Lords Of EverQuest RTS Previewed

Thanks to the folks at Gamespot for informing us they have the first in-depth preview of Lords Of EverQuest, the recently announced real-time strategy game for PC seeking to extend the EverQuest franchise to other genres. The game, being developed by San Diego-based Rapid Eye Entertainment, is focused on the single-player experience, promising over 75 hours worth of action, and Gamespot closely compares the game to Blizzard's Warcraft III, even suggesting that "If imitation is indeed the sincerest form of flattery, Lords of EverQuest heaps lavish praise indeed at Blizzard's feet." But they also emphasize some differences, and still, Warcraft III didn't suck, right?

Comments

Re:WCIII - yep, it did

[ddd2k]

Well obviously you can't judge WC3 on its single player. You're right, the single player sucked ass, there wasn't much of a story line, and no character developement.
But its success as a multiplayer game is unprecedented. Intensive multiplayer strategy coupled with the flexibility and availability of battle net gives the game a definite edge.
And of course there is the replay value, much accredited to the POWERFUL campaign editor allowing programmers and non programmers alike to express their innovation. New and unique maps are always being produced and the game keeps rolling, which is exactly how Starcraft lasted so long as well. I don't understand why so many other companies have failed to see this.

Re:75 Hours???

[mabinogi]

See, I look at a game that says 20 hours, and I think, 20 hours?, is that all?, that's $5 an hour, I'm loathe to spend $AU100 on something I could finish in a week...I want a game that will last me a month or more.

Would you trust the Strategy Genre to this company

[EvilBastard]

Strategy games normally require careful balancing otherwise the game is useless. No one side should be seen to be more powerful then the other, and all sides should bring something to the table.

Slapping the name "Everquest" on a Strategy game is a bit like designing a classic text-based adventure game and marketing it to the Quake crowd.

Oh well, it can't flop worse then Everquest Online Adventures for the Playstation 2.

I am interested to see what World of Warcraft comes out like, considering that at one time the #3 guild in Everquest (Legacy of Steel was heavily populated with the World of Warcraft design team. At least Blizzard didn't throw together a quick and dirty MMORPG to try to make cash, they spent a long time and a lot of money to make a graphically impressive MMORPG to try to make cash.