Mogur

EQ won't die until people stop paying to play. Sounds simple huh? Yes, a lot of people have stopped playing EQ so they could try other games, but they haven't stopped their monthly payments yet. This is because they want to keep their options open in case they don't happen to like the other games they try. Then they can always come back to EQ. They may decide to keep their accounts even if they never play again! It's my opinion that most people have too much expendable income to worry about a few dollars a month. Not me but most people. They may be unwilling to close an account they've had for years out of nostalgia. They may be hesitant to trash those 3 level 70 characters they worked so hard to get there. Lots try to sell them on various web sites and even in the Bazaar! Tried to get a high level group lately? My guild folded and I can't even find another. I believe EQ is in need of some serious server consolidation in order to remain viable, but it won't actually die unless those no longer playing cancel their unused accounts, and there's a LOT of 'em!

Xiepher

I really wanted for new PC models as well, hope when or if this happens again that they go back to something simular to the way the original ogre models looked like, really like it like that as well as some of the other old pc models I liked much better.

Laffs

Well to me no new pc models is no big deal...... What would be more important would be for them to spend the time to go through the whole game and fix all of the bugs and get that working the way it should insted of pushing out more expansions with probably more bugs to fix with them.... I always thought that you should fix what you have and then add to it but then I dont work for soe lol and if pushing out new expansions is a way to generate more income to enable them to provide the manpower to fix the bugs we got then fair enough.... But somehow I doubt it.

danny91643

This wa posted by ArcherPhate:

After digging up some research i punched some numbers

EQ has 500,000 Current subscriber(paying, not nessesaryaly playing)

Now assuming they all pay #12.95 a month, which they all don't, you get

$6,475,000 A MONTH
$77,700,000 A YEAR

Talk about serous cash. Now add in the game itself and the expansions, assumiong all players bought EQ triliogy and the rest of the expansions each for $30, and the numbers jump.

$90,000,000 from games alone. Add that to the $77mill and u get

$1,670,000,000

The gaming industry itself is about $10.6 billion, add in SWG, and all the little MMOGs(planetside) and SOE has a 5th of the gaming industry.

How could this be a Money issue ? They have the money, so what is the problem ?

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Laffs

Omg ..... even if you took off all the overheads etc thats some serious cash !

So yeh I think I would like to hear what the answer is to your question also

Beliaux

SoE needs to do more than just character models.However,since this thread is about that,here's my take on it. When Shadows of Luclin was released we were given new models and updated graphics. They need to release another expansion to do the same for the entire EQ environment.They need to go back and rebuild the game from scratch with all the old world zones and then new character models. Add more world files or whatever is needed.I'm not a computer guru,I don't know how hard it would be to accomplish. However,EQ is in need of a makeover,because people are tired of updating their computers for a 5 year old game.

There is no excuse why a 5 year old game does not play as smoothly on my 3 year old computer as City of Heroes or World of Warcraft. Simply put,their (SoE's)graphics coding is so horrible they need to go back to scratch. They've continually added new coding to a 5 year old frame that is too graphicly challenged to run it all.Every time they add a new Graphics engine it clashes with previous architecture.It's like adding new paint to your car without first cleaning off the old paint and Bondo. It might look good from 50 feet away,but up close it's ugly as sin.

Sorry,but when I built my computer 3 years ago,it was double the "Recommended" settings to run EQ. Not system minimum requirements. I've done a ton of work to my computer since I started playing EQ,much of it simply so I could run the game. I don't play Half Life or any of these cutting edge games available now. I surf the web about,and play EQ exclusively on my computer. The time for excuses is over. I canceled my EQ account 3 weeks ago. Until SoE recognizes there are problems it wil stay canceled.

Maybe they should hire the Blizzard emplyees who were in charge of animations for a few months while they work on the new expansion. For me Dragons of Norrath simply spells DoN(e).

Laffs

Bit out of topic here but a computer that is 3 months old is out of date lol .... mine was 3 year old also and was top of the range home built then , so I build a new one at a cost of £800 and it should last another 3 years as it is top range stuff again , btw the old one used to run HL and that np only game it wouldnt run was eq2 lol ....

Back on topic

Yes my thoughts are the same as yours on this that to make it work it needs a rebuild .... but eq2 is a rebuild but under a diff game if you with me?

Personaly I play both mainly coz I have a guild on eq and a lot of my members dont want to change or have the $'s to upgrade there systems to play eq2 ... I have 3 soe accounts in total now 1 is my son's that i pay for ....

So I would like to hear an answer from soe on this question below as quoted..


"How could this be a Money issue ? They have the money, so what is the problem ?"

xsikal

I was ecstatic when I read that EQ's models were not only being redone, but were actually being outsourced, because I have very little faith in the artists at SOE. The luclin models are atrocious, complete with shoddy animations and a palpable step backwards in visual variance. I was further encouraged when a developer posted on PoN several months ago, saying that the first renders were coming back from the contractors, and the SOE artists (who had been upset about having the work outsourced) were actually very impressed. I suppose because ezboard nuked the post a long time ago, we should all pretend it never occurred?

To have Brenlo show up and say that we were all mistaken about what we heard and read, and that, SOE has not yet started on new models, and is indeed still debating whether or not they should even make them... well, that is appalling. I've seen enough bait and switch tactics from SOE in the past 5+ years, (original class lists... melee balancing... melee balancing, part 2... new class lists... class definition documents... class re-envisioning...) that I find it very very difficult to believe anything they say.

Revamped models and graphics for old zones, coupled with some sort of published documentation on how the classes should function, AND actual honest-to-god consistent communication with the community... well, for me, these are the only means by which EQ can continue to prosper.

psychosis

Comon people. back off SOE a touch here.

Im a programer <web dev>, I have friends that are game programers.

I have seen what goes into modifying something like this.

Take this for instance.

-Update 1 Character Model
-- Keep it withing 3 kilobytes of current game model, smaller if possible (Who remembers the Luclin Lag on release of new models)
-- make 60 animation models for social combat spellcasting ect... (See above Size Requirements)
-- revamp 18000 pieces of Armor, Weapons, Items to correclty display with this new model (Make sure that they will all work on new templates with all new characters also)

I know this is just numbers but here we go.......

Thats Roughly
15,120,000

Some things are simple and can be done 200 - 300 a day like weapons and armor and items.

Others are not so simple and have to wait on several things to be done.

Character Model - Wireframe - Collision Coding - Animation Modeling - Texture Skinning - Tuning of each step so that it actually work (Minimum 6 times or more)

To do one character will take 10 people at a minimum 3 weeks.

Remember they are also having to work to the "LOWEST COMMON DENOMINATOR" the least powerful PC that can handle the requirements.

Do I think they will do this. Yes

Do I think it will happen this year. Possibly

Do we need to relax and let them get work going and give us updates. Yes

We have shown them we were listening and Bralnos reponse shows hes open to the idea. I wouldnt stress about it too much.

Parasite

Sorry but I doubt you really need to realign the weapons to the character models aka make animation frames for weapons so they stay right in the hand and go with the model moving and dont "float around" since they have old animations.. there was no change made when the animations were fixed for bards stabbing their epic into their head and similar things.

Heck do you even remember how they spoke about visible cloaks when luclin came out? Check out the global*_chr.s3d files with eqinside or whatever.. Not one cloak texture in these files so they were never implemented! No wonder they were "not working"..

You don't have to redo "all" of the textures as well for the models. Do you know how sad the models were created with like 13+ different dds files alone to texture a normal EQ character? I did not add special bodyzones like Boots, Shoulderpats, Breastplate and bracers which have extra textures which add up per character. (And yeah, so many different files of course eat up ressources!)

I also create models for games and I know how "replacing an existing model" works when you do it right. check out http://www.planetquake.com/polycount/ and you see how people do models over and over, taking up as minimal polygon count as possible and as less texture as possible while making a model look good! The models on this page for several games are made by people in their spare private time.

So don't tell me sony cant implement new models. What I see is that they don't want new models, else they would have hired modelers who create new models. And yea if some people can create high quality models in their SPARE time, a Company can get models done as well while they actually do their work we pay for.

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danny91643

"Comon people. back off SOE a touch here."

Commom people expect people to be TRUE to their word. Don't TELL me your going to do something, or intend to do something, and do NOTHING. Then insult me by telling me there was no comment, to do, or intend to do.
The statement was MADE and proof of it exists on many message boards as pointed out during this thread. It seems obvious that the energy to accomplish this went into EQ II. We Paid for the creation of EQ II as loyal customers to EQ and that ALONE deserves RESPECT for my loyality and hard earned payments for expansions and monthly gameplay.

No I can not Back off, it's a matter of principals at this point.

Kudane

The issue is they were *supposedly* working on this last year and would be releasing it by the end of 2004 as promised by the CEO John Smedley. People are upset that now they are saying "We are still reviewing the possiblity". Which means they did nothing to keep this promise and never addressed it before the date pasted



1. Its Brenlo, he becomes a cranky halfling if you goof his name up

2. He is not addressing the issue that a promise was made last year. He is addressing this as if we are just begging for new models now.

I understand the work envolved, and none of us think it is going to be an easy task. What we *DO* want is a straight answer about this and what happen to the promises made last year.

/bow

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danny91643

Kudane

Just keep it polite is all I ask.