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A Difference Two Years Make

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 23 / 23
Date: November 21, 2006
Author: Amazon User

When Everquest 2 (EQ2) was released two years ago in conjunction with Blizzard's World of Warcraft (WoW), it was suppose to be the battle of two heavyweight giants in the game industry. However, EQ2 was far from being a complete game and it suffered as WoW has gone on to court well over 5 million subscribers since then.

Flash forward to present day and EQ2 has released it's third expansion - Echoes of Faydwer (EoF) - and it's easy to see how much improvement this game has made over it's two year journey. The game has gone through numerous changes - both from the combat mechanics down to the tradeskill subset - to where EQ2 not only makes a strong run against WoW for best MMORPG on the market but the most casual player friendly game on the market right now.

EoF provides players with a new race - the Fae - and a new staring city, Kelethin, to start on the continent of Faydwer. Race selection is not just limited to the Fae as you can also start as a Dwarf, Gnome, Wood Elf, or High Elf as well. Kelethin is considered to be a haven of good in this game so only classes that fall within the alignment of Qeynos can chosen for play.

The continent returns famous landmarks that many original EQ players will recognize off the bat: Steamfront Mountains, Butcherblock Mountains, Castle Mistmoore, The Butcherblock Chessboard, etc. to name a few. Old enemies return such as the Crushbone orcs, Mayong Mistmoore as well as new challenges such as The Pumpkin Headed Horseman in the Loping Planes.

New raid zones including Emerald Halls, The Freethinkers Hideout and Mistmoore's Inner Sanctum await guilds that desire to raid high end content and offer great rewards for those skilled enough to make it through the zones (more on that in a minute). New armor sets await including set bonuses along with the abilities to adorn current armor sets with bonuses. New tradeskills include tinkering and transmuting to add greater variety to the game and help improve characters over the course of their journeys. Finally, Alternate Achievement (AA) points can now be earned starting at level 10 and are split 50/50 between two trees; the first tree goes to your character's class archetype; the second tree is specific to your character's class.

As if that was not enough, old EQ players who may not have taken to EQ2 due to the lack of no interaction with the pantheon of Norrath can rejoice as the gods have begun to return to Norrath again. Currently, there are nine gods that players can worship. The catch, however, is that the gods are now have alignments and depending on your character's alignment will dictate which gods you have access to worship. The gods are as follows:

Good Alignment - Mithaniel Marr, Tunare, and Quellious
Neutrals - Solusek Ro, Brell Serilis
Evil Alignment - Rallos Zek, Cazic Thule, and Innoruuk

Worship of each god provide players with abilities in the forms of blessings and miracles. Players have to provide offerings to their gods in order to gain the points necessary to use blessings and miracles for their characters. It should also be noted that each god's avatar appears in the game as a contested raid mob. This will prove to be interesting how this plays out in game since it has been suggested that players worshiping a god who kills their god's avatar will be perma-flagged as hated by that god. This is probably done due to how players acted in EQ's Planes of Power (PoP) expansion in order to make the consequences of such decisions long lasting.

With all the good that this expansion has been for EQ2, there are some glaring problems right now. The first problem being that a lot of the Old World content, Desert of Flames (DoF) content, and Kingdom of Sky (KoS) content did not get re-adjusted with the combat update that removed the hard stat caps in favor of a system of diminishing returns. The main problem with the re-adjusted combat system is that raid and heroic mobs in the game seemed to miss the re-alignment. Currently, raid mobs in familiar KoS zones (Labs of Lord Vyemm, Lyceum of Abhorrence, Halls of Seeing, Deathtoll) and content in the Fallen Dynasty adventure pack (Chel'Drak, The Direvine Matron, the city of Nizara)is currently out of balance with the mobs one-shotting players right and left. This problem does not exist with the mobs in Fayder zones it seems save for the more upper level raid/instance zones (Castle Mistmoore, Obelisk of Blight). While this will be beneficial for players starting out, for more players who have been around for a while it makes running the current quest series hard until more tweaking of the combat system is done.

The second complaint that I have with this expansion as a whole - and this is a personal gripe - is the lack of support Freeport characters have in the game. The Fae are a new good-based race while Freeport characters are still limited to the evil-neutral race based classes that have been around since the game started. The new quests in Faydwer also have substantially higher coin and gear rewards versus their Freeport counterparts. In rolling a new Fae Mystic toon recently and taking her to level 10, she sat close to 2g from quest rewards and loot drops versus THREE Freeport toons I also rolled at the same time that have yet to break over that amount from quest rewards and loot drops (but they make more money based on their tradeskills alone).

These two items knock this down from being a completely perfect expansion but minor issues aside, EQ2 has come a LONG WAY from where it was two years ago and deserves a second look at. While WoW may have held the crown for this long, this expansion has shown that the EQ2 development team has truly come to the level - and in many cases even surpassed - Blizzard when it comes to crafting a MMORPG that players of all types can enjoy and get lost in for a few hours.

Easily the most complete EQ2 expansion to date

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 12 / 12
Date: November 23, 2006
Author: Amazon User

I was never very fond of the previous two EQ2 expansions, they added to the game only if you capped out and were getting bored. They were all about cap raises and that is it. This was unfortunate as I always felt that while EQ2 was a decent game, it was far from being great 1-50 and needed more...

That being said, many have complained that EoF does NOT raise the cap, but that is fine with me. The expansion adds some much needed depth to the game as a whole. One of my biggest complaints about EQ2 before EoF was that every zone seemed to look the same, and you seemed to fight the same monsters over and over as well. This isn't true anymore with EoF. Not only are the new zones totally different from anything EQ2 has seen before, they are also totally different from each other (from what I have seen so far). The zones also use many new creatures, as well as creatures that didn't see a lot of play previously in EQ2 such as the bixies. Not only do the zones look completely different, but they are enormous in scope. The starting zone of Greater Faydark seems to be about the size of Antonica, Thundering Steppes, and the 4 Qeynos zones combined. This is due largely to a true three-dimensional landscape which has multiple layers. In Greater Faydark the city of Kelethin is in the tree canopy above the ground. It is all seamless so you can jump out of the city and land on the ground (or die on the ground if you are not a Fae).

The fae themselves are in my opinion the most fun race to play so far in the game. The ability to glide down heights really makes these new zones fun and allows you to go to some places easier than was previously able to be accomplished. While I do somewhat agree that it is unfair that Freeport did not receive a new race, I think this is inevitable with the design of two sides. You could argue that WoW is having one new race for each side, but then again they are just going to be releasing their first expansion in two months, when in the same time EQ2 has had 3. By this time next year I am sure that Freeport will have a new race and starting city to even things out.

The game also isn't without its higher level benefits. They did raise the Guild cap I think to 60 which should give some of the bigger guilds something to do. And there are several new raid zones, higher level than anything previously released. I also think the two new secondary tradeskills were sort of targeted towards the mid- and high-levels in the game as they are extremely costly and difficult to advance.

There are a number of other additions to the game which make it worthwhile. They added cloaks and guild emblems to the game, they added a second earring slot, and adornments which can be attached to items to give them extra bonuses that you want them to have.

I do have a couple minor complaints. While I think the new zones are great and SOE did a fine job making a new area for someone to level from 1-50, there are some pretty large gaps in your ability to level in certain areas, and thus require a trip back to the "Old World" of Qeynos & Freeport. While this normally isn't a huge deal, it does create some difficulty if you are small level because the boat to the old world is through a much higher zone which can be taxing to run through. I think this was done by design to somewhat force players to continue to play in the older zones, but it is still a pain in the neck to risk death (if not to die) just to find someplace to level.

Second, while I think the fae are cool, a problem that is added to the fact that the freeport players didn't get a new race was that you cannot betray from Kelethin to either Freeport OR Qeynos. The developers have stated that they will be adding this later, but this is not very cool if you start in Kelethin and want to move elsewhere... so sadly you won't even see Faes in freeport for awhile.

Also I'd like to note that the Combat Upgrade, while it came at the same time as the expansion, and the expansion was also planned accordingly with the upgrade, the upgrade was not technically part of the expansion as everyone got it regardless of whether they purchased the expansion, so I don't think you can really knock the expansion for problems in the rest of the game.

You should definately buy this

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 8 / 9
Date: December 05, 2006
Author: Amazon User

When you buy this game, you get the original Everquest II, the Desert of Flames expansion and the Echoes of Faydwer expansion all in one package. So if you're new to the game, this is what you want. If you already have the original game and the first expansion, you still have to buy this to get the new expansion. That's my only problem with this. I don't need all the other stuff, I just want to get the new expansion. But anyway, here's my opinion of this product:

I already love EQII, and this just adds to my enjoyment. The new zones are huge and gorgeous and totally unique. The new race, the Fae, is a lot of fun to play. Never worry about falling to your death, and they're really cute. The addition of cloaks and another earring slot is nice, not earthshattering, but nice. The new tradeskills are difficult to master unless you spend a lot of time on them, but some of the resulting items are awesome additions to your equipment. If you're into EQII, this product will definately be enjoyed.

Everquest II in general:
I have had a lot of fun with this game. I've been playing for over a year, and I'm not bored with it yet. I'll go through a period where I'm tired of what I'm doing, so I'll make a new character and spend a few days trying out a new race and class. If it doesn't do it for me I just delete the character and by then I'm jonesing for my main character again anyway. I've made some great friends, people I haven't met in real life or even spoken to on the phone, but you spend hours adventuring with these people and you develope a closeness. You learn who you can count on and who you can't. Guilds are prevalent and a good way to become part of a fun group. There is an actual economy in this game that you can contribute to. You make things that you can sell or trade, you get items from defeated foes that you can sell or trade, you harvest items that are a part of the game's "nature" that you can sell or trade. There is a never-ending supply of quests to keep everyone busy. If you're not a social kind of person, you can still do a lot of soloing. My main character is currently level 60, and I'd say about 2/3 of that is from soloing. Some classes solo better than others, but all can do it. Overall this is a huge, beautiful, intriguing world in which you can immerse yourself, with more variety than you can imagine.

Ex WOW Player

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 13 / 13
Date: December 21, 2006
Author: Amazon User

After two years of playing WOW, I played the "Play the Fae" trial and liked it so much I purchased EQ2 with the expansions. I can say from experience that while it has been true that Blizzard has led the way in popularity, Sony will probably be finding more and more Ex WOW players flocking over in their attempts to find something better. This game is very casual player friendly which WOW is becoming less of a casual friendly game, not in soloability but in end game reward competition. I have found that after two years Blizzard is basically ruining their game making PvP frustrating with alot of imbalence with letting premade ventrillo type groups shift the advantage in their battlegrounds.As a casual player I found that the one thing that is left in end gameplay is the battlegrounds.Now they have finally made that pointless as well. After playing the trial of EoF I found it very fun and relaxing. No stress and dealing with all the issues that WOW seems to be rittled with. I have canceled my WOW account and have gone to a permanent EQ2 player. Another thing I find really cool is that as an ex EQ1 player before WOW I like it when I am playing and I see some Lore landmark or history of something that I remember from the first game, which from an EQ2 perspective was 500 years ago. I guess not knowing how EQ2 was at the beginning and starting now, I find that this game is very fun and casual friendly, the armor loot rewards from just doing normal quests are by far way better then I have experienced in other MMO's.

EQ2 Echoes of Faydwer

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 16 / 16
Date: January 10, 2007
Author: Amazon User

I started playing Everquest when it was just that Everquest. I have 2 online accounts and enjoy the game a lot. I'm 51 and I have fun like I did when I was 21 and played Pong at the Archades. This game is much better than any other I have played. I have played console games from Coleco and Atari to the latest Playstation 2 and Xbox but by far I like PC games the most and this game the best. If you like roleplaying this is the best. You can create up to 6 characters per account and join or like I did create a Guild and do hundreds of Quests (hence the name). I have 6 characters and the highest is a 65 and the lowest is a 54. I have been playing for over a year now and still enjoy it. I have 2 teeanged children and am a woking single dad but still find time to play. My suggestion is it's a winner.
Gary

EQ II - Echoes of Faydwer

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 5 / 5
Date: January 11, 2007
Author: Amazon User

This expansion offers a new world only talked about in EQ legend. It offers new zones and quests for all levels of players as well as a new starting zone for some players. It is a chance for players of EQ2 to travel to another land for more adventure.
The graphics are great and give an ethereal quality to the land of the fae.

wow wannabe

2 Rating: 2, Useful: 1 / 36
Date: January 12, 2007
Author: Amazon User

Just can not compare to World of Warcraft. I stopped playing WOW several months ago because it was just so addictive and requires too much time. I was hoping Everquest would have shorter quests and be less involved. I guess I got what I was looking for. I found Everquest to be extremely boring and the quests are too easy an 8 year old can complete them. Overall the gaming is a copy of WOW, just not as good.

Everbuggy

1 Rating: 1, Useful: 0 / 32
Date: January 14, 2007
Author: Amazon User

I spent a lot of hours downloading the demo version (the "Play the Fae" promo), and I had nothing but problems with it. After spending a lot of time setting up all the keyboard commands to my liking, I turned on the VSync option, which requires you to restart the game. This resulted in a garbage screen, forcing me to reset my computer. Upon restarting the game, the VSync option was now off, and all my keyboard settings were gone. And I have to say the graphics were not impressive considering the fairly poor framerate I seemed to be getting. While I quit WoW over its grotesque character depictions (steroidal males and sex doll females), it certainly had better looking graphics with far smoother framerates and none of the bugginess I encountered with EQII.

On a minor note, I would add that EQII offers too many character customization options, considering that many of them only result in extremely subtle differences in appearance.

In short, I would not try EQII again and will view future offerings with extreme skepticism. It is ridiculous for a game this old to have bugs like this.

Game is much improved

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 9 / 9
Date: January 16, 2007
Author: Amazon User

I started playing EQ2 the day it went live, and while the graphics and feel of the game were outstanding (as well and the UI), the game play itself was mediocre. Many of the same shortcomings that haunted the original EQ were still evident in EQ2's premier...ridiculously long travel times, quests nearly impossible to complete unless you devoted your life to the game, lousy quest rewards, etc. Even so, the game was fun and I played for about a year before suspending my accounts, mostly out of frustration.

With the release of Echoes of Faydwer, I returned to EQ2 to find the game thoroughly revamped, and tremendously improved. I now find myself unable to stop playing the game.

Many of the frustrations existing in the launch of EQ2 are now gone, or at least greatly reduced. Quests seem to be much better. They are faster, the rewards are better, and they are just plain more fun. The addition of griffon towers in large zones (such as Nektulos) has cut travel times substantially.

As for the new race, the Fae are enjoyable to play, though I do have to admit it seems silly that a race which can fly over land cannot fly over water and has to swim. This is an example where the folks at SOE have taken game balancing too far.

I was disappointed to see the branching class structure go away, though the new implementation seems to work well. The upside is that new characters are no longer required to do the citizenship, class, and subclass quests anymore. While these were tedious (lots of running around and talking to NPCs), I feel a better resolution would have been to revamp quests rather than dismiss the class branching.

Overall, I am highly pleased with what the EoF expansion has brought to EQ2. It has revitalized my interest in the game and I would highly recommend to anyone who enjoys MMORPGS.

Much better game now than when released

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 3 / 4
Date: February 05, 2007
Author: Amazon User

This expansion, and all the other changes that have been made over the past year have vastly improved this game. This expansion adds the Fae, which are one of the most fun races to play I have seen in any MMORPG.

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