Everquest II: Echoes of Faydwer
Posted February 26, 2007
Everquest II players have enjoyed two expansion packs before Echoes of Faydwer, named Desert of Flames and Kingdom of Sky. This particular package comes with the core game, the previous two expansion packs, and the new content found in Echoes of Faydwer. The content is based on a mission area of the original Everquest, just fast forward a few hundred years. 
The expansion pack is surprisingly weighted toward new players rather than veterans. Players still can’t level past 70 nor does much of the quest material apply to seasoned characters. The pack provides a new race of creatures called the Fae, basically a winged fairy. They cannot fly, but they do seem to hover & glide very well. Launching off a high elevation has a wonderful feeling of smooth sailing through the air. New players will find delight in the character choices as well as players looking to restart the entire campaign.
Gameplay:
The Fae are only available to players who wish to align themselves on the side of good (or neutrals). These woodland creatures are well versed in the practices of magic which pack a heck of a wallop. Nearly all the attacks are ranged which can allow for speedy exits early in the game when evaluating the character’s capabilities. Questing seems more natural with this race as well. Much of the new content is designed for the Fae and their own back-story. My only pet peeve is that much of the Fae’s quests fall back on familiar formulas such as collection tasks or killing sprees.
Beyond the new race, the devs also saw fit to include an interesting twist on a religious beliefs system, new zones to travel through, and some minor extras such as new clothing options and player rewards. The beliefs system kicks into effect once a presiding member of the religious organization you wish to follow is located. The quest that follows will award the player special bonuses to your stats and powers in the form of an altar. This altar is tossed into the player house and can be prayed to for help from the Gods. Additionally, new quests will become available to the player while leveling up to increase the capabilities of the altar and your overall favor with said God. It’s an intriguing effort at further enveloping the character into the world of Norrath.
The player rewards system is oddly addictive, although it seems to award far too many free items at the outset of the game. Rewards also come in the form of boosted stats, specifically of your choosing. Players can select a branching area of abilities that are in tune with your character’s play style. The addition of this stat boosting adds more of an experimental element, especially for veteran character’s well versed in the old ability structure.
The devs also added a couple of new options for players who love manufacturing their own goods for trade. Tinkering and Transmutation rely on a character’s ability to transform resources into usable goods via collection or magical spells. Tinkering is very involving and only for player’s who carry a broad knowledge of available resources. Sometimes finding such resources can be an extreme pain for low level players. Transmuting an item is simpler for beginners, like myself, and offers a bit more entertainment value. Adding damage modifiers to weaponry or defense additions to the armor through magic is a welcome addition to the game, especially when comparing it to other MMORPG’s.
Graphics:
Visually, Everquest II struggles on most systems, regardless of the amount of hardware pumping out the high-res images. The beefy system requirements do little to alleviate sluggish graphical response. While the framerate is suspect, the graphics engine is quite beautiful. Environments are filled with lush, detailed textures and wonderfully animated characters. Specifically, the Fae character animations are easily the most varied in the game. Flapping around throughout the lands of Norrath is particularly striking. Overall, the art design is paramount and perhaps the strongest element of the graphical engine.
Audio:
The sound effects are wonderfully enrapturing, especially when hunting in any of the forests. Norrath breaths life via its auditory elements, particularly for folks with a decent surround system. The player is assaulted from all sides with roving patrols, rushing waves, chirping birds, ferocious roars, etc.
The voice overs are not the best I’ve heard, but they do capture elements of an epic adventure game. The sheer amount of recorded voice seems on par with this type of game as well. Unfortunately, the musical score is woefully silent at the most climatic points of battle. It doesn’t seem to be very involving nor does it present itself very often. Usually, the environmental sounds effects take precedence over the music.
Overall:
I had a blast with Everquest II, mostly because the play style seemed much more laid back than World of Warcraft and the story elements are vastly more solid. Leveling is still a bit of a grind, but the variety in the mission structure and the instanced encounters keep the game fresh. While the learning curve seems a bit steeper than similar MMORPG’s, the customer base is very friendly and willing to help a new player.
I can easily recommend this package to gamers new to the Everquest series, although they may want to brush up on the storyline of the original game before diving in. Seasoned player won’t find the same level of enjoyment to the expansion pack, but there are a few neat extras that the true junkies won’t be able to pass up. Due to the sheer amount of content packaged with this version, full retail price is absolutely reasonable for players looking to invest their time and money into an entertaining RPG.
The expansion pack is surprisingly weighted toward new players rather than veterans. Players still can’t level past 70 nor does much of the quest material apply to seasoned characters. The pack provides a new race of creatures called the Fae, basically a winged fairy. They cannot fly, but they do seem to hover & glide very well. Launching off a high elevation has a wonderful feeling of smooth sailing through the air. New players will find delight in the character choices as well as players looking to restart the entire campaign.
Gameplay:
The Fae are only available to players who wish to align themselves on the side of good (or neutrals). These woodland creatures are well versed in the practices of magic which pack a heck of a wallop. Nearly all the attacks are ranged which can allow for speedy exits early in the game when evaluating the character’s capabilities. Questing seems more natural with this race as well. Much of the new content is designed for the Fae and their own back-story. My only pet peeve is that much of the Fae’s quests fall back on familiar formulas such as collection tasks or killing sprees.
Beyond the new race, the devs also saw fit to include an interesting twist on a religious beliefs system, new zones to travel through, and some minor extras such as new clothing options and player rewards. The beliefs system kicks into effect once a presiding member of the religious organization you wish to follow is located. The quest that follows will award the player special bonuses to your stats and powers in the form of an altar. This altar is tossed into the player house and can be prayed to for help from the Gods. Additionally, new quests will become available to the player while leveling up to increase the capabilities of the altar and your overall favor with said God. It’s an intriguing effort at further enveloping the character into the world of Norrath.
The player rewards system is oddly addictive, although it seems to award far too many free items at the outset of the game. Rewards also come in the form of boosted stats, specifically of your choosing. Players can select a branching area of abilities that are in tune with your character’s play style. The addition of this stat boosting adds more of an experimental element, especially for veteran character’s well versed in the old ability structure.
The devs also added a couple of new options for players who love manufacturing their own goods for trade. Tinkering and Transmutation rely on a character’s ability to transform resources into usable goods via collection or magical spells. Tinkering is very involving and only for player’s who carry a broad knowledge of available resources. Sometimes finding such resources can be an extreme pain for low level players. Transmuting an item is simpler for beginners, like myself, and offers a bit more entertainment value. Adding damage modifiers to weaponry or defense additions to the armor through magic is a welcome addition to the game, especially when comparing it to other MMORPG’s.
Graphics:
Visually, Everquest II struggles on most systems, regardless of the amount of hardware pumping out the high-res images. The beefy system requirements do little to alleviate sluggish graphical response. While the framerate is suspect, the graphics engine is quite beautiful. Environments are filled with lush, detailed textures and wonderfully animated characters. Specifically, the Fae character animations are easily the most varied in the game. Flapping around throughout the lands of Norrath is particularly striking. Overall, the art design is paramount and perhaps the strongest element of the graphical engine.
Audio:
The sound effects are wonderfully enrapturing, especially when hunting in any of the forests. Norrath breaths life via its auditory elements, particularly for folks with a decent surround system. The player is assaulted from all sides with roving patrols, rushing waves, chirping birds, ferocious roars, etc.
The voice overs are not the best I’ve heard, but they do capture elements of an epic adventure game. The sheer amount of recorded voice seems on par with this type of game as well. Unfortunately, the musical score is woefully silent at the most climatic points of battle. It doesn’t seem to be very involving nor does it present itself very often. Usually, the environmental sounds effects take precedence over the music.
Overall:
I had a blast with Everquest II, mostly because the play style seemed much more laid back than World of Warcraft and the story elements are vastly more solid. Leveling is still a bit of a grind, but the variety in the mission structure and the instanced encounters keep the game fresh. While the learning curve seems a bit steeper than similar MMORPG’s, the customer base is very friendly and willing to help a new player.
I can easily recommend this package to gamers new to the Everquest series, although they may want to brush up on the storyline of the original game before diving in. Seasoned player won’t find the same level of enjoyment to the expansion pack, but there are a few neat extras that the true junkies won’t be able to pass up. Due to the sheer amount of content packaged with this version, full retail price is absolutely reasonable for players looking to invest their time and money into an entertaining RPG.