Everquest was the first MMO I ever played. I sank more hours
into that game than I care to admit. Let’s just say my high school years weren’t
the most social times. When Everquest II was announced, I had my pre-order in
the day they were available, and I played that game for a similarly
embarrassing number of hours. I’ve played many other MMO’s since these games,
and I am sure to play many more in the coming years. My play style for MMO’s
has become quite erratic, playing for a while, losing interest, coming back
months later. It suits me fine.
And then Everquest Next was announced and with it Everquest
Next Landmark. I watched out of curiosity, knowing my MMO interest had faded,
but still wondering what SOE would pull out of their hats next. I was blown
away by what Next plans to offer. It still remains to be seen if this will come
to fruition, but it’s ambitious to say the least. So EQN was still at least a
year or two out, with no hints to narrow that timetable down. EQN Landmark
however, was due out soon after watching these videos. I put in for beta, and
after sadly not getting in, waited some more. They finally offered the ability
to buy special packs to get into closed beta…and I bought in. I spent the full
$100 because well, SOE owns a small piece of my soul, I wanted to help the game
succeed, and the perks offered were nice.
I downloaded the game, waited on the patch and logged in. My
computer made all sorts of pretty colors…but not the ones the game told it to.
My graphics card (GeForce 630) was way too outdated. Long story short, I
upgraded my computer, something that had been on my to-do list for months
anyways, and got it installed and up and running.
It is a beautiful game. I could wander the world for hours
just taking in the scenery, and I have. Now, for those of you who don’t know,
EQN Landmark is essentially a gorgeous Minecraft. It uses the voxel system and
smooths them so they form free flowing terrain, instead of 8-bit terrain. I
plucked around in the closed beta for a while, starting to make a house, but
understanding little to nothing about the tools. After a time, my interest
faded for a while and I put it aside.
Open beta came, and my open beta keys I could distribute
came along with it. Having a few friends in game helped reinvigorate my
interest, as well as the major changes that had occurred since my last login. I
came back, and started into harvesting big time. I built up my harvesting tools
to the second to last tier, got the crafting stations and tools I needed, and
got ready to build. Then I remembered something. A huge flaw in my plan to
create beautiful masterpieces in this world. When it comes to this type of art
(drawing, modelling, etc), I am awful. I can see what I want in my mind, but it
usually comes out lopsided and sad looking. I still had a blast doing it
though, because that was MY lopsided, sad looking tree house. The tools they
offer, which constantly are getting refined, give the players a wide array of
techniques to use to build and sculpt. And artists being clever, they have
warped the intended uses into new, fascinating techniques creating even more gorgeous
creations. I’m jealous of them, I really am. But at the same time, I get a
sense of pride out of completing anything that ends up looking something like
what I originally thought of.
I have taken another break, as of now, I want to be able to
continue to have fun with the game, so I don’t want to burn out before they
even complete it. They are in the process of adding water to the game, first as
just scenery, but then as building blocks and swimmable areas. The dev team
gets a patch out every week; whether it’s just a few small prop additions (pre
made furniture, etc), or massive reworking of the game.
I can’t wait to see how their vision comes to life when it
is all said and done, and I know the dedicated folks over at SOE will continue
to add content for players to enjoy for years (decades) to come.
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-Sociopathic Score-
I personally don’t
get any sociopathic joy out of the game…but early in beta I was wandering
around the map and fell into a hole…down 2 claims deep into an elaborate prison
someone had built. I had no way out except to use the stuck command…but I
couldn’t even get mad because DAMN was it pretty….so the potential for
sociopaths exists here…
-Sophomoric Score-
Open world sandbox,
no scripting to judge by, gameplay fairly straight forward
-Strategic Score-
I am going to warp
the definition of this one, because I believe the strategy involved with this
game is the artistry involved. If you are an artist – it’s a great game in
which to explore your creativity!
-Mac
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