQ2, although i hate the engine its running on i gave it a few tries as well. I manage to enjoy EQ2 until i realized that my melee class could only be a tank. Uninstalled and never looked back. I despise mmo design where heavy plated fighters are limited to tanking and cloth wearing "holy" casters are limited to healing. Terrible design. Everyone should be able to have a dps role besides their support role. Thankfully SOE are learning that with EQN.

I 100% disagree with you.  The lack of specialization is ruining the genre and stripping the RPG out of MMORPG.

And with the right AA setup you *can* dps with most fighters.  It wont be optimal but can still be effective enough in most situations.  EQ2 also doesnt have a cloth wearing holy caster.  Out of their 9 healing classes, 3 of them can be effective meleers, one has a dps caster lean to it, and another uses a bow and pets.

Rift's design is the horrendous design to me.  Everyone is an amoeba and there is no meaningful choice whatsoever.  

Diodem

Originally posted by Po_gg

Originally posted by Nadia

i've played both

i think most LOTRO players are aware of EQ2

and they dont need to be informed of EQ2 features

+1

And OP, "Edit: oh and if you love hobbits, they had them in EQ2 before Lotro came out, they're called halflings." seriously?

 

How do you know most Lotro players know of EQ2...? ... and even if they do they might not be aware of the difference in offers.

[mod edit]

And addition, lots of players may check on a games forum before they decide to try it out, so there's not just veteran lotro players reading these forums... but I guess that's your real concern?

 

And yea EQ2 has hobbits, I pointed it out, [mod edit]

[mod edit]

 

free2play

Originally posted by rojo6934

i never enjoyed Lotro. Tried it many times and just it isnt for me.

As for EQ2, although i hate the engine its running on i gave it a few tries as well. I manage to enjoy EQ2 until i realized that my melee class could only be a tank. Uninstalled and never looked back. I despise mmo design where heavy plated fighters are limited to tanking and cloth wearing "holy" casters are limited to healing. Terrible design. Everyone should be able to have a dps role besides their support role. Thankfully SOE are learning that with EQN.

If you have a leveling system that depends on your dps production, agreed 100%.

"Yea, you are a healer so your dps sucks but we still need you to kill 10 bears to level".

Ozmodan

Originally posted by syriinx

Originally posted by rojo6934

i never enjoyed Lotro. Tried it many times and just it isnt for me.

As for EQ2, although i hate the engine its running on i gave it a few tries as well. I manage to enjoy EQ2 until i realized that my melee class could only be a tank. Uninstalled and never looked back. I despise mmo design where heavy plated fighters are limited to tanking and cloth wearing "holy" casters are limited to healing. Terrible design. Everyone should be able to have a dps role besides their support role. Thankfully SOE are learning that with EQN.

I 100% disagree with you.  The lack of specialization is ruining the genre and stripping the RPG out of MMORPG.

And with the right AA setup you *can* dps with most fighters.  It wont be optimal but can still be effective enough in most situations.  EQ2 also doesnt have a cloth wearing holy caster.  Out of their 9 healing classes, 3 of them can be effective meleers, one has a dps caster lean to it, and another uses a bow and pets.

Rift's design is the horrendous design to me.  Everyone is an amoeba and there is no meaningful choice whatsoever.  

Some people enjoy playing in a straight jacket, hence they like the restrictions of EQ and EQ2.  Many of us do not.  So I have to disagree with you about the lack of specialization hurting RPG.  Ultima had far better RPG than EQ or EQ2 ever did, same with SWG.  So your argument falls flat on it's face.

As to EQII, I just don't like the engine and the graphics are even worse than Lotro's.  I just like Lotro much better for almost everything.  As to your rant about having to pay for expansions, never have, just playing the game you get tons of store points to buy anything you want and subscribers get 500 points a month which also adds up.   

evilastro

Originally posted by Tokken

EQ2 is better, but I like the story of Lotro and the setting.

EQ2's Freeblood race is not available for free, nor is the Channeler class. You don't get the second to last expansion unless you buy ToV.

 

Also Mercenaries, Reforging and the Beastlord class are locked away in an Expansion / cash shop purchase.

Reforging isn't really optional either if you want to be competitive at max level.

 

They have gotten better over the years, but they are far from the good guys of F2P, at least in EQ2.  DCUO and PS2 are far more reasonable for F2P options IMO.  

evilastro

Originally posted by Jean-Luc_Picard

I've logged into EQ2 lately because I wanted to take some screenshots for inspiration of what I'm building in Everquest Next Landmark.

- Still a crappy engine, very poorly optimized. Modern games like GW2 or EQNLandmark run better on my computer than EQ2.

- Ugly graphics, and very restrictive zone design.

The only thing EQ2 does better than LOTRO is housing decoration. For everything else, LOTRO, despite its poor actual status, is still the better game. I personally wouldn't recommend either of them to a new player, but if I really had to, I'd tell the guy to play LOTRO, not EQ2.

 

The engine really does run like crap, mostly thanks to original design decisions focusing on single core increase.  You actually get far better performance for this game on an old dual-core CPU than newer quad or six core PCs.

My new computer runs it like crap, but my old one plays it well.

All that aside, EQ2 has better combat and encounters. I would recommend it for that reason alone unless you are a Tolkien nut and haven't played LOTRO through before.

jimbobfurley

Originally posted by Jean-Luc_Picard

I've logged into EQ2 lately because I wanted to take some screenshots for inspiration of what I'm building in Everquest Next Landmark.

- Still a crappy engine, very poorly optimized. Modern games like GW2 or EQNLandmark run better on my computer than EQ2.

- Ugly graphics, and very restrictive zone design.

The only thing EQ2 does better than LOTRO is housing decoration. For everything else, LOTRO, despite its poor actual status, is still the better game. I personally wouldn't recommend either of them to a new player, but if I really had to, I'd tell the guy to play LOTRO, not EQ2.

Agreed ... EQ2's graphics are horrid, and LOTRO/Turbine are greedy sh*tes with a sh*te product.  SWTOR is most definitely headed in the opposite direction as LOTRO.

 

reillan

I enjoyed LotRO for something like 5 years, but the lag I experienced about a year ago finally drove me away. I'm not a fan of mounted combat, either - it's just silly.

arieste

Originally posted by Diodem

I've played both EQ2 (Everquest 2) and Lotro...

I've been playing EQ2 for 10 years as my #1 game of choice.  I've played many others, including LoTRO - which i loved and played for years. 

 

If LoTRO had come out before EQ2 ,i would have never played EQ2.  But by time LoTRO came out, it was too late to switch.

 

I love both games, and to me the choice comes down to this:

 

If you want good story, immersion, quality writing and great world, you should play LoTRO.

If you want solid endgame, some of the best and most challenging group instances and raids in MMOs, you should play EQ2.

 

Don't get me wrong, both games have tons of quests, tons of group solo and raid stuff to do.  But in terms of what sets each game apart, those are the main differences. 

arieste

Originally posted by Rhoklaw
Don't forget, you get cash shop tokens just for completing tasks and so on in LOTRO. I don't think EQ2 offers any free cash shop money just for doing stuff in the game.

No, but in EQ2 it's fairly easy to make enough in-game money to pay the monthly gold membership cost or buy some station cash.   So that's something.

JennysMind

I found things in LoTRO that I really like. Even though they have the typical themepark themes, there is a lot of other things to do.

LoTRO has skirmishes where there is a list of instances you can choose, and the difficulty level to run. It can be soloed or in a group. You can level just playing skirmishes if you want. Or you can avoid them entirely.

There is a PVP exclusive area, with special rules. It's not that cutthroat if that is your thing, but you can play it instantly at any time. You can skip it entirely if it's not your thing.

There are virtues in LoTrO where you can buff specific stats according to the class you play. This is done mostly by completing deeds. You can avoid this entirely if you don't want to run deeds.

There are quest lines that you go through once. They can be run at any time. Although some do open up areas.

LoTRO is very good for social networking and role playing.They have RP servers, or RP encouraged servers where you only RP is you want.  You can acquire all types of fashion clothes. They have a tab dedicated to this. Since there are instruments you can be part of a band. What's interesting about the music is you can actually compose music, and write music for multiple instruments for a song. There are guilds whose primary focus is to play music, often holding concerts. Of course you can skip this entirely if it's not your thing.

The thing I like the best is I'm not stuck on just leveling. I can choose to do all kinds of things. And my guild does have events all the time.

I've played many MMO's, Asheron's Call being the first. And been in many guilds I felt a part of. But the variety of LoTRO is what's drawn me to it, and I'm glad I found it. I've played for almost a year now and have no intention of playing another MMO.

Quazal.A

Originally posted by Diodem

 

Edit: oh and if you love hobbits, they had them in EQ2 before Lotro came out, they're called halflings.

 

 

Can i just pick up on this dont know if you know, but hobbits existed approxamatly 50-60years before ANY real home computer let alone a game

So if you going to say EQ had hobbits first ill ask you consider that LOTRO isn't just a developers idea, its a book that comes from 2-3 generations ago... 

That is all... 

 

Po_gg

Originally posted by Quazal.A

Originally posted by Diodem

 

Edit: oh and if you love hobbits, they had them in EQ2 before Lotro came out, they're called halflings.

 

 

Can i just pick up on this dont know if you know, but hobbits existed approxamatly 50-60years before ANY real home computer let alone a game

So if you going to say EQ had hobbits first ill ask you consider that LOTRO isn't just a developers idea, its a book that comes from 2-3 generations ago... 

That is all... 

 

Great one.

In a post above I already tried to subtlety hint the same, but OP missed the point and only said "And yea EQ2 has hobbits, I pointed it out". Lol.

 

Halflings are just the watered-up, D&D version of hobbits, and exists only due to copyright issues with the Tolkien Estate. They're so far from the original it's not even fun to play them (in p'n'p rpg I mean, never played a halfling in crpg's so I can't comment that. Though I'm totally agree with the way HL addressed halflings in his Neverwinter video - a big laugh, and "3 feet of solid rage" ).

edit: btw. these are for example hobbits http://s27.postimg.org/rtzjlcev7/opengate.jpg  (from the yesterday's concert at the Southfarthing Gate). Ok, to be precise, there are also 3 dwarves, a man and an elf

summitus

Edit: oh and if you love hobbits, they had them in EQ2 before Lotro came out, they're called halflings.

 

 

I think I love Hobbits ... but they first appeared in 1937 ( which is quite a bit before EQ II ) ... but nevermind , I'm sure Tolkien wouldn't mind that you seem to be a little misguided ...