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EverQuest II: Rise of Kunark Expansion Review
Stradden
Managing EditorMember CommonPosts: 6,696
Adele Caelia has had an opportunity to explore the new EverQuest II expansion, Rise of Kunark and today shares her impressions of the add-on with you.
Rise of Kunark is the fourth expansion for Sony Online Entertainment’s Everquest II. In this expansion a breed of Sarnak long forgotten, and banished centuries before from their homeland emerges to conquer at last their most hated enemy, the Iksar. Players will visit a world ravaged by war, and along the way meet many different factions that need their help to twist the tide. Rise of Kunark is a first-class expansion that will change the game for the better in the minds of many players.
A New Race
Players will find a new race, the Sarnak, available for play. The Sarnak are a vile and evil race made by the Iksar long ago using dark magic to mix Iksar with those of the Dragon race. The Sarnak that have now come to Norrath are a breed that has the power to destroy their enemy, a breed that was thought to no longer exist.
The Sarnak could easily be the best looking evil race in the game, especially for those who have a fondness for Dragons. They look more Dragon than Iksar, with hunched over bodies and huge hulking Dragon-like heads. On creation, players will find themselves able to choose from many styles of horns and scale colors, along with the width and length of their snout. A must play for those players who like the idea of breathing fire upon their enemy and eating them alive...
;)
Read the rest here.
Cheers,
Jon Wood
Managing Editor
MMORPG.com
Comments
No more grinding a con?
Increased level cap a pro?
What i hate about level increase is it makes all the previous zones empty and completly useless. Also what i hate about mmorpgs is the fact you have to grind grind grind.......... so if they managed to get rid of the grind then how is that a con?
Increased level cap is a pro to those who enjoy grinding - and there are plenty of those as well.
No one type of player has a monopoly on MMOs.
In all it sounds like an interesting enough expansion. I re-upped my account to check out EoF and thought the new areas were brilliant. I loved starting out in Lesser Faydark (or was it greater? I can never remember heheh); a really huge and sometimes confusing area but far more interesting than Commonlands or, even Antonica - at least to me.
Perhaps at some point I'll pick this up and give it another try.
and the cash shop selling asphalt..." - Mimzel on F2P/Cash Shops
I tried out the free trial for this game but was, frankly, unimpressed with the graphics and gameplay (the water did look good, I have to admit). WoW seems so much more polished and intuitive to me and looked better overall. It isn't a function of being easy to level so much as the interface itself. EQ's interface and combat felt very clunky and awkward to me.
Based on my (admittedly limited) experience with Everquest during the free trial, I would rate WoW more highly overall. I would be curious to hear from players who have played both WoW and Everquest extensively why they might feel Everquest is the better game. (I'm sure I didn't play EQ long enough to give it a fair test.) It's just hard for me to imagine wanting to play EQ. It felt (again this is just me) very dated, MMO-wise.
Nevertheless, this was a well-written and informative review. Thanks for posting it.
I agree that WOW is a better overall mmorpg, there are areas EQ2 is better in but overall WOW just has a much higher level of polish and doesn't feel soo dated like EQ2 does.
Myself though i don't like any of them lol.
Well going by your review you didn’t play EQ2 on max graphic or you wouldn’t have said what you said. Also I believe your computer is on the low end. That is the reason WOW has done as well as it has. If you set the graphics on low on both games, WOW wins. But on max graphics, EQ2 is the clear winner. Not bragging, but mine is 4.2 Gig Processor, 4 gig of Ram and 2x 8800 GTS video cards (SLI). So a high end computer ( for now ) and I can play everything on max graphics including COD4 which I must say is the best game this year following with Bioshock.. But back to the games Wow’s game mechanics are very good and in my opinion the best. But on the graphics end and total role-play immersion, EQ2 is the best by far. There are a lot of NPCs that will talk to you for awhile. So of it is good and some of isn’t. There is just so much you can do, besides fighting. In my opinion only, EQ2 is the better of the two.
On the downside of EQ2 something I would like to see more of. More armor and weapon sets, and hair and beard customization, plus more tattoos/piercing.
I have not played the newbie island lately, so I don’t know how good it is. But I am sure that’s its close to the Mainland.
One last thing that EQ universe has on WOW. EQ has more lore and history that is quite interesting. WoW has it’s lore off of a strategy game, which doesn’t have the lore role-playing games have.
But like I have always posted, everyone has their own flavor. Right now mine is EQ2 until Conan and Warhammer come out.
Wish the reviewer would have done a bit more homework about these Sarnak.
1) They are not "evil and vile" and had they read any of the devs postings on them they would have seen that the Sarnak are only "evil" in the sense of distrust and misunderstanding. They are definitely NOT "vile."
2) They are also not the same Sarnak that the Iksar bred all those years ago. This is a new breed. The Di'Zok Sarnak's are from the original stock.
In all though, a good review. I won't comment on those who keep insisting on comparing EQII to the cartoon rendered WoW since in my opinion, there isn't one. I'll take EQII any day.
thanks stradden interesting review for a long time on this site.
the grind was the reason for me to quit eq2.
how is leveling from 20 - 70 any changes ?
and is there new content for this lvl ranges ?
WoW's lore is story based. It doesn't matter that it stemmed from a strategy game. There is a huge story with many plot lines if you only take the time to actually read the quest texts and all of the various books lying around the world. WoW's lore is much more accessible and you don't have to be a hardcore raider to even enjoy the best of it.
I've played both games and even went back to EQ2 several times, but I always have felt more engaged while in WoW. It has it's problems, there is no doubt about that, but it is still the superior game.
With PvE raiding, it has never been a question of being "good enough". I play games to have fun, not to be a simpering toady sitting through hour after hour of mind numbing boredom and fawning over a guild master in the hopes that he will condescend to reward me with shiny bits of loot. But in games where those people get the highest progression, anyone who doesn't do that will just be a moving target for them and I'll be damned if I'm going to pay money for the privilege. - Neanderthal
WoW is easy to play and understand so yes you probably would take WoW over any other MMO
Ok so cartoony graphics helped you be more engaged... grats but WoWs simplicity doesn't make it superior
Eh......wrong. The story is superior. The way it's presented is superior. The atmosphere of the game is superior. It's not about cartoony graphics, it's about the details, the humor, all of the little touches that make you laugh or oooh and aaaah. WoW does this in spades, more than any MMO I've ever played, EQ, EQ2, AO, DAoC, SWG, VGSoH, CoH, HZ, FFXI and L2.
I don't know what the hell you mean by easy to play, because I find a lot of challenge in WoW, just as much as I found in any of those other games. If you mean that it isn't irritating, filled with artificial mechanisms whose only purpose is to slow you down with no intrinsic entertainment value, then I would agree with you. Faster leveling inherently means much less repetition per level. I get a greater sense of achievement knowing I haven't wasted my real life spending all of it in a fantasy world.
This supposed belief that EQ2 is more sophisticated than WoW is definitely a personal perception, because I don't find EQ2 sophisticated at all. I don't find any MMO to be sophisticated. They're entertainment software, stop trying to make them into something they aren't. Why the hell would anyone want a reality simulation when all you have to do is walk out the front door?
With PvE raiding, it has never been a question of being "good enough". I play games to have fun, not to be a simpering toady sitting through hour after hour of mind numbing boredom and fawning over a guild master in the hopes that he will condescend to reward me with shiny bits of loot. But in games where those people get the highest progression, anyone who doesn't do that will just be a moving target for them and I'll be damned if I'm going to pay money for the privilege. - Neanderthal
their is nothing superior about WoW. everything from the polygon count, to texture work, to lighting is based off running on five year old rigs. it is an ugly game, with simple graphics, poor animations, and everyone looks the same. on max settings in EQ2, if your machine can run it, your character model probably has a poly count close to all of stranglethorn vale. trying to suggest EQ2 is dated, when you play WoW, is funny. EQ2 is the only mmo thats been released with forward looking specs... high end rigs today, still can have a lot of frame rate issues with it. looking at your character in EQ2, at max settings, will produce more oooh and aaaahs then anything WoW has to throw at you. oh, and if you find the story in WoW better, you haven't actually read the story, or been a part of it, in just about any other mmo. the greatest thing WoW has brought to the mmo world, is a place for the majority of annoying mmo players to converge, leaving the interesting, challenging mmos uncrowded.
Funniest post ever. As someone who has played EQ2 and WoW. I just find it hilarious that people that EQ2 is superior to WoW. EQ2 has many good things about it, but imho it's still not near as good WoW is now, or will be later after it gets another expansion.
In War - Victory.
In Peace - Vigilance.
In Death - Sacrifice.
If only WoW had a community that resembled that of EQ2.
Is it not a paradox that the "more interesting and challenging MMO's" are the least populated. Maybe it's because they are in fact the least interesting and the challenge is in fact based off of tedious time wasting game mechanics.
With PvE raiding, it has never been a question of being "good enough". I play games to have fun, not to be a simpering toady sitting through hour after hour of mind numbing boredom and fawning over a guild master in the hopes that he will condescend to reward me with shiny bits of loot. But in games where those people get the highest progression, anyone who doesn't do that will just be a moving target for them and I'll be damned if I'm going to pay money for the privilege. - Neanderthal
Why are people talking about WoW? This is a EQ2 expansion review... Oi.
What caught my attention was that they said they leveled to 20 in only 3 hours play time. Serious?
ok, guess I'll hop on the WoW vs. EQ2 debate. Yeah!
EQ2 graphics are very nice, I can play on max and it looks pretty good... except for the characters themselves. The only races I actually could stand looking at were the cat like one and the reptile one.. all the humans and elves just looked terrible, in my opinion. I couldn't stand looking at the models.
At least in WoW, the only ones I don't like are the humans... too bulky... everything else "fits" to the Warcraft look and "feel."
So yes EQ2 greatly surpasses WoW in terms of technical graphical excellence.
WoW absolutely destroys EQ2 in terms of style and art direction.
My biggest complaint about EQ2 is the lack of depth. This expansion did nothing to bring more depth. Too few options for customizing your toon and fighting mobs. Every melee class is almost identical, and the same for every magic class. The distinctions that serperate classes are far to small. EQ had loads of depth, and there were many strategies to fighting mobs. The classes were very different. EQ2 went the safe route to make every class balanced. Unfortunately, that leads to some very boring classes and tactics.
EQ2 is a decent game. It could be better if it was more like its predecessor in some aspects, like class depth.
edit: Let me point out that you'll find EQ2 about as challenging as mashing buttons on your keyboard.
Yes, I am an EQ2 subscriber, just not a blind fanboi.
My only problem with this review is the "Vile and Evil" comment about the Sarnak, this shows a lack of lore. The Developers themselves have previously stated, in an interview on this website in fact, that the sarnak are not in nature truely "Evil," they do not have any agendas beyond their own races survival according to the developers, unlike dark elves which seek power to rule. They are precieved as being evil due to their creation stories and their misunderstood survival techniques. I bring this up because for me lore can make or brake a game and I don't want others reading this to be misslead and start seeing them as something they were not ment to be seen as, again according to the developers.
Top Ten Most Misused Words/Phrases in MMO Industry...
Sarkak = Evil race, period.
Why do I say this? Because on character creation they are only selectable as an "Evil" race. Not good, or neutral but evil. I don't care what anyone read in previous dev interviews if they didn't mean for them to be evil they shouldn't of made them so.
Questing was already faster levelling than grinding. The review very much understates it: you'd have to kill probably a good 1,000 heroics per level just to ding. Questing in groups is bull - if someone's on a dif step in the quests there's no point in helping them, period, as it'd just be stuff you already did that they can do on their own anyway. Most of the good non-raid loot comes from quests. The group loot drops sucked, the group xp sucked, the raid content was blown through in under a month (top guilds cleared most zones on their first time in, in the LAST EXPANSION'S raid gear). The "awesome xp and loot" in the new starter zone is so out of balance with the rest of the game that it's asinine (you level HELLA-fast, and the loot is absolutely ridiculously good for the level).
Well the only thing I miss about EQII is my house, my pets and my crafting stations....as for Wow been playing it *again* for a couple weeks........caught myself early this evening nodding off during battle.......level 63 druid. Heh guess my brain is telling me..I need something a little more challenging. :P
Waiting on Warhammer yes indeed.
Cend
Sarnak are indeed an evil race, just as the Iksar are. I played both. Iksar warden is my main in EQII. I have to mention re the OP that I never did see my Sarnak "breathing fire" on others.....did I misunderstand you or......
Don't think they can do that..but I guess its kind of a fanciful idea or notion ..put across to make them seem more interesting. Frankly I prefer my Iksar, her facial expressions are alive and mobile..and I think she's pretty cool.
Too bad I have no intentions of paying SOE any more money for any of their games due to my personal principles that clash with SOE"s encouraging RMT in their games. From what I understand they have partnered with some online gold farming outfit. Yet another marketting scheme....that smells bad.
Ah well.
Cend
I played WoW for 2+ years from humble beginings to full on raid after raid glory with a number one ranked guild.I agree with you, WoW is just really well executed. One of the strongest points of WoW (and one that is not obvious to newcomers) is the game engine. It's incredibly fluid and immersive and the level of control you have over your player is far beyond other mmorpg's (almost like a console game).
This freedom offered some unique oppertunities from PvP to fooling around in the environment with your buddies (queue all the hilarious movies made with WoW).
But WoW lacks one major component and that is content aimed at the casual/rpg type player (WoW forum is always full of raiders vs casual/rpg players). Pre-TBC the game was brilliant, not much to raid but was always a good experience to do a 40-man. For me the 5,10,xxx man instances were the best, places like Dire Maul and Lower Blackrock Spire really gave you a feeling like your were in a Dungeons & Dragons set.
Now I have been playing EQ2 Rise of Kunark for a couple of weeks (plus 14 days as a trial account) and I have mixed feelings about the game. I like the questing system, miles more content compared to WoW and to some degree I like the landscape/environment graphics - they are different to WoW so appealing to me. However EQ2 looks a bit dated to me in comparison to WoW and recently my experience of WAR Beta.
The characters seem to float around, you don't get a sense they are actually walking and interacting with the environment.
The mobs seem static and dumb, in WoW the AI was tweaked quite well i.e mobs behaved as you would expect them to with a fair degree of randomness and aggression. In EQ2 mobs all seem to behave in a predictable way which gets dull very quickly.
The interface is actually quite welcoming to me, reminds me of the WoW interface (but with better amount of detail and information) and allows you to take control of your character quite quickly. I also like the amount of customisation you have your character even if you look like every other person out there.
The rpg side of EQ2 is nice, I like the amount of detail available regarding your player and the ability tree is a nice reminder of WoW - I think EQ2 wins here as there is a wider range of abilities and talents on offer. The tradeskill system is better I feel, you have more paths to follow compared to WoW which had a limited amount of tradeskills.
I have a fairly high spec PC however I still couldn't get maximum graphics effects enabled but I did manage to increase the player and npc settings to max as well as adding shadows and special effects like specular light and particles on max.
However I felt a little let down by the graphics and the player + npc models. The screenshots look great but when you play the game you realise the 3D models are actually quite poor in design. The characters are not smooth at all like in WoW, instead they feel very clunky when moving about and the actual physical model of a character looks segmented (i.e the arms look like they are just glued on etc) - WoW characters were quite convincing and felt more detailed (which is odd as WoW 3D models are actually very basic, just using well made textures).
EQ2 feels rough around the edges which is dissappointing, I expected a slightly more polished game engine and I think it's a sign the game engine is getting dated now.
Combat is not quite what I expected, the actual fighting is well done and you can bash your sequence of buttons to kill off your opponent but it doesn't feel the same as WoW. In EQ2 you hit a taget, then think "ok I'll run around this place to get some space so I can pull off my next attack" - that doesn't work. On screen you look like you have made some ground between your player and the target however for some reason the monster will either move very fast right behind you in a clunky animation-less fashion or proceed to hit you with invisible blows when your out of reach - the physics here need some rethinking.
Thats the other problem, for all the graphical nicities they are let down by poor animation. The players and the monsters seem to have a clunky mechanical feel to them. Again as I mentioned above, your player and mobs seem to float around the environment as apposed to actually walking on the surface. Combat doesn't seem convincing and has many problems for example firing an arrow will cause the monster to rush towards you before you have even fired the arrow off and got a hit!
The grind doesn't seem so bad. I enjoy grinding quests as it's beneficial to your player i.e experience and lots of goodies. Mining/collecitng etc is not a problem and you can usually find the materials you need quite easily however I found the grinding a bit more fun in WoW, again could be down to how fluid the WoW engine feels.
I prefer the shopping/trading in EQ2 to WoW, easier to deal with and a bit more polished like the buyback feature that actually works as well as npc's having a wide range of useful items in stock.
I tried my first grouped quest however wasn't impressed with this aspect. Didn't feel like I was part of a group. The multi-mob combat just didn't feel like it was involving the other players and the dynamics of fighting multiple mobs with multiple real players just felt clunky (where as in WoW you could have some players controlling mobs while others provided assistance or distraction for other mobs). My player happens to be beserker (my favourite class) so was able to use his wide range of taunts to pull the mobs to me however the mobs were completely oblivious to the other players.. I got spam heals and the fight was over thanks to the ranged nukers in the group - didn't feel like there was any dynamic threat calculation going on - maybe I need to hit the higher level dungeons.
I did like the beserker class though, loads of abilities in comparison to WoW so if you played a tanking class it was obvious what did what but I ended up with 3 hotbar full of moves that were mostly redundant. I only ever used 3 or for buttons to do the same repetitive attacks - I think what I am trying to say is the fights are not challenging enough, nothing random seems to happen.
Overall EQ2 is a great alternative to WoW, not anywhere near as polished but still a worthwhile purchase all the same. EQ2 seems to attract the mature players compared to WoW and this has won me over for EQ2 so I will ignore the many failings and try to get somewhere with it... until WAR comes out
My rating: 7/10 - nice alternative but a little too rough around the edges
If only WoW had a community that resembled that of EQ2.
lol you mean a community that feels they are "Better" than everyone else out there? Thats the only thing I got from the community in EQ II all the year's I was here