The MMORPG Everquest 2 has now been running for almost 20 years and is still being developed. In March, the developers from Daybreak planned to introduce a new loot box system. This was criticized by players as “Pay2Win.” After a few weeks of intense protests, the developers backtracked.
What were the loot boxes? About two weeks ago, new loot boxes were introduced in Everquest 2. The idea was:
- Players get more opportunities to loot raid gear if they buy the loot boxes in the cash shop.
- Because the loot boxes bypass the actually strict rules for lockouts, allowing players to re-roll on boss loot.
Loot boxes yield about one raid item per $20
This is how the boxes worked exactly: The site MMOBOMB explains that while no “Smart Loot” can be obtained from the boxes, which means useless items may come out, those who buy the boxes get unlimited chances for a drop and bypass the strictly enforced 18-hour timer.
According to a source from the site, players were able to obtain a raid item for about $20 in this manner.
Fans call it “Pay2Win” – Predict the downfall of Everquest II
What was the fans’ reaction? The players of Everquest 2 were quite angry. In a thread about the items, there were comments like (via forums):
- “Please remove this absolute cash grab. Disable all boxes that are currently on the servers and apologize to the community before it is too late.”
- “Nobody likes these boxes. Please remove them.”
- “These boxes will destroy the finely tuned itemization. Please disable them.”
Again and again, the boxes were described as “Pay2Win,” as a way to get better in the game by spending money.
A player said that the system is extremely dangerous for the game. Many would simply stop playing if it remained that way in the MMORPG.
How does the developer respond? About 2 weeks after the introduction of the loot system, the complaints were so loud that the developers made a post in the forums. They heard the feedback and decided to remove the items from the game. They are no longer selling them.
Furthermore, they stated that they will not offer this type of items in the future because they violate the “shared values.” However, they will offer other loot boxes that are based on previous boxes.
To avoid such problems in the future, they want to open a new forum to discuss class balance. Daybreak now wants to communicate more and faster with the players of their MMORPG.
It is nice to see that players with united feedback can bring about positive changes.
Everquest is still telling great stories:
Guild awakens 22-year-old dragon in an MMORPG – Unites the entire server against them
