player made content is a great idea,it extend to longevity of the game by a lot ,Atari had done that for one of their neverwinter night game and gees last I checked it was still alive !
It is sounding a lot more ambitious then GW2, especially with the player building and destroying. Kind of like the GW2's living world concept , but then taken a couple of steps(leaps even?) further. Not to mention that the class system gives a lot more variety.
But this is still just on paper and I am very sceptic if they can pull this off.
its not more ambitious, its a dumbed down version of GW2 combat.. same weaknes as there is no trinity, but no weapon swapping real time, and even less freedom when choosing the 4 free skilled, because with every class the skillslots are predefined for every class.. being either offensive,defensive,movement or support skills ..
where everyone was hoping for more freedom, this games combat is the opposite, dumbed down to infinnity,
our hopes are based on the round table...
and this is comming from someone that actually liked the combat of gw2
I find the Trinity a weakness of any current MMO. I will give you an example from GW1, when Sorrow's Furnace expansion came out, no one wanted mesmers in their group, that profession was thought of as weak (typically mesmers controlled mobs and their energy, which is something that was not direct damage). The typical group was one tank, 2 healers, 2 MM, 1 Ranger, 2 Ele's. That was the typical running group and people could not think outside the box. It is the same issue with the Trinity in any game and that is why it is a weakness in the game. When they see the trinity, people expect certain things. To break people of that habit, the Trinity needs to be destroyed.
op : what do you suggest instead of weapon skill system,soe did say they would have weekly meeting or such to have feedback from the gaming community !what will be in the end game product will have been mostly decided by the gaming community !
bottom line ?make a list check it twice and send it to soe ! but you cant just supply negative ,you will have to propose soe alternative if your way is literally better and aint prone to cheating tactic I bet they will seriously consider it !but don't forget this soe or any game dev have to also think of the angle of cheating .if you know what you propose was used heavily in the past as a way of cheating like some shooter game we ALL know that I wont name don't bring these suggestion it is almost certain that wont be even looked at !
It is sounding a lot more ambitious then GW2, especially with the player building and destroying. Kind of like the GW2's living world concept , but then taken a couple of steps(leaps even?) further. Not to mention that the class system gives a lot more variety.
But this is still just on paper and I am very sceptic if they can pull this off.
its not more ambitious, its a dumbed down version of GW2 combat.. same weaknes as there is no trinity, but no weapon swapping real time, and even less freedom when choosing the 4 free skilled, because with every class the skillslots are predefined for every class.. being either offensive,defensive,movement or support skills ..
where everyone was hoping for more freedom, this games combat is the opposite, dumbed down to infinnity,
our hopes are based on the round table...
and this is comming from someone that actually liked the combat of gw2
I akin the skill system more to Eve than GW2. In Eve, every ship has High slot, mid slot and low slot and each ship has varying amounts of each. Depending on what the ship is built for, for instance if a ship is built for damage, it will probably have a good amount of high slots, if a ship is built for shield tanking, it will probably have more mid-slots etc. Some ships break that trend but that is generally how things are. And this is quite similar to how they describe the classes in EQN, Rogue type classes will probably have more offensive slots in their 4 class ability slots, Warrior type classes will probably run the spectrum of offense and defense so some of them will have more defensive slots and others more offensive slots.
I think the system allows for a wider range of theory crafting but a lower range of choices within a fight.
The real potential of EQN is in the as of now, unproved emergent AI.
I would absolutely love it if they succeeded with their idea in full. Here's how I understand it:
NPC's will have "motivations" and will adapt based on what is going on. So you find an Orc hideout and level it, killing the orcs. Their AI tells them to respawn in a different area because their hideout isn't safe. So they become a roving band since they don't have a home anymore. They attack NPC's on trade routes until people find them there too. Then their AI learns again and they move to the mountains for more safety since they keep getting killed. There, they meet goblins and their "motivations" lead them to form an alliance with the goblins. And now they lead attack against settlements which you can stop.
Ultimately it would be great to see them continue down a path until they create a large force and wage a full invasion against a major area and can "win" by over-running it (think Rift invasions when not enough people are around to stop them, they kill guards and NPC's and hold territory).
It's still just a proposed feature and it might not work like this, but we can hope that the AI will function in such a manner. And that the NPC's continue interacting with each other while we're asleep so that when we log in the next day, those orcs might have moved underground and no one knows where they are and someone needs to kill the orc leader for an ability but google can't help because they don't spawn in static areas!
It would really encourage exploration and make a dynamic world, not just dynamic events. But like I said, this is best case scenario, I want it to happen, but we'll have to wait and see what they can realistically deliver. It might be slightly more than GW2 dynamic events, or just about the same.
Originally posted by Hahhns It is not just on paper they showed us a lot ... Did you not watch the video at all? They have a ways to go but it looks good and they showed they are capable of doing it.
I think our definition of "a lot" is very different lol.
Originally posted by Megilindir Well..I aint want any step forward or back from GW2...Especially if its said to be a sandbox.?f that's true, then my friend, sandboxes are doomed to oblivion.
this amongst other quotes i am too lazy to highlight right now in your OP show that you are not interested in a conversation, you are interested in a confrontation over why this game is not what you expected or wanted.
"There are at least two kinds of games. One could be called finite, the other infinite. A finite game is played for the purpose of winning, an infinite game for the purpose of continuing play." Finite and Infinite Games, James Carse
i only cant help myself but to think about GW2 skill system which you go for a challenge and get your skill point in order to unlock a skill.Now EQN says "you have your weapon skill bars 1-4 and class skills available to you 5-8 keys" now how is that diffrent? its just a manipulated way of bringing the same thing
i could trivialize the same example asking how is the 8 bar of GW1 different than the 8 bar of GW2?
the skill styles in GW1 vs GW2 were vastly different despite both being limited to a bar of 8 slots
Don't be to hard with the game. They talked about some features that really do look like a living world to me. It all depends on how it will be implemented. That is where GW2 fall flat. The dynamic events are a amazing concept, but if they are organized in short, fast repeating chains, they are not that different from traditional quests.
- They have a ingame ecology where mobs and npcs react to each other and everything reacts to the player. The first build of Ultima Online had that too. But they removed it before launch because it did not work as intended. Maybe EQN can get it right.
- And they have destructible environment. The thing I'm not sure about is how long it will stay destructed? Does the terrain grow back after 30 seconds? I hope it is not just phasing. Then again, this has the potential be a giefing tool, I hope you cant blow up the bank house.
- And they have these "rallying calls". Changing content is always a good thing.
You are right the battle system pretty much looks like one in GW2, but I mostly enjoyed it there. But you are right why can't I have 8 skills or 10?
What exactly did they say about housing? I haven't heard that yet.
It is sounding a lot more ambitious then GW2, especially with the player building and destroying. Kind of like the GW2's living world concept , but then taken a couple of steps(leaps even?) further. Not to mention that the class system gives a lot more variety.
But this is still just on paper and I am very sceptic if they can pull this off.
its not more ambitious, its a dumbed down version of GW2 combat.. same weaknes as there is no trinity, but no weapon swapping real time, and even less freedom when choosing the 4 free skilled, because with every class the skillslots are predefined for every class.. being either offensive,defensive,movement or support skills ..
where everyone was hoping for more freedom, this games combat is the opposite, dumbed down to infinnity,
our hopes are based on the round table...
and this is comming from someone that actually liked the combat of gw2
I find the Trinity a weakness of any current MMO. I will give you an example from GW1, when Sorrow's Furnace expansion came out, no one wanted mesmers in their group, that profession was thought of as weak (typically mesmers controlled mobs and their energy, which is something that was not direct damage). The typical group was one tank, 2 healers, 2 MM, 1 Ranger, 2 Ele's. That was the typical running group and people could not think outside the box. It is the same issue with the Trinity in any game and that is why it is a weakness in the game. When they see the trinity, people expect certain things. To break people of that habit, the Trinity needs to be destroyed.
We will have to wait and see with EQN.
true, anything also besides dps tank and healer are disposable
From what is facts, GW2 and EQN both have weapon skills. Can they be changed for other weapon skills from the same weapon or like GW2 will they have 4 static skills for a weapon set and you are done? My hope is the more you use a weapon set the more skills you unlock for that weapon and you can pick what skills you want and in the order you want them on your hot bar.
The big difference is the class skills you get on top of the 4 weapon skills. Again the question remains about can you earn more then 4 class skills and change them around on your hot bar? We know you can earn other skills from classes you unlock. So we know you have that level of control. Does it get deeper? My bet it will be much deeper then GW2 skill system that is almost arcadeish. The multi-class alone blows GW2 out of the water.
They also talked about classesd having tiers, tier 4 warrrior would be more powerful then a tier 1 warrior. Is that the top tier? What makes them more powerful? Is this really a level system of skill set you unlock or add depth to the same 4 class skills? Man I have a million questions. At this early point there is a difference between them and the potential for it to be much deeper.
It is sounding a lot more ambitious then GW2, especially with the player building and destroying. Kind of like the GW2's living world concept , but then taken a couple of steps(leaps even?) further. Not to mention that the class system gives a lot more variety.
But this is still just on paper and I am very sceptic if they can pull this off.
its not more ambitious, its a dumbed down version of GW2 combat.. same weaknes as there is no trinity, but no weapon swapping real time, and even less freedom when choosing the 4 free skilled, because with every class the skillslots are predefined for every class.. being either offensive,defensive,movement or support skills ..
where everyone was hoping for more freedom, this games combat is the opposite, dumbed down to infinnity,
our hopes are based on the round table...
and this is comming from someone that actually liked the combat of gw2
I find the Trinity a weakness of any current MMO. I will give you an example from GW1, when Sorrow's Furnace expansion came out, no one wanted mesmers in their group, that profession was thought of as weak (typically mesmers controlled mobs and their energy, which is something that was not direct damage). The typical group was one tank, 2 healers, 2 MM, 1 Ranger, 2 Ele's. That was the typical running group and people could not think outside the box. It is the same issue with the Trinity in any game and that is why it is a weakness in the game. When they see the trinity, people expect certain things. To break people of that habit, the Trinity needs to be destroyed.
We will have to wait and see with EQN.
There is nothing to indicate (from what we know so far) that this won't be even worse with this multi-class combat system. Meaning if you want to experience content, others may say you have to have certain classes and abilities equipped to be able to join them.
Imagine the above scenario where there is also no need for a tank or healer and the setup being 2 Rangers and 4 Ele's. In every scenario this is even worse.
It is sounding a lot more ambitious then GW2, especially with the player building and destroying. Kind of like the GW2's living world concept , but then taken a couple of steps(leaps even?) further. Not to mention that the class system gives a lot more variety.
But this is still just on paper and I am very sceptic if they can pull this off.
its not more ambitious, its a dumbed down version of GW2 combat.. same weaknes as there is no trinity, but no weapon swapping real time, and even less freedom when choosing the 4 free skilled, because with every class the skillslots are predefined for every class.. being either offensive,defensive,movement or support skills ..
where everyone was hoping for more freedom, this games combat is the opposite, dumbed down to infinnity,
our hopes are based on the round table...
and this is comming from someone that actually liked the combat of gw2
I find the Trinity a weakness of any current MMO. I will give you an example from GW1, when Sorrow's Furnace expansion came out, no one wanted mesmers in their group, that profession was thought of as weak (typically mesmers controlled mobs and their energy, which is something that was not direct damage). The typical group was one tank, 2 healers, 2 MM, 1 Ranger, 2 Ele's. That was the typical running group and people could not think outside the box. It is the same issue with the Trinity in any game and that is why it is a weakness in the game. When they see the trinity, people expect certain things. To break people of that habit, the Trinity needs to be destroyed.
We will have to wait and see with EQN.
There is nothing to indicate (from what we know so far) that this won't be even worse with this multi-class combat system. Meaning if you want to experience content, others may say you have to have certain classes and abilities equipped to be able to join them.
Imagine the above scenario where there is also no need for a tank or healer and the setup being 2 Rangers and 4 Ele's. In every scenario this is even worse.
From everything I watched I am not convinced there is no trinity in the game. They did say it was not required but they didnt say its not an option. Much like ESO you can trinity but if you stick to just that tactic alone the mobs will figure it out and come at you from another angle. So change or your team may not fair well. They were very clear that tank type players would be happy and felt like they had a place in EQN. There goal is not to alienate that type of player. It seems to me its not the static build of the team will not be trinity. Everyone will need to use the class tools they have been given to win. Tank and heal will be just one of many tools players will use but any other will be just as viable.
I see way more differences than similarities between the two. But then I haven't been shown much of EQN. And I play GW2 so much I know it's minutiae over how it's been advertised to the public.
This question is not answerable in any meaningful way as there is only a tech demo and promises from the devs on the EQN side.No details and no working game that we've seen to be able to answer.
But I'm sure that won't stop people here doing so emphatically and definitively with their prejudices and wild speculations.
From what is facts, GW2 and EQN both have weapon skills. Can they be changed for other weapon skills from the same weapon or like GW2 will they have 4 static skills for a weapon set and you are done? My hope is the more you use a weapon set the more skills you unlock for that weapon and you can pick what skills you want and in the order you want them on your hot bar.
The big difference is the class skills you get on top of the 4 weapon skills. Again the question remains about can you earn more then 4 class skills and change them around on your hot bar? We know you can earn other skills from classes you unlock. So we know you have that level of control. Does it get deeper? My bet it will be much deeper then GW2 skill system that is almost arcadeish. The multi-class alone blows GW2 out of the water.
The multi-classing definitely expands the amount of "Build options" but the skill bar has more restrictions. EQN has several different but static skill templates for each class. You should definitely watch the Class discussion, it explains a lot.
It's nothing like GW2, For one, GW2 says it has a "living world" with "dynamic events" that are just you old themepark scripted quests, they just eliminated the quest-giver and made them open, EQN has actual emergent content that changes the world, so if say, some goblin are raiding a village, and you kill the goblins, they will actually leave the village, and if other player goes to the same area after that, he won't find the same quest opportunities, maybe the village will be fine, but what you did may have consequences, maybe the village grows prosperous and wealthy, and as such, bandits and thieves may appear inside of the village, that way, there is always something to do, but what to do is never the same, player's actions have consequences and actually change the world based. It's a sandbox, where players shape the world, not a disguised themepark.
From what is facts, GW2 and EQN both have weapon skills. Can they be changed for other weapon skills from the same weapon or like GW2 will they have 4 static skills for a weapon set and you are done? My hope is the more you use a weapon set the more skills you unlock for that weapon and you can pick what skills you want and in the order you want them on your hot bar.
The big difference is the class skills you get on top of the 4 weapon skills. Again the question remains about can you earn more then 4 class skills and change them around on your hot bar? We know you can earn other skills from classes you unlock. So we know you have that level of control. Does it get deeper? My bet it will be much deeper then GW2 skill system that is almost arcadeish. The multi-class alone blows GW2 out of the water.
The multi-classing definitely expands the amount of "Build options" but the skill bar has more restrictions. EQN has several different but static skill templates for each class. You should definitely watch the Class discussion, it explains a lot.
I did watch it but in never gave details like say if you earn more weapon skills or it its static 4 skills and thats it. You say its unchangeable but that was never said. My hope like rge classes go up in tiers I hope your weapon skills do as well. If it does do the 4 skills you get become more powerful or do you earn more skills you can swap around? I get for a class a weapon set has a set flavor but that does not mean the skills are static.
Originally posted by tedgp Gw2 is a themepark mmo that is very linear. Eqn is a sandbox mmo that has dozens of ways to progress.
Sounds interesting tell me about all the ways you can progress please.
This sounds negative. I am creating terms that most people will understand to describe components, for fun.
Every MMO gives you 'ways to progress'.
EQ gave "The Level Chain", "The AA grind", "The Tradeskill Push", and "The Ever-Long Gear Quest" (raid/group). The world was just a location to accomplish any of the aforementioned tasks.
Wow gives you the "The Level Chain", "The Ever-Long-Gear-Quest" (raid/group), "The Tradeskill Push", and "The Happy Go Lucky Dungeon/Raid Finder" to accomplish it all (as it is now), if you don't have a group of core players.
EQN sounds like it will give you "The Class Search", "The Environment Build", "The Great Dig", "The Tactical Approach", and "The World". The world becomes strategy. Build a tower to attack creatures from high up. Lure orcs to your keep then destroy them all with an ambush. After all, they roam around and want your gold.
Let me explain my EQN terms:
The Class Search - 40+ classes. I'd say that the highest 'level' character is a character with the most allowed classes (maybe not all 40, some limit), leveled to the highest tier.
The Environment Build - Guild halls. Houses. Towns. We create and control everything.
The Great Dig - Multiple layers of history. Huge volume of world up and down. New content in either direction. Never been done before.
"The Tactical Approach" - Different monsters, not only with resists, but personalities, strategies, habitats, and motives. No more default 'spank and tank'. No default. Monsters will need to be approached differently. People will need to LEARN how to play in each area, and it will be dangerous, rather than just wack-a-mole everywhere.
"The World" - If PVP is put in officially, it will be wonderful to have such a dynamic system. Also, the world will destroy and rebuild, and we can control that. I want to dig into the mountains and find hidden treasures. Something i'm very much looking forward to. I am putting 'tradeskill' considerations in this section.
Aside from a few surface similarities, no I dont think EQN and GW2 are the same. Thats like saying soy milk and dairy milk are the same simply because they both share the model of a milk product.
If a constantly shifting AI, no monster spawn points a reactive breakable world and an evolving world doesn't get your juices going then I don't know what will honestly. Every mmo player should want to try this game at least for two or three months just to see it.
Any mmo worth its salt should be like a good prostitute when it comes to its game world- One hell of a faker, and a damn good shaker!
No mention of pvp.Or a mention goes like "PvP will be there "in a fashion of way" That doesnt quite sounds like there will be an open world PvP system which brings another question to mind;
Comments
I find the Trinity a weakness of any current MMO. I will give you an example from GW1, when Sorrow's Furnace expansion came out, no one wanted mesmers in their group, that profession was thought of as weak (typically mesmers controlled mobs and their energy, which is something that was not direct damage). The typical group was one tank, 2 healers, 2 MM, 1 Ranger, 2 Ele's. That was the typical running group and people could not think outside the box. It is the same issue with the Trinity in any game and that is why it is a weakness in the game. When they see the trinity, people expect certain things. To break people of that habit, the Trinity needs to be destroyed.
We will have to wait and see with EQN.
op : what do you suggest instead of weapon skill system,soe did say they would have weekly meeting or such to have feedback from the gaming community !what will be in the end game product will have been mostly decided by the gaming community !
bottom line ?make a list check it twice and send it to soe ! but you cant just supply negative ,you will have to propose soe alternative if your way is literally better and aint prone to cheating tactic I bet they will seriously consider it !but don't forget this soe or any game dev have to also think of the angle of cheating .if you know what you propose was used heavily in the past as a way of cheating like some shooter game we ALL know that I wont name don't bring these suggestion it is almost certain that wont be even looked at !
I akin the skill system more to Eve than GW2. In Eve, every ship has High slot, mid slot and low slot and each ship has varying amounts of each. Depending on what the ship is built for, for instance if a ship is built for damage, it will probably have a good amount of high slots, if a ship is built for shield tanking, it will probably have more mid-slots etc. Some ships break that trend but that is generally how things are. And this is quite similar to how they describe the classes in EQN, Rogue type classes will probably have more offensive slots in their 4 class ability slots, Warrior type classes will probably run the spectrum of offense and defense so some of them will have more defensive slots and others more offensive slots.
I think the system allows for a wider range of theory crafting but a lower range of choices within a fight.
This is not a game.
The real potential of EQN is in the as of now, unproved emergent AI.
I would absolutely love it if they succeeded with their idea in full. Here's how I understand it:
NPC's will have "motivations" and will adapt based on what is going on. So you find an Orc hideout and level it, killing the orcs. Their AI tells them to respawn in a different area because their hideout isn't safe. So they become a roving band since they don't have a home anymore. They attack NPC's on trade routes until people find them there too. Then their AI learns again and they move to the mountains for more safety since they keep getting killed. There, they meet goblins and their "motivations" lead them to form an alliance with the goblins. And now they lead attack against settlements which you can stop.
Ultimately it would be great to see them continue down a path until they create a large force and wage a full invasion against a major area and can "win" by over-running it (think Rift invasions when not enough people are around to stop them, they kill guards and NPC's and hold territory).
It's still just a proposed feature and it might not work like this, but we can hope that the AI will function in such a manner. And that the NPC's continue interacting with each other while we're asleep so that when we log in the next day, those orcs might have moved underground and no one knows where they are and someone needs to kill the orc leader for an ability but google can't help because they don't spawn in static areas!
It would really encourage exploration and make a dynamic world, not just dynamic events. But like I said, this is best case scenario, I want it to happen, but we'll have to wait and see what they can realistically deliver. It might be slightly more than GW2 dynamic events, or just about the same.
I think our definition of "a lot" is very different lol.
this amongst other quotes i am too lazy to highlight right now in your OP show that you are not interested in a conversation, you are interested in a confrontation over why this game is not what you expected or wanted.
"There are at least two kinds of games.
One could be called finite, the other infinite.
A finite game is played for the purpose of winning,
an infinite game for the purpose of continuing play."
Finite and Infinite Games, James Carse
i could trivialize the same example asking how is the 8 bar of GW1 different than the 8 bar of GW2?
the skill styles in GW1 vs GW2 were vastly different despite both being limited to a bar of 8 slots
EQ2 fan sites
Don't be to hard with the game. They talked about some features that really do look like a living world to me. It all depends on how it will be implemented. That is where GW2 fall flat. The dynamic events are a amazing concept, but if they are organized in short, fast repeating chains, they are not that different from traditional quests.
- They have a ingame ecology where mobs and npcs react to each other and everything reacts to the player. The first build of Ultima Online had that too. But they removed it before launch because it did not work as intended. Maybe EQN can get it right.
- And they have destructible environment. The thing I'm not sure about is how long it will stay destructed? Does the terrain grow back after 30 seconds? I hope it is not just phasing. Then again, this has the potential be a giefing tool, I hope you cant blow up the bank house.
- And they have these "rallying calls". Changing content is always a good thing.
You are right the battle system pretty much looks like one in GW2, but I mostly enjoyed it there. But you are right why can't I have 8 skills or 10?
What exactly did they say about housing? I haven't heard that yet.
Oh, when they only looked like Charr:
true, anything also besides dps tank and healer are disposable
From what is facts, GW2 and EQN both have weapon skills. Can they be changed for other weapon skills from the same weapon or like GW2 will they have 4 static skills for a weapon set and you are done? My hope is the more you use a weapon set the more skills you unlock for that weapon and you can pick what skills you want and in the order you want them on your hot bar.
The big difference is the class skills you get on top of the 4 weapon skills. Again the question remains about can you earn more then 4 class skills and change them around on your hot bar? We know you can earn other skills from classes you unlock. So we know you have that level of control. Does it get deeper? My bet it will be much deeper then GW2 skill system that is almost arcadeish. The multi-class alone blows GW2 out of the water.
They also talked about classesd having tiers, tier 4 warrrior would be more powerful then a tier 1 warrior. Is that the top tier? What makes them more powerful? Is this really a level system of skill set you unlock or add depth to the same 4 class skills? Man I have a million questions. At this early point there is a difference between them and the potential for it to be much deeper.
There is nothing to indicate (from what we know so far) that this won't be even worse with this multi-class combat system. Meaning if you want to experience content, others may say you have to have certain classes and abilities equipped to be able to join them.
Imagine the above scenario where there is also no need for a tank or healer and the setup being 2 Rangers and 4 Ele's. In every scenario this is even worse.
From everything I watched I am not convinced there is no trinity in the game. They did say it was not required but they didnt say its not an option. Much like ESO you can trinity but if you stick to just that tactic alone the mobs will figure it out and come at you from another angle. So change or your team may not fair well. They were very clear that tank type players would be happy and felt like they had a place in EQN. There goal is not to alienate that type of player. It seems to me its not the static build of the team will not be trinity. Everyone will need to use the class tools they have been given to win. Tank and heal will be just one of many tools players will use but any other will be just as viable.
Eqn is a sandbox mmo that has dozens of ways to progress.
I see way more differences than similarities between the two. But then I haven't been shown much of EQN. And I play GW2 so much I know it's minutiae over how it's been advertised to the public.
This question is not answerable in any meaningful way as there is only a tech demo and promises from the devs on the EQN side.No details and no working game that we've seen to be able to answer.
But I'm sure that won't stop people here doing so emphatically and definitively with their prejudices and wild speculations.
Sounds interesting tell me about all the ways you can progress please.
Read my post last page of this thread. Covers a couple of ways.
This is not a game.
I did watch it but in never gave details like say if you earn more weapon skills or it its static 4 skills and thats it. You say its unchangeable but that was never said. My hope like rge classes go up in tiers I hope your weapon skills do as well. If it does do the 4 skills you get become more powerful or do you earn more skills you can swap around? I get for a class a weapon set has a set flavor but that does not mean the skills are static.
This sounds negative. I am creating terms that most people will understand to describe components, for fun.
Every MMO gives you 'ways to progress'.
EQ gave "The Level Chain", "The AA grind", "The Tradeskill Push", and "The Ever-Long Gear Quest" (raid/group). The world was just a location to accomplish any of the aforementioned tasks.
Wow gives you the "The Level Chain", "The Ever-Long-Gear-Quest" (raid/group), "The Tradeskill Push", and "The Happy Go Lucky Dungeon/Raid Finder" to accomplish it all (as it is now), if you don't have a group of core players.
EQN sounds like it will give you "The Class Search", "The Environment Build", "The Great Dig", "The Tactical Approach", and "The World". The world becomes strategy. Build a tower to attack creatures from high up. Lure orcs to your keep then destroy them all with an ambush. After all, they roam around and want your gold.
Let me explain my EQN terms:
The Class Search - 40+ classes. I'd say that the highest 'level' character is a character with the most allowed classes (maybe not all 40, some limit), leveled to the highest tier.
The Environment Build - Guild halls. Houses. Towns. We create and control everything.
The Great Dig - Multiple layers of history. Huge volume of world up and down. New content in either direction. Never been done before.
"The Tactical Approach" - Different monsters, not only with resists, but personalities, strategies, habitats, and motives. No more default 'spank and tank'. No default. Monsters will need to be approached differently. People will need to LEARN how to play in each area, and it will be dangerous, rather than just wack-a-mole everywhere.
"The World" - If PVP is put in officially, it will be wonderful to have such a dynamic system. Also, the world will destroy and rebuild, and we can control that. I want to dig into the mountains and find hidden treasures. Something i'm very much looking forward to. I am putting 'tradeskill' considerations in this section.
Any mmo worth its salt should be like a good prostitute when it comes to its game world- One hell of a faker, and a damn good shaker!
I didn't read the whole thing but...
https://twitter.com/j_smedley/status/346873836597280770