[MUD-Dev] EthernalQuest

[Frank Crowell]

From: "Jason Gauthier" <jgauthier at lastar.com>
> From: Valerio Santinelli [mailto:tanis at mediacom.it]

>> I can't recall anyone talking about EthernalQuest, the EverQuest
>> unofficial server emulator (http://www.ethernalquest.com/).  As
>> of now the v0.6.x serie is becoming playable and the first
>> servers are popping up around the world. I wonder how Sony is
>> going to react to this trend that is going to be much similar to
>> the one rised with UO.

> There is actually a much more advanced EQ server emulator out
> there called EQEmu: 

I have had contact with both projects -- although I have primarily
focused on EQEmu since Nov 2001.  I was the first official "helper"
before the reorganization in January 2002 and then immediately
become a helper for what was essentially EQEmu II.  But the people
drift back and forth between EtheralQuest and EQEmu.

To look at either project as a replacement MMORPG is an extension
that is way outside the scope of either project.  In that sense, ir
resembles the emu UO shards where it is a much smaller, more
personal system.  The interesting part is that you can have multiple
zones with dynamic loading running on one or more machines.

Neither of the projects do any hacking into existing EQ
products/property/components.  The client and content is left alone
and no piece of that is ever distributed or available for download.
This means to use either emulator you may have your own EQ client
and components.  There are no IP issues involved with either
emulator project.  That doesn't necessarily mean smooth sailing, but
that is a different issue.

The major difference between the two projects is that EthernalQuest
is Ruby-based and EQEmu is C++ based.  I have seen remarkable
progress in both projects over the last year -- just when it seemed
that the whole EQ emulator idea was on the verge of dying.

EthernalQuest was almost abandoned by Oct-Nov 2001.  Meanwhile there
were three competing emulator projects that seemed to be be doing
the same thing.  All that changed by the winter and EQEmu was born.
The November edition was not as good as EtheralQuest, but by the end
of December EQEmu Now both projects seem to be doing fine, but there
still is some sort of friction going on and so the future is not as
bright as it could be.  EthernalQuest has continued as a separate
project.

As for the servers themselves, the opportunities are wide-open.  The
drawback is that since the servers depend on the EQ client, Sony can
break the servers.  The same situation exists for the UO emulators
too of course.  So I don't know how this will effect the emulators
future.

These projects have potential for experimentation. but unless they
get support from the game companies themselves the projects will
eventually hit the wall. For example, the UO emulator community has
a big advantage over the EQ emulators -- you can add content to UO
emu.  If you can't add content, then you are sort of limited by what
you can do.

maddy





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