But also look at a game like Vanguard, which was fucking gigantic, but 80% of it was empty. Don't get me wrong, it was pretty fun to explore, but most of the out of the way dungeons were pointless, and most of those massive, sweeping areas were barren.
Pan'Theon: Rise' of th'e Fal'Len - #1 Thread in MMO
- Thread starter gogojira_sl
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Dullahan
Golden Knight of the Realm
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If EQ had 70 zones and Pantheon was a similar size, it would have about 20-25. Whether they split off areas like the arena or dungeons from the overworld, a bit more, but that first zone they've been showing off lately would house qeynos, sewers, qeynos hills, surefall and probably a chunk of west karana.
yamikazo
Trakanon Raider
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This thread has clearly gone off the rails. People need to stop comparing apples and oranges and claiming that Pantheon sucks because it doesn't have any as many apples as EQ1 did in 1999. We all know Pantheon is superior because the grass is at least 10oh000zero0O000O0o% more interactive than EQ1 grass even in 2018 – sometimes you have to judge a game by how juicy its oranges are instead of its lack of apples.
Pantheon is the only MMO to devote a dev stream in pre-pre-alpha to how great and interactive its grass is. True innovation to the MMO space. Long live the mozz stick king.
Pantheon is the only MMO to devote a dev stream in pre-pre-alpha to how great and interactive its grass is. True innovation to the MMO space. Long live the mozz stick king.
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shabushabu
Molten Core Raider
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Ya, vanguard was rough you had to explore a bit to find shit.
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It might not've been totally intentional, but gotta say that a lot of the remote "barren" parts of VG kind of acted as a refreshing change. Obviously there were the areas that just straight-up weren't finished which sucked, but the big open plains that weren't littered with a mob every 3 metres in every direction actually made the world feel a lot more natural. Most other games with smaller worlds end up stuffing as much as possible into every square metre, and any kind of travelling around ends up feeling like you're playing katamari damacy with all the trash mobs clinging to you.
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Rhanyn
Blackwing Lair Raider
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I miss roaming mobs. They should figure out a shifting mob density program that moves groups and their concentration around, combine that with some basic pathing, and a few choice static spawns. It's 2018, it's time for absolutely everything to stop standing around forever in the exact same spot, without any kind of change. It has its place when used in combination, but it adds so much depth to a game.
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Great point. I actually liked the fact that Vanguard had those open areas to explore. It did make the world seem more real rather than having a mob every ten feet. I would've liked to have seen what VG could've been if fully completed. Obviously, they had to release that game a year or two too early, but man, that world did feel alive. I'm hoping that Pantheon can capture some of those old school MMO vibes. Lord knows, they're few and far between now.
Zaide
TLP Idealist
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I think the Karanas are actually a decent example of wide open areas with a few cool spots sprinkled in. On TLP servers these zones are largely empty and unused but during the heyday of live people were frequently kiting, exploring or camping various rare mobs rumored to inhabit the area.
I think that's really the key with relatively barren landscapes, you need to include rare but special quests, mobs, merchants and structures. Think of South Karana, you had the entrance to a dungeon (Paw), a mob of legendary value and rarity (Quillmane), a major and exotic questline (Robe of the Lost Circle), two friendly monster factions (Aviaks and Centaurs) and exotic enemies (Treants). It was this huge expanse of land but it also had all these awesome things in it without feeling over crowded.
I think that's really the key with relatively barren landscapes, you need to include rare but special quests, mobs, merchants and structures. Think of South Karana, you had the entrance to a dungeon (Paw), a mob of legendary value and rarity (Quillmane), a major and exotic questline (Robe of the Lost Circle), two friendly monster factions (Aviaks and Centaurs) and exotic enemies (Treants). It was this huge expanse of land but it also had all these awesome things in it without feeling over crowded.
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Loser Araysar
Chief Russia Correspondent / Stock Pals CEO
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Utnayan
I Love Utnayan he’s awesome
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Loser Araysar
Chief Russia Correspondent / Stock Pals CEO
- 75,428
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No worries, we'll get you right back on that cross in a second here.
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Soygen
The Dirty Dozen For the Price of One
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South Karana holds some of my most nostalgic time in Everquest.
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Utnayan
I Love Utnayan he’s awesome
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I still remember seeing the NK/SK bridge for the first time and the music that hit it. All time favorite music is still West Karana though. Nothing really to do there, but great music along that beach line area. 16 hours to level from 32-34 at the treant camp in SK to get my necro 34 pet (which was a massive upgrade). Good times.
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I did that once back in like 2000 and forgot to bind. Got into a crocks/orcs oasis group then died like an hour later, only to spawn in Surefall. I was like WTF?
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Arden
Blackwing Lair Raider
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Yeah, the NK bridge theme was one of my favorites for sure. It managed to convey part of the epic feel the entire game had:
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