Pondering what made EQ sound like an adventure on fohguild

First person view is a huge reason EQ was what it was for me, I think. Sadly this doesn't seem to apply to any modern games... EQ2/VG both have very good first person support (i.e. plays animations, shows weapons), but the new generation of MMO really doesn't support it at all. For one, in newer games you really can't hear mobs until they're right next to you, and thus, aggro; whereas in EQ, the soundscape was very ominous - honestly you guys who played without sound... man, you missed out, guess I got lucky that I had no sound issues heh.

Another reason FP view just doesn't work I think is due to the more dynamic nature of the quest-driven games. Whereas in EQ, the monsters were the objective, and you often made camp in places that had pretty predictable pathing monsters, or monsters that just sat still. In eq2/vg you are constantly on the move and generally have to be looking around much more for quest items, special mobs, harvest nodes etc. FP view just doesn't cut it for that sadly.

First person view really gave the world such a bigger sense of exploration and ... I hate to use the word immersion, but yea. The danger of passing through zones like Highpass Hold, or the spider passage between FV and Dreadlands, or Siren's Grotto (that one was fucking terrifying until we found out about the camp-into-the-wall thing), combined with being in first person view... and hearing all those sounds echo around you, kobolds howling in the background. And a big thing is, most of the time music DIDN'T play. That's part of what made it so ominous. Music only played usually when you entered an area for the first time. Again, another really subtle thing that made the game feel so much more alive. My fondest memory in EQ remains running through the karanas on my first trip from Qeynos to Freeport. It was raining and I was pretty sure I was lost (omg sense heading~). Then the rain and fog cleared up, revealing the giant wooden bridge leading to highpass far in the background, and this song begins playing. So epic.