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Champions of Norrath: Realms of EverQuest
by Jolex Del Pilar
Thursday, October 9 2003
The EQ universe done Baldur's Gate style. We like!
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Title:
Champions of Norrath: Realms of EverQuest
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Platform:
PS2
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Publisher:
Sony Online Entertainment |
Developer:
Snowblind Studios |
#
of Players: 1 - 2 + Online Play |
Genre:
RPG
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Origin:
United States
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Expected
Release:
February 2004 |
Grapevine:
Fans of Baldur's Gate: Dark Alliance will eat up Champions of Norrath. |
In August we had the opportunity to go to San Francisco and demo Champions of Norrath: Realms of EverQuest, Sony Online Entertainment's upcoming RPG being developed for the PS2. The appeal behind Champions of Norrath is fairly simple. Take the gameplay from Baldur's Gate: Dark Alliance, and then base it inside the EverQuest universe. The formula for an instant RPG classic? Perhaps.
The story behind Champions of Norrath begins in the city of Faydwer several hundred years before the timeline of the original EverQuest. The orc, and goblin armies are threatening the land and you, a champion of the land, have answered the call to arms (yes, we know, Lord of the Rings, har har). One notable aspect of the game is the character creation system. It's fairly versatile. The system features modifiable hair, skin, tattoos and facial hair. You can also pick from five different classes (both male and female) when you are creating your lead character. Those classes include barbarian warrior, dark elf shadowknight, high elf cleric, erudite wizard and wood elf ranger. Obviously each class has its pros and cons, and it would be best to pick the class that best fits your playing style. The game will allow you to play the adventure alone, or with up to three other friends courtesy of the PS2 multitap or you can opt to go online with the PS2 modem. Each player can import their own personal characters into multiplayer, giving way for the possibility of having quite a powerful party.
While playing the early beta, one thing became obvious; the game plays similarly to the aforementioned Baldur's Gate: Dark Alliance. The combat is handled in real-time, no turns or waiting, just go up to an enemy and hack away. This was probably done to satisfy more action oriented console gamers. One thing that is cool is that the dungeons in Champions of Norrath are randomly generated. Although there are preset templates for dungeons similar to Elder Scrolls: Daggerfall from the PC, there will be different items, and monsters each time you venture in. That should increase the play time of this game considerably. The main quest of the game itself is huge. The developers assured us that the main quest would feature would take at least 50 hours to finish. In reality, we expect most gamers to finish the game in half that time, even still, 25 hours is quite a lot of game time. However, if you should get bored of the main quest, the game does offer 50 other non-linear side quests for you to pursue. This should add perhaps another 25 hours of gameplay.
Champions of Norrath, while not the best looking RPG on the market (KOTOR holds those honors), is decent in many aspects. One level we tried out, which reminded us of the ewok village from Return of the Jedi, was especially good looking. It was a 3D elevated level that featured dozens of moving NPCs and enemy characters. It's obvious the designers are taking full advantage of the power that the PS2 has to offer.
People who bought Dark Alliance and were satisfied by its gameplay, but disappointed by the shortness of it, might look into investing into Champions of Norrath. Made by the same designers, and featuring a completely fresh universe, the developers this time around have obviously heard the request for a longer game and have more or less answered them. Look for Champions of Norrath, as well as our final review of the game, in November. Until then, happy questing.
--- Jolex Del Pilar
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