Letter From the Producer
EverQuest Producer Holly "Windstalker" Longdale updated us this afternoon about what's happening this month and beyond for EverQuest.
- Some improvements are being made to Epic 1.0 quests (bottlenecks are being reduced -- details can be found in the latest Test Server patch notes).
- Legends of Norrath loot will be a little more easier to come by (for the right price)
- The progression server is a prominent topic (one that we know all about, thanks to Aristo's intricately detailed post earlier this week).
- We have been introduced to the idea of "campaigns" (downloadable content to be released twice a year - the first of which expected this coming Fall). These are said to feature "about the same amount of content" as what would normally be seen in an annual expansion.
Players have raised numerous questions about this, of course. As of this posting, they haven't been answered (it is a Friday afternoon, after all; happy Friday, by the way!), but you can probably expect some answers in this EQ Forum thread in the coming week.
(You can find the full letter posted below the jump.)
Hail, Norrath!
Sorry for not posting sooner! We are preparing for an awesome EQ future and I'm getting familiar with this epic game again.
To start with, we’re working on a new Progression Server based on your feedback from earlier in the year. We’re so excited about it we’re going to launch it as soon as possible and still aiming for June. We’re in the process of getting a new server up and running and planning for a Beta. There is a detailed forum post from Aristo about the Progression Server and additional detail to support a new in-game poll that launched last night so we can get more of your feedback on some key decisions.
Next week in our April 22 update, you’ll see more improvements to the Epic 1.0 quests, bug fixes, and quest and mission improvements.
We’re also adding a new item in the marketplace on April 22 called “Legend of the Oathbound” that will bring the oft-requested Legends of Norrath loot items to you in randomized bundles that you can trade or sell. Our first bundle will include EQ loot items from the first three Legends of Norrath card sets as well as tournament and promotional loot items that haven’t been available for several years. We’re going to put these items on the marketplace starting at 999SC. Each LoN loot crate guarantees you two loot rewards!
What’s coming? What are campaigns?
In the fall, EQ will release its first “campaign” content. “Campaigns” are our RPG-centric term for DLCs. We thought it was appropriate!
We expect to do two campaigns a year with our first coming this fall. Our primary goal is to keep the world vibrant with content and respond to player needs and issues. We will still provide new lands and character advancement opportunities with our campaigns.
In our two campaign releases each year, we plan to release about the same amount of content as we normally would in one annual expansion. This is important to us because it will allow us to deliver content to you more often as well as respond to an ever-changing player base. For example, the Progression Server is just one thing we are doing in response to recent community feedback. I'll also say that pricing has not been determined for the first campaign coming in fall, but we’ll share details when we get closer to our release.
Stay tuned as we bring you more details as we move ahead.
As ever, my best to you all!
Holly "Windstalker" Longdale
Executive Producer, EQ & EQ2
