EQ TLP - Oakwynd (Evolving Ruleset Progression Server)

Secrets said:

I wouldn't trust Daybreak to make an EQ3 any of us would want to play at this point.
They are really focused on making a cash shop f2p hybrid experience first, and a game second.

I think that even Pantheon has a better chance of releasing a proper 'EQ3' that players would like to actually play instead of Daybreak at this point, and that's a big stretch, given that Pantheon is in a rough state after a decade.

An EQ3 would look visually pleasing, and have the branding attached to it - but would have the predatory monetization model that EQ2 has. After all, EQ2 has a higher ARPPU than EQ1 ever will, despite having absolutely unfun systems.

Anyone who can read between the lines will start to see where Daybreak's idea of an EQ3 matches with private investors and not in line with their community.
TLP/TLE players suffer through it, because they 'don't trust emulators' to stay online or handle their character responsibly despite being free, and there's no alternative to playing TLP/TLE/Live if you're looking for an "EverQuest experience."

EQ2 has stat familiars, stat mounts, mercenary gear, P2W skipping spell research (as the only way to reasonably 'kit out' a character and top DPS charts!), item infusers, loot crates with OP mercenaries, unique utility items, etc - these are things their current players do not want. Their 'free to play' tier is half-baked and a glorified free trial - except, for the fact, their free trial had more to offer than their free to play experience does for 14 days...

But let's change gears for a moment to say what awesome could come, despite the above notion that 'EQ3 will likely have these systems...'

Daybreak is a tech powerhouse company first, imo, and a game developer second.
Their engineers are better than most in industry on the tech side - the people they contracted or 'hired from within' (Daylight Dev - might be internal?) to do the 64-bit upgrade alongside the DX11/DX12 ports, and the upcoming UI ports, have been incredibly great at making solid, reliable technology, and specifically, with upgrading legacy tech.

I'm surprised they simply do not lease out those teams or advertise them better - plenty of people in industry would pay top dollar to upgrade their old games' engines before they become end-of-life.

As someone who just recently completed a 64bit port of a game virtually alone over 6 months, the process is incredibly arduous - and they deserve a lot of credit for pulling that off. It's incredible that EQ runs as well as it does in 2023.

You can bet that Daybreak will likely release an EQ3, just based on their previous experience, their existing tech, and the ability to rapidly create new systems with their small team. Company-wide, I can't imagine they have more than 20-40 game-specific developers across all disciplines. That's standard for industry, but what's incredible is how much their small team has also been able to accomplish on the tech side.

EQ3 will likely be chock full of nostalgia and homages, along with incredible art, technical design, and maybe some awesomely designed gameplay systems. That's nearly guaranteed.

However, underneath the pretty exterior, there's still the fact that their monetization model is half-baked, and in some cases, rotten. This is what I fear: the video gamer in me is thinking that it won't be palatable to their existing EQ/EQ2 players, but their hope is the brand and the technology may be strong enough to set a 'new normal' of mobile studio-esque tactics in their PC games that is 'tame' enough on the surface. EQ/EQ2 won't be affected, of course, but an EQ3 would obviously be popular enough, and a safe enough bet to set up all of their monetization systems out the gate without player backlash.

Existing EQ/EQ2 players would be enough to set the illusion that an EQ3 would be 'popular' - their playerbase getting wish-washed by the new influx of people checking out 'the new EverQuest game' and the new players will be assuming that this monetization is how EQ/EQ2 have always been.

This is following suit with what the industry - and specifically, their competitor from ages past - is doing with the new Warcraft title, bringing Diablo Immortal-esque tactics to D4, etc... it's a tactic that works for monetization at the expense of brand loyalty to push their 'aging titles' into the 'modern market'.

Even WoW's likely to have a reckoning soon, as they are bringing back Torghast in some format, they're adding a form of borrowed power soon that was datamined, etc... investors and shareholders want PC titles to monetize like mobile titles do, because they 'don't understand the reason why they can't' - so likely, these decisions have come from above as they noticed engagement tanked (by design, because people can acquire gear easier) and profits dipped (by design, as people won't have to spend as much on cosmetics with the trading post)

Feels like the industry is slowing eating itself alive. It's going to be an interesting next 10 years as indies compete with established industry giants, and I feel like industry giants will lose this battle long-term - mainly because indies do not require the profits that giants 'require' to stay alive and paint Bobby Kotick's new house gold.

Click to expand...