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 Lark reviewed EQ2 on Druids Grove, and also did a combat review, which i am going to post here. Go to the link provided for the full interview.
http://eq2.forums.thedruidsgrove.org/showthread.php?t=7973&page=3&pp=15
Combat
(ok I got a second cup of coffee, and donned my Kevlar so I am ready to write what I think of EQ2 combat)
This is the area where the flames will begin. This will also be very long, and I apologize for that. (so grab your coffee, and load your gun)
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Here is my opinion in one line: (yes you can quote me)
EQ2 combat is mind numbingly boring, console-like, repetive, and lacks anything resembling fun.
(but you do not realize it for about 2 months -- about the same amount of time it took folks to realize it in Horizons)
Here is why I feel that way:
1. Conning NPC's - When you con an NPC it tells you too much.
It tells you if it is agro, what LEVEL it is, what color it is(difficulty), and they even have additional arrows up or down above the NPC's head to tell you if its extremely difficult or easy.
If you mouse over the target window you are literally TOLD whether you can defeat the encounter with verbose paragraphs. (a blue con MOB in eq could be many different levels and difficulties. You were not sure if it could summon you, if it was just one level lower -- or 10.)
I actually felt like they were insulting my intelligence with the way they treat me in the conning system.
2. Linked NPC's. (another one of the things I think sounded so good on paper but in reality removes too many options in the game - I will expound on that in my conclusion at the end of these posts) For now, I will stick to the topic of linked.
NPC's were, and are linked in EQ. (agro range, faction and your level determine how many will agro you) If you used skills of various group members (harmony the Derv camp, Root one, feign pull..whatever) you could somewhat determine what came - providing you had no resists - but alas that was part of the excitement.
Also, part of it was not knowing how many would come. OOPS..I thought I could pull just two..(suddenly the enchanter is trying to deal with your additional 3 NPC's ..the druid is rooting one away..it is what memories are made of. It is what makes everyone say to each other after the fight..wow good job gang!)
The linked NPC's in EQ2 work differently. When you click on one of them it highlights all that will come with it. (no wondering, no mistakes). We are just blindly told that these four NPC's will come and these four will not.
There is no way to change that. No way to beat the odds, think out of the box, or otherwise effect that outcome by being a good player.
3. Once they come the battle is very fast paced. (some argue too fast). There is little time for coordinated effort or strategy. The only strategy is kill them before they kill you. If they con properly and you all mash the keys you need to mash, you will win.
4. The combat wheel has been through so many 'implementations' I lost count. None have worked right. The current implementation is not working either.
Lets look at a battle scenario. The combat wheel pops up, and a little icon is flashing.
As a mage I can either cast "See invisible" to match the icon, or nuke the NPC to kill it. What should I do?
Well duh...let me cast see invis for no apparent reason so we can complete the wheel.. oops mob is dead..wheel didnt have time to go off.
(it is this way with most classes. The cleric is getting a wheel to cast summon food and drink on one of them!)
They had said that the combat wheel would add excitement and special attacks to our fighting and make it less boring.
That is simply not working as intended.
Unless they can resolve it so you have time to complete wheels (before the mobs actually die), and make the spells that need to be cast at times during battle more logical it will continue to be what it is now....(an annoying pop up on my screen that everyone ignores)
I have actually seen people post that they would like an option to shut off combat wheels.
If its so darn fun and exciting, why are players looking to shut it off?
5. Visuals- They are nice but nothing I would write long flowing articles about. Particle effects are not enough to make you want to play a game. The visual battle effects are hardly 'over the top' on wow factor. They are adequate and good.
6. I expected EQ2 to take combat to the next level. More tactics. HIGHER AI on the NPC's. More options in skills and spells. To give you an example of what I mean:
When a named spawned, I thought they might make several versions. You would not know from spoiler sites how to defeat it. One version might not be able to be slowed, while one was resistant to poisen. Your group would have to figure out on the fly --and adjust and overcome!
(and perhaps use a combat wheel to lower the poisen resist or make it slowable)
I thought there would be ways to use special attacks to impact weaknesses in an NPC. The NPC's would be smarter, and counter your strategies.
That is not what I am seeing. (again my personal opinion- but shared by many who have been playing as long as I have)
The NPC's spawn in the same spot, with the same tactics (all spelled out with circles and arrows) and you all mash the right hotkeys (doesn't matter which class--you still have a set series of keys you mash in a certain order)
- yawn- Just typing about it I am putting myself to sleep. |
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