Originally posted by Celestian

 

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Originally posted by mitic
if you are an oldschool eq player dont come back

eq is full of instances and leveling is faster than in wow

soe ruined this game, move on

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EQ evolved, apparently you didn't.

evolved in a dieing cash cow, milked once a year with a new expansion to please the current subscribers with raidcontent.

4/5 of oldworld zones are deserted.....

yes, eq evolved.

9/10 graphics...lol. 

 I guess beauty is in the eye of the beholder. 

 

 

EQ is one of the most wacky games Ive ever played.  There is just something about it that compels me to reactivate my account once a year for a month or two each time.  I never stick around longer than a few weeks and have never exceeded level 22 with any toon.  I have over the years purchased EQ at least 4 different times (different collections) and have just about every expansion.  I started a couple months after launch ... Go POVAR hehe.

Every time I go back, it is inevietably as a low level toon, I cant say as Ive ever had a problem grouping when I wanted too.  The game itself has gone through a wide range of changes over the years and mudflation second to none, but, that is the nature of the beast.

If  you have never played an MMO before I really cant recommend EQ when there are modern options available that are so much less painful to play. 

EQ is huge, and chances are, a very great chance that is, is that a new player will never, ever, ever see 90% of the content available.  On the other hand if your looking for something really meaty to sink your teeth into, and a vast world to explore, EQ is definately worth the paltry cost of admission.  Problem is that very few people (relativly speaking) have the personality type required to stick with EQ for 70+ levels of play.  Or even 40, my best friend in real life has had an account since launch, it has been active since then, and his highest level toon is 45, now thats casual and perhaps one of the reasons that EQ will be around for years and years to come.

-Gooney

I really love MMORPG.COM for its forum and news but its reviews is another thing.

The rating of the graphics is just not what is should be.

Being a reviewer myself i am really sad to see someone rate a game like this.

You have to rate the game in context to other games.

And taking the graphics rating forexample - How would you rate games like Everquest 2, EVE Online, and others when you've almost reached the top with a low-poly game?


Maybe you guys should focus more on news and articles and just stop reviewing games.

Originally posted by Crueltylizer
I really love MMORPG.COM for its forum and news but its reviews is another thing.

The rating of the graphics is just not what is should be.

Being a reviewer myself i am really sad to see someone rate a game like this.

You have to rate the game in context to other games.

And taking the graphics rating forexample - How would you rate games like Everquest 2, EVE Online, and others when you've almost reached the top with a low-poly game?


Maybe you guys should focus more on news and articles and just stop reviewing games.

You'd need to decide upfront whether a rating for "Graphics" was going to be based on the technical achievement involved or the aesthetic effect achieved, for a start. I personally prefer the graphics EQ had when I first played in 1999. I prefer the blocky, low-poly models and the low-res textures precisely because they provide just enough of a framework for my imagination to fill in the details. I would, personally, rate the current EQ graphics around a 6, but the original graphics an 8.

Overall, I thought this re-review was fair, accurate, coherent and useful. It does, yet again, bring up the myth that EQ is a difficult or unrewarding game to solo in. When I was last playing regularly, when the level-cap was 70, virtually every class had been soloed to the cap and I am sure that hasn't changed. For the first two years I played, 1999 - 2001, I soloed about 80% of the time and in all the MMOs I have played since I have never found a more enjoyable setting or ruleset for just pottering around at my own pace. I wouldn;t disagree, however, that the game is more exciting with a few friends, but there is a metric ton of things to do on your own when no-one else you know is around, and levelling up your character is very much possible .

Originally posted by Gameloading

Originally posted by Stradden

Originally posted by terrorantula

EQ which is years old and looks like crap graphics gets a 8 but World of Warcraft which looks 100 times better visually and artistically gets a 5 :S mmorpg.com reviews make no sense tbh.

Said it before and i'll say it again mmorpg.com staff are biased towards their own feelings on games and seem to be all like "oh im such a hardcore mmorpg player, so i like buggy horrible games" rofl...

Actually, since you bring it up. Reviews are the author's opinion of a game. That's what a review is. The writer of the review is tasked with playing the game, giving their impressions of it, and relaying that to our readers.

I can assure you that there is no "bias" at work here, as the authors are all individuals with their own opinions.

As to WoW... The author of the review for the expansion, Burning Crusade gave the graphics a 5. This choice was made to reflect the fact that he felt that, with an expansion that took as long as did BC to come out, there should have been a graphics upgrade. A 5 was awarded because he felt that very little work was done in that respect on the EXPANSION.

Conversely, the actual REVIEW of WoW gave the game's graphics a 10, while a review of the end game gave it an 8. All three reviews were written by different reviewers.

I say this because while you are free to express your opinions here, positive or negative, making unfounded accusations of  "bias" is unfair and I felt that people had a right to know the WoW rating history. In the future, before making serious accusations like this, I would suggest that you review the whole situation.

There are plenty of MMORPG's that didn't had graphical upgrades in expansions. In fact, it is actually rediculous to expect a graphic upgrade in an EXPANSION PACK. A graphic upgrade means higher system requirements, that means that people who played at the absolute minimum settings are getting screwed over if a graphic upgrade is in place, which would be weird especialy in WoW which prides itself in being an mmorpg with low system require,ments. The burning crusade is an expansion pack, not a new game. All other reviews gave WoW's graphics a good score, mmorpg.com is one of the few (if not the only one) who gave the graphics such a low score. Now who is wrong here, all those dozens of reviewers, or mmorpg.com? I think its pretty obvious.

BC graphics are blocky and low poly. After the hundreds of millions of dollars in profit and 2 years to work on it, BC should have had upgraded graphics and I totally agree with the review.

BC is NOT just another expansion for just another game. People waited 2 years for it and WoW is the biggest game on the planet. Should we not expect a bit more?

Originally posted by anarchyart

Originally posted by Gameloading

Originally posted by Stradden

Originally posted by terrorantula

EQ which is years old and looks like crap graphics gets a 8 but World of Warcraft which looks 100 times better visually and artistically gets a 5 :S mmorpg.com reviews make no sense tbh.

Said it before and i'll say it again mmorpg.com staff are biased towards their own feelings on games and seem to be all like "oh im such a hardcore mmorpg player, so i like buggy horrible games" rofl...

Actually, since you bring it up. Reviews are the author's opinion of a game. That's what a review is. The writer of the review is tasked with playing the game, giving their impressions of it, and relaying that to our readers.

I can assure you that there is no "bias" at work here, as the authors are all individuals with their own opinions.

As to WoW... The author of the review for the expansion, Burning Crusade gave the graphics a 5. This choice was made to reflect the fact that he felt that, with an expansion that took as long as did BC to come out, there should have been a graphics upgrade. A 5 was awarded because he felt that very little work was done in that respect on the EXPANSION.

Conversely, the actual REVIEW of WoW gave the game's graphics a 10, while a review of the end game gave it an 8. All three reviews were written by different reviewers.

I say this because while you are free to express your opinions here, positive or negative, making unfounded accusations of  "bias" is unfair and I felt that people had a right to know the WoW rating history. In the future, before making serious accusations like this, I would suggest that you review the whole situation.

There are plenty of MMORPG's that didn't had graphical upgrades in expansions. In fact, it is actually rediculous to expect a graphic upgrade in an EXPANSION PACK. A graphic upgrade means higher system requirements, that means that people who played at the absolute minimum settings are getting screwed over if a graphic upgrade is in place, which would be weird especialy in WoW which prides itself in being an mmorpg with low system require,ments. The burning crusade is an expansion pack, not a new game. All other reviews gave WoW's graphics a good score, mmorpg.com is one of the few (if not the only one) who gave the graphics such a low score. Now who is wrong here, all those dozens of reviewers, or mmorpg.com? I think its pretty obvious.

BC graphics are blocky and low poly. After the hundreds of millions of dollars in profit and 2 years to work on it, BC should have had upgraded graphics and I totally agree with the review.

BC is NOT just another expansion for just another game. People waited 2 years for it and WoW is the biggest game on the planet. Should we not expect a bit more?

BC graphics are blocky and low poly. After the hundreds of millions of dollars in profit and 2 years to work on it, BC should have had upgraded graphics and I totally agree with the review.

BC is NOT just another expansion for just another game. People waited 2 years for it and WoW is the biggest game on the planet. Should we not expect a bit more?

 

That comment basically express your complete ignorance about how 3d, graphic and system develompent works.  They can`t not ugrade graphics just like that.. they would have to re-map the whole game... and maybe get a new graph engine, change all the develpment tools risking some compatibility issues... i mean.

I have always have respect for blizzard as they focuse in art quality rather than high tech blink..  Outlands graphs arent top notch but the whole Outland`s  concep and art design are top of the line,making it well ... fun, at least for me an some other millions.

As a graduated architect looking forward for a digital arts master, who also works doing 3d rendering and modeling, One thing i can tell you: creativity, comunication and marketing sells more than ... well meaningless pretty high thech graphics.

Some Major EQ hating goin on here. Eq is far from Dying it is still going and currently supports over 200 raiding (at least half of those are family guilds) plus guilds spread out among 26 servers. Pre 70 level populations vary from server to server  but one can usually run into a crew to level up with as you advance in level.. you can pretty much solo to 70 if you choose too those i wouldnt recommend doing so all the time . Eq has been undergoing a facelift and changes for quite some time .. They currently  have four expansion under the new graphics engine and the contrast between the graphics on these last five expansiona re quite drastic when compared to the first seven. Sveeral major cities and zones have been steadily revamped  with major player events taking place from time to time such as  a live war that progressed through multiple contents and zones with players battling armies of both sides.

The TSS expansion  launched included content for all levels and updated the game for lower levels wanting to avoid avoid old world . Eq just launched its anniversary edition last week (which sadly wasnt reported on this site even though EQ is still by far the largest  MMORPG  available) which includes all 13 expansion to date . They have also reduced the Expansion cycle from twice a year to once a year so not only  do you get all the content for 20 bucks the expansion rate will be slow enough to keep up with and wont  abuse the wallet.

Eq has hot zones for leveling as well as an expansive task system with single player as well as group progression for any level.
One can easily get to the post 70 playing 4-8 hours a week . EQ is not for everyone though but the reasons for not trying are evaporating.
The graphic may not be the slickest most detauled in the indusry but they are fresh and current . it is the perfect game for those who get bored with games like WOW  and are seeking a more complex mature game.

BTW the speaking of graphic the player models  starting with the introduction of the Drakkin and the current remodeling of the human model will soon have a fresh new look. this game has not been collecting dust and continues  to push the envelope in game design

Everyone bashing the reviewer needs to stop.

You all must admit that WoW was not such an Original game, it is fun bu far from original. While EQ was very original and has more content then WoW. EQ has ok graphics if you running a nice rig and wow has nice graphics but neither is impressive at this moment. If it was based off of graphics then EQ2 would certainly be above so many others at this point in time. Tabula would be a perfect 10 considering its graphics.


Coming from a person who is not biased, I would have to say I rank EQ above WoW on th grounds of more content. End game EQ has much more to do because it has been out so long, has more in low level mid level all levels.

Also you should go turn the graphics up all the way on eq, its not as bad as you think.


I say the review is right just because if I had to chose to be put on an island with only 1 of these games it would be EQ as i would obviously not get bored of as fast.


This is not biased either, it is simply the fact that EQ is very solid, has tons of early, mid, and late game content, ok graphics, pretty good amount of players, good sound, small loading times, nice story, nice customer support, low down time, no lag, very strong community that is helpful and friendly.

Now list of the things that wow has above EQ, i will gladly say what EQ has above it and we will see which weighs out.

Now do you understand the perspective that its not all about graphics it might be about the whole experience and the big picture?

Originally posted by Mmoseaotter
Everyone bashing the reviewer needs to stop.

You all must admit that WoW was not such an Original game, it is fun bu far from original. While EQ was very original and has more content then WoW. EQ has ok graphics if you running a nice rig and wow has nice graphics but neither is impressive at this moment. If it was based off of graphics then EQ2 would certainly be above so many others at this point in time. Tabula would be a perfect 10 considering its graphics.


Coming from a person who is not biased, I would have to say I rank EQ above WoW on th grounds of more content. End game EQ has much more to do because it has been out so long, has more in low level mid level all levels.

Also you should go turn the graphics up all the way on eq, its not as bad as you think.


I say the review is right just because if I had to chose to be put on an island with only 1 of these games it would be EQ as i would obviously not get bored of as fast.


This is not biased either, it is simply the fact that EQ is very solid, has tons of early, mid, and late game content, ok graphics, pretty good amount of players, good sound, small loading times, nice story, nice customer support, low down time, no lag, very strong community that is helpful and friendly.

Now list of the things that wow has above EQ, i will gladly say what EQ has above it and we will see which weighs out.

Now do you understand the perspective that its not all about graphics it might be about the whole experience and the big picture?

OH COME ON!!

Everquest's populations couldn't drop any lower, even pok is empty.

Strong community? Are you kidding? There's none left.

Botters yeah, enough of those.

 

9/10 graphics made me LOL @ this review.

As a former EQ player who created their character on opening day (March 19, 1999), I can honestly say that I was really interested in reading this re-review article. I have long since left EQ behind me, shortly after the expansion Dungeons of Norath released - Having leveled to 65 and fought all the way up to the Plane of Earth (Ring event - bugged at the time).

I think the review covered about as much as a single 3 page review possibly could for a game that is just so huge and had such a massive impact to the MMO industry. While a review's scores have to always be taken with a grain of salt (eye of the beholder, and all of that), they give you a sense of what the reviewer was looking at to make their scoring.

I've also appreciated reading some of the comments here on the thread, as they have given me some insight into the current state of the game as well - From an outsider's perspective who is very familiar with the game, however, is no longer an active player of it.

I would just like to ask everyone to keep the attacks down and try to make your point without having to feel the need to bash someone else's opinion in the process. We all have something to say and each person's opinion is important to hear - Don't ruin yours by bashing someone else's.

Thanks for the comments in the thread, they've been somewhat helpful for a former EQ player taking a look back at this game.

Not trying to pick a fight here, but I wanted to make a point from an observation about some of the statements others made.  I was reading some of these and realized, that this review of Everquest, included EVERY expansion to the game, including the newest one with the drakin race, so it included all the upgrades to the game.  If the game was reviewed, sans the expansions would it have faired as well?  As to the fellow who was complaining about bias, and the staff member who rebutted the comments, if the wow review and burning crusade expansion were lumped together, would it have done so poorly on the point of graphics?  Anyway, I do love Everquest, and WoW as well and for the money, I think they are both GEMS  :)

I'm curious...I'm generally a SOE hater, status-post SWG NGE , but my oldest friend in the world plays EQ and has for years.  Also, it's one of the few (read: 2) MMOs that straddle the fence separating PC & Mac--meaning I and my brother could actually play together!  The item I'm curious about was the teensy little "throw away" item in the review regarding the "Gates of Discord expansion fiasco".  Can anyone tell me what that was all about?  Feel free to PM me.  Thanks!

Gates was tune too high. it really exposed how much certain classes were within the game.. overall GoD was a positive expansion for eq as class balancing began in earnest and although maybe some were disatisfied with how long changes took the did come and now we have more efficient spells  ooc regen and a wider variety of potions available in the game.. nomost importanlty Knights were finally tuned  to tank

BTW people only goto pok for buffs and when they get those buffs they are not gonna sit around and wait for them to  fade when they can go to their guild lobbies  and keep their buffs fresh. Eq isnt reliant on pok to use the books for travel anymore either.. guild halls hae pportal stones you can pretty much go anywhere  and close to the action than the books.

The annoiversary Edition contains all 13 expansion so it was appropiate to review  tthe summation of  all 13 expansion.  it sounds as if the reviewer  didnt spend much time   in the the older graphic zones because there isnt much need to except for nostalgia and to pickk up a few odds and ends.  EQ desptes it medium quality graphics still  contain some of the best back gronds of any mmorpg out there.

Eq is in good position for a resurgence  the game has evolved with the yearrs and is still rnning strong the  quality of the game continues to rise and the devs continue doing thing with the code  that consistently exceeds alot of the limitations the initial game design limitiations

There are problems with Eq such as a few bugged raid encounters here there and poor itemization of recent expansions that has been revamped and conntinued to improve but overall the game is  in good shape and the Dev team  dont mind correcting their mistakes even if it takes  some time.

Everquests evolution

races 12 -> 16
classes 14 ->16
zones 65 -> 425

...

One news is that now Everquest is moving to a 1 expansion a year mode. With november being the month of choice for releasing the yearly expansion now. In the mean time it has been commented there may be free content released now and then in between, although one will have to wait and see about this.

As to the questing, it's been somewhat more easier to find your path. But it is undeniable that without online resources like Allakhazam it still would be very hard to find your way through quests. But to add to that i believe this is common to all the mmorpg's out there. As example i'd point to the wow version of allakhazam that also guides people through quests and such.

As to sound, i cannot comment much, as i don't really use it. Recently i discovered sound triggers though, which are a real cool addition. where a wav can be played if something occurs. Like a buff that wears off someone. And of which the message can be lost in battlespam.

To the combat system i'd like to add. It may seem simple, the hitting of the A button (or Q if you have an azerty keyboard and didn't set up EQ to that mode). Yet it is not. Continual position of mobs is for example essential, especially as in the higher zones of the newest expansions trash mobs will enrage, in other words at a point, usually around 10 pct life, they will counter all incomming melee attacks from the front. Which can be devastating knowing how hard these buggers hit at that point.

The comments above were some additions to the review.

Now i would like to add a few comments of my own, as well as possible replies to comments of others. The Q button reply was already included above.

Everquest is by no means perfect. But then no game is, and anyone who portrays their game as being perfect only really fools themselves.

Graphical comments were added by some, and it's a comment that will come up in 5 years still. Because those people usually refer to the zones from the first expansions. Which do not get changed with following expansions. And which indeed present graphics from 2001 and before. But then if they were to take a look at the newer zones, then maybe then they would understand what advancements there have been in everquest on the graphical engine, and where graphics are really at. Graphics can change from zone to zone, depending if you go between the kunark expansion or The Buried Sea. But then the amount in years between both is vast. As no other mmorpg covers that large a time scale. But then that is all right. One wouldn't want to buy a game and suddenly find out 2 years later you cannot play it anymore because the graphics were changed, because of an expansion you chose not to buy yourself.
The one graphical pain point may be the character models of the players. Which seem to be due a revamp. And which has been sheduled for a while. At posts from developers this is an ungoing project which will probably be finished somewhere in the comming year.

....

Now to the comment that EQ can not look better then The Burning Crusade. I personally cannot comment about that, as i do not play WoW. But it would be nice to know what experience is used for this statement. Did you compare it to TSS or TBS from eq ? or did you compare it to an older experience ? Such statements cannot be accurate or founded, unless one has experienced the most recent in both games.

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To the comment about instances, it is my understanding those exist in WoW to. As such they are no rarity. The fact it's ignored that they add an extra depth to the game, and offer more tools. And can enhance player pleasure is also vastly ignored by this comment. To just state that instances are bad, is kind of once more an unfounded statement.
As to the leveling being faster then in wow. May i disgress. With the level reaching level 75 now, and every class having somewhere between 1300 and 1700 aa's, which are alternate experience methods to tailor your character. There is a lot of experience to be filled. A year of non stop gaming wouldn't fill it for most. Altho there is a push for an increase on the number of AA's released per expansion, and there are players at the limit. To reach that limit most players had to invest many years.
The comment of SoE ruined this game, ignores clearly the fact all the energy and work thats been put in it. It's easier to concentrate on the few negative points one sees, or has experienced in the past. And ignore the fixes and work done since.

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A reply to Drea-Mer
As i understand most games fall in the top heavy category.
It's true that as far as newbee zones go. One has to almost evolve with expansion by expansion. Because players move to try out the newest. And if you do not follow you will end alone in many ways. But this is with all games, especially once they have this number of expansions.
It would be more helpfull, maybe if SoE would invest more time in advertising. To bring in more new blood. But for now that is not the way.
As a reply to the constant botting. It may peeve you. But yes botting happens, and personally there is nothing bad about it. As long as no iligit software is used to do it. Who is to forbid someone to play, 2, 3 characters at the same time. Especially if it gives them more options at progressing. It often takes time to find a group. In the long run if you can make this go faster. Then all the power to that player. It's like the players complaining they have a hard time finding groups. But when it's asked if they ever tried to form their own groups. They start giving you the blank stare. In Everquest you have to give some effort at all levels. For things will not be given to you for free.
As to warping and use of macroquest. It is hard to get a clear view on the problem. But action is being taken against it. Altho i bet it's not something simple to do. Recently a number of MQ users have ended banned, at least so the rumor mill says. The fact is that SoE doesn't share this kind of info with the playerbase. As such you cannot know of what action is really taken. I have to add though that customer support as far as i can see improved. Although it goes mainly through the soe website now. And is only pushed in game once a problem is checked.

As to the dieing item, which i seemingly missed in the review. Dieing happens. But for a fee one can now summon corpses from anywhere in the world to the guildlobby, which is right next to pok. And from there it's really only a matter of time before one can find a rez.

...

A general note,
Everquest has issues that is for sure, it is not a game for everyone.
But to a good note is that the work never ends. That there is contact with developers, and at many levels an exchange of information. Everyone is rarely happy, and at times some fixes take 'time', and some fixes are really not liked. But the work goes on, and in a game like everquest it is never done.

...

To the comment that old world zones are deserted,
One can only point to the number of zones Everquest now covers, compared to launch. Seeing as the number of players per server are pretty stable. It is unrealistic to expect 6 year old zones to gather crowds while the action really moved to way more recent expansions.

...

To Drea-Mer's post about pok.

You state pok is empty, yet it is not. At any time fifty people are in it. Do you mean there are less then years ago. Well yes. As now the action for the main hub of the game spreads over the PoK, the guildlobby, and the instanced guildhalls. As such it is normal that PoK would have less players in it. But to just state it is empty, is spreading false facts.

...

Now as i finally got at the end of the posts i can maybe add more of my own feelings.

The newest expansion added some very intresting features. Which are helpfull tools in their own ways.

One helps grouping, with the creation of fellowships, which are like mini guilds of maximally 9 people. And where if 3 members are in the same place they can make a free of charge port in spot (for as far as the zone isn't flagged against this, which is the fact in a minority of zones). This is really handy to get a group to a camp. Now there are some which may feel that this only enhances the clannish nature of groups. But then if those would think about the potential of this system. If a member of a group were to leave, and the other 5 people are in the same fellowship, with one being a gater and bound in pok. Then it would be very easy to recruit a new person for the group, which doesnt even have to be in the fellowship as long as they have TBS. invite them into the fellowship in PoK and then both gate right to the group's camp.
There is a related feature on the guildlevel, which is called the guildbanner. Where much like the fellowship. If 12 guildies are together a banner can be placed down by an officer. Which can be used as a port in spot from the guildhall, for any guildmembers who have TBS. Add to that that the guildbanner can be moved around with the raid. This will show a new strong tool for many players out there.
Add to that, that these can also provide buffs. In the style of 1 thousand extra hitpoints to all members, or extra damage shield, mana regen and many other buffs. It will show that these can be a wonderfull tool indeed.

Another very positive move, is the fact that now one can buy the complete bundle, up to the last expansion. For a mere 20 dollar, for now in shops only, but very soon in online download version to.

Everquest has been, and still is a very heavy progession based game though. This means that if a player is to plan it's progression in difficulty, one will find it way easier to infact grow stronger.

The weakest point of Everquest nowadays is the lack of advertisement. For an influx of new players one would have to be out there. And on that front there is still some work to be done.

Has the newer EQ dabbled with any of the appeals of the older game or has it just dropped that and just continued in its own direction?

IMO, no review about EQ can be fair.  There should be 2 reviews for it.

 

1 Review should be modern, and in which case, EQ doesn't score a 8.  When this score is too low, just get rid of this review as it will serve it purpose no more, so when it comes to the point it isn't appealing to new players, just remove this review.

 

1 Review should take into account the age of EQ, what was existing when it was release and so on...and EQ deserves at least 9.5 if not a pure 10.  This review should also consider the impact it has on the market, all the MMOs they influence...be it DAoC by it systematically opposing most EQ-designs decision or WoW been a refined latest version.

 

Most MMOs are derived and inspired from EQ, not all movies, not even most, are derived or influenced by Charlie Chaplin which get a perfect score.

 

Ms Koh did a fair review, trying to mix everything in it...but by doing so, she definitely offusk most peoples who actually care.  Since it is obvious that as a new game and the current market, EQ doesn't deserve a 8...but it is also obvious that taking it starting point in time, the influence it has on most/all MMOs, EQ deserve at least 9.5 if not a pure 10.  Prolly doesn't deserve a 10 however, since they made critical mistakes (raiding is an example) which ruins what could have been.  See having an incredibly high score doesn't mean it is perfect, and very few will actually argue about it or try to denigrate it, cause it is obvious the oldie factor is taken into account.

Why is everyone lolin at the graphic score? The game came out in 1999, so he Obviously based it on that.

Everquest is one of the most challenging games I've ever played. I've been playing back since the very first beta prior to it's release. I've played WoW, I've played other MMORPG games, but it's always Everquest I go back to.

The graphics of the game seems to be being compared to WoW a whole lot, in my opinion, I prefer the graphics of EQ. WoW has cartoonish graphics that just don't appeal to me whereas SOE devs are striving to make their characters on EQ more realistic. The latest expansions TSS and TBS have huge upgrades to the graphics as compared to the old world ones. To be honest, I choose to level up many of my alts in old world zones purely for the feeling of nostalgia it brings. Aye, I know not many people do anymore.

Being a new player to the game isn't quite as daunting as one would believe. You have easy leveling to level 10 in the tutorial and recieve the basic gear needed to clothe the naked body of a newly created character.  After tutorial there are more armor quests in PoK for the newbie adventurer (last i checked Drakkins couldn't do them.. not sure if it changed yet) or you can go to Crescent Reach one of the new TSS zones for a alot more quests that will help get you gear and experience. Also included now are "hot zones" zones in which gear/augs can drop that hadn't dropped in the zone prior to the zone becoming a hot zone and a better experience rate. Most of these hot zones are in the older zones rather than the new ones. Hot zones start at level 20 and, going up in intervals of 5, end at 65. Finding players in the hot zones isn't as hard as you would think either. I know I can almost always find a group when I wander into one as a low levelled player. If I can't find a group, I work on something else.. tradeskills maybe or go to Thurgadin and grab a MM with people already there. MMs are great as players of all levels can group together and get experience. Another thing that is good, at least on my play server, is there are tons of family type guilds which will help the new player with questions or explanations of how things work. I know of a few guilds who even have an "alts" night, a night where they play their alts together or create new toons and work on leveling them. A great oppurtunity for new players to get groups with experienced players. Everquest has so much content that even a new player will be able to find things to do to while away the time. To say that getting to level 70 or even 75 is impossible for a new player is a lie. It may be difficult to do, but all the hard work in the end is rewarding.  There may be a lot more higher level players than lower leveled ones, but it really isn't impossible. In fact I've seen people get to 75 in less than a month without using Macroquest and without boxing more than one toon. (Ok, so maybe those players have too much time on their hands but you get the point!)

As for customer service, SOE has really picked up the pace on that. What used to sometimes take days or weeks to get a response too has lately taken up to 24 hours. Yes, sometimes there are problems that take longer to fix and it doesn't seem as personal as it used to due to it all taking place on their website, but overall I'd rather get the help I need faster than have more "personal" contact with a GM. Guides are another story. There was a time when Guides would help handle Customer Service. The days of that are long gone and now they handle small issues like bugs where players get stuck under the world or resetting stuck NPCs and their job is mainly to roleplay and put on quests for the players. Where are these Quests I speak of? They're around, but you have to be in the right place at the right time to spot them or participate in them.

The raiding content of the game is a challenge. It doesn't lower the value of the game. What else would the high level players who've been playing for years end up doing if they couldn't progress any farther? I'm an odd one and I have 2 main characters I play on there, as well as a plethora of alts. One is in a raiding guild, the other is unguilded. I love raiding, but I also like to stick to group content at times and will play the unguilded toon. I even solo my unguilded one and she's a rogue! I have a best friend who plays and he's been playing as long as I have, and his main is a 65 paladin and he has soloed almost every bit of experience he has earned. Soloing may not be easy but is indeed possible for any class.

Another comment was about the epics... do you want to know how my rogue got her 1.5 recently? By using /ooc in PoK and asking for help in General chat and even sending tells to people who were LFG. People I didn't even know came to help me with it! It gave them something to do, so they came and helped. The same goes for groups, I leave LFG up for a while and meander off and do something else, and if I get no response within a given amount of time, I pick a zone I want to go to and using the same methods I used for getting my epic i put together a group myself and off we go.  People are always complaining when they can't find a group. But how do you think those groups that you want in to even get started? Only one person is needed to get a group together. Instead of complaining, do something about it!

There are always going to be players who use 3rd party software such as Macroquest on any MMOG. And there will always be people who prefer to box rather than try to find others for a group. SOE has been really working on stopping the players who use it. In fact, I know a few people on my play server who have been suspended, banned, had their characters rolled back, etc. as "punishment" for using those programs and being reported by other players or caught by GMs/Guides.

The population of EQ has dwindled some since it's release, but it isn't as bad as you'd think. With the amount of zones there are and the amount of content, the population has just been spead out a whole lot more than it had previously been. It would be nice to see new people coming into the game in my opinion. I would love to see some good advertising and publicity for Everquest out there. But really? With all the bad that is said and still being said, it would still be hard to get new players interested. But with the two latest expansions TSS and TBS and future expansions to come I think it is possible to draw people into the game again.

Many of the comments on here seem geared towards the negative rather than the positive aspects of the game. A lot of you see how EQ has evolved as a negative thing. Personally, I like how it has evolved as a whole. The world of Norrath is huge and there are so many different things to do or see. Those of you who lean towards the negative things only see the bad and can't seem to see the good things about it. In my opinion the review wasn't as bad as people have made it out to be and there are lots of things about Everquest that are good about the game that others who don't play for whatever reason wouldn't be able to see.

An 8.0 huh?  Isn't this the exact same reviewer that gave Lotro a 7.5?  Need I say more?  Not a bad review although they did not address the number one of my number one issues with the game, downtime. 

You are supposed to rate it against other games.  Anyone giving EQ anything over a 5 is beyond clueless.  It was ok at the time it was released, but it just fails miserably in comparrison to it's competition today.

Dear Mr. Wood, you really need to sit down with said reviewer and discuss how the rating system works because they don't have a clue how to rate a game.

This just reflects badly on the MMORPG.COM site.