Everquest II

[mercanucaribe]

I tried the demo yesterday, and I'm impressed. With more realistic and prettier graphics than WoW, it's much more immersive. The great music helps too, especially since it makes the different environments feel really different. It's more LOTR and less Disney. I like the high number of classes and races too, and the quests so far are good compared to EQI.

I know that levelling is slower than WoW, but even with fast levelling, WoW is boring because level 20-30 is the same as 40-50. From what I've seen by logging on friends' characters, 60-70 is identical, just with bigger monsters. I haven't reached "endgame" because there's no motivation except some big goofy looking armor.

Does EQII give variety and fun through the whole levelling process or is it all about the endgame? I remember in Everquest I, I never got above level 45, but I had a lot of fun exploring, getting new spells, grouping, etc.

 

[CKent]

Sony / SOE is a poison which has ruined great games that they didn't design. They designed EQ2 from the ground up. I'll leave the logical conclusions to you.

 

[ViviTheMage]

shrug, both are so meh WoW =/= EQ2

 

[effowe]

I had a few buddies that were really into it, playing all the time and not going out on weekends because they had to raid. I don't like those types of games, as they are such a time sink and aren't instantly gratifying which I usually need (CS:S Player.) Try it out if you like it, but don't let it force its way into your real life.

 

[S Freud]

Originally posted by: effowe
I had a few buddies that were really into it, playing all the time and not going out on weekends because they had to raid. I don't like those types of games, as they are such a time sink and aren't instantly gratifying which I usually need (CS:S Player.) Try it out if you like it, but don't let it force its way into your real life.

I don't understand how people are like this sometimes, not being able to go anwhere because they feel an obligation to a fictional game character.

 

[waggy]

i played it. had a level 60 mystic. got tired of the guild BS etc. quit not to long after desert of flames came out.

 

[illusion88]

I played a coercer to level 70. It's a sweet game. I love the leveling system, the diversity of the classes and the many different zones you can take a small group into (3-6 people). If you know how to play the game well it can be very rewarding. With a good group of people you can go into any zone in your level without too much trouble. There is also a very good crafting system with it's own level structure although it is a huge time sink and IMO isn't too rewarding until the last tier.

There are lower level raids for those who want to try that out earlier in the game, but they just aren't the same as the higher level ones. Some raids have really cool scripted events that keep it challenging and exciting. The only reason I stopped playing is I fried my mobo and haven't replaced it yet. I don't have the hardware to run the game anymore

I had a bunch of alts that I loved. I liked the coercer because it is one of the best soloers in the game and is invaluable in a group and in raids. It's the best of both worlds.

 

[Yreka]

The wife and I had alot of fun with it. I have a 70 Bezerker (warrior), she has a 70 Warden (healer). The game was quite a bit of fun leveling up. There are tons of quests, collections (wife loved these), guild writs, etc to work on. There always seemed to be some goal to achieve, as opposed to grind-grind-grind-ing zones in EQ1. Thinking back, I cant say we were bored too often.

The people, for the most part were great as well.. Some speculate this is because in EQ2 there isn't alot of instant gratification so it keeps the ADD kids, and adults of questionable maturity playing other games. We were in a great guild, with quite a few other parents so family or RL obligations weren't an issue.

We canceled our accounts due to the fact we just had a new baby, and are in the process of moving. Once life slows down a bit, we will most likely start playing again, or maybe check out Vanguard, who knows.

 

[oddyager]

I play it off and on with my brother (Mystic healer me, Berserker fighter, him). For the most part its fun. Definitely a departure from EQ1 where all you can really do is kill and endless array of monsters for experience and items. EQ2 you have an option to run quests (which there are a ton of), or collect things for rewards.

 

[mercanucaribe]

Originally posted by: Yreka
The wife and I had alot of fun with it. I have a 70 Bezerker (warrior), she has a 70 Warden (healer). The game was quite a bit of fun leveling up. There are tons of quests, collections (wife loved these), guild writs, etc to work on. There always seemed to be some goal to achieve, as opposed to grind-grind-grind-ing zones in EQ1. Thinking back, I cant say we were bored too often.

The people, for the most part were great as well.. Some speculate this is because in EQ2 there isn't alot of instant gratification so it keeps the ADD kids, and adults of questionable maturity playing other games. We were in a great guild, with quite a few other parents so family or RL obligations weren't an issue.

We canceled our accounts due to the fact we just had a new baby, and are in the process of moving. Once life slows down a bit, we will most likely start playing again, or maybe check out Vanguard, who knows.

Thanks for the input. I tried Vanguard and didn't like it. It seemed clunky, and ran slower than it should have with a 7950GX2 and 2gb RAM. The graphics looked terrible too- it's just ugly compared to Everquest 2, which is pretty surprising.