Sony Online Entertainment Becomes Daybreak Game Company

The problem is, EQn and Landmark are not a game many of us older EQ/EQ2 players are interested in. These games may be a decade old, but they still have so much potential given the right attention they deserve...something SOE simply did not give them. If Daybreak will just give them the attention they deserve, I'm sure they can/will make a comeback. The fact that they have survived a decade long is proof enough that they are worthy of continuing on with development, as these games have generated enough of a player base to show a true interest in this type of game. Given the resources and the advertisement needed, I believe these games could and would last at least another decade.

As for app type games, I only play one, Treasure Diving, but I refuse to pay any real money towards that game, for several reasons. First off, to play EQ2, it costs me $14.99 per month for unlimited play (paid voluntarily as I could play it free if I so chose). For Treasure Diving, they want 250 gems for a 24 hour supply of oxygen (approx equivalent of $40 USD). So I could play that game for 24 consecutive hours, for $40 as opposed to paying $14.99 for unlimited play on EQ2 for the entire month. That's just insane, and I'd be a fool to pay it. Granted, when I am out and about with my tablet, I couldn't play EQ2, but it is only when I'm out and about, which I wouldn't really have much time to play, and when would I play for 24 consecutive hours anyways?

Another reason I refuse to pay real money towards that game is because there was a time when I had a problem with my tablet, had to restore it to factory specs, and had to re-install Treasure Diving. Instead of putting me back to my last level of 35, it set me back to level 1 and I had to start all over again. Any gems or coin I had previously were completely lost to me. I contacted the company, and they never once responded or got back to me. I am not about to spend $40 for 280 gems, just to lose them all in some situation as I was in previously.

No, app type games are simply not for me. I continue to play Treasure Diving, but only when I'm out and about and have nothing else to do at the time, and I only play it for free, which means my time to play it is limited.

I'll stick with traditional MMORPG's...EQ2 specifically.

Thank you all for the well wishes. I'll be here through Friday to finish up. After that, I'll still be here (you can't get rid of me that easy!), I'll just be back to playing full-time : ) ~Hugs~

What a sad sad week this is for Daybreak. Sooooo very sorry to hear they let you go as well, Afista. You truly will be missed, though glad to hear you'll still be around to play, anyways.

Merriel:

EQNext and Landmark is based on porting to the Playstation platform, that's why it is low end graphics with limited hotbars.

That restriction just went away when SOE became Daybreak.

Now Daybreak must generate the cash needed to create a game that can compete with the graphics and playability of the current crop of MMORPGs being developed. So you may expect a foray into the apps and tablet market to do just that.

Right now Daybreak doesn't need the developers/art staff for a game like Everquest Next. Also, EQ and EQ2 need a complete overhaul to compete with the current crop of MMORPGs. Developing EQ 3 is a more economical option, which very well may be why EQ Next was NOT originally named EQ 3, because Smed NEVER had any intention of it being EQ 3.

The Everquest brand is far to valuable to just be tossed out. Maybe you will see something along the lines of Landmark in the apps and tablet market, similar to Minecraft, but ultimately there is just to much of a market in a AAA studio such as SOE/Daybreak coming up with a AAA title like Everquest 3.

AAA title development should be fewer, and far between, compared to the apps and tablet development, but expect it to still be there.

Everything you said here means absolutely nothing to me. I totally don't understand any of it, but then I don't own a Playstation, an X-box, or any other console type game. EQ2 is the extent of my gaming, and anything beyond that, I haven't got any clue as to what they entail. Although I do own a tablet, my game play on it is also very limited, so again, anything to do with tablet or cell phone type games, goes beyond my understanding as well.

I thank you though, for attempting to explain things to me.

Now that is the kind of announcement that should be made when something like this happens. Otherwise our imaginations fill in the blanks.

No problem Merriel.

I guess what I am saying is that the EQ franchise is NOT dead, Smed still has the ability to develop EQ 3, he just needs the money, as he no longer has the Sony credit line.

EQ Landmark and EQ Next may very well be good enough games to port to the app/tablet market to both generate money AND to expose app and tablet gamers to the EQ brand for a new Everquest 3, which will compete well against any of the crop of new MMORPGs.

The EQ brand name has the advantage over the newer games in name recognition, just like WOW had an advantage based on years of board, miniature, and computer games by Games Workshop. Just as players flocked to TESO for the name, players, like you, and those that play either an EQ app/tablet game, will try out a new EQ 3 title. There is nothing wrong with that, it grows the franchise.

These three items should be on Smed's bucket list:
1) Quickly generate cash for game development.
2) Keep the EQ franchise name out there front and center.
3) Grow the EQ franchise name.

Don't expect the EQ name to be discarded by Daybreak, there is too much value in that name.

I agree with Feldon. Btw, nice chat you hosted at EQwire last evening.

With so many key people let go and what seemed to be a heavy hand in the area of Community Relations, I do hope that they are not trending towards a self-policing platform. I've played several MMO's that use this approach and one that ran this route, but had to switch to a more pro-active GM approach.

Why?? Self-policing sucks. Technical term.

EQ2 has always had a great community, I hope the glue holds.

Kitty

Well then we'll see you around

I for one will not be jumping ship - Norrath is my second home and I am here till they prise my dead paws from the keyboard. No other MMO has ever grabbed me like EQ2 (except maybe the first LPMud I ever played back in 1990 lol), and heaven knows I've tried pretty much all of them over the last 20+ years.

By cancelling my sub (which I happily pay despite being able to play for free, and not having so much time to play these days either), all I do is make EQ2 a tiny weeny bit less profitable and add to any risk that it gets sunsetted. I'm going to keep enjoying the game as usual - determined to get my 6000 quests!

I am hugely saddened by the layoffs, particularly the choice of people - it seems to make no sense. I don't feel positive about the future of my beloved EQ2 at all. However, for my sanity, I am going to (try to) hope that DB did this seemingly mad thing with a good reason and sound plans for the future, that things will be able to (eventually) settle down and then the company grow again. I love the game, I intend to keep playing & keep supporting it until there is nothing left to support. I'm not stopping till they make me.

Viva Norrath!

Thats a really sad day, so many years you are working for the games that we love and now you must go... Thats sad.

I wish you all the best wishes i can wish and i hope everybody gets fine and can look forward into the future!

Contact Mr. Brian Hicks from the DayZ Development to get more information!

https://twitter.com/Hicks_206/status/565600573173792768

Smed already burned 5 years of cash trying to develop EQNext and then trashed all that work and started a 4th time to create what we have now with Landmark/EQN.

ROFL that's funny. Have you even tried to play Landmark? It requires a top-end graphics card and a supercomputer. Yes the character models are intentionally cartoonish, but the environmental graphics put a massive toll on the computer. It will NEVER run on a tablet. Hell it won't run on a 2 year old laptop.

Like selling your EU customers to ProSieben? Did that. Got $7 million for it.

Aristotle, could you perhaps elaborate on that statement and where this info is coming from?

Sharann,

I am not allowed to provide directives from Sony to subsidiaries regarding integration and support of any PlayStation hardware platforms.

As to Feldon's comment regarding Landmark's graphics/CPU requirements, those can always be adjusted downward to quickly port a product, whether to an app, a tablet, or a Play Station hardware platform.

As to Feldon's comment regarding the changes in direction of Landmark/EQ Next, technology changes, as do Sony directives.

If Smed's decision was not in accordance with Sony corporate directives he would have been replaced for the losses entailed in shutting down games and changing game direction. The fact that he wasn't means he had the support of Sony for the decision.

You do realize that SOE was not an independent game development studio operating independently at their own direction?

They still aren't.

They just aren't tied to Sony oversight anymore.

So much for the usual spin 'it will be business as usual'! Now that is out of the way and exposed, it's about time we had some kind of statement of intent from DBG.

Like how about is my hard earned sc going to buy me a day's play with my shiny stuff before the lights go out or can I count on a year?

How about a road map like real companies who are invested in their customer base give out???

Until then, I will remain subscribed because I don't want to add nails to the coffin but my hand is staying firmly in my pocket until they make a statement about the future of the game we are all so invested in.

Commiserations and good luck to those who have been 'moved on' Your effort as always, has been appreciated.

And to think I recently went back to an all access account. No more. Ok Daybreak, it's all krono's for me from now on.

Feldon - I respect you greatly but your cheerleading is a bit unnerving If they are already slashing what should be their soon to be premier game, what does that say about the dwindling ones?

Umm...do you have any understanding of game and graphics engine design?

You can't just adjust the graphics downward to port to a simpler platform. The engine design dictates the hardware requirements and adjusting that requires a complete rewrite of the underlying code. If it was as easy to adjust as you seem to think it is don't you think Sony would have been pushing them to port EQ2 to the Playstation over the last 10 years?

And while it's easier to port products from the PC to the XBox it's still a different platform with a different operating system. Unless your game was written on top of an engine that has the underlying structure to make those ports (such as Unity) that's another massive recoding.

Building a cross platform game requires that you start the process with the goal of targeting those platforms. That decision will force you down certain paths and will dictate the things you can and cannot do along the way.

All that said there are things they could do to pull EQ/EQ2 into the app space. They started doing it once before with the early version of the Launchpad. It had a built in chat app that would allow you to chat with your guild mates (and I believe custom chat channels but I'm not positive) without actually being in the game. People used it to chat from work. I'd love to see something like that brought back and ported to iOS and Android. Charge $0.99 for the app, they wouldn't get rich but I'm sure there'd be a lot of takers.

How about a broker app that would let you check the broker and monitor your trades. Add in some simple sales tracking tools and charge a buck or two and you'd have another small revenue stream. Create a Pro version of the app that allows you to get sales history for an item across severs and charge twice as much, some folks would buy it.

Then there's the one I've often longed for the Tradeskiller App. I have a ton of different ideas for this one. Everything from a simple duplication of the TS UI that allows me to connect with a specific character and if they have the mats available to them (either from the harvest depot or in inventory) allow me to play the TS minigame and craft items while I'm standing in line. Or how about Harvest Crush where you play a match 3 game to get the crafting components needed to drop to the bottom and then you can craft an item.

Those types of things can easily be created for tablets/phones since all they're really doing is reading/writing to the database or connecting to a custom chat server.

There's nothing wrong with the layoffs that I can see at a glance. It's a normal thing for an acquiring company to parse the org chart looking for ways to improve the company and letting go of tenured employees who are no longer associated with great success is one way to do that. They make a lot of money because they've been with the company for awhile but their successes are years past by the time the company is sold.

It's not unusual to look at younger divisions that are not performing well and prune there as well. H1Z1 is a disaster. That several people got cut there was not surprising. Whatever DGC does with H1Z1 they probably want fresh eyes on it before they reinvest. Same thing for EQNext which has been high level vaporware for awhile now.

The one area that I don't really understand the layoffs was in community relations, however DGC may well not want the community as involved as we previously were because that puts checks and blinders on the entire development process. People who post on this site, or any other, are a small but loud minority of the overall customer base and do not represent new potential customers in any way.

If I was to guess right now I'd guess that DGC is going to primarily focus on tablets, phones and possibly consoles moving forward. I'd guess that EQNext is going to be a competitor of Clash of Clans and Game of War not of World of Warcraft.

But that's just a guess.

Yeah, same here. Everquest Online Adventures was the first time I ever experienced Everquest. At first I had no idea what it was all about. But once my level 1 Shadowknight "Evilserpent" on the Hodstock server started venturing out into the sand dunes surrounding old Freeport I was hooked. I remember croc island being one of my very first grind spots. It took so long to get to level 60 but it was one of the most rewarding games I have ever played. So much that when Everquest II came out, I nearly ditched my PS2 altogether for a long time. When Everquest II came out I missed how the old races had their own towns and made the world feel a whole lot bigger, but Everquest II added so much more depth in ever other aspect that it made up for it.

Both games have a lot of sentimental value to me, but not just because of fun I had playing them. But also because when you invest so many years playing a game like Everquest, your life is evolving along side of your characters as well. I can look back at my old characters and remember times in my life like when I bought my first house, jobs I've had, friends I've made, meeting my g/f, my daughter being born. It's like the each character is part of a timeline that coincided with a time in my life. Even now I still build memories in the game because now some aspects of my life merged with Everquest, because not only do I play Everquest, but so does my g/f, my daughter, and even my mom so she can play with her granddaughter from two states away. It's become something that my family enjoys together now building our own adventures in the game. We even have our own guild which is just us four, and we almost have the guild up to level 50 on our own.

If EQ2 sunsets even two years from now, it would really hurt for us to see it go, especially if there is no Everquest 3 to move on to. At least Everquest 2 was there when my EQOA characters were retired and gave them a new world to live in. After seeing what they did with Everquest Next I was already concerned that my Everquest career would end with EQ2 because EQN feels like a huge departure from the current EQ titles. If EQN gets scrapped and was started new with an Everquest 3 that had a huge world and with modern graphics similar to games like Archeage, I would at least have my mind at ease knowing that our characters could live on in EQ3 when EQ2 is gone. But for now I would love to see EQ2 get an engine overhaul so it would make use of the GPU like modern games do and run a lot smoother than it currently does. The graphics impressed me back when I started playing EQ2 on release, and still impress me to this day. I can't help taking screenshots everywhere we go. If it ran smoother I think a lot more people who try it would stick around to see what Everquest 2 has to offer.

I just hope DB sees the potential Everquest 2 has, because honestly I don't think Everquest 2 has ever fully reached its full potential. When it first released it was so hard on computers of that era that a lot of people jumped to World of Warcraft when it came out to compete with EQ2 because WoW was much easier on computers back then which made it more accessible to more players. These days computers are much more powerful and can handle graphics way beyond Everquest 2 graphics, and with PC gaming rising in popularity again, more players have upgraded their rigs to handle most games they can throw at it. Everquest 2 unfortunately doesn't take advantage of the hardware like modern games do, which holds it back a lot. DB needs to put the Devs to work and update Everquest 2 so it can tap into everything modern hardware has to offer and allow it to reach its full potential. Please DB, don't shutter EQ2. Revitalize it, and players like me will stick with it for many years to come. And take your time to make an Everquest 3 continuing the saga from Everquest 2 but with modern graphics. There is still a lot of life in this game. We would be EverThankful.

happy birthday