In my experience with playing both Everquest 2 and World of Warcraft, I have noticed that EQ2 groups are a lot more likely to grind, while WoW groups are usually questing.
What can be changed in EQ2 to encourage more group questing?
Here are some thoughts that come to mind from comparing these 2 games:
* Allow quest sharing.
This is an absolute must. The 'Shared' tab in the quest window is step in the right direction, but there should be a capability to share your quests. Having a quest of your own is a lot more motivating that merely helping a groupmate finish his.
In fact EQ2 is perfectly suited for quest sharing, since a lot of the time you don't need to return to the quest giver to receive the reward. In WoW it is sometimes a challenge - if you get a quest from groupmate, you will then have to figure out how to turn it in.
* Provide better directions.
WoW quests usually provide decent hints on where to find the mobs. In EQ2, sometimes it's merely "Oh, the mob is in Antonica... somewhere". This seems to be an echo of some old EQ1 quests, where you had to travel across half the world, without the maps to find the target NPC.
* Make sure the mob counts are sufficient.
There's nothing more annoying than finding the only place your mobs spawn, only to see that there's not enough of them to finish the quest. Waiting for respawns is not only waste of time, but it also breaks an immersion.
In any MMO, mobs respawn by necessity, since other players also need to get a chance to kill them. However, it's easy to imagine that the mob I killed is gone for good, as long as I am not sitting few feet away, and waiting for him to rematerialize.
* Increase the quest experience gain.
I haven't done calculations, but it seems that WoW quests generally give more xp, thus making them more advantageous than grinding.
* Make sure that quests fit together into a story line.
I am not sure how important this one to others, but it's pretty vital to me.
In WoW, the quests seem to have continuity and tell the story of the world. In EQ2, I usually don't have that feeling - perhaps it's huge amount of quests that causes it, but it seems like world is full of NPCs who don't really care about Qeynos vs Freeport standoff and just do their own thing.
Andy
- Forums
- EverQuest II
- General Discussion
- How to encourage group questing in EQ2
How to encourage group questing in EQ2Follow
So basically, you want EQ2 to be WoW ? Maybe you should just stick to WoW.
Even though quest sharing MAY be an interesting point, I mostly totally disagree with all your other points. Better directions ? Adventuring and searching is part of the fun of the game. Of course theres times where I can go clueless, but that's why you have friends in the game. I like to ask myself where i have to go or what i have to do next to get that quest to update. It stimulates my brain a little. Not to mention that sometimes you find interesting spots while searching for something specific. Really not a problem for me here !
Ive never seen mob spawns being a problem. There are mostly enough of each, and in the case the mob is rarer, usually the reward for the quest goes along with it. I barely ever had to camp for mobs except for specific unique mobs for HQ and such. Or quests that require an insane amount of mobs like the 100 NB in RV. Then camping is a necessity. Imagine someone that would try to adventure in RV if there would be 5 000 NB there to suffice everyone's on-the-spot need of the mob !
Quest xp increase...this has been done in one of the last patch, dont recall which one. Got 2,5% today out of a quest that conned blue at level 53...and it was way too much in my opinion compared to the risks the quest involved. I found that mostly quest xp was fair, not always perfect, but nothing is perfect anyway.
I would agree on more quests based on the storyline. Even some of the HQ have no link together or dont come out to be a part of LORE.
Basically, what you are asking for is for EQ2 to become like WoW, which is way too easy, and I already think that EQ2 is kind of easy to start with, so that is why I am not really buying it.
Even though quest sharing MAY be an interesting point, I mostly totally disagree with all your other points. Better directions ? Adventuring and searching is part of the fun of the game. Of course theres times where I can go clueless, but that's why you have friends in the game. I like to ask myself where i have to go or what i have to do next to get that quest to update. It stimulates my brain a little. Not to mention that sometimes you find interesting spots while searching for something specific. Really not a problem for me here !
Ive never seen mob spawns being a problem. There are mostly enough of each, and in the case the mob is rarer, usually the reward for the quest goes along with it. I barely ever had to camp for mobs except for specific unique mobs for HQ and such. Or quests that require an insane amount of mobs like the 100 NB in RV. Then camping is a necessity. Imagine someone that would try to adventure in RV if there would be 5 000 NB there to suffice everyone's on-the-spot need of the mob !
Quest xp increase...this has been done in one of the last patch, dont recall which one. Got 2,5% today out of a quest that conned blue at level 53...and it was way too much in my opinion compared to the risks the quest involved. I found that mostly quest xp was fair, not always perfect, but nothing is perfect anyway.
I would agree on more quests based on the storyline. Even some of the HQ have no link together or dont come out to be a part of LORE.
Basically, what you are asking for is for EQ2 to become like WoW, which is way too easy, and I already think that EQ2 is kind of easy to start with, so that is why I am not really buying it.
I gotta agree with Random here... I think most of your points are non-issues.
Sheesh, why not just cut to the chase and let me hit the "Q" key to bring up a list of quests for the zone that I can choose from... then I don't have to "waste" any time at all finding quest givers! Seriously though, if my friends or I want the quest that badly, we should just go get it...
Personally, I don't want or need hints on how to get to where the mobs are. And if I can't figure it out there is always guild chat or /ooc.
Done and done. I have never seen a sitation where there weren't enough mobs to complete a quest and a case where I have needed a huge quantity of mobs to satisfy the quest giver, I figure SOE is just tellin' me that I shouldn't do it all in one session.
Again, not something I would want to see. The amount of XP currently received is fine. If I want to level faster, I can always pick on higher level mobs.
This is the only point I can't fault and although it doesn't matter much to me, if that's what floats your boat, more lore would be fine.
Overall, I feel that you're looking for instant gratification here and in my opinion, things just shouldn't happen that fast. There is such a focus on leveling and rushing to lvl 60 and I just don't see it being the point of the excercise. The game is so much fun in so may different ways, why would you want to rush though it.
Edited, Sat Oct 22 05:14:21 2005 by OldBlueDragon
Quote:
Allow quest sharing. This is an absolute must... Having a quest of your own is a lot more motivating that merely helping a groupmate finish his.
Sheesh, why not just cut to the chase and let me hit the "Q" key to bring up a list of quests for the zone that I can choose from... then I don't have to "waste" any time at all finding quest givers! Seriously though, if my friends or I want the quest that badly, we should just go get it...
Quote:
Provide better directions. WoW quests usually provide decent hints on where to find the mobs.
Personally, I don't want or need hints on how to get to where the mobs are. And if I can't figure it out there is always guild chat or /ooc.
Quote:
Make sure the mob counts are sufficient.
Done and done. I have never seen a sitation where there weren't enough mobs to complete a quest and a case where I have needed a huge quantity of mobs to satisfy the quest giver, I figure SOE is just tellin' me that I shouldn't do it all in one session.
Quote:
Increase the quest experience gain.
Again, not something I would want to see. The amount of XP currently received is fine. If I want to level faster, I can always pick on higher level mobs.
Quote:
Make sure that quests fit together into a story line.
This is the only point I can't fault and although it doesn't matter much to me, if that's what floats your boat, more lore would be fine.
Overall, I feel that you're looking for instant gratification here and in my opinion, things just shouldn't happen that fast. There is such a focus on leveling and rushing to lvl 60 and I just don't see it being the point of the excercise. The game is so much fun in so may different ways, why would you want to rush though it.
Edited, Sat Oct 22 05:14:21 2005 by OldBlueDragon
Sorry Andy, I don't agree with most of what you're looking for at all, just sounds like a way to dumb the game down and totally unnecessary to me.
I hate the idea of quest sharing like that. I love questing and want to be there every step of the way to get the satisfaction of moving forward. With quest sharing you may as well let someone else play your toon.
I hate the idea of quest sharing like that. I love questing and want to be there every step of the way to get the satisfaction of moving forward. With quest sharing you may as well let someone else play your toon.
I've spent entire playing sessions helping out lower level folks accomplish their quests. I get a lot of satisfaction from that, and I consider it planting a seed of positive cooperation.
It's not all about the grind or shiny bauble at the end.
It's not all about the grind or shiny bauble at the end.
14 posts
*raises goblet* Here here!
11 posts
Personally, I can't argue too much never having played a game where shared quests were an option. Some things in there sounded like he they were just impatient for levels and XP, but I've known some who have, and their biggest joy of it was different classes could get different quests in places, and that allowed fighters to do the Wizard quests and such. Now I'm unsure how that works in EQ2 (only had the full game about a week or so) but maybe that could be an issue? I would like to group more, and this may be a way. Just my half cent.
I will put in my 
Allow quest sharing.
If a person wont help finish a quest without reward, do you really think they are worth grouping with? Part of a good MMO is finding friends worth grouping with, and people willing to help without rewards are worth grouping with.
Right Now I think they have it right, it creates more of a bond between players. I have grouped several times for a tough quest, where we start at the begining just so that everyone gets to the same point and finishes.
* Provide better directions.
The directions given are fine, I dont want everything handed to me on a silver plater, it also gives a reason to explore and lear, or talk to the community for guidence. You talk about immersion, but having everything told to you from the get go isnt immersive. Quests are more immersive if you actually have to read them, think about them, and to travel around getting hints. Just consider the Authurian quest for the holy grail, not a single here is where you get it.
Make sure the mob counts are sufficient.
I do agree some mob counts seem to scarce, but I never wait for a respawn, there are other things to do. If the mobs only spawn 5 at a time, I kill them then move on to another quest, then head back later.
Increase the quest experience gain.
I dont agree here either, quest xp is where it should be, there are so many quests and some that require the same things that I make a decent amount of leveling by questing. You also have to remember that not everyone wants to travel and do quests, some like to grind. The way the game is you have people that quest, and people who grind, both can do what they want.
Make sure that quests fit together into a story line You also have to remember that not everyone would care what the person next to them wants, or about a city on the other side of the world. It is more immersion into the world. There are quests that do fit togeather, you just need to find them.
Though I do wish they would add something like the epic qst line in eqoa. They were a series of quests at 20, 30, 40, and 49. that were a continuous story, and got gradually harder with the 49 one requiring a raid force at the end. At the end of the quest you were given a choice of abilities and a weapon. Then at 49 if you chose the same ability al the way through you get an improved version. They did add 60 epics but that was to another story line, and had more options.
Edited, Sun Oct 23 08:42:07 2005 by dirges
Allow quest sharing.
If a person wont help finish a quest without reward, do you really think they are worth grouping with? Part of a good MMO is finding friends worth grouping with, and people willing to help without rewards are worth grouping with.
Right Now I think they have it right, it creates more of a bond between players. I have grouped several times for a tough quest, where we start at the begining just so that everyone gets to the same point and finishes.
* Provide better directions.
The directions given are fine, I dont want everything handed to me on a silver plater, it also gives a reason to explore and lear, or talk to the community for guidence. You talk about immersion, but having everything told to you from the get go isnt immersive. Quests are more immersive if you actually have to read them, think about them, and to travel around getting hints. Just consider the Authurian quest for the holy grail, not a single here is where you get it.
Make sure the mob counts are sufficient.
I do agree some mob counts seem to scarce, but I never wait for a respawn, there are other things to do. If the mobs only spawn 5 at a time, I kill them then move on to another quest, then head back later.
Increase the quest experience gain.
I dont agree here either, quest xp is where it should be, there are so many quests and some that require the same things that I make a decent amount of leveling by questing. You also have to remember that not everyone wants to travel and do quests, some like to grind. The way the game is you have people that quest, and people who grind, both can do what they want.
Make sure that quests fit together into a story line You also have to remember that not everyone would care what the person next to them wants, or about a city on the other side of the world. It is more immersion into the world. There are quests that do fit togeather, you just need to find them.
Though I do wish they would add something like the epic qst line in eqoa. They were a series of quests at 20, 30, 40, and 49. that were a continuous story, and got gradually harder with the 49 one requiring a raid force at the end. At the end of the quest you were given a choice of abilities and a weapon. Then at 49 if you chose the same ability al the way through you get an improved version. They did add 60 epics but that was to another story line, and had more options.
Edited, Sun Oct 23 08:42:07 2005 by dirges
The only thing I would like to see is the quest sharing. I think it would encourage grouping in the way that everyone is working toward the same goal.
There are alot of quests in WOW that will not allow you to share a quest becuase it is second, third, etc. in a series of quests, nothing wrong with keeping that in EQ2.
Other than that, I like everything else in EQ2. WOW was fun for a while, but it does lose its luster because alot of it is too simple and goals are too easy to achieve. It seemed to boil down to grinding to the end for the prize and not much thought or challenge was put into the quests.
Just my two coppers
There are alot of quests in WOW that will not allow you to share a quest becuase it is second, third, etc. in a series of quests, nothing wrong with keeping that in EQ2.
Other than that, I like everything else in EQ2. WOW was fun for a while, but it does lose its luster because alot of it is too simple and goals are too easy to achieve. It seemed to boil down to grinding to the end for the prize and not much thought or challenge was put into the quests.
Just my two coppers
Try going into Nektropos Castle or the Ruins of Varsoon with a group, you'll all have more quests than you can handle. Any instanced zone, really. All the quests in an instance fit together very nicely into a bigger story and play out almost like an adventure game at times.
Recent Visitors: 92
All times are in CST
Anonymous Guests (92)
- Forums
- EverQuest II
- General Discussion
- How to encourage group questing in EQ2
© 2024 Fanbyte LLC