:: Updated by Hannar @ 01/20/04 07:08 pm ::

20. Quests


Tue Aug 26, 2003 11:18 am
http://www.eqii.com/phpbb/viewtopic.php?p=73299&highlight=#73299

Moorgard wrote:

One of the mechanisms we'll be using a lot early in the game is that NPCs will actually seek you out and offer you quests rather than waiting for you to walk up and randomly find them. Making quests obvious is a nice introduction to the game. However, in the long run it can limit the quest mechanism in a way. For instance, some NPCs might want you to prove yourself before offering you a quest. This can be based on your faction with them, your standing in the community, or other factors. How do you let someone know that a given NPC will offer them a cool quest but only if the player becomes more seasoned? And how do you do it without breaking immersion? If all quests are completely obvious, it takes away depth from the game. Personally, I like it when there are layers to a game that don't get discovered for a long time. It's fun to come across some mysterious quest that others might not know about--it gives you a feeling of accomplishment and uniqueness. But sometimes that depth is aided by the existence of spoiler sites, because otherwise a lot of players would never find that really cool content. The assumption that coders simply throw broken quests into the game and don't care about them is a bunch of crap. Sure, mistakes can happen and bugs will inevitably surface, but I sit a couple doors down from some of our quest guys and I can assure you that they are extremely proud of and passionate about the content they put into the game.

Fri Sep 05, 2003 01:35 pm
http://www.eqii.com/phpbb/viewtopic.php?p=83630&highlight=#83630

Moorgard wrote:

Control Freak wrote: However once they do find out there is a cheat one can only hope its fixed in a quick fashion. We will be every bit as aggressive as EQLive in seeking out and getting rid of cheaters. You can count on that. Quote: My main concern with all these quests in EQII is a quest being "Stuck" and just giving EXP over and over (happened a few times in EQ). One way to help combat this is by having certain quests that each character can only do a single time.

Fri Oct 10, 2003 01:34 pm
http://www.eqii.com/phpbb/viewtopic.php?p=110637&highlight=#110637

Moorgard wrote:

Quest rewards are generally not intended to be used forever, but instead to be replaced by better things over time. Just in the few minutes I was able to stick my head into EQLive panel discussions at FanFaire, I heard plenty of people who still ask when they will be able to upgrade their epics. The devs responded politely that these weapons were intended to be epic in the Kunark era, not to be something you'd still be using. For this very reason, don't expect us to call any quest an "epic." Some quests will indeed be similar to the Coldain ring and shawl, but even those ultimately have a limit. Our designers like adding new content, not constantly going back and revising what went before. It's the same reasoning when people complain about the rewards of old quests. "That 2-year-old quest is still hard and takes a lot of time, but you can buy better items from merchants." Again, quests are designed to offer a specific risk/reward ratio at the time they are implemented. If it's a favorable ratio, players will do that quest and be satisfied with the result; if not, they won't. As long as the reward is useful to you for a time and you had fun obtaining it, then the quest will generally be considered worthwhile. The nature of these games is that loot gets progressively better as the world expands. It has to. Going back and revising old quests would take a lot of time away from designing new ones, which would ultimately mean less variety in the world. Additionally, updating a reward just to bring it more in line with the current level of player power introduces fairness and balance concerns. The bar will periodically be raised. Quest rewards will inevitably fall beneath it. Hopefully more often than not, those rewards will still be useful to new players, but designers can't be forced to go backward over and over again. It's much more interesting to go forward.

Tue Dec 16, 2003 09:44 pm
http://www.eqii.com/phpbb/viewtopic.php?p=157563&highlight=#157563

Moorgard wrote:

Ketamina wrote: I'm so tired of cliches and re-re-re-re-re-reused ideas and scripts. Without a specific example of what you mean, I can't address that point. To me, having a great story is key. I think we came up with an excellent tale of what happened over the last 500 years, plus we have multiple threads carrying forward that will hopefully be revealed bit by bit over several expansions. And because a game like this has all kinds of sub-plots going at the same time, there are a multitude of side stories that might not relate to the bigger picture but are nonetheless enthralling. Because of the quantity of quests and dialogues necessary in a world the size of Norrath, not every NPC is going to spin yarns that sound like they were scripted by John Steinbeck. But in terms of the overall story arc, I'm extremely proud of what we've put together.

:: Updated by Hannar @ 03/15/04 10:06 am ::

Thu Mar 11, 2004 01:32 am
http://www.eqii.com/phpbb/viewtopic.php?p=234463&highlight=#234463

Moorgard wrote:

Arkin wrote: You could make a version of no rent items that can not be removed from the dungeon, thus if you port you lose piece five of the crystal key to bob's lair. Indeed you could.

:: Updated by Hannar @ 07/03/04 05:13 pm ::

04-09-2004 07:02 PM
http://eqiiforums.station.sony.com/eq2/board/message?board.id=general&message.id=40454#M40454

Moorgard wrote:

Like others in this thread, I want to be clear about terms here. Yes, you can be working on multiple quests at once. The quest journal keeps track of where you are on each one. The quest helper window (the box in the upper right that tells you what you need to do next) changes based on which quest you have highlighted in your journal. "Multiquesting" in EQ was a kind of exploit by which multiple characters could help complete a quest intended for one person by each turning in a portion of the required items in a certain order. This technique won't work in EQII, mostly because our item collection quests work very differently. The items you're collecting don't go into your inventory; they are simply marked off as being collected in your quest journal. They take up no actual inventory space, and so are never turned in to an NPC.

04-19-2004 10:07 AM
http://eqiiforums.station.sony.com/eq2/board/message?board.id=general&message.id=52043#M52043

Moorgard wrote:

I highly doubt it would be possible for anyone to complete every quest available to them in the game. But if someone does, I'll make them a sandwich.

06-02-2004 04:55 PM
http://eqiiforums.station.sony.com/eq2/board/message?board.id=general&message.id=123106#M123106

Cao wrote:

The quests required to unlock new zones are meant to provide high-points of lore and game play fun. They are not intended to be obstacles for players to overcome. Instead, they are significant milestones that players can look forward to as the story of The Shattered Lands unfolds.

06-13-2004 08:19 PM
http://eqiiforums.station.sony.com/eq2/board/message?board.id=general&message.id=132198#M132198

Moorgard wrote:

The goal of the design team is to make quests that are significant, memorable, and rewarding. They've spent a lot of time building the hallmark quests for things like citizenship, class, city betrayal, and subclass, as well as access to particular locations and adventures. Our intention, though, is not to force quests down your throat. Quest grinding in and of iteself isn't any more fun than XP grinding, so rather than constantly making you feel like you *have* to do quests we'd rather inspire you to *want* to do them because they're fun and you get something out of them. Yes, quests are required at certain points for progressing further into the game, but we're working to make those quests feel like a natural part of the world rather than something artificial you're forced to do. Quests aren't necessarily fun. Good quests are fun. Therefore we've decided our goal shouldn't be to have the most quests, but rather to have ones that are memorable and fun.

06-20-2004 10:43 PM
http://eqiiforums.station.sony.com/eq2/board/message?board.id=general&message.id=136972#M136972

Moorgard wrote:

Our zone access quests will not be like flagging in PoP. Some folks get all in a tizzy when they hear that they need to do a quest to enter a zone, recalling bad memories of VP or VT or PoP. Those are not the models for our access quests. The entire purpose is to give you a memorable bit of storyline that you will enjoy taking part in. They aren't designed as roadblocks to impede advancement, but as milestones in your progression as a character.

06-22-2004 11:22 PM
http://eqiiforums.station.sony.com/eq2/board/message?board.id=general&message.id=138270#M138270

Moorgard wrote:

Our design direction is generally to stay away from making content that is only ever experienced by one player or group. Quests to access certain zones will be done by all players wanting to get there. By that I don't mean every person in every group or raid must have done the same flagging quests (this is not PoP, this is not PoP), but you'll have to go wtih someone who has gained access already. Zone access quests are intended to be fun. As such, we want many players to experience them, not just the first ones to reach a particular area. The quests are designed to draw you deeper into the storyline, not act as a roadblock to content.

06-26-2004 01:50 PM
http://eqiiforums.station.sony.com/eq2/board/message?board.id=general&message.id=141108#M141108

Moorgard wrote:

Once you have completed the betrayal quest you will be a full citizen of the city and will be able to gain standing just like a native.

:: Updated by Hannar @ 07/04/04 08:48 am ::

06-29-2004 06:28 PM
http://eqiiforums.station.sony.com/eq2/board/message?board.id=general&message.id=143212#M143212

Moorgard wrote:

iam99x wrote: How then, will the opportunity to do the betrayal quest come about? Sorry, we don't plan to spoil the details of major quests before the game even comes out.

:: Updated by Hannar @ 08/01/04 03:52 pm ::

07-13-2004 10:20 PM
http://eqiiforums.station.sony.com/eq2/board/message?board.id=general&message.id=151816#M151816

Moorgard wrote:

The quest journal and the fact that most quest items don't take up inventory space eliminate the need for a mechanism like this anyway.