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Look Sexy, Kill Swiftly — Coming Soon to EQ2
By Cameron Sorden | September 10, 2007
Just wanted to make a quick note of something I saw in the sneak preview of EQ2’s 38th update: fashion slots. From the preview:
Gone are the days in which you have to store, transmute, or sell that piece of armor that looked great but no longer provides the protection your character needs. An “Appearance†tab is being introduced to your inventory window in Game Update 38 which will allow you to equip your character for function on the “Equipment†tab, and for fashion on the “Appearance†tab. This new feature will be activated on the PvP servers as well as the non-PvP servers. The benefits conveyed by wearing equipment will only apply to items worn in the Equipment tab. Appearance tab items will only alter your look.
Now, if I’m reading that right, that means that you’ll be able to wear one piece of gear for function but use a different piece of gear for your displayed character graphic. If that’s the case, that is completely, ridiculously awesome. There are two major reasons why I think this is a fantastic feature that needs to be in every game:
1) PvP — You can use this feature to mask your gear in PvP. Often, the best way to tell what a player is going to do or how they’re going to attack you is by looking at their gear. This one guy has knives and leather, so I kite him. This other guy is wearing a robe, so I hit him fast and hard with everything I’ve got. Not being able to identify what your opponent is going to do based on gear adds a ton of unpredictability and excitement to PvP.
2) Character Differentiation — This totally fixes the problem of all high-level characters looking the same (in similar sets of armor) and also allows players to design their own costume. It provides a reason to go hunting for obscure and neat looking items just so that your character can enjoy incorporating them into his garb. It allows us to give our characters more personality, and perhaps recognize well-known players by their trademark suit of equipment.
I want this feature so, SO badly for WoW. Please Blizzard, please, follow EQ2’s lead here and do this. Oh man. I would so be gunning for a set of Defias leather and the tier one rogue cowl for my fury warrior. Ninja warrior, attack! I would love to be able to dress like a member of the Scarlet Crusade, or go around in a fishing outfit and actually be able to perform at my standard level. Think about how much this would do for building a cooler social environment in our games. People would stop looking like bizarre fashion rejects wearing a hodge-podge mixture of gear and start looking like the cool and distinct heroes we’re supposed to be.
/drool
Topics: Random |
September 10th, 2007 at 12:39 pm
I wonder if they are taking a page from Spellborn here, because this has been their plan since the game has gone public pretty much. In any case, like you said, this really opens up a lot of opportunities for both role-playing and simply fun.
September 10th, 2007 at 2:13 pm
As long as appearance items can’t make a robe users appear as wearing plate and vice-versa I am fine with something like this. Otherwise it goes too far in masking the capabilities of another player. That said if this was only on a PvE-type game I would be fine with whatever, it is only in PvP where to this could become an issue.
September 10th, 2007 at 4:06 pm
I remember in DAoC people used to do this type of thing. Casters would put on leather or mail when they went out in pvp…just to throw off the visual reference. By the time you figured out it was a caster you were facing, a lot of times you were already toast.
September 10th, 2007 at 10:00 pm
LOL Kevin,
Yeah, I think you are right George and that they will limit the actual items you place on your appearance to those items your character can actually wear.
I really like this idea, but can you imagine what it would be like in WoW?
Cloth is the new Black.
September 11th, 2007 at 10:03 am
Interesting. I suspect you can make plate wearers look like robe wearers though or even use some of the status clothes but have the benefits of full plate..
September 11th, 2007 at 10:10 am
Yes, that’s what I gathered too, SmakenDahed.
And I think it’s awesome. If only they would do in in WoW, I’d be set (call be a fan boy if you must).
September 11th, 2007 at 10:10 am
Sounds cool, but we’ll see what happens. I bet there will a surprise or two in how players adopt it or how it affects the game.
A lot of devs have said one of the main benefits of stat-altering gear is that it’s a visual representation of status…of how far and where you’ve gone in the game. If this system isn’t like Diablo 2’s (allowing the player to switch between gearsets with one button click) and is really showing one set while drawing stats from the other, then it will probably spark an interesting debate among devs about future games.
September 11th, 2007 at 12:58 pm
I wonder how many main-tanking guild/raid leaders will be forced to wear a dress into combat.. I know ours is!
September 14th, 2007 at 11:03 pm
[...] of Random Battle tells us that EQ2 will allow you to wear purely decorative armor, replacing the graphics (but not stats) of [...]
January 21st, 2008 at 12:00 pm
[...] When are you going to get over yourselves and let me wear whatever cool gear I want to wear in WoW? I’ve already ranted on this topic so I won’t get into it again, [...]