Everquest 2

I've been playing a friends EQ 2, but so far, and I haven't gotten far enough in it to say for certain how good it is. But, I can say this...much like Doom 3, the optimization of the graphic coding is awesome. Though it takes a heftier system then is currently available to run all the bells and whistles, I've seen it run on a midrange system with many graphics options on, and it's a freakin beautiful game! I like the GUI interface alot more than I ever did the first game. With a decent system, (2.4Ghz, 128MB Graphics Card, and 1GB RAM) you'll get some pretty lush graphics at about 15-20 fps.

More on this as I see more. :)
 
ok we got the damned thing and then we had to get a new memory chip and then we had to get a new graphics card but it wasn't the right one so alas we haven't played the game
total so far
game = 50
memory chip = on sale 80 somethin
wrong graphics card = 95 on sale
grand total $ 225
playin time 0 :c2:
 
Pirates:Live the Life

Do you guys know any good sites to dowload this game from
 
to my knowledge you can't download this game you have to buy this game its like 10 disks for the cd and two for the dvd
if you have a friend that Owns the game you can borrow it and load it and you get a Code to sign in with and a free week of play then it's 13'95 a month for eq 2 alone or you can go with Station.com access for 21.95 and you get access to a slew of other SOE e-games all included acces with the pass But you have to Own all the games like StarWars Galaxies KOTOR EQ1 and so on and so forth look into it at either
Station.com or Everquest2.com
:p
 
You know, the more I play this, the more I absolutely love it. I like WOW as well, but the graphics are seriously lacking compared to EQ2, and with bigger, better processors and cards coming out, that gap will probably get even larger (EQ2 is the ONLY game I know of currently that has settings recommended for a 512MB Card) I can't imagine how beautiful it'll be with those enabled.
The crafting systems is just genius...how better to make crafting interesting, then to make it more like a battle!
Plus, in only visiting two small starter villages, (haven't been thru mainland Qeynos yet), I already have 40-50 quests. That's insane! Kudos to SOE on this one...I think it's well underrated, and WOW overrated...though I do enjoy them both!
 
i don't have WOW :S
but i do love EQ2 i love flyin around on the ???(i don't know what the hell it's called) hehe the bird thing :dr:
 
You're obviously much further along than I am demi! Bird thing.....hmm...would that be a Dragon? Lol. Abatross? Ostrich? And by the way, what kind of hardware are you playing on?
 
NO not a Dragon (like I wouldn't know a DRAGON hehe)

it's like the thing in the last harry potter move but I'm still drawin a blank as to what they are callin it in the EQ2 game so ...
and as for my hardware I think that's a little to personal don't you lol :p
 
I have both EQ2 and WoW. There are elements about both games that I like over the other. I really like how EQ2 tried to make the combat a little less predictable with their new con system, but I think the combat takes a bit long and the A.I on some of the mobs bothers me...They often just stand in the same 20 foot radius and the wandering patterns aren't too dramatic. In WoW, the mobs wander alot more and aren't nearly as stagnant. I really like the crafting in both games. What I'm disappointed with in both MMOs are the character creation interfaces. Neither has enough options, and the EQ options are so similar, they all really look the same. WoW's models are absolutely dreadful--the hands are way too big for the bodies--and they too don't have enough options. With games like CoH and Galaxies having intensely intricate creation systems with lots of options, I expect this generation of MMOs to at least stand up to those qualities. Even though most people create "idealized" avatars even when and if they had the option to make a fat wood elf, the option, the ability to customize your in-game presence is not just something to strive for. It should be a standard for this generation.

I agree with you Huddy. EQ2 graphics are very nice. My card is a decent low end fx card, and the game looks great on it and runs without any lag when I push the graphics to their extreme. But, I also think the aesthetic is a bit dull. I prefer the WoW aesthetic. I think the vision of the Blizzard Devs was more individualized, but the quality isn't even close. i guess the question is which you prefer--technical quality or creative quality. EQ'2s graphic aesthetic isn't unartistic, just a bit nondescript.

While I'm ranting on, I'm a great fan of the traditional EQ base classes and think that EQ 2 has created the best MMO for group play from that tradition. I can't stand that WoW has no real crowd control. It's very limited. The ice mage isn't a good resolution, IMO. And the fact that different classes each have a CC ability or spell can often result in them being misused or used on the same target, because no matter how well you communicate or macro your spells, when in combat, if you have an add and everyone tries to take care of it in their way, things get frenetic. I like having a crowd control class and this is one element that hurts WoW's gameplay. Eventhough you don't need it a lot of the time (because it's fairly easy to isolate fights), when you do, the options are limited.
But, my choice these days has actually been WoW. The reason is because it's a lot easier to leave for a few days and come back to. It has a better solo game. I've had to be a "causal" MMO player these days with all my new responsibilities, and I think WoW is a bit more accessible to the casual player, whereas EQ2 makes it tough to leave and come back to without feeling left behind from the rest of the players. That's because it really is a more difficult game (which I applaud).

Just my few cents/sense
 
Good points there my friend, and I agree with you on almost all of them, besides the asthetics of EQ2, but again, different eyes see different things. But you mention you have a low end graphics card, yet run EQ2 at max settings? Could you elaborate a bit more? I currently have a 2.4Ghz Pentium 4, with an 256 MB ATI X800 XT Platinum Edition card, and 1 GB of RAM. Even with my setup, and a practically leading edge graphics card, I have to tone down the graphics options pretty substantially to get a decent framerate. Perhaps you're not setting some options correctly, and this is why you have flawless framerates, but the graphics aren't as lush as you wanted?
I thought the character creation in EQ2 was fairly decent, definitely not on par with City of Heroes' creation, but what is? Of course, with super heroes, you can really relax any asthetic preconceptions, because of the "crayon box" colors and wear of characters. Keeping within the realm of the fantasy setting though, I think EQ2 allowed customization to the best point they could.
So far I haven't had a problem soloing in EQ2, but there again, I'm only lvl 10. WOW's concept of leveling "catch up" is nice, and does allow a better opportunity to keep up with other players. But frankly, that's not really my bag anyway. It's a pity that the concept of MMO's has become "level up as fast as you can". I personally enjoy exploration of the huge worlds, and taking in the breathtaking scenery. In fact, I've become somewhat of an artist, taking screenshots of myself in cool scenery...such as high on a cliff looking down over the sea. I really level up to gain access to more places to explore. But most players just want to level for some reason...with no real goal but a number. Still, we pay to play these, so I have no beef with however people choose to play it...it's their game, and they can enjoy it how they want. I just wish I could find more "explorer" minded people to play with, then just folks looking to gain levels as fast as possible.
Do let me know more about your rig and the graphics settings though! I'm rather curious!
 
When I push my graphics to "their extreme" which is not the highest option, but it's above "balanced," the game looks nice. I have an Athlon 2800 (what's that 2.6ghz?) 1g dual channel, Geforce FX 5900, but I have $300 hundred dollars in the bank going towards a new one as soon as I can get the power supplies. :) I have a few friends that play EQ 2 as well and don't have lots of trouble soloing, however, in comparison to WoW it's not a soloer's game. Plus, I like to play support classes--enchanter, priest,etc-- and if you choose either of these classes in EQ2, the soloing isn't easy. It's not meant to be. EQ2 is meant to be a group-oriented game, and it does that better than any other game out there imo, but it does not have the best solo game. The devs never intended for it to be. But they are now trying to compete with WoW in that arena, that's why they're releasing more "solo content" through their patches and expansions.

When it comes to the character creation screens, I see how easy it is for CoH to create one with super heroes, but it's not the content that makes their character creation screen intense, it's the options. Any game can have a multiplicity of options, no matter the content. I mentioned Galaxies earlier, and even AC has more options than these two games and it was published in '99. So, I'm not going to let them off that easily--they both had as much to work with as CoH or Star Wars Galaxies. For EQ2 I think it was a tad more difficult, because they wanted to maintain racial differences--that may have created some limitations on the options, but EG2's character models are quite dull, even if they are pretty. All the faces are stoics and the elf and human female models are all "femininely petite". It gets boring to see this in MMOs after having 9 years to transcend this silly standard. WoW's character models have too many angles, and are disproportioned, but they attempted to disrupt the ridiculous norms of the genre by making tall, tough looking elves, hippy humans, and cute trolls. The character creation process should be just as good as the game and there's not excuse for it not to compete with others out there. If we want the genre to advance, the developers of these games have to maintain the quality. Games, after all, are made good enough to withstand their competition and if that standard isn't pushed, the genre is in danger of remaining stagnant.

Ultimately, the games have different game play and they both have upsides and downsides. It's okay if EQ2 or WoW isn't the embodiment of the perfect MMO. They aren't. EQ2 is the best group game out there and WoW is the better for other reasons. But they both have a ways to go to be as good as the fanboys and grrls make them out to be.
 
And I like to play the same as you, Huddy. I take my time. The way I see it is that I have like, oh, years to play, so there's no reason in rushing. Plus I get to keep my trade skills up to a competitive level that way. I also enjoy looking at sunsets and exploring places I shouldn't be at my level. :c:
 
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