Kinda bugs me when people insist they cannot play the original EverQuest because of “the horrible graphics”. Sure, seven years ago, the graphics were blocky – but that was seven years ago. Things have changed quite a lot. This shot, killing some treants in the new Prophecy of Ro zone of Taka’hiz… (or whatever…), wouldn’t look out of place in EQ2, or even WoW, if you made the colors brighter.
Graphics are only part of what makes a game great. Gameplay is another part. And community is the most important of all. Best graphics in the world won’t prop up crappy gameplay or no community.
That is EQ1’s strength. There is no community stronger than EQ’s. Many of these people have known each other more than five years, know things about each other their families don’t know. Almost everyone in EQ has tried WoW, EQ2, or some other game. What gets them back? The community.
WoW has great graphics and stellar gameplay. But they really missed the boat on community. I don’t know what Blizzard could do differently; I’m not even sure it’s their fault, or if there was anything they could have done. I suspect that because the game is so much easier than any other MMO, the kind of person who would be shunned for their behavior at an early level in DAoC or EQ, can reach max level in WoW without really interacting with other people.
This is the kind of person who thinks the group or raid was set up specifically to get them items. Lord help you if you have two or three of those in a group… and you will.
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After reading this article two days ago and your observation on EQ’s community and why WoW doesn’t have it, I incorporated it into my PvP thread here:
http://www.gunpowderandmagic.com/modules.php?name=Forums&file=viewtopic&t=30