MMORPG.com's Garrett Fuller writes this article about the possibility of a follow-up to Mythic's first RvR MMO, and what he would like to see included therein.
 

In many polls on many sites the one game that always comes up for sequel is Dark Age of Camelot. Launched in the pre-WoW era of 2001 DAOC was one of the hottest MMOs before the mainstream hit. Even though Ultima Online really set the ground work for PvP combat, Dark Age of Camelot perfected it and gave it meaning. A game that now lists in the history of MMO players, you hear it referenced many times as a "we wish" or "more like Dark Age of Camelot." Yet somehow the industry lost touch with a game that had a solid player base, a strong PvP system, and some great ideas that never made it into the latter half of the decade. So the question remains; what if Dark Age of Camelot had a sequel?

Imagine the perfect storm, Mythic is now part of Bioware all under the umbrella of EA. In a meeting somewhere among the corporate office someone decides that DAOC should be given its due again. The game having launched in 2001 with its highest numbers in the pre-WoW era of 2002-2003, is now due for a sequel. EA approves, Bioware approves, and Mythic goes to work.

Read What if... Dark Age of Camelot 2..

[Edit]

Nevermind, working now... Going to read!

Come on Garret, your comment on Trials of Atlantis was ridiculous.  It was most certainly the demise of DAoC because it gave the people who played all day a huge advantage.   The majority of the population just gave up when it was clear there was no way to be competitive without a huge grind in front of them.  Mythic was told this a million times and only made token changes.

I can remember a party of hibs(Hibernians) coming and controlling the frontier of the other factions for 3 days.  Who wants to compete with such an overpowered group.

Secondly, you missed a major issue with DAoC, the ridiculous CC(crowd control).  That is a current issue with WAR too.  Mythic seems to be in love with something most of us hate.

I do agree that DAoC had far too many classes.  They never did manage to ever balance them.  That was the beauty of Wow, the wow developers played DAoC and realize trying to balance so many classes was futile, hence the limited classes in Wow.

I tired the first one and didn't play to long, but with all the hype it sounds like it was great. I need to have people to start with to get into a game, which I didn't then. I would definitely bring some friends and give it a shot.

Heard a rumor not long ago that Mythic actually did a workup and internal pitch for a DAoC2.  EA (shock) back-burnered it.

Maybe we'll see it taken back off the shelf someday.

Good article, you touched on the key points like DF and the expansion sets.

Agree with you on the demise of DAoC, NF did it in for me as well. And the xpacs after ToA were simply not worth mentioning.. mauler class anyone

Totally disagree with the article. DAoC does NOT need a sequel, it needs a graphic / tech upgrade which is doable. Sequels have a HORRIBLE MMO track record

Fans do not want a new game, they want the old game with improvements and upgrades. EVE and City of Heroes are perfect examples of this. That has been made clear so many times it's not funny, only the MMO nomads want brand new sequels so they can rip them to pieces.

DAoC is made with Gamebryo engine, the newer versions of this engine have been used to make Fallout 3, Warhammer and Oblivion.

A new game would be corrupted by todays market expectations and nothing good will come of it. 

Upgrading DAoC would cost a fraction of a new title.

MMOs and sequels just don't work out that well. In the end we will end up with a buffoon game like Warhammer.

The comment on Trials of Atlantis was a personal statement, hence the "For me," part. I still played through Trials and did not quit because of it. I know many people who did though which is why the comment was stated accordingly. If a sequel was ever made, I will say this:

There is no place for Trials of Atlantis in a Dark Age of Camelot sequel.

:)

DAOC was the first, true MMO that I played actively. It holds a special spot in my heart not only for being the first MMO I played actively, but for the fact that I always compare games of today with DAOC. Its surprising how much of an impression the game has had on me and my play style in other games. Call me crazy, but I still look back and wish I was still playing.

I would have to agree with Ozmodan, ToA killed DAOC. The endless grinding, boredom of waiting for a spawn, etc is what finally drove the nail into the coffin. I was ok with the imbalance issues as I could find ways around it (Mastery of Blocking 5, Twisting, Shield Pally for the win). On a side note, the twisting pally was a VERY unique aspect to the game I would hope they keep that element alive. Honestly though, I wish some elements they removed they kept and some that they added they removed. I liked Frontiers, but it needs some changes that remove so much focus from the keep/tower sieges and more focus on the player versus player aspect. Do get me wrong, I enjoyed massive battles between 100+ players in RvR at fortresses or keeps, but its about the player, not the structure. However, no game has even come close to matching that level of conflict and fun. I just hope that Mythic, Bioware, and EA can figure it out and squash WoW once and for all.

I'd have to hold the opposite opinion on the number of classes. I thought it was great. Those people who are going to look for "the class" for RvR are going to do that no matter how many classes and eschew all others. Those people aren't, however, the only people that play the game (I wouldn't say the majority either). Plenty of people pick a class that "speaks to them" and enjoy it, in and out of RvR, even if it isn't the most optimized.

On that note, I'd say keep the classes. As far as the whole idea, if they made this game and didn't wowify/themepark it and instead patterend it after the original, well, I'd be subscribed to an MMO.

Dont forget that in DAoC each Realm had its Unique skills/effects etc too.

Well they certainly have to do something because WAR is not cutting the mustard for them. I'm just not sure how many are left still hold faith in Mythic to do anything.

I was an avid DAoC player, and I absolutely did quit due to ToA. One week after ToA I hit the cancel button. It was buggy, and it brought raiding into DAoC. The reason I left EQ!!

DAoC 2? It will never happen. Mythic is about as close to death as a studio can be. None of the original talent is there. Not that I would even trust the original team after the debacles of ToA and Labyrinth. Even if they started development I agree with Torak. We saw what happened with WAR. They would just try to WoW it up instead of sticking to what made DAoC great; community. Just look at WAR. They are still fumbling around trying to make it easier, instead of looking for ways to bring players together.

Focus on a game that builds community instead of making a game where one can get to max level as quickly and easily as possible. DAoC had that at one point.

I agree with a previous poster.  I would be more than happy if they didnt make a daoc 2 and just gave the original a nice graphics overhaul.

Good article.

However, I have to agree with the previous statements that a true DAoC sequel will never be done, because it can't survive in the modern MMO space.

You spoke of Warhammer's attempt to be more like WoW, and therein lies the issue. The majority of modern MMO players expect MMO's to be like WoW in 2 key areas - Community and PvE.

We can all agree that PvE was substandard in DAoC, even in it's time. If I'm not mistaken, EQ had better PvE content (que Trials of Atlantis, which tried to do much more with PvE, as did Catacombs later with instancing). Players now expect a great PvE game, and development tends to focus on either developing quality PvE content or quality PvP content, and rarely in between shall meet.

Moreover, the grind and difficulty of the game forced (And that is the proper term) players to interact with the community around them just to be able to get to RvR. You had to group with others to level in any sane amount of time. This meant having to get along with others, play well, or be known for not doing either. Players now expect to be able to have solo options for most of their content, so that they can reach max level with minimal interaction with the community.

It's a brave new MMO world, and DAoC, and games like it, aren't where the money is anymore, despite the wishes of some of us, including myself.

Now.. Garrett.. Can you put your feet in the fire and do a "What If.. UO 2"?

There was already raiding in Shrouded Isles, and there was already raiding in the core game (the dragons, the giant in jamtland IIRC).
Maybe it was more like this: ToA killed the PvPers, the /level20 command the newbies, and the elitism around 8vs8 the casuals.

I had much fun in DAoC. But I am not sure, if I would play the same thing again. Maybe a DaoC 2 would be interesting for the post-WoW generation, if they would ever hear of it.
Btw another interesting thing of DAoC´s PvP was: you didn´t got items as a reward, you got additional little active and passive skills which also helped you in PvE. Kind of horizontal content instead of items.

Mythic blew it with WAR, so I don't think they'll be given resources to make Daoc 2.

EA could redo the game, add some ideas, use new engine, do some class balancing - but not in the way of  WoWing it up as brostyn said. 

This game would be awsome, maybe someday EA will decide to milk this old cow?

Also to quote Garrett ''With MMOs constantly trying to be like World of Warcraft people forget that World of Warcraft was trying to be like Everquest and Dark Age of Camelot when it launched''

Have been wishing for a daoc 2 for ages. A new daoc where they would keep the good stuff and improve/change the bad parts. It is true, realm fighting gave some sense of belonging somewhere to everyone. If they can do it again but bit better I am sure they would get bigger numbers than old daoc. Time will tell but hopefully it won't take too long....

I loved DAoC, and if a sequel came out I would most certaintly try it.  However, I agree with Coldren.  I don't think a sequel would work in today's post WoW era.  You needed guild groups to run your quests for your Epic armor.  I remember completing my set and being so proud.  Today, that just wouldn't work.  Everyone would want soloable quests.  Forced group quests that take days to complete wouldn't be welcomed.  Also the grind from 49 to 50 was a bit ridiculous.  I think I spent a good 12 hours grinding in the frontier.  I don't remember how much that got me closer to 50, probably not much.  You also had to queue up for groups, and you might be waiting a couple hours until someone drops group.  I don't particurally miss that.  However, once you got 50 you did have a certain since of accomplishment. 

a DAOC2 would fail, because gamers do not want the kind of game that DAOC is, and DAOC has been made easy mode over the years.. so you'd get a WoW version of DAoC and it would be Warhammer Online part 2

my love affair with classic DAOC will never end, but it will never be seen again in another game

end of conversation