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EQ2 - thinking of trying it.
Xthos
Member UncommonPosts: 2,740
What is the play like now? I looked it up, and it looks like it has open dungeons, instances and raid instances? I played a couple levels when it first came out, but I didn't like the idea of starting in the Everquest world all over (played EQ for about 8 years total). EQ got to where it seemed too instanced, was hoping that it would fade, but it got too much around I think it was OOW was the expansion name that I stopped playing on.
So do people play the open dungeons a lot, or is it mostly instance grinds? Also, if anyone has experience with EQ still, is EQ or EQ2 more instanced heavy now. I am willing to play either one, and I will play instances, but I don't want to feel like that's all I am playing. I think I did some hive like 50-60 times trying to get some SK a pair of boots and my wife did it about 100...It really soured me on instances for a LONG time.
I never minded grinding, camping, and always liked being able to go and figure out what I want to do, and not be gimping myself if I am not doing a daily checklist. So are their dailies in either EQ/EQ2 now?
I see people recommending VG, which I loved and played on the team pvp, then ffa pvp merged server, and got to the big raid zone (just got up, can't remember the name of it) and did about all, minus maybe 1 boss there, before the server pretty much left for AoC and other stuff, when they announced they were only going to focus on PvE and it became a ghost town. I know they have come out with newer stuff for VG, but I don't think it is at a pace that would keep me playing long, since I was at their 'end game' back then, and I think if I looked correctly they have 1 more area added since then for raids and such. Loved the game, just wish it would of caught on a little better and it wouldn't of been abandoned pretty much for a long time. Just had to get the VG exp in there, to help with a recommendation if it is to play it. I did love the crafting/harvesting and diplomacy options in VG also, it had so much potential.
Like I said, I just woke up, so I am probably rambling, but does anyone think the current EQ/EQ2 would be a good mmo for me? I have been waiting for new games to come out, but they all seem to disappoint and feel shallow. GW2 felt cluttered with quests/hearts, and I didn't like the feel of any of the characters. TSW I actually liked, but I had run out of content areas, had thought of going back to it also, since I know they have patched a good amount since I left. So any advice would be appreciated, even if it is a no.
Comments
to m EQ2 is a pretty good mix of things to do vs freedom to do your own thing. It also has lots of lore and a lot of interestng classes. it's aging though, and the early levels are a chore because the playerbase is all max level. community wise, antonia bayle is a beloved community not only in eq2 but even in the gaming world as a whole.
there are daily checklist type activities, but you can also just chill and do fix it ups in your apartment for a weekend and then invite folks over to see it.
I hope this helps
(on a side note, if open ended is what you seek, then eve online is your game ^^
RIP Ribbitribbitt you are missed, kid.
Currently Playing EVE, ESO
Every gun that is made, every warship launched, every rocket fired signifies, in the final sense, a theft from those who hunger and are not fed, those who are cold and not clothed.
Dwight D Eisenhower
My optimism wears heavy boots and is loud.
Henry Rollins
EQ2 has dailies for Loyalty coins but its low key
you are tasked to complete 2 objectives out of choice of 7 -- once per day
http://www.zam.com/wiki/Daily_Objectives_%28EQ2%29
Vanguard is probably a deeper game
both EQ1/EQ2 are top heavy
but at least EQ2 has optional level scaling making it easy for friends to teamup at all levels
most popular PVE servers for EQ2 are Antonia Bayle and Freeport
EQ2 fan sites
You make me like charity
I will be playing with my wife, she usually plays a support class. My main was a Necro in EQ, and she played a Chanter, we also had the Cleric/Warrior combo, among many others at the end of our play time.
I have never tried EVE, but I am not a huge space genre fan, and I am not sure my wife would want to play it. I also only beta'd WoW, and never played it, but my wife has no interest in it either. We haven't liked really much of the newer stuff. We both liked VG a lot, and had max level crafters and such, but like I said I do not think that Sony has enough resources put into it to make it a longer term game to go back to (if that makes sense, we do not game jump). I played UO and EQ for around 8 years or so each, we usually only play 1 mmo at a time, and will play other games, but not mmos on the side.
I just didn't want to go back to EQ or start EQ2, and all people do is play instances, do dailies, and que for dungeons, like every other mmo anymore. If that is the state of it, that's fine, was just hoping that it wasn't.
I am not a huge stickler for that, as many people feel the same way with TSW, but it never drove me nuts. I am more invested in the systems, crafting, harvesting, exploring, dungeons and such. I like to do a big range, and for crafting/harvesting to be worth doing...Nothing like spending your time to get materials and your crafter up and no one wants anything.
May as well give it a shot then. It's free.
You make me like charity
So how is the play, do people do a good mix of open world and instances, or is it mainly instance?
leveling up -- its a mix of instanced / public dungeons
until you hit post Kunark content
at level 80+ most dungeons are instanced
the EQ2 dungeonfinder is weak - I don't think anyone uses it for under 80 content
altho its supposed to be revamped to be much better in Spring 2014
EQ2 fan sites
No matter how cynical you become, its never enough to keep up - Lily Tomlin
You seem to be well informed, so I've got a few questions..
Being an ex-WoW player (8 years) how would this game do for me?
I likea bit of sandbox, important crafting, player housing kinda stuff you know what I mean? And as far as leveling, I hate empty zones.. Hows the population? Would I get bored of the game within a couple of weeks like most MMORPG's on the market?
leveling in EQ2 is faster than it used to be for 2 reasons
in Aug 2011, SOE did a re-tuning of all gear in game and it made lower level items more powerful
w AOD expansion, EQ2 introduced mercenaries - can only have 1 at a time but they tend to blowup pve content
mercs are not available unless you buy AOD or pay $15.00 for the merc feature
EQ2 has a huge world and you will level beyond all the content
you have options ---
can level lock at any level by making all your exp goto AA (if you are a sub)
for nonsubs, can turn experience off (I don't recommend that)
or can you can artificially lock your level at 5 level increments (starting at lvl 20) using a city chronomancer npc
I usually get bored of mmos after a month but EQ2 kept me interested beyond a year (when I returned for the ftp model).
I sub to EQ2 and it has flaws like any mmo but it offers plenty to do
effective 10/1/2013 DOV is free
Gear restrictions removed for ftp
two helpful links I put together
http://www.mmorpg.com/discussion2.cfm/thread/397576/EQ2-site-links.html
http://www.mmorpg.com/discussion2.cfm/thread/397574/EQ2-85-FaeArasai-flying-Mount-quests-shrink-illusion-earning-titles.html
EQ2 fan sites
forgot to mention, EQ2 is a 10 year old game
but you will see players in lower level zones due to level scaling or existing players rolling alts
-- especially if you try the more popular servers: Antonia Bayle or Freeport
EQ2 fan sites
I hadn't tried Everquest 2 again until recently. Last time I tried it was when it came out and I bought the 10+ CD version of the game...those were the days.
Anyways, imagine my surprise when I turn the game up on high graphical settings on my Quad-Core, 8gb ram, GeForce GTX 550 Ti machine and it runs at less than 10 FPS.
I dunno what the deal is but the game was literally unplayable on my computer for whatever reason, and trust me, I've played many newer games at high settings with no problems(Guild Wars 2, FFXIV, etc)
What made this worse was how big of a download this game is. I just don't get it. The game seems like it'd be pretty fun to play these days, but I personally wouldn't waste my time trying it again. Too long of a download to get 8 FPS on modern hardware.
@Nadia
Thank you for all the helpful information. I have no problem with a bit faster pace of leveling, as long as it's not TOO fast.
Based off of what you've told me and the fact that it's F2P It won't hurt for me to give it a shot.
One thing that really has my hopes high is the fact that you said you get bored of most MMO's within a months time, as do I, but this one kept you coming back for more.
There is definitely a group of people all into the gear grind, dungeon/raid aspect of EQ2.
But thats not all there is to the game. The biggest thingis housing. Excluding UO, EQ2 has *easily* the best housing in any MMORPG. Lots of people love to decorate their houses and guild halls. The housing is instanced though, but what you can do with it is amazing.
And if you want to just play with your wife, there is a TON of stuff you can do. Both instanced and non. EQ2 is a great game to drastically reduce your exp and just see the world and do stuff like heritage quests that take you all over norrath and into it's dungeons.
If you and your wife want to explore the world,by all means play EQ2. If you want full parties every night while leveling then you should stay away. But there isnt much you cant do in EQ2 with 2 players and 2 mercs until higher content. You would be able to do all the dungeons you want to do.
Uh, you can start playing EQ2 within minutes. Itll be slow loading at first, but just let the rest download overnight. EQ2 is one of the few games a new player can expect to play without a multi-hour wait.
And I get more than 10 FPS on a fairly mediocre computer.
Yes, the performance isnt fantastic, but just play with it and do things like turn off shadows and the like and it will run ok on most systems and still look good for a 9 year old game.
You seem to be well informed, so I've got a few questions..
Being an ex-WoW player (8 years) how would this game do for me?
I likea bit of sandbox, important crafting, player housing kinda stuff you know what I mean? And as far as leveling, I hate empty zones.. Hows the population? Would I get bored of the game within a couple of weeks like most MMORPG's on the market?
Ex wow player will find eq2 to be a rough transition. Wow players are used to more fluid and responsive controls that most games including eq2 and rift do not have. SWtor and Neverwinter on the other hand do have the fluidity and responsiveness as well as GW2 I should mention.Thank you for the responses, I tried EQ2 for a very short time, bought me and my wife copies when it came out, I played for a week, and she never loaded hers up, so she hasn't tried it. I didn't get into the instanced housing for the little time I did play, but I was use to UO/SWG open world housing, so it felt like a closet or something to me....I may feel different now?
So if content 80+ is mainly instance focused, that means the new content is basically all instanced? I wish something could come out and atleast keep it 50/50.
I am fine doing a duo, but also getting into a guild and doing group content, having a premade small group with the wife and picking classes that do well together makes it so we can always do something.
I brought it up to her, just have to see if shes willing to give it a try now that we have been removed from the EQ world for a long time now. She wasn't too big on 'starting over' in a EQ world when it came out.
My wife and I tried this game when it first came out and had a blast playing it. Recently we came back and have been doing duo content pretty regularly. I thing to keep in mind they now have mercenaries in the game (though they do cost station points like 1500) so you can technically have 4 people in your "duo" and it has helped to do some of the lower level group content. I've found it very duo friendly so far without the need for the mercs for the most part, the difficulty of the game has certainly been toned down since it was first released.
The housing system is really cool, and if you join back up and had an account since launch you might even get the 7 year veteran reward which is a huge house that's rent free (something I got but my wife didn't for some reason).
We're enjoying our time back with it, and it really got me wishing the EQnext took some of the ideas from Eq2 that were good. If SOE is to be believed though EQnext is NOT a redo it's going to be it's own game and EQ2 and Eqnext will still be around at the same time...we will see.