EverQuest Online Adventures Q&A

There has been a lot of speculation about a PlayStation 2 version of EverQuest since before Sony's first mention of the console's online capabilities. The console manufacturer had bought controlling rights to the studio that was once called Verant Interactive, so it seemed like a no-brainer to bring the world's most popular online role-playing game to its emerging console platform.

And very recently, Sony indeed announced the game. It's called EverQuest Online Adventures, and it promises to reinterpret massively popular online role-playing for Sony's wildly successful console. While it's tempting to write it off immediately as a match made in heaven, we're going to reserve judgment until we've learned a bit more about it. That was our motive for setting up some chat time with the series' executive producer, Rod Humble. We had literally dozens of questions regarding how the game would be translated to a console, and we've managed to condense them to a huge handful. Read on and find out all that Sony Online Entertainment is willing to divulge about EverQuest Online Adventures at this juncture

GameSpot: Speculation about a PS2 version of EverQuest has been present almost as long as the console itself. How long has EverQuest Online Adventures been in development? How supportive is Sony's Japanese branch?

Rod Humble: We've been working on EverQuest Online Adventures for about 16 months now, and folks at Sony have been extremely supportive. Plus, Sony Japan has taken a serious long-term approach to online gaming, and they have been a pleasure to work with.

GS: Have you guys made any attempt to make EverQuest more accessible for this PS2 incarnation, or will it be just as complex as its PC predecessor?

RH: We changed the entire design of EverQuest from the ground up. We felt this was appropriate given that EQOA would be played in the living room, which requires a totally different design philosophy. This means the game from top to bottom is more accessible. Little things make a difference; for example, the other night when I was playing at home I noticed I had completed five quests in a row without ever having to move from my reclining position, both feet up, gaming lazy-boy style.

GS: How closely does the game's rules system adhere to its predecessor's? Was the original's used as a framework, or will it feel entirely new?

RH: All of the behind-the-scenes formulas are totally new. Given that there are so many more abilities players get in EQOA, most of them are new, but a necromancer still "feels" like a necromancer. We've taken great pains to ensure that we retain the "magic elements" that made EQ so successful, including that sense of adventure and danger, quests, teamwork, item acquisition, community, etc.

GS: What sorts of characters will players be able to make? It's been revealed that there will be 13 classes. Can you tell us what these are?

RH: They are classes from the original game but play differently to reflect the different world of Norrath in the Age of Adventure. Each class has been rewritten from scratch with new abilities and roles, but suffice it to say that there will be warriors, rangers, paladins, shamans, wizards, clerics, rogues, monks, etc.

The World, and its Conflicts

GS: Nothing has yet been said about the playable races. What can you tell us about them?

RH: The Age of Adventure had different inhabitants than the Age of Turmoil, so, for example, elves have yet to completely leave Tunaria, and the split between them has not yet finished. This gives us many opportunities to get in some awesome plotlines to follow and should be very exciting for our players.

GS: How big will the game's world be in comparison to the one in which the PC EverQuest games are set? How varied will the environments be?

RH: The gameworld is massive with vastly varied areas from jungles to dungeons to frozen mountains. It's an awesome feeling to see the landscape change as you journey to different areas of the world. It's difficult to do a direct comparison between EQ, which is zone based, and EQOA, which is seamless, but EQOA's landmass is probably about 20 percent bigger than all of the original EQ plus its expansions.

GS: How easy will it be for players to get around in the world? Will they have access to horses and vehicles, or perhaps other, more fantastical means of transit?

RH: Transportation is easier to get in EQOA. Players may not have 30 minutes to travel to meet their friends, so we have a network of stables, which players can move around the world in, in addition to player-controlled transportation spells.

GS: How will combat work? You've mentioned before that it will be more fast-paced and tactical. What does this mean for the overall pace of the battles?

RH: The pace of battles is generally faster. In addition, warriors and other melee types have many special moves that they can use during battle. This makes battles quite intense and free flowing. One of the advantages of using the PS2 controller is that players can balance moving while fighting a lot easier than with a mouse and keyboard combination. What might be frustrating with a keyboard and mouse becomes simple with a controller--for example, moving around the battle while activating four special moves in a row while switching between three separate enemies.

GS: What kinds of combat-based special abilities will players have access to? Any cool features in the combat system that you'd like to mention?

RH: There are many. Currently I am playing a warrior and can't get enough of my "courageous shout" ability, which has saved me many times. Overall there are going to be over 500 special abilities for all of the character classes in EQOA.

GS: What steps are you taking to ensure that all character classes are viable in combat?

RH: Lots and lots of game balance testing in advance. We are still months away from our first beta but are already playing a lot internally. Everyone picks a class, and we are all determined to play that class all the way up to the top so we know it inside out.

GS: How much maintenance will characters require? Will you have to feed them? If so, how frequently?

RH: There is food and water in EQOA. In addition to keeping you alive, they can help you heal your wounds faster after battle. Consumption will be automatic. Just make sure to keep your pack stocked with provisions.

GS: How much of a time commitment will players have to make in order to fully enjoy EQOA? What sorts of design decisions were made to allow for shorter gaming sessions?

Death Threats

RH: The beauty of these games is you can put as much time into it as you want. However, for EQOA we recognize that play sessions themselves will probably be shorter (no matter how much you want to, you are unlikely to be able to monopolize the TV). To this end we have made meeting your friends easier (via transportation), returning back to battle after death easier (by making the death penalty just travel time), and also making it easier to leave the game and get into casual groups if you are feeling social. Whether it's the 20 minutes before dinner or the all-night marathon, your play sessions in EQOA will be a blast. It's a great feeling to be able to immerse yourself in a virtual world with friends.

GS: What will the penalties be for dying in combat? We know they won't be as harsh as they were in EverQuest, but we're curious as to what exactly will happen.

RH: You go back to your bind point. The travel time back to where you want to be is penalty enough. We might tweak this a little during beta if we find loopholes in it. So far it works well.

GS: Will there be any player-versus-player combat? If so, how will it be regulated?

RH: There will be none. EQOA is a cooperative-play, team-based, social game where you meet friends and go adventuring. It does not foster conflict between players. This was a decision made very early on in the project.

GS: Will there be any in-game features designed to support player communities, such as clans and guilds? What will the advantages to joining these be?

RH: There will be guilds similar to EQ. The advantages are enormous but primarily social. It's quite possible to play EQOA without belonging to a guild. We've found that guilds and groups are one of those intrinsic elements that help bind people to the game and their characters. We will of course have "guild chat" and other communication methods, which will facilitate friends and guilds getting groups together. Many EQ players regard their guild as the number one reason they have so much fun in the game. It's great to meet new friends and go off adventuring in the wilds with them.

GS: How will players without keyboards be able to communicate? Will the game feature an interface similar to Phantasy Star Online's?

RH: We are about to program our second iteration of the quick-chat system right now. It's looking pretty good. You can fire off quick customizable phrases with linked hot commands, or you can spell things out.

GS: The concept of monthly subscriptions is pretty foreign to console gamers as a whole. Do you think this will affect EQOA's success?

RH: Certainly. It's a brand-new market--nobody really knows how well it will work. I believe that once players see what they get for a monthly fee there will be no problem with people willing to pay. Inhabiting a virtual world of adventure is so much fun I doubt it will prove a barrier to entry. But we shall see in the years to come.

GS: What sort of pricing structures is SOE considering?

RH: Well, you will have to buy EQOA at the retail level, but it will probably come with a free month of gameplay. After that a monthly fee will apply. Sorry to say we can give out no details on the monthly pricing yet.

Money and Time

GS: How does the presence of several other high-profile MMORPGs on the PS2--most notably Final Fantasy XI--affect the development of EQOA? Do you think the home console market can support multiple games of this type?

RH: The only cause for concern is that there are not more competitors. This is a young market, and we need a lot of online console games to help expand it. For example, the original EQ has gained subscribers every time a competing product has launched. Right now we have the most subscribers ever. This is for a three-year-old game--hitting your peak three years after launch is pretty amazing. Additionally, as far as we can tell our competitors are doing just fine as well. Something seems to be going on here akin to a shopping mall. The more shops you have, the better all the shops do.

So in answer to your question, the presence of other titles is of great benefit to us. We wish them great success.

GS: What can you tell us about the game's technical features? How many servers will there be, and what will the differences between them be?

RH: The game works on a PS2 with a memory card and a modem. Each server will hold about 5000 players online at once. We are not yet sure how many servers we will launch with, but we are confident in our ability to scale up based on demand. You have to keep in mind that we've been running one of the most successful online games for over three years now, and we have learned a ton during that time. And we will be applying all we've learned to ensure EQOA has a great launch.

GS: What about the game's graphical presentation? Are you using existing graphics technology, or is there a rendering engine being developed specifically for EQOA?

RH: The rendering engine is all written in-house specifically for EQOA. Online games present many challenges, so we had to custom-build just about everything. Keep in mind that the average PS2 game can limit the number of characters onscreen and can hence control the poly count. With EQOA we have to make sure that we can support any number of characters onscreen, hence that rendering engine has to be very flexible and scalable.

GS: Is there anything you'd like to add that wasn't covered in the questions above? How about any words for fans of EverQuest eager to see this new adventure?

RH: The game is fun. I don't know if there is some unspoken rule about saying that, but everyone on the team plays the game. We love it. The best demos we give are when we just thrust the controller in someone's hand and tell them what the buttons do. Within a few minutes they "get it" and are running around doing quests, exploring, or adventuring. Now it's at the point where a bunch of us come in every weekend to play the game. In theory we are "balancing," but the truth is we are having fun playing. It's a great feeling to be working on a game that is already fun before beta. I can't wait for our customers to enjoy the game. They are in for a treat.

GS: Thanks for your time, Rod.