Some really great stories here. I've enjoyed reading them.
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As for my experience with Everquest it was in August of 99. My brother was given a birthday gift from our aunt and it was this fantasy game called Everquest. So, it's my brothers 11th birthday. She said she just saw it at the store and it looked like the kind of game my brother would play. She totally just bought it on a whim! (am I glad she did...)
So my brother opens it and at the time we're both nerding pretty hard on Diablo II so I was kinda hesitant about my brother playing some other game, so I wasn't exactly thrilled to check it out. I'll never forget though when my brother called me over to watch him create his character (after we both begged our grandma to let us use her credit card so we could play ;P) and watched him cycle through the character races and classes. I was instantly hooked! I wanted him to hurry so I could create a character. I hadn't even seen the game yet, just character models in a little box with big bulky inch thick choices for classes and races, but I remember being so totally blown away by all of my options.
When I finally got to make my character I chose a High Elf Paladin. I thought he looked like such a bad ass (I'm not sure how?). I remember when my brother explained to me (as an 11 year old explains to a 13 year old) that Everquest, or, Norrath, was a forever existing world that continued to exist even when you logged out, and that anyone with a blue name is another player. I lost my top. You can do that in a video game? This shit is like real life! only way more fun!
I was mad addicted right off the bat though! I would pretend to go to school and sneak back in my bedroom just so I could play. My brother and I shared a PC at the time and we'd take turns doing 2hr sessions each and I remember trying to come up with anything to get to stretch my 2 hrs some how lol. I created so many characters though...and leveled 1-30 or 40 and then make a new character.
What ultimately caused me to leave though was the Planes of Power expansion. I hated how small the world felt when the port books got added and never got used to it. I missed the once so realistic world of Norrath that was so devalued from that expansion on (arguably from Luclin on) Traveling or adventuring naturally felt pointless because I could just click a book and run through a zone and click another book and be in another continent in 3-5 minutes. I quit playing shortly after and would check back in every couple expansions or so with the hope that somehow the game had changed or gotten better but each time I was more and more disappointed and saddened at what had become of a once amazing game.
Years and years later I found Shards of Dalaya or whatever and played it for about a year and a half until I found out about P99 and I've been hooked ever since. Thanks for 16 great years EQ! Happy Birthday! (ps. I love you)