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[Column] EverQuest Next: Landmark: The Decision

SBFordSBFord Former Associate EditorMember LegendaryPosts: 33,129

The decision as to whether or not to buy a Founder's Pack for any game, EverQuest Next: Landmark included, is a big one. Which package? What price? How much can I afford? In today's EQN:L column, we take a look at one man's struggle with THE DECISION. Read on before posting your own thoughts in the comments.

This week, I’m going to walk you through my thought process. While most of you are likely set in your ways and know whether or not you’re going to buy a game, this is more for the benefit of people who think they know what they’re getting into when they read my write-ups but want to see if my viewpoint and experiences match theirs. Hopefully this will allow you to make better decisions regarding the game.

Read more of Victor Barreiro Jr.'s EverQuest Next: Landmark - The Decision.

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Comments

  • ste2000ste2000 Member EpicPosts: 6,194

    Same I am going to wait. SoE is a big developer, I am not giving them money beforehand as I do with the Indies.

    But the game looks interesting (more interesting than EQN) so probably I will buy when it launches

  • koboldfodderkoboldfodder Member UncommonPosts: 447

    I spent a few hundred dollars over 3 years on EQ.  I spent probably around the same for EQ2.  Plus all of the EQ2 expansions.  Maybe a hundred dollars over the course of SWG.  Vanguard as well.

     

    I have no problem spending money on a SOE product, even a founders pack thing.  SOE is the company whose products I have played the most and paid for the most, so I know that it is not a shot in the dark....they are going to release a decent product.

     

    I got the most expensive founders pack and have zero issues about it.  Money well spent if you ask me, especially when you consider all the other MMOs I spent money on and not felt like I received that much out of the purchase.

     

    I have always gotten my money's worth with SOE products and I suspect it will be the same with EQ Next.  I cannot wait to try out the Landmark and cannot wait to try out the actual game.

  • FearumFearum Member UncommonPosts: 1,175
    I will spend nothing on this cash grab attempt and will not spend anything on EQN because it does not interest me in the least. I will probably not even download the game and waste bandwidth because I have no interest in a F2P cash shop game from SOE.
  • DarkagesDarkages Member UncommonPosts: 96

    Also, are any of those items going to be available in the game store on release. It might be cheaper to purchase what you want instead of a whole pack of items you may not care for.

    With no stats posted on any of the in game items i can see a company taking advantage of their fanboys by releasing better versions in the store. Example, the Mastercraft Bracer (from the Trailblazer pack) could only be a 5% bonus to crafting. While they may also have an instore version of it with a 10% bonus for only $5. 

    I don't know for sure, only SoE does and there not giving us the specifics. Just wish i knew more about the items, that would help me decide if i buy a pack or not.

  • udonudon Member UncommonPosts: 1,803
    Originally posted by ste2000

    Same I am going to wait. SoE is a big developer, I am not giving them money beforehand as I do with the Indies.

    But the game looks interesting (more interesting than EQN) so probably I will buy when it launches

    Even big developers are subject to the same issues caused by going to professional sources for investment money.  Those sources are the ones that are more interested in developing a  game that returns a quick buck plus and/or has WoW sized numbers rather than take risks with something new.  I honestly don't believe that EQN could happen without Landmark as a intermediate step.

    I generally don't do kickstarter/founders/pre-order packs anymore regardless of company size but if I did the decision would be more based on if the features of the game interest me rather than the size of the company developing it.  I'm very tempted to bend my rule for Landmark.

  • EndoRobotoEndoRoboto Member Posts: 275
    Really? I think theyre shooting themselves in the foot by not just making one game or the other.
  • Panther2103Panther2103 Member EpicPosts: 5,766
    Originally posted by EndoRoboto
    Really? I think theyre shooting themselves in the foot by not just making one game or the other.

    This is what I was thinking. If they just released EQN they could have solely put all of the EQ population who were willing to go to a new EQ game into that game, instead now they have two separate games that they will have to keep up with at the same time and split the population down the middle for both of them.

  • udonudon Member UncommonPosts: 1,803
    Originally posted by EndoRoboto
    Really? I think theyre shooting themselves in the foot by not just making one game or the other.

    ideally it would probably have been better but realistically some of these systems for procedural content and advanced NPC AI are going to be very expensive and time consuming to develop in addition to all the traditional costs of making EQN.  It's hard to imagine many MMO studios having the resources to take on a project like that without some kind of intermediate game.  Sony could bankroll it easily for sure but SOE still has to convince them to front the money years in advance for a concept that isn't proven viable, something that is easier said than done.  Plus Landmark ends up testing many of these systems before the developers/artists/story writers spend lots of time crafting a world around them.

    Landmark is the systems test for EQN and those that play it will at least in some limited way influence the final shape of EQN. 

     

  • KyllienKyllien Member UncommonPosts: 315

    I bought the Trailblazer pack already.  I enjoy helping the developers while I play and have played through a few betas.  Since this game is going to be FTP I see this as a way to help them fund the game and yes line the pockets of the employees and bosses (This is America and money does drive everything).  

    What I am most looking for are a few things.  I will get to try the game out before a lot of other people.  I will be able to practice with the tools before anyone else.  And I will get the 48hours or more head start to open beta.  The other free stuff just pads the decision.

    And here's to hoping that we get to start Alpha in a couple weeks.
     
  • Nemesis7884Nemesis7884 Member UncommonPosts: 1,023
    Originally posted by EndoRoboto
    Really? I think theyre shooting themselves in the foot by not just making one game or the other.

    landmark is simply a big alpha for eqn where they can try out stuff and mechanics and especially look what the players come up with an like - and the best thing, they can do so without anyone ever complaining because it is just a huge sandbox - literally - and thats what the players that play it want...but contrary to minecraft i think players could become much faster bored with landmark because they will not have the same amount of endless options that minecraft has...

  • JJ82JJ82 Member UncommonPosts: 1,258
    Originally posted by EndoRoboto
    Really? I think theyre shooting themselves in the foot by not just making one game or the other.

    Really? I think you need to read up more on the two games...

    EQ:L is a small player building game ala Minecraft only in MMO form using design tools that also works with EQ:N so creations in one, can be ported to the other. The designs go hand in hand. Not only that, but you have no idea at all how much Sony is putting into the games, the team could be far larger and thus allow for both to be made.

    "People who tell you you’re awesome are useless. No, dangerous.

    They are worse than useless because you want to believe them. They will defend you against critiques that are valid. They will seduce you into believing you are done learning, or into thinking that your work is better than it actually is." ~Raph Koster
    http://www.raphkoster.com/2013/10/14/on-getting-criticism/

  • aslan132aslan132 Member UncommonPosts: 619

    Thanks for the read. I more or less go through the exact same process. My results were very much like yours, which ended in not needing to get any founder pack at all. In the end, it boils down to paying for something the majority of players get for free. None of the "perks" are significant in any way, as you noted in the article, even the status symbol items will be so abundant to be meaningless, and in a game about building and crafting, is status even a thing? Its not like youre top tier raiding, or PVP, or server firsting... so what does status get you?

     

    Basically, you are paying for early access. Cheaper for beta, is alittle bit of a head start from launch. More expensive for alpha, a larger headstart. But with more alphas and betas, characters end up wiped. So you are really only paying to "learn" for an advantage. I guess its really up to the individual. Are you ok with paying for nothing? None of the items will be significant in any form, because it would cause the Pay to Win argument, and in a game with just building and crafting, can there be such a thing as Pay to Win? lol. Anyways, its a pass for me. I am definately 100% going to play. Looks like a ton of fun. But I also am 100% not going to pay for something thats free. It just isnt logical. 

  • Ironman2000Ironman2000 Member UncommonPosts: 310
    Seriously, I could understand "Pre-Order Packs" if this was some start up company with no money at all, but for crying out loud its friggin' SOE.  It seems very cheap on their part to want us to fund development of this game...  I could easily afford this but won't because it just seems wrong that a company like SoE is wanting us to pay for development.  Thats all I have to say on it.
  • Ice-QueenIce-Queen Member UncommonPosts: 2,483
    I couldn't see paying for Landmark when it will be free to play at release. It's just not worth it for beta/alpha access and a few cosmetic items that will be replaced by even cooler looking items after release. It is always that way, anything cosmetic you get from betas are never used long, there's always better looking stuff that's available.

    image

    What happens when you log off your characters????.....
    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GFQhfhnjYMk
    Dark Age of Camelot

  • XthosXthos Member UncommonPosts: 2,739
    Originally posted by EndoRoboto
    Really? I think theyre shooting themselves in the foot by not just making one game or the other.

    I think it is smart.

     

    They could open up the tools even more, to design mobs, npcs, characters and let people basically make mmos within the Landmark 'universe', then offer stuff in the store and the developer would get a cut, and SoE would under the existing arrangement.

     

    I prefer subs myself, but I could see how Landmark would become a great toolkit for people down the road.  You could probably make anything you wanted with just time spent.  I would not be surprised if this is what they have in mind for Landmark, beyond people just using existing stuff to make their own stuff.

     

  • sakersaker Member RarePosts: 1,458
    NEVER pay for anything sight-unseen (un-tested, tried). Fool me once, etc., etc.
  • WizardryWizardry Member LegendaryPosts: 19,332

    I do think SOE delivers a decent product,usually full of bugs but a decent product.

    I don't agree with giving them money just because their product is decent,they are misleading costs and that is what bothers me.I want to play the entire game,every last piece of it,so why not give me a 15 sub fee and be done with it?Simple they want MORE and although their products are decent they do not warrant more money.

    You see luckily i still have choice in this industry ,not all are trying to mislead customers.I can go play Square Enix games and i will get as good a product and know exactly what i am spending and know i will have access to every last asset the game has.

    The fact that so many others are going this same cash shop route does not force my hand one bit,i simply won't pay any of them.Since so many have been watching Blizzard the last 7-8 years,i hope Blizzard's next game is a decent product and carries  a sub fee,i think it would force devs and publishers to rethink their greed.

    Never forget 3 mile Island and never trust a government official or company spokesman.

  • NanfoodleNanfoodle Member LegendaryPosts: 10,610
    Not enough info on the game to give them any money. We have not even see any game play footage other then the creation tools. I want to see a little bit of everything first.
  • MrMelGibsonMrMelGibson Member EpicPosts: 3,033
    Originally posted by Fearum
    I will spend nothing on this cash grab attempt and will not spend anything on EQN because it does not interest me in the least. I will probably not even download the game and waste bandwidth because I have no interest in a F2P cash shop game from SOE.

    Ok, thanks for sharing?

  • zastenzasten Member Posts: 283

    Sorry, but I have no interest in paying them to tell them what may or may not be wrong with their game, it is after all, THEIR game and if anything, they should be paying us for this info! So what if you get to play before anybody else, as mentioned in the article, imo it's just a status symbol if you get early access, especially if it has a lot of bugs.

    I will happily wait for release...

  • syriinxsyriinx Member UncommonPosts: 1,383
    Originally posted by Ironman2000
    Seriously, I could understand "Pre-Order Packs" if this was some start up company with no money at all, but for crying out loud its friggin' SOE.  It seems very cheap on their part to want us to fund development of this game...  I could easily afford this but won't because it just seems wrong that a company like SoE is wanting us to pay for development.  Thats all I have to say on it.

    Are you an accountant for Sony?  Do you have access to SoEs books?  Do you know what kind of profits their games turn (their highest population game is 15 years old, they cant be making too much)?  Do you know how much of those profits they are allowed to invest into future products vs. kicking up to Sony?  People are so quick to judge without any knowledge of facts.

  • tom_goretom_gore Member UncommonPosts: 2,001
    Originally posted by Nanfoodle
    Not enough info on the game to give them any money. We have not even see any game play footage other then the creation tools. I want to see a little bit of everything first.

    There isn't any gameplay short of gathering and building yet. That's why there are no gameplay videos about it either. The Alpha will launch with only building and gathering. They will add combat and other features later on.

  • GenophixGenophix Member UncommonPosts: 4

    Yeah totally agree with your thought process. If I do lay some money down it will be for the beta access as I'm just so overwhelmed with games these days I don't have time to play Alpha.

    Also if I'm honest I've done my fair share of Alphas and you can burn out before the game arrives, I don't want that for this game.

  • GenophixGenophix Member UncommonPosts: 4

    Also, so many people got stung with Neverwinter, I saw so many of them spider mounts running around and the players had paid over a hundred quid. The game has now flopped it seems, I suspect them players are now feeling a little sore.

    its things like this that make me very wary of paying real money. Like some have said, we are paying to do some of the testing for them, really we should be getting paid for our time but as well all know with a new game like this they know players will pay, and so..

  • NothanNothan Member Posts: 19

    Sure it's hard, I made a bad decision with the future prophet Dragon shit hit and I would not want to do it again with this game.  Question gift, I hope that it's worth and that the objects are indestructible

    Sorry for my poor english

     


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