kingmouse
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Marketing geniusLittle except from the Ctrl Alt Del blog from earlier this week regarding the new in-game collectable card game for Everquest 2. I gotta say this is an amazing idea to fire at collectoholic MMO players. Heck, I don't even like Collectable Card Games, Sony Online OR Everquest, and I'm still half tempted...probably too many happy hours spent playing Pazzak on Knights of the Old Republic. 
| Quote: | So I figure 'what the hell', and reactivate my account. This is where things really went downhill. Apparently since I last played, SOE has produced this online CCG based on EQ called Legends of Norrath. And when you sign up, they give you a free starter deck (for that and for the Pirates Constructable Card Game, which I've played in person, but always wanted to try the only variant anyway). So I flipped through the deck.
Now this is quite the racket they have going, let me tell you. You can play this CCG against other gamers online, either via an independent program, or right from within EQ/EQ2 while you're playing. You can purchase booster packs with real money or with in-game money. And here's the real kicker: booster packs randomly contain special foil cards that can be redeemed for in-game loot. I really had to marvel at the cleverness of the whole setup.
So I decided to give the card game a whirl. I've become sort of a sucker for CCG's since my girlfriend taught me to play Magic earlier this year. My first impressions of Legends of Norrath were positive. From a graphical standpoint, the artwork on the cards is really, really nice. The cards actually feature some pretty quality paintings. I played through the tutorial and a practice game, and while (at least so far) the game doesn't seem quite as... fluid as a game like M:TG, it certainly parallels a lot of the familiar features of EQ, such as equipping armor/weapons, completing "quest" and whatnot.
It doesn't feel in any way like it's just a marketing ploy. I think it's good marketing, tying it in with two popular MMOs like that, but I see how someone could easily get into, and play just the CCG, if they were interested in that. Booster packs are priced similarly to any other CCG, and while you don't get physical cards to have, there are upsides to that as well. Such as, you know, not having a bunch of cards taking up space. And having access to far more players for trading/playing than you'll find at your local geek hangout. I like the concept of more of these games going in that direction. Not strictly, but as an added option. |
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