So you started on the IoR and you had one of the most immersive opening tutorials ever, SOE have gotten rid of it now in favour and some generic bullshit but whatever. You got to the island and did quests that were designed to get you used to the mechanics and it worked really well. The starter island was quite hard and it even forced grouping for the last quest and every time thanx to everyone being on the same server, it was so easy to get groups.
its a valid issue but EQ2 offers an innovative feature -- the AA slider
tailor your experience rate at whatever pace you like
I don't care for this, MMOs are not single player games that you can just "tailor to yourself". Slowing down your exp rate will just make you look like an idiot, and whatever guild you join will wonder why you level so slow. It just doesn't work and you'll be disconnected from the rest of the community.
You probably don't even realize why I want this. The leveling speed needs to be slow for everyone across the board, so that people spend more time in lower level areas, so lower level areas are valued more, so lower level items and crafting and etc. have more value throughout the game and do not become wasted really quickly. So that the game is hard and people want to group with you at lower areas and look for help. None of this is accomplished by a personal experience rate slider. I am playing an MMO, not a single player game.
DISCLAIMER: you need to have a subscription to have access to the AA slider
lol even better. It's probably pointless to explain to you how disjointing all this is and it just kills the feel of the game. The game should work, I shouldn't be trying to adapt it to work for me.
if you are going to compare EQ2 to WOW
try subbing to EQ2 or compare ftp EQ2 to ftp WOW (with its level 20 limit)
I'm comparing to Vanilla WoW, which no longer exists. The payment model is irrelevant outside of how it affects the actual game (in case of P2P, it doesn't at all), I'll pay whatever I have to if I like the game. The things I listed are my reasons for not playing EQII, I am not a beggar looking for scraps, I'll only play what fits my requirements or I will play nothing at all, and I am definitely not going to "try" subbing for something if the company failed to make the product desirable.
Favorite MMO: Vanilla WoW Currently playing: GW2, EVE Excited for: Wildstar, maybe?
EQ2 is pretty great, nice depth, mechanics, I even like the combat and classes.
I get tired of playing by myself though, and 80-85 made my brain hurt due to how terrible everything is. I wish it wasn't so top heavy and I'd played more consistently back when the population was healthier and the game harder.
The first reason I don't play EQ2 is that I don't play much at all these days.
The second reason I don't play EQ2, and why I never managed to get far in it even though I generally like it (and it's the MMO I played most after City of Heroes) is that I like story heavy games, and at least in the low levels (I never got over level 30) there isn't much such content. When EQ2 Extended arrived I went back (my first try was 2005-6) and the levels up to 20 were pretty decent in terms of story, but going beyond 20 again felt like I was grinding, helping the lazy and weak do their chores, instead of participating in something meaningful. I got some help on the forums to find more story content, but it's still not easy, and that's what always ends up killing my interest in EQ2. I end up creating alts and playing their low levels, but I never progress far.
the levels up to 20 were pretty decent in terms of story, but going beyond 20 again felt like I was grinding, helping the lazy and weak do their chores, instead of participating in something meaningful.
I wont deny that
I got around that issue by chronoing and visting other lower level areas under 20
Regarding story content, I was also very disappointed with Dungeon Maker. I enjoyed the Mission Architect in CoH (even though I felt it was quite limited), so when EQ2 offered something similar I bought AoD to play with it, then discovered that it was nearly impossible to create a story with it. Indeed most of the dungeons people created were just a way to get quick XP.
I'm looking forward to test the Foundry in Neverwinter, but because I play so little these days I don't think I'll get to it in the foreseeable future.
I downloaded it on steam and had many false starts, I can get passed some of the graphics combined with what I assume is going to be massive vertical grinding in levels, gear, and currencies to play the juicy stuff.
I played WoW for like 6 years, and saw the hamster wheel, now I can't stop seeing the hamster wheel even though I want to. I have so many friends who still pay vertical progress, gear gated games and I can't muster the willpower to start that marathon of tedium again :'(
Maybe one day I will get realllllllllly bored and impulsively jump in...I am really curious about the SOEmote lol.
its a valid issue but EQ2 offers an innovative feature -- the AA slider
tailor your experience rate at whatever pace you like
I don't care for this, MMOs are not single player games that you can just "tailor to yourself". Slowing down your exp rate will just make you look like an idiot, and whatever guild you join will wonder why you level so slow. It just doesn't work and you'll be disconnected from the rest of the community.
You probably don't even realize why I want this. The leveling speed needs to be slow for everyone across the board, so that people spend more time in lower level areas, so lower level areas are valued more, so lower level items and crafting and etc. have more value throughout the game and do not become wasted really quickly. So that the game is hard and people want to group with you at lower areas and look for help. None of this is accomplished by a personal experience rate slider. I am playing an MMO, not a single player game.
DISCLAIMER: you need to have a subscription to have access to the AA slider
lol even better. It's probably pointless to explain to you how disjointing all this is and it just kills the feel of the game. The game should work, I shouldn't be trying to adapt it to work for me.
if you are going to compare EQ2 to WOW
try subbing to EQ2 or compare ftp EQ2 to ftp WOW (with its level 20 limit)
I'm comparing to Vanilla WoW, which no longer exists. The payment model is irrelevant outside of how it affects the actual game (in case of P2P, it doesn't at all), I'll pay whatever I have to if I like the game. The things I listed are my reasons for not playing EQII, I am not a beggar looking for scraps, I'll only play what fits my requirements or I will play nothing at all, and I am definitely not going to "try" subbing for something if the company failed to make the product desirable.
Exactly, you are comparing to vanilla WoW which no longer exists. Vanilla EQ2 no longer exists either. When I started playing EQ2 the levelling was slow and you couldn't get past the teen levels without grouping. Antonica and the Commonlands had very little solo content.
There is no point anyone trying to sell you the game though, the game is long in the tooth and has become overly complicated. They are going to be adding 'heroic' characters which lets people start at level 85 and gives them some AA to play with, but this is just skipping over the main issue.
If you want to enjoy EQ2, you need to do your research, if you are unwilling to do it, then the game is not for you because the entire game will require you to research things that are not blatantly obvious (stat caps, AA builds, places to go to get AA or to level, mercenary locations and skills, housing).
Putting your AA slider up while levelling is actually the opposite of being an idiot. You are an idiot if you don't (unless you have someone who can grind you those missing AA when you reach max level). It doesn't just lower the rate you get levels, it siphons that experience into alternate abilities which make you more powerful, making your levelling process easier and making you more useful in groups.
As the game doesn't hold your hand, you probably also don't realise that you can Chronomentor and set your level to any 5 level increment, so you can enjoy lower level content at any level, while earning AA. Low level content doesn't become obsolete once you outlevel it in EQ2.
All these things were introduced to older players over time. We got 1 AA tree every 2 years, now new players face 4 AA trees with 320 points to spend, soon to be 5 AA trees with 340. They recently added CATs, which spend the points for people, but it doesn't really explain the system well, also its a bit of bloat as most of these are now obligatory to get. Also there are now prestige points, which complicates things even further.
Anyway as I said, EQ2 is a game you need to research to understand, if you are unwilling to look outside the game to maximise your experience within it, then it isn't the game for you in the first place.
For me it's just a very dull game, can't bring myself to start the endless questing to level up, also very dated and too much of a chore to level to max and then begin the grind of AA and gear. Plus one of the worse F2P models out there. Great community though.
Comments
I agree w you - I miss the style of early EQ2
EQ2 fan sites
Favorite MMO: Vanilla WoW
Currently playing: GW2, EVE
Excited for: Wildstar, maybe?
I'm not advocating you go back to EQ2 - you didnt like it
but the sub version of EQ is better than ftp version of it
EQ2 fan sites
EQ2 is pretty great, nice depth, mechanics, I even like the combat and classes.
I get tired of playing by myself though, and 80-85 made my brain hurt due to how terrible everything is. I wish it wasn't so top heavy and I'd played more consistently back when the population was healthier and the game harder.
The first reason I don't play EQ2 is that I don't play much at all these days.
The second reason I don't play EQ2, and why I never managed to get far in it even though I generally like it (and it's the MMO I played most after City of Heroes) is that I like story heavy games, and at least in the low levels (I never got over level 30) there isn't much such content. When EQ2 Extended arrived I went back (my first try was 2005-6) and the levels up to 20 were pretty decent in terms of story, but going beyond 20 again felt like I was grinding, helping the lazy and weak do their chores, instead of participating in something meaningful. I got some help on the forums to find more story content, but it's still not easy, and that's what always ends up killing my interest in EQ2. I end up creating alts and playing their low levels, but I never progress far.
I wont deny that
I got around that issue by chronoing and visting other lower level areas under 20
but your point remains
EQ2 fan sites
Regarding story content, I was also very disappointed with Dungeon Maker. I enjoyed the Mission Architect in CoH (even though I felt it was quite limited), so when EQ2 offered something similar I bought AoD to play with it, then discovered that it was nearly impossible to create a story with it. Indeed most of the dungeons people created were just a way to get quick XP.
I'm looking forward to test the Foundry in Neverwinter, but because I play so little these days I don't think I'll get to it in the foreseeable future.
I downloaded it on steam and had many false starts, I can get passed some of the graphics combined with what I assume is going to be massive vertical grinding in levels, gear, and currencies to play the juicy stuff.
I played WoW for like 6 years, and saw the hamster wheel, now I can't stop seeing the hamster wheel even though I want to. I have so many friends who still pay vertical progress, gear gated games and I can't muster the willpower to start that marathon of tedium again :'(
Maybe one day I will get realllllllllly bored and impulsively jump in...I am really curious about the SOEmote lol.
Exactly, you are comparing to vanilla WoW which no longer exists. Vanilla EQ2 no longer exists either. When I started playing EQ2 the levelling was slow and you couldn't get past the teen levels without grouping. Antonica and the Commonlands had very little solo content.
There is no point anyone trying to sell you the game though, the game is long in the tooth and has become overly complicated. They are going to be adding 'heroic' characters which lets people start at level 85 and gives them some AA to play with, but this is just skipping over the main issue.
If you want to enjoy EQ2, you need to do your research, if you are unwilling to do it, then the game is not for you because the entire game will require you to research things that are not blatantly obvious (stat caps, AA builds, places to go to get AA or to level, mercenary locations and skills, housing).
Putting your AA slider up while levelling is actually the opposite of being an idiot. You are an idiot if you don't (unless you have someone who can grind you those missing AA when you reach max level). It doesn't just lower the rate you get levels, it siphons that experience into alternate abilities which make you more powerful, making your levelling process easier and making you more useful in groups.
As the game doesn't hold your hand, you probably also don't realise that you can Chronomentor and set your level to any 5 level increment, so you can enjoy lower level content at any level, while earning AA. Low level content doesn't become obsolete once you outlevel it in EQ2.
All these things were introduced to older players over time. We got 1 AA tree every 2 years, now new players face 4 AA trees with 320 points to spend, soon to be 5 AA trees with 340. They recently added CATs, which spend the points for people, but it doesn't really explain the system well, also its a bit of bloat as most of these are now obligatory to get. Also there are now prestige points, which complicates things even further.
Anyway as I said, EQ2 is a game you need to research to understand, if you are unwilling to look outside the game to maximise your experience within it, then it isn't the game for you in the first place.