I'm looking for a game with alot of content and a rich storyline. Also I would like to have some solo content if possible. GFX are also very important to me and I was wondering which game has better overall gfx. I would like to here people's expiriences with both games and see which game they enjoyed more. I see they both have free trials but their clients are pretty big so trying both might take awhile to download. Any opinions are much appreciated.

I didn't now which forum to put this in so I just guessed lol.

Both of these games offer good trials. It would be better just to give each one a sample for a few days imo. I personally found Eq2 a better game, I enjoyed the graphics, classes, quests and Dungeons more in Eq2.

Eq1 - 1999-2004

eq2- launch -2 months

eq2 - 3 months ago - 1 full month

VG - Launch - 1 month

VG 2 months ago - played for over a month

I prefer EQ1 - VG - EQ2

As far as VG vs EQ2 it' mainly personal preference. The classes in VG rock way better than EQ2. Skills+spells+World+Gameplay for me was way better in VG. I am one pf the people who thinks VG would have been an epic game if not for the money issues when Sigil had it. As it stands I still think it's a very fun and entertaining game. If your goin to play VG play on Seradon.

As far as EQ 2 goes - I didn't like the graphics much. SOme do, but to me they are way too cartooney like WOW. The heroic chains gets annoying. Not a bad game though. Alot of people like it so again as stated above... it's all personal preference. 11 million people like wow... I think it's an abomination personally. Any crack riddled 12 yr old can be max level in 2-3 weeks. No depth or difficulty to it. All instant gratification. Not a fun game to me. So again take my opinion with a grain of salt.

I second JGM's suggestion to try out both for free.

Personally I prefered VG but EQ2 is also a very nice game.

For me the graphics in VG were far better but its a personal thing, the landscape was breathtaking and I found myself using the landmarks and geography rather than the maps. I personally felt they spoilt exploration with the insta travel but on balance far more prefered it. There's a lot of depth and while leveling I just felt more of a connection with the game as a world, the crafting was good (tbh not a major thing for me but) its always nice to have alternative activities, the same goes for the parle  mini game. By an large I was more than happy to just log in and look out at the scenery off of cliffs.

My EQ2 experience was nearer release and on a pvp server. I loved the fact that pvp and pve had completely seperate damage tables for the same skills (this should be the case for all mmo's imo). The story was decent and the progression through it was nice. I would say a big difference between the 2 was that its easier to find and complete more of the content in EQ, in VG its very, very easy to miss a lot of content but I guess that can add to replayability. The performace for me is a lot more customiserable and therefore lighter on the rig. If you've played other mmo's the UI is pretty standard with a good array of addons.

In general I guess you could say EQ2 is far more polished than VG but it all depends on the person playing as to how much that matters and wether the other features of VG can make up for that.

The communities for both were good in general in my experience and if you are into classic mmo type fantasy you wont go wrong with either.

Can't go wrong when both games have free trials.

I loved EQ1 (6 years), disliked EQ2 (6 months), love Vanguard (2.5 years and counting).

EQ2 is more polished but vg has a better combat system.  In the end the combat is what you play mmo's for.

Originally posted by svann

EQ2 is more polished but vg has a better combat system.  In the end the combat is what you play mmo's for.

If that were true, everyone would be playing DDO.  

And to cut any naysayers off at the pass, I like both DDO and Vanguard.   

EQ2 and VG are very different games.

Both have strengths and weaknesses.

I prefer VG because of its lack of instances and the things like view distance of 2 miles, seamless world etc.

Originally posted by svann

EQ2 is more polished but vg has a better combat system.  In the end the combat is what you play mmo's for.

well it should be more polished ... it's old and doesn't have any features.   Oh and you can't forget EQ2 has 100% of Sony's attention.

Originally posted by drolkrad666

Originally posted by svann

EQ2 is more polished but vg has a better combat system.  In the end the combat is what you play mmo's for.

 

well it should be more polished ... it's old and doesn't have any features.   Oh and you can't forget EQ2 has 100% of Sony's attention.

Some of Vanguard's unique features are exactly why some folks prefer it over EQ2.  Combat system, dual targetting, NO instances, seamless world, etc. 

I so wanted to love EQ2 so I could continue with my EQ addiction but the simplicity of combat, instancing and the zoned world (click a bell and you go to a different zone), all turned me off.  No immersion for me whatsoever.

I have ultimate freedom of action and consequence in Vanguard.  The screenshot below is me flying over my non-instanced house with Razad and Rahz Inkur both in the back ground to illustrate the seamless nature of the world.  The 2nd a shot from Bridge of Destiny with Afrit and Rahz Inkur in the background.