Also to anybody thinking about going back to EQ1, here's a good site made by Almar.  He's a returning player who just recently went back to EQ.  He made the site to answer many newbie questions, many of which I had 3 months ago when I first went back to EQ.

www.almarsguides.com/everquest.cfm

He's got a section strictly answering some questions returning players would ask.  It's worth a look.

I have three accounts on EQ, and suspended them in late February 09.  I had too many other things to do and after maxing out my Main there wasn't enough to interest me.  The latest expansion SOD didn't appeal to me at all and I have to wonder whether they have run out of any really new ideas for expansions - for which they now charge $39.99 (if I recall correctly) which a bit greedy when the content doesn't justify it.

As for SOE they are not well liked by most of the players due to their arrogance and the sometimes insulting behavior by their ingame representatives. I think they are finally getting the message that there are alternative games out there now that are attracting their customers.  When I did the account cancellations, I filled out a survey form by a marketing firm gathering info on why I left the game and asking several questions about my opinion on the game and its features.  Listening to their customers is a change on SOEs part from their earlier attitudes.  I started playing this game in 2001, with a couple of intermissions.

The best part of the game is the depth of content which is so far unmatched by other MMORPGs but that may change over time.

The worst part of the game besides the standard level grinding complaints is lack of sufficient solo or even single grouping content.  Some of the desireable items and locations are only available to full raids.  This is difficult for players with limited or restrictive schedulues as most raiding guilds require you to be regularly available for raids.

EQ should provide alternative methods of obtaining access to raid level content, you may have to work harder and longer to get it if you are not in a raid but at least you would have a chance.

I will probably come back and try EQ again, but atm I am playing LOTRO which is more solo-friendly.  I looked at Starquest but at this point the game is just too clumsy and lacks sufficient documentation such that new players are confused about what to do and how to do it.

Played for 7 years or so.  Just got boring for me.

I quit.. mainly because my friends quit. Would I come back? Probably not, I deleted my Shadowknight nearly five years ago, and I don't know that I want to start fresh on Everquest. I enjoy Everquest II and maybe if I knew more people playing EQ, I would start anew on the game, but as a game that I would play by myself and go out of my way to meet new friends and a new guild is just something I don't want to do. I have good memories with the game, and that's how it will stay for the time being.

 I have been an on again, off again EQ player since 2003. I came in at the beginning of Planes of Power, raided extensively for awhile, and have come back going on 4 times now. This last time I quit the game to head to WAR with my EQ guild, but WAR ended up being a flop for me, so back to EQ I went. 

And my what has really changed in a period of time. 

Mercs make it possible for anyone and everyone to solo, even if they cant find a group.

The issues with experience have long been gone, but they have also provided a bell curve like scale for AAexp gain, so that when you are under 1000AA's, you get a bonus to the exp you gain, to aid you in getting your first 1k aa's quicker, getting you back in the end game as soon as possible.

Equipment is the great equalizer for doing new content, and with Defiant gear available for dirt cheap that will provide you a VERY solid base to work from, its easier than it has ever been to jump back in on any lvl character. 

The fact that you respawn with your items, and the implementation of Corpse Summoners means that you no longer have to worry about corpse runs, and with clerics almost always being near the summoners, it means that you can get back into the game and hunting again with minimal downtime, and very little penalty, especially when you compare it to how things were back in the day. 
 

My roommate and myself have gotten back into the game just recently, and have found a great deal of fun playing, experiencing the new content we missed, and the power increases that have allowed us to do content and things that normally required a perfect group, by ourselves, as a Mage and SK in low end group gear. Especially with healer mercenaries in the mix, you can accomplish alot of things without the massive time and people requirements that was previously a neccessity in this game. 
 

If you havent played this game since 08/09, I recommend giving it a try. Its change ALOT in the last few years, for the better, and I must admit that when I left for WAR I figured I would never come back, but now that I have, I couldnt be happier and more surprised at just how enjoyable this game still is. 

i think I left after GoD and come back on SoD (since nov 08). I have to agree, all the changes in SoD such as mercenary, defiant gear, etc. make it a lot more enjoyable for casual player with mininum downtime. Group with RL players when get a chance, and go with Merc when couldn't find RL player. There is virtually no downtime anymore in EQ.

Originally posted by deye

i think I left after GoD and come back on SoD (since nov 08). I have to agree, all the changes in SoD such as mercenary, defiant gear, etc. make it a lot more enjoyable for casual player with mininum downtime. Group with RL players when get a chance, and go with Merc when couldn't find RL player. There is virtually no downtime anymore in EQ.

Deye

Novice Member
Joined: 5/26/09
Posts: 2

That's just the facts, this player joined these forums after this post was made. Some companies have employees to create positve hype for games on these forums. I am not saying this player is doing this but you should be aware it happens. It is up to you the reader to decide whether or not someone is doing this.

Tried to pick it up again a month ago  but the gameplay was so unrewarding and the interface so atrocious that I just couldn't get past the first few levels.

 I keep seeing complaints about the UI, but I am not sure what the problem is. I've certainly played other games with worse and less flexible UIs. Sure, it takes me maybe 20 minutes to get all the windows opened and set up right, and I do add a couple of custom pieces (generally a player window with experience bars and stats on it, and sometimes different group and pet windows), but I really don't understand what people hate so much. (This is actually a question... I know it lacks question marks, but I am just confused.) 

Originally posted by qombi

Originally posted by deye

i think I left after GoD and come back on SoD (since nov 08). I have to agree, all the changes in SoD such as mercenary, defiant gear, etc. make it a lot more enjoyable for casual player with mininum downtime. Group with RL players when get a chance, and go with Merc when couldn't find RL player. There is virtually no downtime anymore in EQ.

 

Deye

Novice Member
Joined: 5/26/09
Posts: 2

 

That's just the facts, this player joined these forums after this post was made. Some companies have employees to create positve hype for games on these forums. I am not saying this player is doing this but you should be aware it happens. It is up to you the reader to decide whether or not someone is doing this.

 

Yeah, but unfortunately I said the same thing he did, and I made my account long before this post. 

The game has changed alot, and for the better. Downtime is at the lowest its been ever, with it taking 3 min max at any given time to med to full mana/health/end, and mercenaries meaning that you never have to sit around doing nothing because there isnt a tank or cleric on. 

The newest group gear from the last two expansions were MAJOR power boosts compared to anything found in the group level before. We are talking going from 200hp ish gear to 400+ from group doable content. Access to all the major focii, the changes to focii location making it so the same focii are found in the same slots always, and the general increase in levels means that alot of people are able to do content they were never able to do before. 


I was shocked at how much content my low end group geared mage was able to do when I came back into the game and spent some of my banked pp on new gear. Cheap, by the way, with most peices costing less then 10k per slot, outside of jewerly and pri/sec/range. Gear with 300-350h/m/e, and the full range of neccessary focii and mod2/3's. They have provided via a merchant in the Plane of Knowledge jewerly and offslot defiant(thats the name of the new leg up gear) peices, including pet focii on earrings for the pet classes. Pretty decent focii too, which for any pet class is a major boon. 

I personally believe that if you are judging EQ based on the game you played even as little as before the last expansion, but especially if its been longer, then you are missing out and making judgements on a game other than the one we have currently. The changes from the last expansion, SoD, and the one previous to that, SoF, have changed the game quite a bit, for the better, and enough so to make it worth another look if you havent played in a year or more. 

Originally posted by neschria

 I keep seeing complaints about the UI, but I am not sure what the problem is. I've certainly played other games with worse and less flexible UIs. Sure, it takes me maybe 20 minutes to get all the windows opened and set up right, and I do add a couple of custom pieces (generally a player window with experience bars and stats on it, and sometimes different group and pet windows), but I really don't understand what people hate so much. (This is actually a question... I know it lacks question marks, but I am just confused.) 

It's probably just not as intuitive as the WoW-based line of UIs that most games copy nowadays.  It does bear some similarities, and Blizzard probably borrowed some ideas from it, but it (1) doesn't have pretty pre-made pictures for the skills, and (2) requires extra work that takes time to figure out.  There's a learning curve involved in the EQ interface that you don't have in transferring between games that have borrowed heavily from Blizzard's ideas, and that probably turns some people off.

I recently decided to give EQ a shot, since it's been about 5 years or so since I last played, and it was a little frustrating at first, but I've got the basics down and am enjoying it.  It's got a charm that's kind of hard to explain.  The pace of combat can be a bit slower, but the little downtime in between gives me a good chance to take a quick break and deal with RL issues instead of being stuck at the keyboard for hours on end without a break.  Some people might not value that, but those who want to grind non-stop can always run with a merc.

The graphics are dated, but so-called advancements in graphics have not always been for the better, and there are still a lot of people who play 2D games that look like they're from the 80s or early 90s, so EQ's are far from the bottom of the barrel in that department.  The only thing about the graphics I've found so far that really annoys me is the choppiness of the legs on the Vah Shir when they run, which disappoints me, because I used to have a Vah Shir rogue that I really enjoyed.  I guess I won't be playing any furries any time soon.

If anyone's on The Tribunal and needs someone to run with at low levels, just let me know.

Why did I quit?  To play EQ2.

Would I go back?  Probably not.