Hence the official forums being down. =P

But yep. Rejoice everyone! That being said, here's my impressions from being in all of Beta 4:

THE GOODS

• Diplomacy has a lot of potential. A lot. I think it can become very engaging and the Dark Elf...
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its actually happening woot!! im glad to hear that bards are so awsome... though i dont want to see the nerf bat get a-swinnging, although it is for the better im sure...

Bards still have not recived there class makeover yet so its not so don't count on anything you have read so far.

Even at the beggining of beta 3 I think Vanguard beat EQ1 in turms of game play. There were multiple crashes, chunk, toon, and server. Everything has steadally improved thru 3 and 4.

Alot of stuff still isnt in yet: Artificer recipies, boat recipies, house recipies, Minerology is non existant (jewelry) but things are progressing.

My dislikes and likes aside this is turning into a great game. Is it third gen or just the top of 2nd gen....To me it seems the later. But who knows what the first expansion will bring us.

Rating 1-10 10 being best.

Graphics...
...General scenery 9
...characters 7
...animations general 6
...animations combat 8
...mob animations 7

playability...
...solo 6
...group 7 (even with 1000 people on at one time it was still hard to find groups at sertain levels but when you did form a group it was great.

Lore 7
audio...
...Combat 7
...environment 8
...music composition 9

Crafting... still undergoing changes/modifications/adding recipies 7
...sub catagory Harvesting 8
Adventuring... 8
Diplomacy...NA can't rate since I havnt gotten around to it. (only certain races were able to)

Old map system wasn't great about a 5 and since the new system was just loaded with the newest patched I can't comment to much on it.

Rao

I understand the perception that individuals have that old schoolers like me are chasing that first high, as a matter of fact I'm very much aware that the feeling is long gone so I'm not attempting to identify with that "feeling" or sensation as it were.

what I'm suggesting is, Brad knowing what made EQ an amazing game would have had the presence of mind to develop a "Hook", this does not have to resemble or emulate the original EQ or other games for that matter.

A little attention to detail and nuances of what makes a game vibrant and alive seems to have been missed. My character didn't have an identity, a deity, a message from home, family, clan or origin that let me know who I was and my relationship in the world. I had no particular function and I didn't have any particular purpose.

My Character popped up in front of an nondescript NPC who suggested I kill X number of beetles. There was no welcome, there was no back story, there was no situational awareness to be concerned with, no enemy of the surrounding lands, nothing that let me know what I was or what I was doing in the world.

Once I plotted along collecting, retrieving, going from point A to B in these series of monotonous task/quest I was directed to see my Would-Be trainer, who is generic in nature, an Offensive Trainer.

The trainer never introduces themselves, never welcomed me, never gives any back story, just a "What can you teach me" option, it was laughable. This generic sterile process just continues on as you go from various quest NPC's, to then finding the Harvesting NPC, then the Trade Skill NPC. Then you're set about doing busy work to get your skill up until you can actually make something.

There was just nothing there that made my Character feel significant, unique or fulfilling a role. That's just a brief description, the Dev's have wiped the boards so I can't find the various post I made concerning the game over all.

Not sure what area/s you started in Buz...but all the areas that I tried out had plenty of explanation and lore if you take the time to read it instead of just clicking accept. I played a Dark Elf, a Kojani, a Half Giant, a Halfling, an Orc...and a few others and each had their own starting lore and story that built up as you progressed through the beginning quests.

The first time I ever logged into EQ1 (pre Kunark) I was amazed...lost , and a complete Newbie who knew nothing about what I was doing. (It took me forever to find the Rogues guild in Freeport) I was hooked by the challenge and the newness of it all. In Vanguard I am a much more experienced player (seasoned veteran as it were) and it is much harder to "hook" me than before...but I have enjoyed the game very much. One decision that I made before logging into the Beta for the first time was that I would not make a character starting in the Wood Elf city or make a Ranger as these are going to be my main and I wanted all to be new on the first day of launch. I am glad I have kept to that decision all these months as I am really looking forward to starting the game in earnest.

I started with a Monk in Qalia (Khal area), I played a Dark Elf Disciple, a Shaman Goblin (Kojan), a Bard in Qalia and a Halfling Druid in Thestra.

I actually think most of the newbie areas are well done (except for the Kojan Human/Half-Elf area, which is terrible). I felt like there was a foe (usually multiple foes) we were facing that needed to be dealt with, lots of story to be found if you talked to everyone (and especially if you did diplomacy), factions and relationships between everyone, etc, as well as small, everyday things going on, like the halfling woman complaining about all of the baking she has to do, the Qalian merchant who's having trouble keeping the scorpions in line, and many others.

After you get out of the newbie areas, i felt a lot more disconnected, but I also think that the reasons for this will be fixed as the game is finished. I mean, when you moved in to wipe out the evil demon-worshiping rift clan, only to find that you spent more time falling through the floor and trying vainly to fight invisible mobs than smiting evil, you lose focus. That stuff will be fixed. It's certainly 500% better than it was.

The classes are great. There are balance issues, of course, but they did a great job making the classes different. A rogue and a ranger, for instance, play completely differently, even though they have the same basic job. It seems like tanks go down just a bit too fast on the 5-dot mobs. Most of the balanced issues will likely be addressed - not every class has been redone yet.

The world is great. It's beautiful, varied, and there's a fair amount of content. Character models are okay. Nothing fantastic, but they do the job.

The system where you can soulbind your equipment to you so that you keep it after death was brilliant (soulbound equipment is no trade). It takes items out of the economy - but only if people want it that way. You get to choose between the safety of having your stuff when you die (well, your weapons and armor), or being able to hand it down or sell it later.

Dwarves - Best Dwarves in any MMO so far. A dying race guarding serving as the last line of defense between the undead hordes and the other races, most of which either ran away already, or are elves. Bordinar's Cleft is full of lore, and most of the design really fits into the story Sigil is trying to tell. There really aren't many dwarfs left to fill the giant caverns of BC. Everywhere you look, you see evidence of war, etc. Beyond cool, here.

Despite my usually rampant elf hatred, I really dig the Dark Elves in this game. They're not just a Drow copy.

And though I know this don't matter to most people, I can't say enough about the music. It's awesome, and there's so much of it. You'll find 8+ tunes in the same chunk, and that's not counting that each tune has it's own battle theme. It's so good that I'm spending $50 (the price of the collector's edition over the regular game) just for a CD.

There is no doubt in my mind that this will be the best game on the market when it launches, but I'm not sure how long that will last. It will only get better as well.


My main negatives have to do with promised features that were going to be there, but now aren't.

The combat was supposed to be slow and strategic, with a ton of options to choose from - now the combat reminds me of WoW's system. Sure it's harder and more complex, but it's the same idea. I push this button, then I push this button, then I move to the side and hit this button, etc.

I also miss the idea of different races having different fighting styles and you being able to learn them by grouping with players of other races. I really felt this would add alot of depth. That's gone with no plans to ressurect it (at least that they've shared, and given the new combat system, it wouldn't seem to fit).

It's clear that the game changed quite a bit from TheVision(TM) in an effort to bring in the people from WoW who wanted more than WoW. Quests and the newbie experience are streamlined in such a way that you'll have deja vu at times. Whether this is good or bad (WoW was not a bad game) remains to be seen.

After playing for a few months and tested all the classes and races that are available but never going above level 15. I explored nearly all open chunks and have done nearly all available low level quests.

My feelings?

The game has potentual, it is going to have a difficult time after launch since it needs another few months to polish and a lot of content is unfinished.

Having said that I love the game, It is not the game I expected from the feedback gathered in three years on the forums though. It is a good second gen MMORPG.

The world is not in my view beautyful, It is well done and there is plenty to see for the explorer.

Crafting is still being tweaked but is looking good, I am just beginning to make sense of Diplomacy, It still needs work but in the longer term Diplomacy will be a great feature.

Melee is not exciting, it works, but essentually you hit the right keys and mobs die. players of EQ2 or WoW will feel at home. This is another area where more work is promised before after release. Dont get me wrong fighting is ok just not as demanding as I expected.

Boats and Houses still need work. I am confident they will be working on release. wakes are promised for boats we also hope there will be surf at sea edge. water is very well done.

The expected weather engine still not in. Some places have rain, others snow but its all pretty static.

All the races look ok. Male characters have more "character" than females unless you like ugly women. also only some male characters can be made to look older. many of the character generator options make little difference. racial bonuses is another missing feature. As to hair styles.. shudder they need work.

Some great armor and weapon graphics but still awaiting regional gear.

sorry I ramble but it's been hard keeping quiet all this time

hello all i have been waiting for this game for some time now , im all juiced that open beta has come out i pre-order my copy like week ago i get the beta dic(open beta dic on pre order)=and now it is down loading i got it a week ago, but for like atleast sence, 6pm thursday night i have been down loading the patch to vgso. and its still going its now friday 3pm, all i have to say is wow, this is 4-ever and i cant tell if its stoped cause for the past 3 hours its been one the same thing ( downloading khal.isb ) 16h 34m 31sec
whats going on is it stuck do i start over the time is still going up and down, just the download part is huge for this item ? i dont know plz fill me in a lil about this patch has any-1 else been doing this all night and into the day? ty so much hope to hear somthing

It's not unlikely. I had a few problems with patches getting stuck, but stopping the patch and restarting the patcher usually fixes it.

I pre-ordered have not recived my beta stuff yet don/t know if i will hehe, sry to here about soucers i love playing them guys hope i will be able to get groups solo is fun but i love playing with other ppl makes the game so mich more fun with others playing with ya, question Can you do small groups at level 1- 10 you know like just meet someone who is starting out and getting together to do low level quest? I want to thank you all for letting me join your form it is a joy to read and learn and post questions thanks, one more question When you start out so many ppl will so far ahead of you, you think others will help you to understand the game or are you on your own for a while? thanks