What’s Your Story?

[Eovania]

The reasons people play online games are as diverse as the people themselves. Some play as a hobby, some do it for community, some do it to stay in touch with friends and family members that live far away.

What are your reasons for playing? What keeps you coming back? Why do you choose the games and avatars you do? The Community Relations Management Team at SOE is collecting player stories today, January 4, 2007. Take a few minutes and tell us yours!

[GPA_Coyote]

.....

You're asking me for my story?

Oh. Oh GOD. This..this is like Christmas and my Birthday had a BABY.

I'll be back shortly.

 

[Ama]

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Eovania wrote:

The reasons people play online games are as diverse as the people themselves. Some play as a hobby, some do it for community, some do it to stay in touch with friends and family members that live far away.?xml:namespace prefix = o ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office" />

What are your reasons for playing? What keeps you coming back? Why do you choose the games and avatars you do? The Community Relations Management Team at SOE is collecting player stories today, January 4, 2007. Take a few minutes and tell us yours!

---

Hmm to tell my story I guess you would have to start at the beginning.  I basically sold my soul to SoE the day they sent me EQOA as a trial version for the PS2. :p

*Serious*

I recieved the trial version of EQOA for my PS2 and decided to try it out.  It was the first real time I had experienced an MMO and when the 7 day free trial was up I decided to try it out.  Plunked down some money for the game and the subscription costs and off I went.  It was pretty sweet exploring, discovering, looting and such with the real draw being the size.  I could run from 1 part to another with little to no invisible walls in the way which I loved. 

After a while I learned about EQOA and what an MMO really was.  Soon I joined a guild which really brought me into the game itself.  Had alot of fun times but all things must come to an end and so did my love of EQOA.  It just started feeling run down with the same old stuff with hardly anything new being added in.  Plus the sheer difficulty of obtaining levels detracted alot from it.  Sure I felt accomplishment making level 50's and such but when it took near a month to make it that high it got run down.

*Small Note: When I was young as a present my aunt gave me a pamphlet where you could sponsor a wolf.  I picked one out named Amani and it went from there; sadly I stopped recieving stuff from them so I guess Amani passed on. That is why I picked the druid class and named my toon Amani."

After playing EQOA I wanted that same feel but in a new package and that's when a friend showed me SWG pre CURB/NGE.  This game was always what I had hoped for with diversity, player made items, right down to the advancement.  After buying the game and setting myself up I created a toon on the server my friend was on.  Sadly I couldn't choose the name Amani so I choose the name Amana.

I did the same stuff in EQOA but to greater detail in SWG loving the GM/player interaction.  This was done even to the extent that players could run events asking for GM assistance.  Two memorable moments I have are that of the Wookie Day *December holiday event* where a player city asked for help on the radiant server.  It was a freakin blast to the point of having a shuttle land with vader coming out.  Vader sent out mobs to come kill us including a giant 4 legged walker *think the name is ATAT*. 

Another event was defending a village from a Tusken Raid.  A GM spawned tons of tusken mobs with all of us banding together to slaughter them.  Again it was a blast during that event having fun killing those mobs with a raid of people. 

Best thing was that I was in a great guild that displayed many proud works.  Our guild even had it's most prized possesion displayed on the SWG area *Full Suit of R.I.S. Armor*.  However one thing I liked was that our guild could raid the mobs/dungeons without having to do level calculation/epic calculation and such.  We had to forge our way through red conned mobs hoping to complete areas like the Corvette and DeathWatch Bunker. 

Sadly after going through the game it was around the time my toon made Jedi that the CURB hit.  This really sunk the game down to what I had gotten away from in EQOA.  It wasn't bad per say it just didn't have that SWG type feel to it.  To make matters worse it was later replaced by the NGE which completed destroyed the diversity. 

 

Moving to EQ2 I saw a trailer in a movie theater about it so I thought I might as well try it out.  I went back to that EQOA feel but it still had a "Story theme" to it.  Going through the game I met alot of friends, got into a guild and was eventually made a guild leader.

EQ2 has a great sense about it however the emphasis on level kinda makes it a "By The Numbers" game in some respects.  However this didn't stop me from enjoying the content like the Splitpaw Adventure Pack and Fallen Dynasty.  This even extends to the Kingdom of Sky and Echoes of Faydwere Expansion Packs.  KoS is great cause you don't have that "Walled In" sense that the other areas gave.  You can practically go anywhere you like and you can fall off the world meaning no "N00b" walls.  EoF has a great feeling with the size of areas with the greatest part being Kelethin imho.  It has that true "City" feel where there are no zoning times except when you go to other areas. 

Basically that is my story of where I began and where I have ended up.  However to give a bulleted summerization of what I like in an MMO:

World Size: SWG is a prime example of this with worlds feeling like "Worlds" and the same being said for EQOA.  I'm deffinately keeping tabs on what Gallenite said with "Reduced Zonings". 

World Detail: EQ2 deffinately tops out here with Qeynos and Freeport having a great "City" feel to them.  The zonings detract from this however it is a "Minut" problem atm in my oppinion. 

Player Made Items:  SWG took this to a whole new level imho with items feeling like they were actually made by players.  One T-21 rifle could be 100x different than a T-21 rifle made by another player.  Also, competition for resources made it feel like you were trying to exist as a *insert craftsman title* in SWG.  EQ2 is good and all however Ebon Long Sword A is the same as Ebon Long Sword B with the only difference being imbued or not. 

Guilds: This is the biggest thing imho since this is where players come together for different reasons.  SWG was great cause players could come together to make cities.  They advanced this to the point of having 3-4 different levels.  EQ2 does this in a different way but it is still good imho.  EQ2 has guild advancement giving a reason for people to stay active within the guild.  Also, rewards can be given with rank advancement and Guild Banking.  However EQ2 NEEDS GUILD HALLS, we desperately need these to show that WE ARE A GUILD vs a quote "Guild Home". 

 

I don't know if i'll ever find another MMO like SWG but for now EQ2 is a good home.  It has the community, adventure, exploration and player base that makes it a "good home" imho.

[GPA_Coyote]

I never saw them coming.

 

They came from behind like living shadows, no sound, no alarms, just the quick blackness of approaching nothing.

 

Stars exploded around me, blinding me to the pain as the base of my skull met with an expertly swung pistol grip. My arms became lead weights and I collapsed under my own bulk as I sank to the alley's filth strewn floor.

 

It's funny how your mind works when you're being beaten within an inch of your life. I could hear my heart pounding in my ears like a heavy base drum and my vision clouded over crimson as the sharp coppery smell of my own blood filled my nostrils - yet I could only focus on the well tailored Italian loafers that made up the bulk of my returning sight.

 

They must have cost a fortune.

 

"Are you sure it's him?" A voice rang out from above me. It could have been an Angel, or even God himself, if the Big Guy was from South Jersey anyway.

 

"Yeah. It's him. I'd know this piece of filth anywhere." Another voice answered, punctuating its love for me with a swift kick to my ribs.

 

I doubled over in agony as I felt my ribs shatter like fine crystal on cold stone. I tried to moan but my words were drowned in a flood of my own blood as I coughed in a desperate attempt to return some air to my lungs.

 

Man those were nice shoes.

 

A meaty hand grabbed a good hunk of my hair and forced my head back as I looked up at my captors and away from my sudden development of a foot fetish. I didn't recognize the two lumps of muscle that were giving me a chiropractic work out behind my favorite dives - but I didn't have to. I knew who they spoke for.

 

"You thought you'd get away..away from US?" The smaller of the brutes asked, a sneer spreading like a disease across his already pock-marked face.

 

I'm guessing he didn't want an answer because the business end of his .45 being slammed into my pie hole would have blocked anything witty I had to say. The cold steel barrel made sure that my dentist would be vacationing in Hawaii this year as his buddy grabbed me by the back of the neck with a gentle grip known only to under paid gorillas.

 

"You haven't been playing #6457." The pile of stupid in Italian loafers growled as his buddy ripped the clothes from my back.

 

I didn't even flinch.

 

When you're trying to get to the tootsie roll center of a .45, you don't focus to much on the little things like ripped shirts and the fact that you were kneeling in some Wino's lunch.

 

"You'll play now. You won't have a choice." He laughed as he nodded to the giant who was giving me love rubs with his meat hooks.

 

Normally, I'm not afraid of needles. Hell, I've been around and I've seen things that would make most men cry like an Asian school girl with a ripped Hello Kitty back pack, but this wasn't any needle. It was as thick as one of those number two pencils that they made you use back in school, and it was filled with what looked like a shot of bourbon.

 

Not that I couldn't go for a shot of hooch right now. I have to remember to ask about his shoes.

 

In no position to struggle I screamed like a newborn for his mother's breast as I felt the needle sink into the base of my neck and play hockey with my spine. My world became nothing but fire and pain. Every nerve ending in my body exploded into a blaze of pure agony as my limbs betrayed me and reached out for solace.

 

They watched as I writhed in pain, unable to form a coherent thought, helpless as the day I was born. They watched, and they laughed.

 

"Two hours a day #6457. Two hours a day." My captor laughed as he retrieved his weapon with little effort. The two man stood above me watching my tortured dance before they left, satisfied that their job was done.

 

"Do ya think he'll play?" The lumbering hulk of a masseuse asked his smaller cohort as they left me to my own devices in that cold dark alley.

 

"Oh. He'll play. He'll play video games...or he'll *DIE*." His partner responded with a sharp laugh. "The serum will see to it. He doesn't have a choice." He finished as the darkness swallowed me whole.

 

So that's my story. A man like any other, but forced to play video games - not for fun, not for relaxation, but in the knowledge that if he stops...

 

...he'll die.

 

I've moved on since that fateful day, and I've tried to rebuild my life, but this darkness hangs over me like an anvil on a tattered rope. And that is the reason I tell my wife...

 

...I can't take out the trash.

 

I have to play.

Message Edited by GPA_Coyote on 01-05-2007 05:44 AM

[Zilreed]

I originally met my husband on the internet, through a MUD (Multi-User Dungeon or Domain or Dimension).  We had a roleplaying relationship between our characters and a couple of years later, we decided to start dating in real life and outside of the game.  We got married 11 months later.Shortly after my husband and I got married, he introduced me to Everquest 1.  It was at the time shortly after the Luclin expansion was released.  We both played on the Fironia Vie server, since it was the roleplaying server.  I created a Vah Shir Beastlord lady and he had his High Elf Wizard.  We roleplayed a strange romantic relationship between the two, even if they couldn't kiss or have kittens...Eventually, we stopped playing for a bit, and then the Everquest II game came out and I was interested in trying it.  My hubby got Everquest II for me for Valentine's Day of 2005.  I enjoy this more than any diamond or chocolate in the world.  We soon started playing EQ2 together.  I originally created a couple of characters, a Templar and a Paladin (and accidentally used my veteran painting rewards on the Templar before realizing that I couldn't have them back) and shortly deleted them.  I decided to create a Kerra Fury, who is the decendant of my Vah Shir character in EQ1.  I chose a Fury because they can turn into lions and also because, for roleplaying, I feel a Fury is as close to a class that relates to the Vah Shir and Beastlord ways as they can be.  No, my Vah Shir and my hubby's high elf wizard didn't mate...  The Vah Shir had kittens with another Vah Shir, but the high elf wizard adopted them and raised them with my Vah Shir.  My husband created the same high elf wizard in EQ2, since high elves can live hundreds of years.  My Kerra plays as the wizard's great, great, great, great, great, grandkitten where they eventually found each other in Qeynos after the Shattering. My husband and I have two accounts each, because we eventually filled our character slots up and we needed more.  Some of our other characters include:- A female half elf Defiler and a Dark Elf Necro-- who have a VERY intimate relationship together. - A couple of Ratongas (wizardess and Swashbuckler) who decided to become mates forever (husband and wife) that had betrayed Freeport to go to Qeynos (back when we had the original betrayal system where we had to kill 500 gnolls!).- A female Barbarian Warden and a male Human Bezerker who see each other from time to time and always end up flirting.  - and more...And for the record, I enjoy playing healer classes, especially druids!  At the end of September of 2005, we had a house fire.  We got out alive.  The kitchen was destroyed and as a result, we were forced to live in a residental inn untill the kitchen was made over.  We had our computers and an internet connection at the inn of course.   During the Halloween event of 2005, I decided to try to make an EQ2 video, called, "To Dance Among The Dead."  After releasing it to the public, it seemed to have been a huge success.  So now I continue to make EQ2 videos and my husband and I still play together.  We love all our characters and we enjoy roleplaying with them and seeing Norrath and its history and lore change over time.

Message Edited by Zilreed on 01-05-2007 08:06 PM

[LordBanxter]

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GPA_Coyote wrote:

I never saw them coming.

 

I have to play.

Message Edited by GPA_Coyote on 01-05-2007 05:44 AM

---

What about the SHOES?  You can't just end the story without finding out about the shoes...

:smileywink:

[KerowynnKaotic]

---

Eovania wrote:

What are your reasons for playing? What keeps you coming back? Why do you choose the games and avatars you do? *snipped*

---

 

Well, since you aren't asking how I started in this game (eq1-2), we'll skip that really interesting story which involves Envy, Lust, Gluttony, Greed, Sloth, Pride and Wra(i)th.  

----

Why I play?  To have fun.   To find a reason to smile in a rather ordinary and yet extremely stressful life ..    (currently, I am typing this so I don't just sit here at the office and tear out my hair 1 strand at a time .. or .. go mad and kill the boss with a plastic piggy bank)

This game, unlike EQ1, is the relief from the stresses that both me and my husband have to deal with every day.  Now, that the Guild is ours "free & clear" and we don't have anyone but ourselves depending on us, I should say.  

Whether, it's work, traffic, schedules, family or friends.   Each little thing in our life prior to EQ2 was begining to make us wonder what the point was.  No matter what we did, there was always someone needing something more from us.  There was no escape for us.   Even when we went on vacations someone would find us.   Plus, everyone expects us to bring them back things.     

We are "night" people.   We prefer to skip the whole "morning thing".   As far as we are concerned the sun doesn't come up till after 12noon.    So, it was always a struggle to find something fun to do after work since most places are closed up by then.   Maybe a late night movie on Friday .. if we get to theater fast enough ..    We could go to the bars but I don't drink much and neither of us can stand smokers for more than 2 mins without a gas-mask ..

Online games are perfect solution for people such as us.   Even "investing" in to 4 accounts is still cheaper than what we could be spending if we went out every night after work and this way we don't have to worry about 2nd hand smoke!

This is the one place in our world where we don't have to worry about anyone else's feelings or agendas but our own.   We can choose a zone & set of characters and tackle whatever is thrown at us. 

We might be a lot slower at progressing through this game than we should be but we are happy with our slower leveling.   We purposely turned off our Combat Exp in our newbie levels.   We don't expect to experience everything in the game but we hope and aim to experience as much as possible.   We're sometimes even a bit miffed when we level.   lol.  

We are strange and damned proud of it.  :smileyvery-happy:

---

My avatars?   Each one of them (those that I actually play) are each a piece of my personality.   

• There is Kaisha (main), The Fury!  The side of me that has a "slight" hair trigger temper. 
• Then there is Keisha (alt), the Warden.   The caring, sappy side of me that cries when watching Fox & the Hound.  ...

The rest of my "crew" are along the same lines,  just little bits of my past, present and hopeful future.  

Whether it is a good or bad part of me ..

• Nightflame, the Dirge.  Dark Elf.  The Dark Side of me that has no problem with considering "eliminating" obstacles in her path and whose singing can damage your eardrums ... *wink* ..   
• Summerdance, the Troubador.  Half Elf.   The Wacky Side of me that had 3 pierced earrings before it was "popular" and always wanted to play the drums and can't stop from tapping my feet and/or fingers to any kind of up beat song!  

.....

All that and amazingly I didn't even mention my obsession with killing fairies ...  ooops ...

:smileywink:

 

[SisterTheresa]

I was introduced to the internet after meeting my, then fiancee, back in 1998 (or somewhere around there).  We dabbled in little things like searching the web and all.  I first began with online roleplaying in AOL chatrooms.  Then Everquest came out.  At first I wasn't interested, but when Kunark hit the stores, my fiancee picked it up and said we should really try it.  And we did.

I think my first character was a fighter ... human I believe.  It was amazing the lifelike objects and characters (well lifelike in that time).  I made many characters during my 4 years of playing - erudite necros, high elf clerics, dark elf necros, human monks and healers .... you name it, I played it.

But after a while I lost interest in Everquest, especially once Planes of Power came out.  The game slowly became a raiding game - if you didn't have friends or a large guild you went no where.  So I shelved that game and went through a few others - Horizons, Dark Age of Camelot, Matrix, SWG, Toontown ...

Then Everquest 2 hit beta and I was on it like white on rice.  At the time it came out it was made for solo players (though many now might not believe it).  I LOVED it, and have stuck with it since (though I took 6 months off when LU 13 came out >< )

Now I play City of Heroes when I get a bit burned out with EQ2.  I enjoy all the new expansions and adventure packs.  I still haven't seen half of what the game has to offer, though as a healer I just get dragged everywhere.  I can also say, this is the highest character level I have ever gotten to in an MMO.  I'm quite pleased and amazed.  If it wasn't for such a great game - and a kick [expletive haxx0red by Raijinn] guild I am in with friends - I never would have made it.

Happy New Year!

[Quildi]

I would like to add one comment. I think that both my wife Zilreed and I find something that transcends beyond gaming in Everquest II. First through text MUDing, and now through MMORPGing in a world that bombards us with visual and audio details, we are able to explore IDEAS. We can try out wildly differing lives, philosophies, and have relationships not possible (or perhaps unadvisable) in real life. The consequences of our actions in-game are virtual. Our characters feel no real pain, either emotional or physical. There are no real legal, social, or financial repercussions to the decisions that we make. We could always just walk away and never come back. Since that is not something either of us wants to have to do, we have to learn fit into some very alien social structures with wildly different morals and customs.

Through our characters, we have been able to date, fall in love, argue, argue some more, laugh, and cry over and over again in different ways. We have grown together both emotionally and spiritually. All too often, the impact of what happens in Norrath affects our real life feelings. Sometimes I desperately need a big dose of reality to escape from fantasy.

I haven’t learned anything about courage from Everquest II.* But I have learned a great deal about leadership, patience, and sensitivity to other’s feelings and emotions. The issue of sensitivity is particularly important to me. Not everyone understands the impact that his or her choice of words can have on a stranger sitting behind a computer 3000 miles away. These are practical skills that apply to every day life.

Let us get thousands of people from all over the world together, and tell them to be someone else for a while. We don’t care how old they are, or about their sex, creed, religion, or nationality. Make sure that in the new world they are not at the top of the food chain. Oh, and give them weapons and the ability to set each other on fire. Finally, remove death from the equation. Let us see how they get along now. I think that is what draws me to Everquest II.

Besides, if my wife is in Norrath, or anywhere else, I’ll be there too.

Quildion 1/4/2007

*This is an X-Files television show reference where a kid said something like: “I haven’t spent all these years playing Dungeons and Dragons ™ without learning something about Courage”

[Zilreed]

---

Quildion wrote:

I would like to add one comment. I think that both my wife Zilreed and I find something that transcends beyond gaming in Everquest II. First through text MUDing, and now through MMORPGing in a world that bombards us with visual and audio details, we are able to explore IDEAS. We can try out wildly differing lives, philosophies, and have relationships not possible (or perhaps unadvisable) in real life. The consequences of our actions in-game are virtual. Our characters feel no real pain, either emotional or physical. There are no real legal, social, or financial repercussions to the decisions that we make. We could always just walk away and never come back. Since that is not something either of us wants to have to do, we have to learn fit into some very alien social structures with wildly different morals and customs.

Through our characters, we have been able to date, fall in love, argue, argue some more, laugh, and cry over and over again in different ways. We have grown together both emotionally and spiritually. All too often, the impact of what happens in Norrath affects our real life feelings. Sometimes I desperately need a big dose of reality to escape from fantasy.

I haven’t learned anything about courage from Everquest II.* But I have learned a great deal about leadership, patience, and sensitivity to other’s feelings and emotions. The issue of sensitivity is particularly important to me. Not everyone understands the impact that his or her choice of words can have on a stranger sitting behind a computer 3000 miles away. These are practical skills that apply to every day life.

Let us get thousands of people from all over the world together, and tell them to be someone else for a while. We don’t care how old they are, or about their sex, creed, religion, or nationality. Make sure that in the new world they are not at the top of the food chain. Oh, and give them weapons and the ability to set each other on fire. Finally, remove death from the equation. Let us see how they get along now. I think that is what draws me to Everquest II.

Besides, if my wife is in Norrath, or anywhere else, I’ll be there too.

Quildion 1/4/2007

*This is an X-Files television show reference where a kid said something like: “I haven’t spent all these years playing Dungeons and Dragons ™ without learning something about Courage”

---

Awww, your words make me melt again.  I love you!  : D

[Saihung23]

---

GPA_Coyote wrote:

                                                                           Does anyone get ever get a .45 shoved into their cakehole?

I'm guessing he didn't want an answer because the business end of his .45 being slammed into my pie hole would have blocked anything witty I had to say. The cold steel barrel made sure that my dentist would be vacationing in Hawaii this year as his buddy grabbed me by the back of the neck with a gentle grip known only to under paid gorillas.

---

 

"Two hours a day #6457. Two hours a day." My captor laughed as he retrieved his weapon with little effort. The two man stood above me watching my tortured dance before they left, satisfied that their job was done.

 

---

Nice Story #6547.  I am thinking you may not want to spread around your "fall" down the stairs as vividly next time....oh...and the shoes?

 

Just some two tones with a love for breaking tings.

[Skydrop]

Am I too late for this?

 

My reasons for playing would be simply put for fun and entertainment. I've been playing computer games ever since I had an Amstrad (good ol' Sir Alan!) PC 1640 with Sopwith, Defender, Bushido (I think it was only a demo either that or I couldn't get past the first room), Pacman, Rogue and Spacewars. For a few years I played Counter-Strike as a team and was one of the leaders of a clan, when that died down I thought I'd give an MMORPG game a try as I'd had the desire in the back of my mind for quite a while. I took a look around at what was on offer and EverQuest 1 seemed to fit the bill nicely, it was a mature game, plenty of players, lots of web resources and a rich and deep story, I played upto level 60 (or was it 65?) as a Surefall Glade (heed the wishes of .... you get the picture) Ranger.

 

I joined EQ1 after PoP was released and stayed on playing until a while after Omens of War came out, at that point I lost interest in the game as I was consistently down on my luck when wanting to group or raid, I'd done quite a bit of the content and it seemed I either could grind away doing what I was already doing (which I didn't really fancy the idea of) or I put in a whole lot more game time and got myself to the point that I could apply to join a raid guild, my lifestyle at the time did (and never really has) allow me to do the second option so I decided to buy EverQuest 2.

 

I can remember when I made the decision to get on to EQ2 I wanted to buy the game then and there, I knew Amazon had it but didn't want to wait. I went to almost every electronics/game store in my local area and none of them had or knew of it. So I waited for Mr Bezos to deliver it, It came, "ahah me heartys!" the Far Journey welcomed me onboard.

 

As I'd been an avid quester in EverQuest 1 I stayed on the isle of refuge getting the most out of every quest and mob, I made absolutely sure that I'd done everything as I was told by people I already knew who where playing the game that there was no going back (I found it most ironic that slaying Darathar brought me back). From that initial quest spree I was hooked on questing, I methodically went through every quest I could get in the Qeynos suburbs and other zones.

 

Which follows on to what keeps me coming back, "My name's Skydrop and I'm a quest-a-holic" (round of applause?) I'm proud to be in the top 100 (all classes) for my server as a quester and have been for quite a while, new and interesting quests is part of what keeps me coming back. The main, rather profound reason I keep coming back is that I've managed during my play time to build up a character I really appreciate, I like my gear (could be better of course!), I like my CAs and know them well, I have a wonderfull house and plenty of odds and ends in the bank that I enjoy pulling out and playing with from time to time. I also keep coming back because I enjoy combat so much, especially solo combat against mobs that if I let my side drop for a second I'm dead, soloing content you know is hard and winning is a great feeling of acomplishment and I know that I couldn't of done it had I not put the time and effort into my character.

 

I enjoy the social asspect of the game, I enjoy chatting to people about the game, interacting with people and generally having a laugh. One thing I have found is the very much more closed attitude of people to their RL lives in comparison to other gaming communities I've had the opportuning to be a part of, in EverQuest 2 you hardly know anything about the people you're playing with, when I was part of a Counter-Strike team I knew their names (sometimes surename too), where they where from, how old they where, what they did for a job/school, their mobile numbers, email addresses etc etc, in EQ2 I barely know anything about my fellow players RL lives and when it does come it's in drips and drabs. No complaint on that point, just would like to point out the differance I have encountered.

 

I decided upon a ranger as it seemed to fit some of my previous interests reasonably well. I did archery for a couple of years, I also was part of the Woodcraft Folk (nothing to do with actually making anything out of wood) - kind of like a more PC version of the scouts and I also liked the hybrid nature of the ranger class (in EQ1). When I joined EQ2 I decided to play a Ranger first off as I wanted to see what the EQ2 ranger was like compared to my experiences with a Ranger in EQ1 and haven't looked back.

 

I decided to play a human (both in EQ1 and 2) because they seemed straight down the middle, I really couldn't decide on any other race so I lumped for the jack of all trades race. Both my EQ1 and EQ2 characters, as they've been human, have been modelled to look as much like me as possible, I haven't changed my appearance since I started EQ2 and I've been really tempted to start a topic somewhere asking people how much their char looked like themselves with side by side pictures (I don't have an RL pony tail though, I did once, down past my shoulders!).

Message Edited by Skydrop on 01-05-2007 11:01 AM

[Vukota]

Growing up my friends and I played fantasy role-playing games and loved them. Yes we dabbled in the dice/table top games like D&D and eventually moved on to more kick [Removed for Content] PC games like Bard's Tale on the Commodore 64 Eventually we grew older, got jobs, gf's etc... and moved on. Video games were no longer the center of our universe...after all we were adults now right?

Towards the end of 2002 my interest peaked when I popped in to an EB Games and saw Everquest on the shelf. I had heard of it....and at this point I had pretty much stopped playing video games except for the occasional round of Counterstrike or Madden contest on the PS2. So after a few months of browsing and doing some research...checking the websites...forums etc... I said what the heck. I picked up a copy for me and my buddy with no clue what to expect from a game that was going to be charging us $15 a month.

Low and behold it was everything we ever wanted in a fantasy role playing game growing up...except this game had RL players we could group with! People from all over the world...not just our little circle of friends. How cool was this?! We were hooked! 

We eventually got familiar with the game...our classes...the world of norrath...and formed our own guild. We seemed to choose characters that fit our real life persona. I am outgoing and relish the center of attention...so I chose a Warrior...spell books were for sissies and I had always played the Warrior growing up :p My other buddy who is more the helpful sort picked a cleric. Interacting with others...learning the zones...battling in groups deep in the Acrylia Caverns to becoming Time flagged...what a ride!!!

But...the thing that hooked us even more and made us sign on as often as we could...was the online friendships we made along the way. Sure it was a video game...but this video game gave us not only entertainment...but it provided us with a social setting too that the television simply could not provide.

The tradition carried on to EQ2...we moved our guild over (but still play from time to time on EQ1)...and it's still as fun as ever. H*ll I even have the gf hooked on it now thanks to the creation of the Fae race. But like I tell her...would you prefer me in the house saving money or at some smoky bar getting drunk 5 nights a week?

I always win that argument

~~Vuk

P.S. Yeah I know I'm late on my story...but h*ll Iwas 3 years late in picking up my copy of Everquest!

Message Edited by Vukota on 01-05-2007 12:17 PM

[anotherrogue]

Well... I suppose my story started back when EQ1 first came out. My father was really excited about it, so I bought it for him for Christmas. (After reading everything I could about it... and creating a character in my head... WE druid)

 

He started saying I really needed to try it... so I made my druid on his account. Then began commuting to his house to play, as right away I made friends (I was a freshman in college at the time). Well... it got to the point were I was commuting everyday to play (though I swear I at least did the dishes, and waited until after dinner to log in ). So that spring I bought my first computer and installed EQ, and restarted my druid.

 

My father and I played a lot together, and together we met a great group of friends. In essence, I grew up on EQ, learned a lot about people and friendships.

 

My father switched to City of Heroes (he always was a big super hero fan) and I wanted to sort of break out from his shadow (I was known as Jenra's kid at the age of 22 ) but I couldn't play EQ1 without him. So, with a group of coworkers and my boyfriend we started playing EQ2. We ended up bouncing from server to server a few times. (Lost my EQ1 title and stuff /cry).

 

We found a home on Mistmoore, my coworkers all left the game, but I play with a good group of new friends, a very good old one, my fiance, and his brother.

 

My avatar... well... was a collaboration of sorts. I was told by my old friend that I played a very good tank in EQ1 so... I decided to stick with my strengths (though I am fairly certain this was an ego stroke because he wanted to play a mage and my boyfriend always plays a healer). My boyfriend and I enjoyed Freeport and thought it would be funny... to make the healer the biggest, ugliest Troll ever and the tank small and "pretty"... so I choose Half- Elf, as Gnomes never really struck me as "pretty" (sorry Gnomes)

 

So to sum up, I play for fun. I stay for the people I meet and the friends (ohh and the phat loots :smileywink: ), and my avatar is a joke :smileyvery-happy:

 

[eqchick]

Back in 1999, my hubby (who was my boyfriend at the time) thought I might like to try an online game.  So, for christmas of 99' I recieved EQ1. I was facinated by the thought of playing an D&D like game.  But when I loaded it up, I hated it.... I was soooo disappointed it wasn't at all what I had expected.  The graphics were really basic and everyone was killing me...I couldn't level...It just sucked in my mind.  Now what I didn't  realize was that eq1 had just come out earlier that year..And was the first mmorpg, but what did I know...I was new to gaming in general.  So I quit playing But then in 2002, I was given EQOA.  My hubby loved it!  I, on the other hand hated it =(  I was starting to feel bad, I so wanted something that was similar to D&D.You have to understand, that I grew up in  almost all boy family...So I natrually did what they did...Which got me into D&D and AD&D (which I still love to this day).So, my soul was longing for something like that but in PC game.  So frusterated I gave up....Until a few months later.I happen to catch my hubby playing a game on the PC, I was drawn to it.  "What's that your playing, honey," I asked.  "Oh this? This is EQ1", he said in a near whisper, afraid of what I might say.  What he didn't realize was that I was interested this time....much more."NO, its not",  I said."Yes it is", he simply replied.From 1999 till 2002, the graphics and dynamics of the game had changed greatly!  So i naturally tried it out and was hooked!  I eventually also found myself playing EQOA as well a few months later.  I was so happy, finally finding a hobby that suited me...  That lasted unitl 2004....I heard rumors of a new game coming out...and upgrade....a better game....better graphics, easier to play then EQ1 but harder then EQOA...  When EQ2 launched in Nov of 04', I honestly had no intentions on leaving eq1... I mean I thought I was happy there...but I hadn't been playing it a full year yet.  So I didn't have to many high level characters.  This made it easy for me to make the switch, that  I didn't think I was gonna make so early on.  But, when I fired up my PC and installed EQ2  I was more then hooked.. I WAS SUCKED IN!  It was unlike anything I had ever seen...It was a new world, in which dragons and beasts roamed.  Where evil waited to be conquerd!  Where treasure lie, waiting to be discovered! Where new people were waiting to get together to fight the many foes that awaited them.  IT WAS EVERYTHING!  EXCITING...AND NEW! It was exactlly what I had been wanting....And here I am, over 2 years later, with 10 characters  and a proud guild leader of what I would like to call my family... I'm still playing.  I've seen the ups and downs of the game...And I think it can only get better!  I think SOE has done a terrific job in this mmo and I can't wait to see what else they come up with next.  So in the end, I play because of the people I have met online... Because of the great game that it is....But the main reason....the main reason I am here...Because it takes me back to my youth of when I was a little girl....That little girl who begged and pleaded with her older brothers to let her play D&D...  The same little girl, who would conjure up in her mind a strong and vigilant paladin that would kill evil at all costs.  Now it's just made easier.... It's all right here before me... No having to conjure up anything....  That is why I am sucked into EQ2!  And for the record my hubby is too!  We both play and run a nice guild on the Kithicor server, we love it!As for charcters I play?  I play almost all of them...But my main, is a level 70 beserker that I love.  I love all my toons...but she is the one I love most!I love the damage that she can do, yet she can take hits...the only thing I dont like is that her taunt sucks...but oh well...that's how it goes..lolThanks SOE for making the little girl come back from so long ago!

[Gethani]

My story is not as compelling as Coyote’s, nor as romantic as Zilreed and Quildion’s. I started playing to escape the realities of my real life world. My husband is a Navy Veteran with 27 years of service. I spent a lot of years alone with my 3 children. My son was in middle school when the console craze started in full force (he is now 22), and like any self-respecting young boy he had to have Nintendo Entertainment System. So I bought one. I watched him play and decided that on the nights I could not sleep (there were many of those) I would vanish in the worlds of Zelda and Final Fantasy. I would drop my son off at school and I would hear his friends shouting to each other “David’s Mom is lvl 99!” None of their mother’s played.

As my son got older he discovered an online role-playing game and told me that I just had to come and try it. It took a bit of convincing on his part but he dragged me into the world of MMO’s. I started meeting people from all over the country and the world. I was amazed that I could be sitting in my computer room talking to someone in Israel. We played, and our friendships grew. Then from far on the horizon came news of a game that would be the be all end all of MMO’s as they were known thus far----Everquest!!

The game was supposed to be exciting, the graphics like none seen before and there would be quests and raids and all manner of mayhem. My online group made plans to join in the wonderful world of Everquest when it was released. Launch day rolled around and everything we had hoped for was right in front of us. We played, guilds were formed raids were tried and won, servers were split and decisions were made that would change the way we all lived. I was a working mom by this time, so I missed a lot of raid nights. College kids were skipping classes to make a raid or an event or get that level. We all still played. More decisions were made to cut back on play time, Everquest became known fondly to some, seriously to others as Evercrack. Years went by players and friends came and went. I met more new people, formed more new friendships.

Some of the people I met told me about Everquest 2. Things were going to be better there and bigger. I got into the early beta of Everquest 2 and never went back to Everquest. Again, I met more new people formed more new friendships. When the game went live, I  created Deviance on the Unrest server with 2 very close online friends. The guild has grown form the 6 people we started with to having over 145 accounts. I met many of the EQ2 Dev team at Fan Faires. I have also met many of the people that are involved in the EQ2 community. What a great bunch of players we have!! I got involved with the people at Online Gaming Radio and I am a guest on the EQ2’s Day show every week. What a treat, I get to talk about the game I love to play for 3 hours without anyone rolling their eyes!!

I have 2 daughters that think I am a loser because I play online games. My sons’ friends still think I am the coolest mom alive. I will be 51 years old in February and I plan on playing for a long while!!

I still speak to a few of the people that I started playing with. I have traveled the country to met some. Sadly, I have lost touch with a great many of them, but there are always others to fill the void. I am a very social person in life and this game meets my need to chat and have fun without leaving the comfort of my house! I can now play for brief periods of time and still get things accomplished. I have met the most wonderful people here!

Gethani

Guild Leader of Deviance

Unrest Server

OGR Staff

[BSbon]

ship and coyote force me to play.

[Sykophrog]

My story? Not complicated, I have poor social skills and hate the real world, thus, video games. I can escape into fantasy lala land (OH and I can kill stuff, they wont let me do that in the real world   )

BTW this is also the reason I read a LOT, like TV a LOT, like [Removed for Content] a LOT, and so forth. I also have no GF .

Nope, I'm not making fun of the stereotype, cuz I unfortunately AM the stereotype.  Funny haircut, glasses, and completely unfit and all.

My 2 joys in life are currently EQ2 and the fact that hating the real world and poor social skills mean that I make a fairly decent living working security (I can tell all the screwups out there that they are screwups, and unlike in retail not only go I not get fired I actually get praise when I make some IDIOT 14 y/o kids cry after they tried to skateboard down the escalator.

 

Please.. PLEASE, make it stop (except for EQ2, all hail EQ2)

 

This message brought to you by the Phroggy Phreedom Phund, please stop the murder of poor innocents for French food that isnt even that good.

 

PS: Dont let your kids end up like me

[Wastura]

What's with the necro post?

[Xantious]

I wanted to see exotic Qeynos... the crown jewel of Norrath. I wanted to meet interesting and stimulating people of an ancient culture... and kill them. I wanted to be the first kid on my block with a confirmed kill.

 

BTW, how are any of the replies necro posts? This thread was started only a couple of days ago?

[GPA_Coyote]

---

Wastura wrote:
What's with the necro post?

---

What's with you not knowing the defination of necro post?

[SlashnGut]

I agree Coyote - how is a post started 2 days ago dead (for an extended period)?

Message Edited by SlashnGut on 01-06-2007 11:33 PM

[SuzieLu]

I work from home and I log on for quick sessions of gaming for a break - or atleast that's what I tell myself.

 "Quick" never ever ends up being quick.  20 minutes in I really should be working..ok, i'm gonna just run over here to this zone real quick. I need to turn this quest in. 20, 30, 40 minutes more go by. 

I see the time..I really don't feel like working right now.  Work sucks.  I go work on my tradeskilling.  That's work right?  =)

EQ is the devil and I am it's minion.  =) 

[Bleedingheart]

---

Gethani wrote:

My story is not as compelling as Coyote’s, nor as romantic as Zilreed and Quildion’s. I started playing to escape the realities of my real life world. My husband is a Navy Veteran with 27 years of service. I spent a lot of years alone with my 3 children. My son was in middle school when the console craze started in full force (he is now 22), and like any self-respecting young boy he had to have Nintendo Entertainment System. So I bought one. I watched him play and decided that on the nights I could not sleep (there were many of those) I would vanish in the worlds of Zelda and Final Fantasy. I would drop my son off at school and I would hear his friends shouting to each other “David’s Mom is lvl 99!” None of their mother’s played.

 

As my son got older he discovered an online role-playing game and told me that I just had to come and try it. It took a bit of convincing on his part but he dragged me into the world of MMO’s. I started meeting people from all over the country and the world. I was amazed that I could be sitting in my computer room talking to someone in Israel. We played, and our friendships grew. Then from far on the horizon came news of a game that would be the be all end all of MMO’s as they were known thus far----Everquest!!

 

The game was supposed to be exciting, the graphics like none seen before and there would be quests and raids and all manner of mayhem. My online group made plans to join in the wonderful world of Everquest when it was released. Launch day rolled around and everything we had hoped for was right in front of us. We played, guilds were formed raids were tried and won, servers were split and decisions were made that would change the way we all lived. I was a working mom by this time, so I missed a lot of raid nights. College kids were skipping classes to make a raid or an event or get that level. We all still played. More decisions were made to cut back on play time, Everquest became known fondly to some, seriously to others as Evercrack. Years went by players and friends came and went. I met more new people, formed more new friendships.

 

Some of the people I met told me about Everquest 2. Things were going to be better there and bigger. I got into the early beta of Everquest 2 and never went back to Everquest. Again, I met more new people formed more new friendships. When the game went live, I  created Deviance on the Unrest server with 2 very close online friends. The guild has grown form the 6 people we started with to having over 145 accounts. I met many of the EQ2 Dev team at Fan Faires. I have also met many of the people that are involved in the EQ2 community. What a great bunch of players we have!! I got involved with the people at Online Gaming Radio and I am a guest on the EQ2’s Day show every week. What a treat, I get to talk about the game I love to play for 3 hours without anyone rolling their eyes!!

 

I have 2 daughters that think I am a loser because I play online games. My sons’ friends still think I am the coolest mom alive. I will be 51 years old in February and I plan on playing for a long while!!

 

I still speak to a few of the people that I started playing with. I have traveled the country to met some. Sadly, I have lost touch with a great many of them, but there are always others to fill the void. I am a very social person in life and this game meets my need to chat and have fun without leaving the comfort of my house! I can now play for brief periods of time and still get things accomplished. I have met the most wonderful people here!

 

Gethani

Guild Leader of Deviance

Unrest Server

OGR Staff

---

                         -The reason I play? It all started one night while lying in bed. Once I had dozed off I experienced a weird dream where I thought I was flying through clouds. All of a sudden a thunderous booming voice reverberated through my non-corporeal being that said just the following: Everquest 2!. Immediately after a bright light shone down upon me as if the very heavens parted to bestow all that is good and divine to me. Then without warning I began a frighteningly fast descent toward mother earth which left me screaming like a little girl the entire flight down. When I became aware of the fact that I was back in my fleshy constraints I noticed that my now awake self was flying through a wall ala Beverly Hills Ninja.:smileytongue:

                           But alas, I was drawn to EQ2 after a migratory route that began with Everquest 1 shortly after the Ruins of Kunark was discovered. I played there until shortly after The Gates of Discord were opened to the masses where in which I had found myself traversing the lands of Vana'diel in Final Fantasy XI. After a brief stay I happened across a cave where inside I fell through a cosmic rift and found myself trapped in the World of Warcraft. After numerous battles and conquests I descended upon the City of Heroes and Villains intent on creating an empire in my own image. Growing restless due to no more challenges I left my empire there and found myself back in the wilds of Norrath in Everquest 2. There I was abducted....err kidnapped.....err invited! into the guild Deviance in which I am still in chains....err making a home! to this day :smileyvery-happy:

                          SHAMELESS PLUG: Oh and did I mention that Deviance is a great guild?:smileywink:

                           

                            

[Wastura]

Wow, when I first looked at this, I must have had something wrong with my registry cause this looked like a post started about a month after launch with two replies, then all a sudden Coyote posted 2 some years later.

[GPA_Coyote]

Or..maybe...

 

Coyote built a TIME MACHINE!

Muahahahha

[Spyderbite]

I started out playing multi-player games via BBS systems in the early 90's. It was only natural that I'd graduate to MUDs & MOOs once the Internet became a bit more popular a few years later. I play MMORPGs for the interaction with other people. To me, its much less "static" than meeting people in a chat room or a forum. I get to meet people from all over the world while sharing a common goal in the game. In addition, I'm a fiction writer and some of my best inspirations for stories have developed from interactions in online games. Writers despise blocks. And, MMORPG's are like a constantly flowing fountain of ideas! :smileyhappy:

[Nemissis]

Well i live in Northern Canada and love gaming.... I love being able to chat and meet other people all over the globe which is the main reason why i have sticked through with mmorpg..... i own a 360 curently and play non stop online chating wiht people/killing them over and over =P I use to play D&D and really got into roleplaying games which lead me to Everquest 1

 I have  started getting into mmorpgs when i began playing everquest 1 because a friend of mine got me into it years ago.... he sadly quit =( a 2 and a half years later and 2 months solid days online i then got into starwars galaxies (Big Starwars fan)

I played that for 9 months then because of guild issues (being a leader overwelmed me) not to mention the lack of content (i loved the theme and how they did everything but the lack of quests and content for lvl 90s got to me about 6 months after the big change) I made so many friends on that game and hated to  leave them but  

I then got into EQ2 =D once again was refered by the same friend lol.  i love being able to relate things from eq1 to eq2.... i love how you do your quests, character and content of the game (would like to see even more lore about what happened to make EQ1 transform into EQ2).  I like the theme of eq2 slaing dragons and undead and how you have your user interface (dont ever change it!!!! its by far the best of all the mmorpgs iv played and sooo much easier to use then WoW and eq1).  Right now im going on 9 months of playing EQ2 and i love all the friends i have made and of course my guildies (been with them for nearing 7 months now) . 

Im dieing to see what else you guys will be comming up with and loved the EoF expansion.... seeing the old gods and greater faydaark again.  (have yet to see that nasty unicorn tho i remember having to lead my group through it to get to MM castle using my rangers track and running like hell when we saw them)

Sadly once again im getting into another mmorpg, Wow (who my friend is once again got me into it) although i cant stand alot of parts of it and proably wont stick with it like i did with all the other games i have played and have no plans on ever leaving eq2....  Really cant wait to see what you guys have in store for us next!

Message Edited by Technuven on 01-10-2007 12:11 AM

[Ponos]

In 1997 I got a job at a retail store called Egghead Software.

 

One day at work one of my coworkers called me over to one of our demo machines,

"Come here and watch me cast this fireball.  I'm working on my fireball skill."

 

I watched him cast his fireball.  Then cast another fireball; then another.  Just as I was about to pat him on the back and walk away unimpressed, several similar looking human figures appeared on screen and started casting fireballs AT HIM!  He died.

"Stupid PKers," he grumbled.

 

"What are PKers," I asked.

 

"Players that run around killing other players," he replied.

 

"Wait, those were...real people?"

 

"Yeah, I guess."

 

I leaned in closer, eyeballing the monitor with a wholly new perspective.

"What game is this?"

 

"Ultima Online," he said.

 

And the rest is history.

 

Message Edited by Phylicus on 01-10-2007 12:34 AM

[Tarya]

What are your reasons for playing? What keeps you coming back? Why do you choose the games and avatars you do?Hmm good questionsEQII is my first in this genre (my ex didnt really like my game hobby so I didn't get play much... well I've taken that time back now lol)I almost went for WoW due to my collegue who played it and raised my interest in these kind of games. But - luckily - those were sold out from stores (yes my country is small) and they didn't have free trials. So I stumbled across EQII free trial and I was sold :smileyvery-happy:Been here about 2 years and I love the fact that I have new friends all over the world. Mainly I like the frequent content additions and freedom to do whatever I like.The games I played before this were sort of 'fixed' - only one way to finish the game and once you finished it... that's it.I've tried different classes and seems healers and scouts fit my playstyle. I also tend to choose elves since their looks please my eye and I like the mystery/lore related to them.