Dynamic Design Part 2

RadarX: Thats really interesting to understand how everything flows. Can you give us an example of something you were heavily involved in designing that you are proud of in EverQuest 2?

Jason Roberts - Lead Content Designer: There are quite a few things that I'm very happy with how they turned out. Though the one I'm probably most pleased with are the changes to character progression prior to level 20. The new tutorial islands, changes to the villages and districts, and changes to the adventure yards have made a large impact on the early enjoyment of the game. That was an enormous effort by a lot of people to have turn out was well as it did in the time that it had. Beyond that there are a few quests, the re-work of Fallen Gate, Voice Emotes, and many of the major changes to the game over the last year that I've had some part in.

RadarX: Love the new tutorial islands, although Curt can still whoop me as an Iksar Shadowknight. Are there any rules or parameters you use to determine how much solo/group/raid content is created for an Adventure Pack or Expansion?

Jason Roberts - Lead Content Designer: It happens more on a per-zone basis than the entirety of an expansion or adventure pack. The type of zone, story, and goals of what the zone is trying to accomplish are taken into consideration during the zone planning and that determines the zone flow and solo/group/raid content contained within that zone. Overall, the primary focus of the content for EverQuest 2 is meant for 2-6 players, so the majority of our effort goes into creating content for that style of play. However, we do spend quite a bit of time adding content for solo play, and of course the raid game. The solo content path is something we try to create for every overland zone. It's a long series of quests which take the player to every portion of the zone.

RadarX: I can imagine balancing the happiness of soloers, groupers, and raiders is near impossible. Can we expect to see more "Old Norrath" resurface, and are you looking for a balance of the new and the old?

Jason Roberts - Lead Content Designer: There is a lot to draw upon from "Old Norrath" and several stories that were never told, and a lot can happen in 500 years. So to answer the first part of the question, yes, you will certainly see more of the familiar Norrath resurface, though likely with some notable changes. The new zones, or new looks at old zones, give us something that is uniquely EverQuest 2 and a mix of the two seems to work well for us. It's fun to surprise players with something initially recognizable but slightly twisted over time to now be what it is.