"EverQuest" Is 8 Years Old -- That's 14,712 In MMO Years

Yes, "EverQuest," the seminal MMORPG launched in the last millennium, is celebrating its eighth birthday.

SOE today announced an "Anniversary Edition" box set, for release on April 23rd. The box set contains the basic game and every single EQ expansion, including the most recent, "The Buried Sea."

On March 16th, EQ is launching a patch with tons of new content, as part of the anniversary celebration.

Of course, SOE sent out the press release, but hasn't updated any of their sites. This always happens. Even GGL does this.

Link.

Should An E-Sports Site Cover "World of Warcraft Tournaments?

I've published the third edition of "The PvP Report" on GGL.com.

I list this week's top teams in Arena Tournament 5v5, and discuss whether an e-sports site like GGL should even be covering WoW:

PvE play may be a simple matter of repetitively launching macros (although relying on simple strategies will eventually get your character a ticket to a Corpse Run); but PvP players must adapt to the personalities of their adversaries, to their skill, and to their mistakes. PCs are unpredictable. A mob will always respond the way you expect; but a PC might do something brilliant, something inexplicable, or something just idiotic. Whichever, you have to adapt – and if you have committed yourself to the wrong strategy, you are screwed.

I also wrap up the whole The Armory controversy:

1. The Armory places women and children in danger. This claim is false, prima facie. The Armory data contain absolutely no personal information. A WoW player cannot be harmed in any way by another WoW player unless they exchange personal information.
2. The Armory empowers griefers. This could be true, although I personally doubt any griefer will make the effort to look up their targets on The Armory. Fortunately, Blizzard has included a feature that renders you impervious to griefers, called /ignore. And also fortunately, Darwinian evolution has included a feature in your brain that renders you impervious to griefers, called ignore.
3. If one player copies another player's build ideas, this is somehow "theft." Again, this is a community game, not a competitive one. If someone "steals" your idea, you lose nothing, and they are not cheating. Maybe it would be in another game, but that's not this game.
4. Guildmasters may strong arm guild members into specific builds. They can do that now. I don't think lying to guildmasters is the solution -- after all, the only reason to keep your stats secret from a guildmaster is so you can mislead him or her. No, the solution is to find a better guild.

Link.

"Lord of the Rings Online" -- Kuno's First Impressions

Well, after paying the money to pre-order LOTRO, guess what? I got invited to the closed beta. I'm as happy as a little girl.

I may have mentioned this in another post, but I'm the original, unreconstructed Tolkien geek. I first read "The Hobbit" and "The Lord of the Rings" in the third grade, and I couldn't even guess how many times I've read them since. My favorite book of all time is "The Silmarillion." Yes, I've read all those "History of Middle Earth" books, in which Tolkien's son publishes his father's old doodles and tax receipts. I've read his biography and his published letters. I can name all 13 dwarves and all seven sons of Fëanor. I even (occasionally) write Sauron's Blog.

I loved the movies, although I can recite every single deviation from the novels, and explain every reference. I can explain to you the real reason Denethor went mad, where Gandalf went when he died and why he came back, and why it's significant that Galadriel turned down the ring. I can also tell you that Saruman didn't die at Orthanc, the Galadhrim did not fight at Helm's Deep (and never would have), and that Sauron is NOT an evil lighthouse.

So with my Tolkien bona fides firmly established, there should be no surprise that I've been anxiously awaiting "The Lord of the Rings Online" since it was announced in 2003 as "Middle Earth Online."

It's still in beta, and I imagine and hope that many of the small annoyances derive from that fact. For that reason, I'm only going to give general impressions at this time, and save any complaints for launch.

1.) I love that elf characters start their storyline 600 years before the events of the game, and arrive in the present after the initial tutorial level. Immortality FTW!
2.) All the players with non-Tolkien names annoy the hell out of me. n00bs. My female elf hunter is named Arthradha. Sindarin for "Beautiful Traveler," it's a name I researched for a Tolkien tabletop game a while back.
3.) The graphics look nice. But this is not the first new MMO I've seen with a metallic earth tone color palette. I guess giving everything copper highlights is supposed to add to realism, but it just looks strange to me. "Myst Online" is the worst offender in this regard, but games like "Ran Online" do it too.
4.) Some of the details are beautiful, and reveal the designers' dedication to the legendarium. Check out this screenshot:

At some time in the distant past, sunlight broke into this cave and turned this troll back into stone. Nice.
5.) When you get a quest, read every single word. Unlike in "World of Warcraft," you won't be able to just muddle your way through while ignoring the details. Pay attention to what the quest giver says. Seriously.
6.) Like the "Battle for Middle Earth" guys, the designers of LOTRO are eager to introduce new creatures not mentioned in the legendarium (but that don't conflict with it either). So far, all I've met are the Aurochs and the Cave-Claw Burrowers. An Auroch is a species of extinct cattle, and introducing extinct mammals fits well with Tolkien's conception of Middle Earth as our Earth's primordial past (as well as with the fascination Tolkien, an ardent creationist, had with modern science and evolutionary theory, which he felt it was foolish to deny). That's why I didn't mind the mammoths-as-mûmakil in the movie. As for the Burrowers, I found them really annoying. I don't find them believable, either as animals or as monsters.
7.) Thank Eru that LOTRO's wargs are exactly what they're supposed to be -- giant, talking wolves. What the hell was Peter Jackson thinking?

I'll keep playing, and letting you all know what I think. And when the game goes live, I'll complain about any issues that still exist.

Nai Valaraukar tye-mátar!

Super-Kewl "Pirates of the Burning Sea" Screenshots

I don't usually bother to post screenshots from upcoming games, but these shots from "Pirates of the Burning Sea" are just beautiful.

I'm sure these were made on a top-of-the-line system -- but as long as they are real in-game shots, then I am very impressed.

Sure looks better than "Pirates of the Caribbean Online."

Clicks to pop.

Clicks to pop.

Via Aktrez via Eekabeep.

"Second Life" Bans "Ageplay"

Not that is was ever permitted under their Community Standards, but Linden Labs has officially announced a policy against "ageplay," sexual situations between child and adult avatars.

In-game venues dedicated to "ageplay" have been warned to knock it off by Linden Labs employee called "Chadrick Linden." Apparently, some players with child characters, who do not engage on "ageplay," are concerned about how the ruling will affect them.

Is this even necessary? Personally, I think if you get off on sexual fantasies about children, you have an emotional problem and need to seek help. But you're not hurting anyone, as long as real children aren't involved.

Will fantasizing about sex with children lead to real child molestation? I dunno, will fantasizing about Grace Park make me want to fuck a toaster?