Everquest AMA Answered!

wolfshead said:

It is my suspicion that even though the TLP servers are essentially keeping the entire EQ franchise alive, they are not getting their commensurate share of dev resources.

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wolfshead said:

Of course, devs don't have the time to play as much as hardcore players. However, that's not the question I asked. I asked them how much time do you play EQ each week. That's a simple and straightforward question. Let the EQ devs answer that question and let the chips fall where they may.

And yes, there are lots of hardcore players do know more about a MMO than developers which is why hardcore raiding guilds are used as alpha/beta testers. Many hardcore players have gone on to become notable devs in the industry.

I'd like to hear it from the actual devs themselves as to how much time they spend working. Yes, a person who has worked in the industry I have experienced 50-60 hour weeks and worse. When I was in the industry, I raided 3 hours a night. I think some honest answers from the devs would help players to understand the plight of devs and give them more appreciative of the sacrifices that are made to create the video games they love.

They may be meaningless to you but not to me and others.

The VP key quest is a terribly designed intentional bottleneck that has caused many people to quit EQ. It's a mean-spirited, tedious timesink that does nothing but frustrate players who want to experience more content with their guild. I know of people that have camped the Ancient Jarsath for 18 hours and had their AJ KSed from them on numerous occasions. I shudder to think what the total number of hours that some people have dedicated to completing the entire VP key quest.

Waiting for the random number generator to produce a rare spawn for a bloody zone key quest -- not loot -- is not an accomplishment. It's pure luck. Winning the lottery is also not an accomplishment. Of course, virtual worlds and real worlds are subject to randomness, but quests should be about achievements and accomplishments.

Unlike the EQ devs, I actually play on TLP servers. I've personally completed the VP key quest. Waiting around with 20 other players for the Pained Soul to spawn and having a DPS race to hope that you get the kill so you can loot the medallion is EQ at its worst and an utter disgrace. It's like throwing a piece of meat into a pit of starving dogs. Sadly, that is the reality for those who play on TLP servers with no Play Nice Policy and no GM support whatsoever. That's a reality that the devs who don't play have no clue about it and would change it in a heartbeat if they had to personally experience it.

If the EQ TLP dev team were forced to endure the VP key quest then they would know exactly what the players are going through. That would give them tremendous insight into the game design process. Don't force your players to endure preposterous quests when you won't do so yourself.

Let me ask you this: do you think a chef should ask people to eat food that the chef has not tasted himself? Do you think a chef that eats his own food would be a better chef than one that does not? How long do you think a restaurant will stay in business with a chef that doesn't eat his own food?

The general thrust of my article was that MMO devs need to play the MMO they are working on. My suspicion is that the EQ devs do not play their own MMO with any sense of regularity or dedication and sadly, it shows. Contrast this with how Blizzard operates. Every quest is extensively tested by devs who are working on other games within Blizzard. Blizzard employees play their own games.

Bottom line: don't expect players to play your shitty half-baked quests/content when you yourself won't do them.

The revenue that DBG makes is our business. Without the players who purchase Krono EverQuest will die. Yes, this is a strange partnership but a partnership nonetheless. We pay the devs, the devs make our game. All of us who love EQ want it to keep going. SOE and DGB don't have a track record that is inspiring, to say the least. Putting a spotlight on them and asking tough questions might actually help keep EQ going for longer.

Many of us who've played and paid for EQ over the years feel like shareholders. Shareholders should be entitled to know what is going on so the business can be managed effectively. Holly Longdale gave a disrespectful "none of your business" answer during the Reddit AMA and I think that was unfortunate. This is the same DGB that canceled EQ Next and Landmark and took a lot of money from alpha and beta testers for those products. We have every right to ask those questions.

Krono and Daybreak Cash and the All-Access Pass are the prime forms of monetization for the EQ TLP servers. I suspect that the TLP servers are subsidizing the EQ live servers. Holly Longdale admitted in a recent interview that each year EQ makes more money than the previous year. It is my suspicion that even though the TLP servers are essentially keeping the entire EQ franchise alive, they are not getting their commensurate share of dev resources. They could easily afford GMs to police the TLP servers, after all both Manger and Selo's are premium servers that require a subscription to All-Access Pass.



Thanks for sharing that.



Again thanks for sharing your insight. I agree with you on meetings. I hated meetings when I worked in the industry. I am an introvert and I'd rather be accomplishing something than chattering on endlessly in a meeting.



Fair enough.

You say that the rest of the questions weren't very useful. So you don't think it's useful to discuss why there are no more live dynamic quests, events and invasions in Norrath anymore? I was a Senior Guide and wrote and ran many official live quests. The players loved them. I got lots of positive feedback from the community. My goal as a volunteer was to help bring the dream of Norrath being a living and breathing world to fruition in just a small way. The fact that these events no longer are allowed is a tragedy and a betrayal of the spirit of EverQuest which was published on the official EQ website tilted: "Masters of the Quest" but no longer available but saved for posterity on my website:

EverQuest: Masters of the Quest - Wolfshead Online

For the record, here is one of the best articles ever written that explains the goals and aspirations of the original EverQuest team. Everyone needs to read this piece and then ask themselves if the current state of EverQuest bears any resemblance to the vision and passion for immersive online...

www.wolfsheadonline.com

If you can read that and not feel that SOE/DGB has shortchanged their players by eliminating all live events, then I don't know what else to say.

Every EQ dev has GM access to go on to every live/LP server and do invasions. What is stopping them from logging on once a week and having the deities visit Norrath for a good old fashion invasion? Nothing is stopping them, except a lack of will and imagination.

How about Krono as pay to win? You think Krono is not a pay to win scheme? How so? Do you think pay to win is good MMO design?

I do not doubt that you and your teammates were exceptionally dedicated and passionate. A few months ago I read and reviewed John Statt's:WoW Diary and he explained how hard everyone work creating the original Word of Warcraft. It was a grueling process and the WoW dev teamed were passionate about what they are doing. Can the same thing be said about the current EQ dev team?

You're one of the best posters on this forum because you give readers a good glimpse of what happened behind the scenes in the development of EQ. Although we disagree on some
things I really enjoy your perspective and thanks for the insights.

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I need to give kudos to the FOH admins for organizing the AMA because the tenured Daybreak Games devs hidden away in their non-descript industrial park bunker in metro San Diego don’t do many interviews. These days EQ is largely forgotten in the video game zeitgeist, like that creepy old man who lives at the end of your street in a house with overgrown grass and cars sinking into the ground.

As an aside, while on vacation in California, this loyal EQ fan for 20 years visited their headquarters unannounced hoping to buy some souvenirs and was told by a stern security guard at the lobby that unless I had an appointment I was not welcome. Fair enough. So much for completing my life-long quest of finally seeing the headquarters where my beloved EverQuest was made. Back when I was a volunteer Senior guide, SOE would give tours of their facility to guides who were in San Diego.

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