by Jody - January 9, 2004

Developed by the same people that created EverQuest, the largest Massively Multiplayer Online Role-Playing Game of all time, Sony Online Entertainment is back at work with Lords of EverQuest. The thing about SoE is that they try to always be original. With Lords of EverQuest, we begin to see just this. Just how can an RTS be original though? With SoE and EverQuest, anything is possible.

A new version of EverQuest!

Just like a lot of RTS, the game�s main key is the storyline. You can play as three different factions � The Shadowrealm, the Elddar Alliance, and the Dawn Brotherhood � each having their own different storylines. You have to play a lot into the game using all three races to find out how the game unfolds. All in all though it turns into one gigantic civil war where there are only a few survivors. There is not much more I can say about the plot without giving anything away. The user interface for this game is excellent though, as you do not have to browse through several different windows to get to the option that you�re looking for.

Similar but very different to WarCraft 3 is Lord of EverQuest�s leveling system. With this, not just your hero, but your entire army levels up after fighting a countless number of monsters and villains. Just like WarCraft 3, it�s best to level up your army and hero before you go into a fight because it just helps out in the end. Not only does leveling up give you more strength and health but it adds on new skills and items that may be used against them also.

Awesome Graphics! That's EverQuest for ya.

The graphics for Lords of EverQuest are amazing. Playing this, I guess we can finally say that the transition from 2-D RTS to 3-D RTS is finally over. Just like WarCraft 3, the water is sparkly and vivid � the trees are stunning and lively and the entire map is just plain breath-taking. Graphic wise, we finally have a game to take down the Command and Conquer series. As beautiful as it looks though, there is a small flaw in the frame rate at times. Despite how fast your computer is, the game always seems to slow down when it comes to a large battle. Other than this though, the graphics are simply too good to be true.

Beautiful in-game music... tiring sounds.

As I play more and more, the music just keeps my addiction going. I don�t see why so many RTS can have a lot of bad music� it just makes your ears turn off from the gameplay.. But with Lords of EverQuest, the music is just right. As beautiful as the graphics to the ear, the in-game music of this game will make you have a memorial experience.

The sounds are just like any other RTS, having the same old hack and slash noises with a bit of magical firepower. I can�t really deduct too much for this though as it�s pretty universal.

The Multiplayer Replay Value

The multiplayer portion of this game is the most addicting factor of it. All of the training and skills that you learned during single player will finally pay off as you get a chance to take your lovely army (once you recreate it of course) and launch it against your enemy. I�m sure that a lot of elite RTS gamers will not need to do any kind of tutorials, but they helped me a lot. Even though I slightly enjoy playing WarCraft 3 online more, this is still an awesome game and if you�re into the multiplayer portion of strategies, you�ll enjoy this game.

I love EverQuest.

Ever since my first time wandering around in EverFrost in 1998, my addiction to EverQuest has been growing. Even outside of the game genre, EverQuest is still as massively as ever. I�m pretty sure that a lot of gamers will wonder how exactly a standard RTS is �massive� � so you�re just going to have to play to find out. Back into the storyline though, as the history of EverQuest unfolds, you learn a lot. This is another reason why this game is so massive.

In my personal opinion, this game is worth getting by anyone that enjoys PC games. I even convinced my RTS-hating friend to purchase this game� and sure enough, he thought it was really fun.

EverQuest II is still coming.

Strategy games are really common nowadays, so choosing just one can be a tough decision. Compared to WarCraft 3 and C&C: Generals though, it�s pretty hard to give this game a solid recommendation. I can say this though � if you�re really into the RTS genre and/or you�re a huge EverQuest fan, try this game out. If you�re just in this for the EverQuest portion though, and are low on budget, you might want to wait a little bit for EverQuest II to come out� despite it�s online fee.