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Sony Online Giving Away Everquest Trilogy Trials
mattwarden writes "With the release of EverQuest 2 slowly approaching, Sony Online has decided to provide a free PC download of EverQuest Trilogy that comes with 30 days of free gameplay. [EverQuest Trilogy is EverQuest Classic, plus two expansion packs, The Ruins of Kunark and The Scars of Velious.] However, you are restricted to one server, which seems to be designated as the freebie server (which somewhat brings up memories of eating at the kids' table). Cautionary note: EverQuest can be highly addictive. Consume in moderate dosages."
Lots of MMORPGs are trying to save their subscription base and get an influx of new people, DAoC did this same thing but I don't think it worked all that well. I really think this should be the release model in general, anyway, ie. make the game free and then charge the monthly cost OR - and this is my personal favorite - make the game cost more and charge no monthly fee.
Still, not going to get me to play Everquest. I'm waiting for WoW, and if it doesn't rock my world, I'm giving up on MMORPGs for a while.
Press a button, get a food pellet.
Now do it several thousand times for another food pellet.
yay. Fun.
How about online games which offer actual fun, and don't operate on principles similar to a gambling addiction?
Sony will have to work hard to make Everquest2 successful. I know they're the kings of MMORPG, but I think that Everquest2 lacks something when compared to World of Warcraft or even City of Heroes. Those two games don't rely on graphics; they have original, imaginative design and art. Take a look at these screenshots. I think I have seem those scenes before.
I've been really addicted to City Of Heroes, and trying to convice other friends to get it is tough. "So... I have to shell out 50 bucks for the game, then pay a monthly fee?"
Now.. if there were a single player aspect, and it was still possible to enjoy the game once you had enough of online play.. then maybe..
It seems as though Sony wanted EverQuest for the Mac to fail. They didn't bother creating a demo version or offering trial accounts, they charged $50 for the software, they restricted users to a special "Mac ghetto", and then after a couple of months they announced they wouldn't be doing any more work to fix bugs or add more content.
It's hard to see what else they could have done to ensure failure short of putting stickers on the box saying "Don't buy this".
GCHQ Quantum Insert installed. If only our tongues were made of glass, how much more careful we would be when we speak
However, you are restricted to one server, which seems to be designated as the freebie server (which somewhat brings up memories of eating at the kids' table)
Imagine if you are a total newbie and log into a non-noob server and see a warrior in shiney armor. You might ask "Where did you get that great stuff," the reply "Grind it out for 1000 more hours and then you'll be able to camp this stuff." You also have issues with low and mid-level zones empty(since alot of people powerlevel past them). This creates a barrier to newbie advancement since there is nobody to group with and EQ is all about group play.
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Maybe it's just me, but my first concern when I'm playing a game isn't whether or not the graphics are amazing. If you're only playing for eye candy, I have a feeling that you'll get bored with just about any game rather quickly. Yes, good graphics help make a good game better, but as long as the gameplay is there, the rest is icing on the cake.
That said, from what I've seen of WoW, it doesn't sport huge numbers of polygons. What it does have is its own grapical style that fits the Warcraft universe quite well. I have no idea how good the gameplay is, and I'm not that keen on MMORPGs in general, but I really dig the style of WoW. The graphics, though slightly dated, still seem to add to the experience.
Why not play a single player game? I'm not being flip here - single player RPGs are a much better experience than MMOs-played-solo: the stories are more coherent, they tend to be better tuned so that you encounter monsters at a pleasingly challenging difficulty level, and they contain puzzles that open new areas to explore.
All of these things are hard for a designer to include in an MMO. When you play one solo you're accepting all the design difficulties that go with MMOs, but eschewing the one thing that they excel at!
As a person that used spend a fair bit of time on EQ a few years ago, I can identify with this. Toward the end, I headed toward the 'RP' servers, and tended to go 'adventuring' more often than heading into combat, often going into zones that I really had no business touching, esp. at a single-figure levels. It has its faults, but I recommend Elder Scrolls III: Morrowind, esp. if you like to explore. The Game of the Year edition for either PC or XBOX isn't too expensive, and there's a wealth of community-created mods for the PC version. No idea how well it goes (if it does) under Linux/Mac/etc. It's hard to recreate that feeling of dread you first have in an MMORPG when you first die to a lowly rat, or when you run for your life from what looks like some terrible beast, hoping the local guards will save you in time. Very open-ended, (though at times, too much so), and you don't have to pay anything if you decide to fish it out again in the future.