Feldon From EverQuest2.com:
In our last in-game poll, we asked players what they thought of us selling health, power, and self-rez potions for solo, group, and raid players.
The results are in! Overall, for all items, there was an average of 65% support for the solo versions in all three categories (and, in fact, there was only a minor variance in the percentages for each item). Group and Raid items averaged at 55%.
As we saw with the EQ2X (Freeport) server, where we sold similar items, these types of items help the solo player have fun while adventuring alone. We also added limitations to these items so they will not affect group or raid players.
Starting on Friday, May 18, 2012, you will see the solo health, power, and self-rez items for sale in the marketplace! These items will be found in the Consumable category, under Combat Skills.
The items are:
Health Potion
- 3 charges
- 1 second casting, 5 minute reuse
- Gives you 100% Health
- You may only be grouped with mercenaries or not grouped
- Cannot be used in PvP combat
Power Potion
- 3 charges
- 1 second casting, 5 minute reuse
- Gives you 100% Power
- You may only be grouped with mercenaries or not grouped
- Cannot be used in PvP combat
Scroll of Resurrection
- 3 charges
- Instant cast, 15 minute reuse
- Allows player to resurrect themselves
- You may only be grouped with mercenaries or not grouped
- This item can be used on PvP servers but not cast in PvP combat
45% still value their own skill to play a game.
35%, even worse 🙁
It’s always seemed to me that anyone who actually *needs* potions like these in order to solo successfully in EQ2 probably shouldn’t be allowed access to their own money to buy them.
Soloing in EQ2 is incredibly easy. Almost no-one who’s able to operate a keyboard and mouse could run into difficulty on any solo content I can think of. In the extremely unlikely event that you did die doing level-appropriate solo stuff (lag spike, domestic emergency) there’s no consequence to dying beyond the time you might lose getting back to where you were fighting.
In the almost-inconceivable circumstance of someone actually getting stuck on specific solo content because it’s too difficult for them, and they don’t want to pay for AoD to get a mercenary (making all solo content indisputably achievable) all they have to do is level up on something they can do then mentor down.
I have no issues whatsoever with these potions being available in the SC store. They won’t have the slightest impact on the gameplay of anyone else. I just find it impossible to believe there are people who would actually pay real money to use them.
Don’t make the mistake of believing what they say lol they were gonna put em back in regardless.
Polls are worthless to players
@ Rugrat
DING DING DING
We have a winner !!!
While I did once use a revive pot on freeport to get me past the swords of destiny timeline via soloing it, most of the time I wouldn’t bother with them. It is nice for those occasions where no matter what you do, you just can’t win, and no guildies are online to help you. You could wait for one to come online, but sometimes you’re just too eager to wait.
Having said that, I also agree with Rugrat.
Yet another fail from SOE to a once great game. Let encourage more to not grp with mercs, oh and this.
/thumbs down
Interesting, from my own sampling of the same question I got closer to the neighborhood of 0%. I think maybe the results confused with those from the internal staff poll that had the same questions.
The way I remember the original poll worded it was more “do you care if power items are added to solo content”, as most people find solo content trivial they didn’t care, so I guess that’s “support” for it…
I think everybody must realize that there are very different play styles in EQ2 nowadays and people that post in forums like this have one play style and many others play a totally different game. Most people who do not want this never groups with people who use them anyway. A couple of weeks ago we tried to get a group together for Tofs and I talked in guild with a husband and wife that has several 90s and play at our times and are very nice “No we do not do dungeons” was the answer, later I found out they do not plan to adorn their equipment at 92 either (and they are there now). So I think all should take a deep breath and think about how this affects people that you they play and group with, other play styles probably do not interfere with you.
Yay let’s release made up numbers with absolutely no data to back them up when we know damn well people would contest them, derp. (I’m 99% sure those made up numbers are 90% made up)
If 65% of people actually wanted these items to solo, 65% of people are horrible at EQ2 and shouldn’t be playing it anyways, go play WoW or something, stop ruining what was once a good game and feeding SoEs greed.
—
I understand EQ2 has turned into a care bear friendly game full of people who play to solo (Why they don’t just play TES or DA or something? who the hell knows) but seriously SoE purely focusing on one play style is getting old fast, in fact I can’t say I feel the need to log in anymore especially since my entire guild quit over SoEs nonsense. (Actually we went through 2 turn overs, one over PSS1 and one over this)
Hell AB feels just as dead as Befallen did pre-merge now, that’s pretty sad. I don’t really care though, I’ll be playing TESOnline next year provided Bethesda doesn’t screw it up. 😀
I think it’s funny that so many people think these polls are fake. Is it that hard to believe that there are a significant number of people who just don’t care about how tough soloing is? I actually voted in favor of the solo versions of these potions, because I have met some people who could probably use them, and since they don’t affect me at all, I couldn’t see any harm in it. There are plenty of less-skilled players in this game, who don’t really spend a lot of time thinking about their gear choices or casting order, buying adornments, or even finding out what parsing means. They have every right to play the game and have fun in their own way, as long as it doesn’t hurt the gameplay of others. These potions help them do just that, and I see no problem with it.
@rugrat
Spot on chappie,polls are just a waste of time,lordy i’m glad i dont play the game anymore i do feel for those wonderful players left behind having to put up with this constant dumbing down
“as long as it doesn’t hurt the gameplay of others.”
Pay to win format hurts everyone else’s game.
On the fence as it is with these items I can see their usefulness at times but I can also see them getting out of hand quickly…with that said the polls were skewed simply because they didnt limit it to one vote per account and not the one vote per toon on you account so its not exactly representative.
Too bad my wife and my subs don’t end till November.
Personally I don’t have a problem with these additions, oddly enough I voted against them in the poll primarily because like most others I saw it as a pay to win thing but having thought about it a bit I realised I don’t have to buy them or use them so what do I care how others play.
@Argond
See that’s the problem, it’s pay to win, it impedes on anyones game who doesn’t want or have money to throw at SoE.
I pay $15 a month why isn’t that enough to keep me on par with everyone else? It is in most other games.
Why do I want to play EQ2 if I have to pay extra just to be on par with others? Oh I don’t that’s right!
The whole puritan idea that someone out there might play in a way that I do not like and it has to stop is scary.
It is more likely that 35% did want the potions while 65% did not… Then Sony just wanted to beat the cash cow harder and decided to screw the option of everyone and just add these because they want $$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$
Another reason to leave and not look back at the smoldering ruins of the game.
“Pay to win format hurts everyone else’s game.”
How?
And No I’m not someone who buys from sc. I refuse to. SOE already got enough of my money from subscribing nad buying expansions. I’m just asking. Joe Shmoe buys a health potion so he can solo crushbone naked. OMG the game just fell apart!!!!!!!!! I just don’t see it hurting other players.
I can’t believe the posted 65% result is real. I rather suspect at least 70% were against these kind of door-opener pay to win items, and SOE plain lies here.
nobody’s gonna buy this crap anyway – so get ready for them to expand this BS to groups and later even to raids…
I wish we could see a breakdown on subscribers only votes. I’d wager they are different.
@ Eschia
Well let’s put this in a different context, let’s say someone is soloing VP for plat, right now they can solo half the zone with moderate risk. With these potions they can now solo the entire zone with zero risk making them able to produce more plat than someone who didn’t have the potions therefore giving them a slight advantage. (Not to mention causing even more inflation)
@Dark
Sorry but that’s a poor choice of comparison. A player who is soloing VP for plat has no need to buy these. The players most likely to use these are the ones that can’t solo Crypt of Agony much less VP. I know change sucks and for players who enjoy the way things were it’s tough to see things go away when we don’t see a reason to change.
Perhaps this IS just a money grab by SOE….but its also possible the gaming market has changed in this direction. Honestly I’m not sure why SOE even bothered with the in game poles, in the end it is their game, they can do as they like. True people can leave the game, but I have a feeling most will not and they might even gain more newbies then they loose from the old players. A lot of players now want the easy method of gaming /shrug.
I voted that I was okay with the solo versions but not okay with the group/raid versions (which appears to be what they ended up doing). The reason I voted against the group/raid versions was because I didn’t want them to end up being expected to have in a group/raid. I don’t plan to buy the items, despite the fact I get 500 SC a month for my recurring sub so I can technically buy SC items without spending any more of my RL money. However, like others, I don’t really feel it affects me if someone else decides to use them. They honestly aren’t all that powerful and are time savers more than anything.
While SOE has done things now and again that I don’t agree with, I don’t think they would lie about the poll results. I suspect there are a lot more people who just don’t care than we all realize.
@ Eschia
Agreed. I really think there are to many people who worry to much about what other people are doing to enjoy the game. No one is twisting their arm to buy these items.
I took the poll, and it wasn’t just one question, for those who are miss remembering. It clearly asked if you had problem with the items in solo, group, raid, or not at all. I voted that I had no problem for any situation. My wife vote for solo only. Neither of us use the items. It’s simple. We don’t have a hair up our bum over a non issue like this. There are many more problems in the game that should have our ire. This one doesn’t even come close to a mouse fart.
@ Dark
All I can say is so? I know people in the game that have over a 100k plat. I personally have a few thousand. The amount of plat a person can get solo or duo doesn’t mater in the least. It just means they can buy what ever they want. If you want to be able to do the same thing, then invest the same time the people with all the plat have. Make a Tser, sell items. Raid, or solo PR, and SoH. I don’t really know anyone who solos VP.. it isn’t worth the time. I can run into SoH and make 30 plat in about 15 minutes. All I need is my Inquiz. Hell I don’t even bother running PR.
@Nyna
“nobody’s gonna buy this crap anyway – so get ready for them to expand this BS to groups and later even to raids…”
I’ve been thinking about this too, there must be a certain percentage of people who are happy to pay to win who won’t buy this stuff because the solo game is just so easy.
So either they expand this to groups and raids, or maybe they actually add in content that needs it. Strangely if it was the latter then it would actually be an improvement for the game, going on track records though….
I feel like there is a social class in eq2… the random players that have 7 chars 80 or below… the casual player that has one heroic equiped 90ish char… and then those of us that raid…if anything this makes the random/casual players happy…yet again the devoted get…
P.S. … Do you think they meant “Doing it alone” instead of “Going it alone”?
P.P.S. And not a healer? Sorry! No self rez for you!
That is a good observation and something that I also believe but I do not like the class analogy, the casual players nowadays far outnumber the “devoted players” and are obviously the customers that are more important in the development of the game. This is a total reversal to TSO when “you have to have this and you have to have that” to group became the norm, if that was due to the players or the designers is at this moment unimportant, however lots of casual players left then IMHO.
These things are not needed but is an old game and very hard to understand all parts of it for newer players and since there are almost very few good “how to” sites anymore and you only hear “level to 90 and solo it” as reply to all the questions things might not be that easy.
We are playing several different games in EQ2 and the discussion should really be about that.
Maybe a discussion about why the number of “devoted” players have fallen so far would be a good thing, but face it the TSO era “time consuming EQ 2” is gone that game failed in a shard/mark/whatever currency grind and people left, now “devoted players” probably did not see it but SOE did.
I actually find it somewhat funny that there are people who think the poll results were made up. The simple fact is the majority is for it. I’m part of the group that didn’t want it but i am able to admit that i’m in a minority on that point when the polls show i am. It’s just the way it is and whining about it wont change it.
In the end my friends and i play to have fun. And while i might not want the power items and such on the marketplace it isn’t going to stop me from having fun with my friends.
Though i will say i would love it if they would increase some of the ingame items to make them stronger as well. dang power pots need to be upgraded some.
I find it somewhat what funny that some people that the poll results aren’t skewed in favor for adding these. Instead of raping us and slamming it to us hard right off they are slowing easing it in and make some of you think it was your idea all along.
yeah, I no longer play EQ2 because of these shitty Ideas. I played wow for a while but even then, I feel alot of MMO’s have jumped on the bandwagon of “If people want it,they have to pay for it”. I remember they used to justify paying £8.99 a month for server costs, development of new expansions, Raids, solo content, ect. I was looking in the station cash shop and some armour is £10-£15 for an armour set, FFS!!
This game not for 65% yes vote. Ok even if 65% vote yes if half other 35% quit game that rip fan.
I wish that the poll would have been taken a bit differently. Paying Gold members, Silver members and FTP all having the poll then tell us what percentage of each wanted these stupid items.
If you want a healer get a merc… Oh you need the expansion for that… PAY FOR IT, why pay for self rezzes and crap that actually can change the landscape of the game.
So the causal vs. hardcore issue has come up before, and since that seems like where this is going I’ll stop that here.
First, everyone’s definition of causal and hardcore is different. I take it this way, your causal if you play when you get time, and your hardcore if you make time(like having raid times) to play. One makes it a game, while the makes it a job almost, hence the different mindsets.
Second, it’s been discussed that skill is independent of playtime. That is to say that your skill as a playing isn’t a result of your play style. That isn’t to say that some play styles don’t tend towards one skill range, but to generalized is a mistake.
So now that we see that there’s very little difference between players, let’s discuss the potions. Right now, it just saves a single person time(I’m not really counting the health or power ones because if you need to use them during combat then your most likely going to die anyway.) The important point there is that’s a single person. So it doesn’t affect anyone else, so I don’t see the harm. If your concern is about these making a single person too powerful, then mercs are your worst nightmare. If these potions ever make it into groups/raids then we should fight them tooth and nail. Til then these potions are not affecting the game in any meaningful way.
I dont raid anymore (its got too hard, and not enjoyable), and I dont group with friends since the guild died – and I wont group with strangers in case i sux and let the group down. So its all solo content for me (even when the rewards in WL are ‘a bit’ strange to work out)
I use SC for the time reduction on my spells, but I cant see myself paying SC for these items.
but if another solo players wnats to use them, then I’m not fussed with it. The more money that sony can rake it, the more they can invest in the game. And I’m fine with them raking in money from someone else.
Anybody with half a brain new the play to win was headed our way. I called it when that poll came out that they would do whatever to say that folks wanted them despite a thread with tons of replies asking not to do it.
Just wait once the partnership is full swing with pss1 proseibien were going to have tons of easy button I win stuff in the store.
The question isn’t even between “Casual vs. Hardcore” anymore, it’s between Free and Silver vs Gold (subscribers). I don’t know anyone, unless they’re VERY casual, that’s a gold member and would have problems soloing “Solo Content.” (Though I can see the gold member that would want to solo heroic content using these potions.)
These potions are for the Silver and Free members that are in treasured gear with nothing but expert or adept spells and abilities that very well may have a hard time even with solo cotent. I watched someone killing crabs in DoV for faction and it took them 98 seconds to kill one crab (I timed them) where I was literally killing them with one shot with auto-attack. (Occasionally I’d have to wait for another Auto-attack tic . . . or just use an ability). These potions are designed to entice the free player to actually spend some cash.
Does it affect everyone now? Sure, now you can even harvest MORE plat, but what does Sony care if you’re buying station cash because of it? And plat really is a non-issue anymore. The best gear is farmed by the hardcore anyway, and it just gives others the ability to buy fabled gear from the raiders . . . then have to pay for equipment un-lockers to wear it. Sony wins both ways. They’re here to make money. Unless more subscribers stop playing (and paying) because of this, they won’t stop doing it. It’s about the bottom line.
Yup, so even the “casuals” and time restricted players can support the “raiders” and the “purist”. Casuals gonna casually play. Raiders gonna raid. Purist gonna keep it pure. Haters gonna hate. Rage quitters gonna rage and quit. oh and…decorators gonna decorate. It’s been that way, will continue that way. Its nice to have an opinion and that’s the fun of community-not everyone plays the same or necessarily agrees how the game should be developed. I would think most want the game to continue development… well, gotta have funds to do it. Improper grammar skill +1.
I’m mostly a soloer; a lot of the people I know in game are work-a-holics so it’s rare I get to group up with them, and EQ1 cured me of pickup groups. I have absolutely no interest in these potions. Not only do I loathe spending money on consumables, I feel that if I’m going to die in a fight, then so be it.. I’ll learn from what went wrong and try again when I’m ready to. Hopefully their sales are poor on these potions so they won’t continue to clog the market with stuff like this.
Somewhat off topic… their banner image (which Feldon included above) has a grammatical issue in the second sentence. Maybe they’ll spend whatever money they earn from these sales on a proofreader.
Cyliena said
This would only make them add more and more egregious items. Actually they are going to anyway. Those 500 level lol insanely overpowered cure pots will be back there soon, anyone that believes that was an accident that they showed up in the vault of serilis needs to sign a power of attorney over to a loved one immediately.
This is a slap in the face to all druids everywhere —– oh the warm sting on my cheek from being once again bitch slapped by Verant —
Agreed Lempo, I sincerely doubt those cure pots and luck (?) pots were an accident. I can’t even fathom how they could be “accidentally” added.
Well considering that they had to be specifically flagged to show up in the vault to begin with… lol.
Reminds me of the line in The Last Boy Scout.
Censored the offensive word, not trying to be vulgar but i think it fits here.
I petition that the title of this article should be changed that poll showed that 35% of players disagreed with these items.
The % that wanted them is currently unknown.
65% of the 10% of Bronze free to play members who actually voted in the poll agree, this was a good idea. The rest of us have stopped playing since the last expansion was lame and the free GU content lasted about 2 days worth of interest.
@truelight
I stopped playing just after the PSS1 deal was caught wind of. I log in once a month to check up on things though, but I no longer trust SOE. I’ve been playing swtor, minecraft, regnum, and the secret world beta on weekends since then.
While I can see revive pots being useful if you’re in a instance that boots you if you die, and locks out for 18 hours, since that was the only time I bought one. In most situations taking damage or dieing can be avoided though.
Hmmm…solo for now, group potions before the end of the year.
Goodbye EQ2
Diablo 3 FTMFW