by Adam - December 14, 2004

Escape to a world unlike any other world in Sony's EverQuest 2. Choose your fate and allignment as you help battle either for good or evil against a common enemy in an all digital world where almost nothing is impossible.

Saly the dragon and be the Hero

Ever Quest 2 is a really fun game to play. It's as addictive as any other MMORPG out on the market. The controls to EQ 2 are really easy to pick up on, and hot keys become essential to your game. There are many places you are free to wander through in EQ 2 and plenty of people for you to interact with. NPC's show pretty strong intellect. The enemy AI is pretty adaptive, for example, if you begin combat with a single enemy he may call for reinforcements, they will also strategically support different characters. There are a few slight problems with the combat system though. When casting spells your character can hardly move without you breaking your actions. The same goes with other character abilities. Another drawback to the combat system is that you have to be pretty close to engage your targets which presets problems when your target is in the back of a room with enemies constantly respawning.

A brave digital World

EQ 2 is one of the most beautiful games I've ever played. The graphics are crisp and lifelike, the characters appear very real and extremely lifelike. The environmental elements are digitally rendered to perfection as well. When underwater, your vision becomes blurred just like it would in real life. Reflections are seen on top of the water as you walk your character across it. Lighting takes on a new sense in this game, from the hot forges to the brilliant sun. Weather is a variable in this game, and it will change from day to day. A light pitter patter of rain makes the sky go grey and reduces the over all light. The gametime also starts and stops days. Time will pass and your characters will get older and more experienced.

I'm all ears

In a game where there is over 70,000 lines of dialogue, you better get it right. EQ 2 hits the mark in the sound department. Characters grunt when wounded and when under heavy physical exertion. NPC's all have unique voices which makes it so that you can hear other characters before you hear others. Two cameo appearances in this game provide the voices for the leaders of the two factions. When walking around, the music that is played goes along really well with the game. Themed orchestral music rellay sets the mood of a great epic adventure.

Hack and slash

EQ 2 is fun as long as you are doing well. From time to time you will do certain missions where your enemies are stronger than you. This becomes a pain because someimtes there aren't enough players in a zone to support you on your quest. Dying in EQ 2 is where the game really gets dragged down. You lose experience after dying, upon respawning in a zone you have �spawning sickness� in which your character walks 4 times as slow and your powers are a lot weaker. If an ally dies you share in their experience debt. A drawback is that higher levelled players and weaker players can't ally together because it will rob the weaker players of experience.

Who will you be ?

EQ 2 was a lot of fun to play and I found myself becoming addicted to it. The game makes it really easy for you to find groups to join up and quest with. In the beginning of the game you get to choose your looks and what your class is going to be. A really cool aspect of the game is that you can have 2 class distinctions. You can also choose to learn trade skills and create yourself items. Also you can go around town and purchase housing. You can start with a small apartment and work your way up to mansions and houses throughout the town. Decorating your apartment is also a fun aspect of the game.

Happily Ever After

I've played a lot of EQ 2 lately. I talked to a few of the player and tried to get a comparison to other recent MMORPG's. Most enjoyed the EQ 2 community but found the combat system to be it's drawback . I found nothing wrong with the real time combat system. Before this game I had never played an MMORPG before and now I plan on subscribing to EQ 2. If you are planning on getting into an MMORPG, this would be a good bet.