Well, thought I would try EQII out for myself and took a break from WoW.
Though EQII is a pretty game, there are just so many old annoyances that may send me packing off again. Almost all of these are game mechanics related. If I am lagging in a zone with less than 20 people in it while running 4meg downstream, on a 2.08ghz, 1024DDR RAM, 256Meg NVIDIA Card, and can barely keep the warrior alive because his life bar bounces up and down more than a buxom anime GIF and I am spazzing around like a mime on crack, what is going to happen if I am on a raid?
The game has great potential, though if it can live up to it or not, is another story.
I really don't get the point of housing. I mean if it actually did something aside from being a money sink or if it was actually a HOUSE, and not just a door that a multitude of other people also use to go to "their" house, I could understand it being in the game.
On Gathering, why do I find figs in Plains Fungi, but find Withered Mushrooms in Shrubbery? Why do I need Chloro Resin to plane a peice of wood? I was a carpentar for many years, but never had to use resin to plane a piece of wood. Alot of the Crafting, while nifty and complex seems to have no correlation. Why is it that I can purchase candles, coal, distilled water, and other refined products, but have to craft a piece of string?
The whole "Locked Encounter" business has me confused also. Suddenly I cannot help someone because they are in danger? Of course they can always yell for help, but as that will make the xp gain and possibility for treasure null and void, many just opt to run off. No longer do I get the satisfaction of making a last minute save on someone I just happen to run across when they are in need. Kinda makes the whole point of being a paladin or a healer moot. Now I must group with anyone before I can cast a benevolent spell of any type on them. No more drive-by buffing, no more acts of being a good samarita. Kind of takes the good out of good deeds.
While there are more quests, they also seem to be of the generic type you find in any MMOG, take x item to y NPC, kill x amount of creatures of y type, though I have to admit the "visit different places" was kind of a new twist, but got boring after a bit. You can only run aimlessly around Antonica for so long before the realization that it is a stupendous time sink hits you.
Guess it depends on what you want to do. I feel it is great for one of two things: RolePlaying or Crafting. If either of these are what you are most excited about, then EQII will be great for you. But if you want any kind of large scale, grand adventure..I just don't see it happening, just because the game mechanics cannot support it.
Edited, Fri Apr 29 03:25:08 2005 by StandsInShadow