What would it take for a new mmo to recapture the feeling of eq?

[webrunner5]

Originally Posted by Teneran [You must be logged in to view images. Log in or Register.]

^^^^^

We on P99 enjoy how punishing and challenging and the forced community of EQ. We like earning our rewards and levels, sometimes through arduous questing and/or camping. But ... most people don't. If you launched the original EQ today, it would fail, there wouldn't even have been Kunark because it would have been shut down before any expansions were launched. You cannot make money on classic EQ. This project is thriving but it has ONE blue server. There aren't enough people for even two blue servers ... that equals a failed business model in the real world.

He makes some damned good points. Wow is a LOT more popular than EQ live and here by far.

I think Brad's EQ Next may be popular also. People now want a lot more flash in the game, and the graphics engines are capable of doing it along with newer graphic cards.

And I don't think most people anymore have the time it takes here to get to 60 playing a couple hours 2, 3 times a week. It is just to hard to do that. And hard to group for only a few hours also.

I know there is like 1,700 people on here as of late, but that is a very little amount of people from the whole damn world that are playing. This is not some roaring success. [You must be logged in to view images. Log in or Register.]

We are a few, and damned few people, that still enjoy a game in a sense that can never be duplicated again. It is hard mode and very time consuming. And that is what makes us come back to it, and obliviously old memories. [You must be logged in to view images. Log in or Register.]

[natx808]

modern day MMO have no soul. that is what is needed to recapture the feeling of eq.

[Clark]

Originally Posted by natx808 [You must be logged in to view images. Log in or Register.]

modern day MMO have no soul. that is what is needed to recapture the feeling of eq.

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[tizznyres]

A world that feels large, open, and immersive. A world that doesn't offer automated GUI mapping with perfect GPS positioning, and doesn't brightly label every NPC or quest offering that is available; and certainly one that doesn't hold your hand directly to your objective(s). Less NPC driven / effortless fast-travel, at least without the help of other players. Less instancing whenever possible, and an effort to make more of the desirable content contestable among players.

An emphasis on player-to-player dynamics. In EverQuest, especially early on, player interactions were extremely important at all stages of the game. Before hand drawn maps were commonplace and easy to find, seeking the aid of other players who knew zones well, classes that could SoW, Buff HP or Regen, Cast Invis or IvU, Resurrect, or even Teleport you were extraordinarily useful.

A strict and punishing, but equally conquerable Risk vs Reward design both at the early and endgame stages of the game. Games where dying or making tragic mistakes means a only few seconds to a few minutes of inconvenience, or a slight durability / currency penalty really don't grasp this concept. Additionally, games that require little to no real dedication to gain the highest quality loot fall short in the same way.

A strong player-driven Economy that relies on individual players to harvest and craft much of the more desirable items in the game. Along with this, a distancing from the idea of server-wide, instant-transaction, zero-interaction Auction Houses or similar setups. A return to the idea of direct player trading, albeit with less of the tedium that was involved in early EQ trading. Simple things like linking items in chat are generally an improvement across the board.

A simple concept that's all but lost in modern MMOs: the idea of discovering and solving quests that most other players likely don't even know exist. Whether this is done through EQ's rather archaic idea of Hailing NPC's and trying to discover quest keywords or a more modern and less tedious method. This added a level of intrigue and mystery to EverQuest that I haven't seen in any online multiplayer RPG since. It helped make the world feel like it was something special, and that there were always secrets to be discovered. Not to mention solving the epic 1.0 quests originally were massive efforts on behalf of countless players in the community. Even in 2015 I find it fascinating to go back and read classic-era archived posts about how certain quests were solved originally.

A distancing from the common modern Cash Shops and similar real-money offerings, especially those that provide certain players advantages over others. Not only do I find these things offensive, they really don't make any sense at all and are entirely non-canon in regards to a game world.

Other less important, but very simple concepts such as Currency having a weight-value, and a rather substantial one at that. Struggling to move huge sums of money and valuable items around with ease may seem like an unnecessary inconvenience to some, but it adds a level of immersion and realism to a world.

Finally, the most abstract but perhaps most important thing: A clear and unique vision shared between the core development team that remains true throughout the game's career. I realize publisher and player demands may change over time, but remaining as true as possible to an original vision I feel is of paramount importance.

[Kika Maslyaka]

Originally Posted by tizznyres [You must be logged in to view images. Log in or Register.]

A simple concept that's all but lost in modern MMOs: the idea of discovering and solving quests that most other players likely don't even know exist. Whether this is done through EQ's rather archaic idea of Hailing NPC's and trying to discover quest keywords or a more modern and less tedious method. This added a level of intrigue and mystery to EverQuest that I haven't seen in any online multiplayer RPG since. It helped make the world feel like it was something special, and that there were always secrets to be discovered. Not to mention solving the epic 1.0 quests originally were massive efforts on behalf of countless players in the community. Even in 2015 I find it fascinating to go back and read classic-era archived posts about how certain quests were solved originally.

This doesn't really work as well as you imagine. Once a quest was discovered and solved - everyone just reads its walk-through online, including useful comments on how to skip unnecessary steps [You must be logged in to view images. Log in or Register.] How many people playing on this server have actually EVER found and solved their own quests without looking it up on Alakhazam first? How many people on this server have wiki page opened with check marks to each step done when doing their epics? This approach works well for a one time DnD campaign, but not for MMO.

[Zalmo]

Basically what everyone else has said is pretty spot on. I'd say an MMO like EQ could actually be possible in the not too distant future as MMOs have drifted quite far from this type of game so it would stand alone. It wouldn't need millions of players to be profitable, likely even 1-200k would be plenty enough. The problem is modern MMOs are trying to cast their net over the whole market.

[mr_jon3s]

It's not really possible because EQ hit a sweet spot. The internet was young and didn't have many sources for information about games. Hardly anyone had MMO experience. It took years for people to figure out everything in EQ. Now in a modern MMO people know everything about the game in a week and are max level.

I think the only real way to recapture the feeling will be when the first full immersion VR MMO comes out. Pretty much with you actually being the character.

[mycoolrausch]

Originally Posted by mr_jon3s [You must be logged in to view images. Log in or Register.]

It's not really possible because EQ hit a sweet spot. The internet was young and didn't have many sources for information about games. Hardly anyone had MMO experience. It took years for people to figure out everything in EQ. Now in a modern MMO people know everything about the game in a week and are max level.

I think the only real way to recapture the feeling will be when the first full immersion VR MMO comes out. Pretty much with you actually being the character.

I don't know about VR specifically but I think your point is more or less correct. There needs to be a substantial technology leap before the next great MMO can come out. Gameplay technology in terms of AI/procedural tech/emergence/dynamic content/etc has only very incrementally improved since 1999 in games in general. Surfaces have gotten a lot shinier though.

[StrangeTech]

Not being able to server transfer/name change one's way out of being a jerk helps. You build your own reputation and own it. In modern MMOs, you can do things "for teh lulz" and never have to worry about it. Chances are, they're never going to see you again.

Back in Classic, I had a guy do the trade scam which causes you to drop your bags. He then proceeded to snatch them up and claim innocence. I logged and switched toons, only to find he was selling my bags of gear. I confronted him in tells first, then OOC. He quickly coughed up the good, lest his reputation be ruined.

I'm not saying accountability makes EQ so much better than any other game, but (for the most part) it kept the servers and community clean.

[Barkingturtle]

First off, I have not read this thread so I'm not sure if someone already mentioned this.

The last few years when I'm not playing P99 I've been on Wurm. It has some similarities to classic EQ. It has certainly come closest to recreating that ol' EQ feeling. There are no quests. You get lost constantly. It's very hard at first. All your loot stays on you when you die and corpse runs can be truly horrifying. It is a massive time sink. It is terribly addictive. The graphics are crap. The controls are lacking. There are times when I think it's the greatest game ever.