EverQuest 2 Preview
Take another toke - the biggest addiction in PC gaming is renewed

Lets assess: 420,000 subscribers, three years, three add-ons (with one more on the way), countless patches, more weddings than should be considered safe, 45 servers (including chat and test), hundreds of magazine column inches, thousands of fan sites, one fake suicide, andstill420,000 subscribers paying $9.89/month and now $12.95/month. In the annals of PC gaming lore, when wise scribes assess the greatest impacts on our industry, alongside the legend of Doom will stand EverQuest.

Sure, the Ultima Online creators and fans will be pissed, as they and text-based MUDs were blazing the trail before EQ. And for that, UO should rightly stand alongside Wolfenstein 3D. But the head table is reserved for the power-players, and EverQuest has power.

All this means that the sequel to the biggest smash in the ever-evolving massively multiplayer online RPG (MMORPG) market is going to generate phenomenal interest. And PC Gamer has the story

A Game of Power

Where do we start? Whether youve played EverQuest for 10 minutes or 10,000 hours, or even avoided its siren song, youve got an opinion. For lead designer Bill Trost (who also designed the original EQ), the level of expectation is not lost: "[We made decisions] based on how we felt playing the game. Be it camping, the time commitment, the difficulty for new users, or the massive hits for death, were addressing the design for people who have never played this kind of game before, or even a single-player RPG."

As an EQ veteran whos logged more days than I can admit (for fear my fiancée will kill me since she thought I was "working"), I had so many questions it was tough to know where to start. So in giving you the scoop on this incredible project, how about opening with the fact that EQII is likely to be the greatest-looking, most complete, deepest, and most satisfying MMORPG experience ever. And when we say that, were not ignoring the SOE-developed Star Wars: Galaxies.

Bold claims? Well, after a year of engine development to power the two projects, SOE realized that the games were headed in different directions. The programming team was split and they started from scratch on their own systems. Slated for an October 2003 launch, EQII will require a PIII 733 (or Athlon XP), 512MB of RAM, and a GeForce3 or better video card. Galaxies, by contrast as a mainstream-focused product will have more manageable requirements (and less of the detail and eye-candy that EQ addicts desire).

A Game with a View

So what are the most important changes to the game world of the original EverQuest? For starters, there are now just three continents the original three. The other continents, introduced in EQ expansions over the years, will be explained away in the as-yet-unrevealed fiction that sets the scene on Norrath at an undetermined time in the future.

Story? There is one in EverQuest, its just that no one bothered to take any notice. In EQII, Freeport has finally succumbed to its evil influences, with the Paladins ousted to a new wilderness fortress called Marr. On the west coast, Qeynos has rid itself of its rogue elements, but the rapscallions have formed their own haven of dishonor at a new location.

Though their homeland has apparently been wiped from the face of the planet, the Iksar walk among men, elves, and the rest, and an inaccessible moon means no Vah Shir (though theyre sort of replaced by the Kerra as a playable race). Many other Norrath locations will change, and many more will be familiar to existing players. Befallen is already in progress, as is the Nektulos Forest; Trost estimates that 50 percent of the areas will be completely new, and the other half a re-imagining of EQs familiar zones.

EQII will still have zones, though loading times will be faster and smoother. Some AI-controlled creatures may follow you through zone points, but to balance this aspect, many will also give up the chase after a while, letting you get away.

A Game with Character

The next most important change: the character creation and customization process. At the outset, your decisions are purely aesthetic race, appearance, and sex. No stat points or even classes to choose. With this streamlined process, RPG newbies can play and progress without being overawed by the complexities inherent in customizing an in-game alter-ego. Even the race distinction is described by producer Andy Stiles as being "purely flavor" in the opening exchanges.

Power users can immediately race through the initial quests or begin slaying the indigenous fauna. Those quests share a lot of design philosophy with those in Shadows of Luclin, where even low-level characters feel like theyre getting fair reward for their efforts. One early quest scores you a compass, ending the Sense Heading tedium, but theres still no map. Attaining level six will take about 30 minutes, according to Stiles. Once there, youll decide on the kind of character to play: fighter, priest, mage, rogue, or tradesman.

At level 15 you start specializing: a fighter can choose to become a warrior, crusader, or brawler, for example. Now with a class purpose, youll progress to level 30 and make a final decision along your branch a crusader, for instance, will choose the path of paladin, shadow knight, or ranger. By this time, the theory goes, youll have invested enough time in your character that you wont want to scrap it and start again. And newbies will have been learning about the game sufficiently to make the decisions that suit their favored play styles.

Leveling up will also be faster in EQII than in EQ. With 100 possible levels of experience (compared to 60 in EQ), youll have more breathing room to progress. And Sonys already considering (at the macro-design level) supporting up to 200 levels through future expansions.

A Game of Skill

SOE resisted the urge to adopt a skill-based system, but is introducing three stats that affect items and your characters use of equipment. Knowledge, Technique, and Arts all play a critical role. Knowledge is ascribed to items and helps police who uses these items, and how. And its critical as EQII introduces "transient" items basically, items (weapons, armor, pretty much anything) can and will break. Though this systems certain to be controversial, Sony has good reasons for incorporating it. For starters, a game economy that puts a new emphasis on the highest-quality items created by player trade and craftsmen needs a steady stream of return buyers. Rather than players hoarding old gear, their destroying useless junk will actually generate a "karma" statistic that Trost suggests will have a "small but tangible" effect on your character. Clear the world of junk and receive attack bonuses!

With more involved quests, this system also "enables [the designers] to give better rewards," says Trost. Transient items, mixed with the new Knowledge stat applied to objects, also serve to limit the impact of that most vile, shameless crime twinking. A 50th-level character with a sword requiring 50th-level Knowledge could give that sword to his 10th-level buddy. But its effectiveness will be reduced in inexperienced hands, and it has a significantly increased chance of breaking with every hit.

Similarly, Techniques let you bring out the most in your weapons. Anyone can hack-and-slash, but youll need technical proficiency to pommel and pierce, or to perform other actions that get more value out of your items. Inexplicably, the more basic functions of kicking and bashing come under the banner of Arts. Practice your artskick more ass!

A Game of Life and Death

Lets face it: dying sucks the big one. Corpse retrieval is history in EQII, and not a moment too soon. (Though it remains my greatest excuse ever for getting out of washing the pots/doing laundry/vacuuming: "But honey, I have to retrieve my corpse, and its halfway across the world!") "We definitely want death to still hurt," explains Trost, "because it fosters a respect for the environment."

One option for death thats currently under discussion is an extension of the system introduced in recent EverQuest tweaks. Basically, your corpse may remain for a short while to allow for a resurrection if possible; otherwise, youll reappear at your bind point with all your gear, minus an item or two based on values decreed by your level.

Though therell be an experience penalty, it wont seem like youre playing catch-up. Rather, XP loss due to dying goes into an XP debt. When youre back in the game, youll gain experience and keep progressing from your previous point, but a small portion of gained XP will go toward paying off this debt. Bind points will also be liberally scattered throughout the world, and Trost estimates you should never be five minutes from a handy location. That said, none of the dungeons will have bind points. While Andy Stiles suggests that camping dungeons will be minimized, he concedes that "getting rid of camping prevents us from having cool fixed content [in those dungeons]." Sitting on that cold, stony dungeon floor may be tedious at times, but its also understood to be critical to the socializing experience for groups.

A Game of Details

Some other critical changes involve the banking system. No longer is there a linked national bank of Norrath. Instead, banks will be localized, making the transportation of goods across the world into an event requiring the purchase of a horse, cart, or even a boat (all available at the games initial release). This setup also generates purpose for the trade classes, and jobs for mercenaries or those looking for safety in numbers, such as protecting caravans from NPC attacks.

Aside from letting you own these vehicles, EQII will also introduce player-owned property. Buy a plot of land and build a one-room (upgradeable) building, then invite friends to locate nearby. After a set level, the game will introduce a guard tower complete with a patrolling guard, plus other civic buildings as the community grows. With a set number of big structures available in the world, you can be sure power-players will perform a land rush at EQIIs launch.

Need more excuses to pass on the inanities of the offline world? Supporting the social scene, areas will be set aside for public performance (plays, tournaments, poetry readings, weddings, and so on). Tradespeople can even own limited-seating playhouses, then charge other players to come see a performance. A rating system lets you know whats popular and what isnt, and affects the rates charged for admission. Hell, you can even pay for different levels of wedding ceremonies, starting with the basic chapel (the EQ version of Vegas and yes, there will be a town with a passing nod to the extravagance of Nevadas raison detre). If youre willing to cough up a stack of platinum, you can have a major Norrath celebrity perform for your once-in-a-lifetime event!

A Game of Battles

Of course, for most people, EQII will be about slaying monsters. In this respect, its essentially the same format as EQ, with the addition of a hit-location option that could increase your chance to hit your target, or bypass specific resistances that a piece of armor bestows on a certain area. And the monsters will all be familiar, but funked-up with the latest in stunning texturing and modeling.

Of the creatures we saw, the griffon was amazing, with a swirling, swooping animation that sent it high in the sky before rocketing down on its prey. Even a frog appeared menacing when its flicking tongue whipped out with a mace-like ball on the end, certain to do damage to the careless. And being careless wouldnt be good around the mimic, either. Looking like an inanimate chest, it suddenly (and super-smoothly) transforms into a sharp-toothed abomination thatll no doubt have its fill of adventurers. Even the standard zombies get an overhaul, appearing with randomly swapped-out body parts (an extra intestine here, a missing eyeball there) and with armor applied to specific areas.

The creature animations were particularly impressive. A living statue moved with human-like fluidity as it attacked, but when it was defeated, it reverted to its still, stony state as it fell, hitting the deck and rocking in its frozen death pose.

Backed by impressive particle spell effects, combat is sure to be a spectacular display. Whether youre witnessing a wall of bone rising from the ground, the Whip spell springing out and then coiling back, or the subtle but beautiful particles of the Spirit of the Bear spell engulfing its caster with blue sparks, the impact is stunning. And the games still 18 months from release.

A Game of Decisions

Those 18 months will see innumerable tweaks and changes to the core design, and well bring you all the news on how its taking shape, every step of the way. Right now, the design team is a bit flaky when pressed on how stats will be presented to tweak-crazy power-gamers. The interface is still in its earliest form, and a huge amount of the game world remains to be built and tested.

But SOE is unashamed about learning from the successes and failures of other, similar games. The developers concede that they learned a lot from UO (the importance of trade skills), Asherons Call (binding), Dark Age of Camelot (unmolested monsters), and both Phantasy Star Online and Anarchy Online (constantly spawned content).

Expect all these features and more in EverQuest II. SOE has made life difficult for itself by creating such a monumental success in its first game. Expectations are high, and well have all the moves, the shakes, and the first look at every new area as its crafted in the coming months. This is what its like to create a massively multiplayer game world. What a fascinating journey.