I played everquest more than was probably healthy for years from original until TSS, but after that I just didn't enjoy the game. Every new expansion was focused on endgame content and with each year it was harder to find a group. I kept playing on and off for awhile after that, but with mercenaries and level cap shooting up every expansion, i spent more time soloing than anything else so I quit for 4 years. I just started playing again last week and I must say I was pleasantly surprised. The most recent expansions seem to be trying to bring the game back to a more community based game with the better tradeskills gear, and most of the new zones tied into the lore of classic eq. Even tho 90% of zones are still empty, I am seeing people frequently lfg again. Since I haven't done any endgame content since the level cap was 70, I am curious if y'all feel the game is getting better. Also just to throw this out there since I'm asking for opinions anyway, some things I still would want to see in future expansions are: 1. They need to add new content to older zones instead of just adding new ones. I don't mean newer versions of zones, just reasons to make people go there like they did with raising tradeskill cap. There are literally hundreds of zones that never have anyone in them. 2. The game currently begins at lvl 85-90. There needs to be some form of motivation to get people playing lower characters again instead of PLing and Merc soloing. 3. Nerf and/or add a penalty to mercenaries. Get people playing real healers again or learn how to solo. I actually met a guy who didn't realize you get more exp without a group because he'd been playing with a Merc since day 1. 4. Make level requirement for pok and remove crescent reach as starting city for all. If they update the starting city armour quests, would be much better way for new players to learn game and would be more fun if factions mattered again.
For the most part I would say yes it is getting better especially if comparing it to classic EQ. Modern EQ is more complex, way more QOL improvements making game play more enjoyable and you can still visit old content for nostalgia or even play on a TLP if you want to relive it like it was current. Yes there are less people which naturally result in less groups. Less people also mean lower profits and a lower budget for production leading to smaller expansions. It's still just as fun today or even more imo than it was nearly 20 years ago when it was released. I think the biggest issue people have when comparing modern EQ to classic is they expect to log in and have that same first day newb experience packed with people and a sense of unknown adventure. Those emotions are difficult to recreate so if you can look past that and seek new enjoyment in the game instead of holding onto some old thoughts or ideas about how you remember things you just might enjoy this game as much or even more than someone like myself.
The live game has progressively gone down hill for years but there's still enjoyability to it if your expectations aren't too high. It's just nothing like it was. I don't even see this as the same game. Certain EQ TLPs or P99 is Everquest. Live is a weird alternate timeline.
The current game is better than older EQ game. My class has way more diversity. As a warrior, I can go on tanking mode or DPS mode or in between. When the warrior class was limited to like using 4 discs, defensive disc, one aggro disc, one DPS disc, and taunt, this was very boring. Way more choice of itemization too compared to old days. You can choose the Heroic stat you want, and build your gear and augs based on what you want. Before, there was 1 set of best augs for tanks (take the highest AC aug in the game) and 1 set of gear. Raids have also more diversity, more mechanisms to avoid or to take into account to succeed raids. Not only tank and spank, set your warrior defensive line, and your cleric CH line, and wait 30 min like this until raid mob is dead.
What game are you playing? Everyone has the exact same gear. While there are different items for the same non-visible slots, they really only differ by a couple heroic stats moved around and maybe 50 HME switched around. With where the numbers are, those minor differences don't mean anything. Having essentially identical items with different names is not choice. There is also the high AC item for most slots. Even augs are being whittled down to the same for everyone. In the old days, people had real choices for different visibles (both for looks and for stats) and a plethora of choices for non visible slots and weapons. It was rare to find people geared up nearly identically. I even had to carry around an extra set of resist gear for raids that needed high resits of certain types. That alone required creativity in collecting.
I have cleared all RoS raids expansion. We have to disagree on this point then. For me there was way less choice on itemization, at least from a tank perspective.
Do yourself a favour and don't bother. Devs are so out of touch its unreal. Ring of Scale is an absolute pile of sh**e.
EoK was an overall pretty good xpac for them, RoS has seen a huge decline overall. Raids are definitely better in RoS, but overall tougher xpac and its definitely hit the population.
I like classic EQ and SoV is still my favorite expansion but today's game is much better. Some expansions have gone backwards but EoK and RoS are both pretty good and better than the previous few.
It's fine that you don't like the expansion, not all content is going to be for all people - there's expacs I like more than others, too. My main concern doesn't really effect me and that is RoS is not kind to casuals. My personal opinion is that might not be fully good for the game. There's a lot to love about RoS. Tradeskills were completely resurrected from the dead - they're not just all about the stats on one aug now. Many aspects of itemization have been implemented better than we have seen maybe ever. The VP quests are very rewarding. Type 5, 7 and 8 augs received nice boosts. Spells weren't so much cookie cutter in that most received better than the standard 7% increase on average over level 105. The zones are pretty by EQ's standards, none were cookie cutter like omg TBM, yuck! For Raiders, it was really important this year learning events - raiding was hard in EQ again. There was a real feeling of accomplishment - even for the guilds at the highest end of the game. Some of that was self inflicted a bit by Hero mission hi jinx, but even with that the rankings in the top 5 remained what they've been. Having said that, policy over what constitutes cheating (from Hero mission abuse and Black Pearl aug work around) really doesn't have much to do with the actual expansion. So I ask - what exactly are the gripes on this pretty decent expansion? I really am just curious. I'm not trying to put you on the spot. It's important the Devs read what players don't like about their work. In the past couple of content releases I think they've atoned well for the real pile of shi**e - The BROKEN Mirror.
The game is the best it has ever been, both on live and progression. It remains a bit uneven, dense for returning players (especially live), and continues to struggle with pleasing every player niche. While I would love a new race 1 to 110 level cap expac that seems very unrealistic. TSS was brilliant overall (whether you like Drakkin or not). Main change I would make to that expac is putting the Crescent Reach PoK book in the newbie yard near the class trainers and giving Blightfire Moors it's own PoK book back in the middle of the zone where it was supposed to be. Best thing for the game, though it would tick many off... is to progress the live game so you do 1-75 in TSS if you really want, but otherwise the game starts at 85. Literally revamp 95% of the old content to be 85+ in level. Put desirable quest items on LDoN vendors (content you have to do vs. claim bags of currency for) from the under 75 content and nothing is really broken for the handful of level 54 people playing on live. 85 is the new level 1. Meanwhile, the nostalgia factor (sell) of progression ramps up the more obsolete content you only see on progression.
I've enjoyed every expansion, I think. If I had to rank them, LoY would probably be lowest for being so small, but the spell quests were neat and I understood it was more a tech test for scripted raids than an actual expansion. Like LDoN was the first swing at instancing; not much content there either. Both led to really great things in Gates & going forward. Besides enjoying just more stuff to do, I've really really liked that EoK and RoS had some mechanical identity to their monsters. The various wildlife & denizens weren't all just different skins on a moderate pile of hp & standard melee hits. In RoS, they began making the zones themselves take on a bit of character - forum blowback from silly players aside, I find that to be quite cool. RoS could have benefited maybe from a plainer mission or two tacked on, but there's a substantial risk from my perspective of something like that becoming the defining experience of the expansion for most players - like Gribbles in CotF, Frontier Mountains gobs for EoK. Real "lowest common denominator" sort of EQ play :/
i agree that the mobs in older zoned need to be strengthened (a lvl 20 geared player today cant be compared to 20 yrs ago) but i would hate to see them fully revamp the zones. instead i would rather see them add a scaling system like they tried to do with shrouds years ago. Like the shrouds, scale down in 5 lvl increments but instead of changing appearance/class just give so defiant gear for that lvl and have the exp transfer over when you release it, or have a scaled inventory separate from your normal inventory to keep your low level gear in like a bandolier. That way people could still grind in any zone with friends at any level. Plus that would open up a lot of future advancement for faction achievements since people could make use of starting cities again. Heck i love it if newbie quest armor was relevant again i still have it in my bank on most of my alts just cause it took so long to get back in the day. This way live servers could cater to both niches the progressive players and the classic. The more progression servers they have to add, the more it splits the populations.
Agree that the game is at its best ever. For me, EoK and RoS are interconnected, so that they are like part 1 & 2 of the same overall experience, the “new era” of EQ. RoS is much less forgiving than earlier expansions, meaning that there is always something to strife for, and to measure one self against. Segap: is gear very much the same? I guess if you get so much in front of the curve, that you can absorb all the best the game has to offer, then it is quite similar, within a class, and maybe even solewhat between classes. Getting to that point in the front of the curve is unavailable to a lot of players, whom then has the perception of getting upgrades from a number of different places, piecing together their own gear combination. Less than a choice, more a result of the efforts, luck, etc, it ends up feeling like quite a varied journey, where new gear makes a difference, and where ones peers are not identically outfitted. To the OP: welcome back to The Greatest Game Ever Made.
The game is good, the content is...errrr...shall we say lacking. Expansions are getting smaller and therefore take less time to complete, for a returning player this is good as they can catch up quicker for a constant subscriber it is to say the least disappointing. I was hoping for some major anniversary events (just 2 missions and 2 quests) and a new Hardcore Heritage zone but sadly nothing has materialized. Still time for something new for Legacy events later in the year. Really miss having 2 expansions a year, need more new zones to die in!
This old lady has a long memory. Just getting impatient having to wait another 5 or 6 months for somewhere new to die.
My opinion in short: yes it has gotten better. Some of my thoughts are: It depends on who you ask and what they are interested in achieving during their playtime. Weather it be a lot of time being able to be invested worth versus seldom having time or something in between. I know some people that love tradeskills, some that hate it and a bunch who don’t care either way. I know those who love achievements and those who hate it and those who only care for ones that benefit character strength. I know those who love to solo, those who love to play with a group or friends or those who love to box. I know those who love progression and those that do it out of pure necessity. I know those who only like to play one class and those who have too many alts to count. The list goes on... Depending on your preferences certain things are quicker to “achieve” than others. Eventually the achievement you had as your number one favorite could be achieved by you and then either the game is “over” for you as there is nothing else that interests you or you find fun in trying to achieve the next fun thing... needless to say some of us hit he “cap” on content or such that we determine is fun and the other stuff we could do simply don’t interest us... Overall I feel like the game as gotten better over the years in my opinion. Would I like to have more content over the 12 months waiting for the next expansion, certainly, but that isn’t likely to happen. This however gives me ample time to work on things on my list alternatively I could play something else during my playtime that I enjoy and simply just play eq when I get to do what I think is most fun of all. For me that is raiding. Although I like brand new raids absolutely the most versus farming the rest of the year but my love for raiding trumps the farming as I don’t raid every day it is just once a week so I get time away to make me hungry to raid with everyone again.
