by Karen Hertzberg on Jul 18, 2006
No School Like the Old School
Do I lack objectivity as a gaming journalist because I'm a long time fan of EverQuest...who's also drawn to Vanguard: Saga of Heroes? Nah. I believe that all games have their merits, and that every MMO that succeeds sets a new standard for the up and coming ones. And yet, I'm still unabashedly old school when it comes to the games I choose to play.
Ive spent a good bit of time in the process of writing about MMOs and posting to MMO forums considering what I like in an MMO, and just what it was about EQ that drew me in. It always comes down to depth and challenge. EQ brought us factions, deities, the planes, epic weapon quests, rich and deep lore, and a world so vast that there are still places in Norrath I havent seen after nearly 5 years playing. And EQ wasnt easy. Dying resulted in experience loss; sometimes to the extent that you would lose a level or, at the very least, what amounted to a few hours of playing time if you couldnt find a cleric to perform a resurrection (which resulted in recovering most of your lost exp). Travel, more often than not, meant running, sometimes through dangerous zones. Leveling took some serious time and effort. (Anyone remember hell levels?) But when you succeededwhen you finally felt that youd made it, and that you knew the game and how to play your class wellyou felt a strong sense of accomplishment.