So…

Well, the Minecraft modders like the idea of Landmark.

It seems that Sony hopes to merge EverQuest Next and Minecraft® type game construction in a product referred to as EverQuest Next Landmark. Landmark will be a pre-game and creation tool. It will use the same tools used to create Next but ‘gamify’ to process to be something like Minecraft.

The part 2 video from 24:00 on to the end, even after the intros, discusses how EQ Next is to be built. Sony is calling this Open Development. The developers will be working with fans to build EQ Next via Landmark.

Mr. Smedley says they are taking this path because most MMOG’s fail because the game makers cannot keep up with fans’ demand for content. So, having fans making content should speed up content creation.

It seems the Sony team plans to keep EverQuest Next a structured game and let fans build things that fit into slots. There is also the question of how story will be handled. MMOG’s that do role play have the challenge of keeping stories interesting. No one wants to hear a million players relate how they came  in and destroyed the same dragon everyone else has also destroyed.

Sony plans to use a thing they call Rally Quests or Calls which they say in the video, which would be building a town or perhaps a wall around a town. These would be permanent changes to the game. The town, wall, whatever would remain permanent. New players would encounter the existing wall and not have to build their own.

However, the ENTIRE environment is planned to be destructible and constructible.

With Landmark they are presenting simplified 3D building tools. It will be interesting to see how they handle user made textures, or if they allow them. They make only present builders with kits to choose from.

The market place may be actual competition for Linden Lab. I’m not sure this will be head to head competition as everything in EQ Next is voxel based. Everything, transferable from game to game, in SL is polygon based. This means there is not likely to be products moving from game to game. But, both will be competing for 3D builders that want to sell products they make.

Since clothes are a big thing in virtual worlds, it will be interesting to see of Sony opens that up. I did not get that they would. Nor do I think they are likely to open up weapons development. They seem a bit too complex for non-professional designers. Plus they have a large affect on game play. Sony cannot have someone developing a nuclear sword that can take out a large city in one swipe.

That leads me to think we’ll see far less building activity per player than we do in SL. It will be interesting to see whether a large player base with the possibility for more sales pulls large numbers of builders.

There are also the interesting possibilities for griefing. If things are destructible, and they really play that up in the debut videos, what happens to the castle you buy? I suppose there may be more restrictions in Landmark than in Next.

In EVE Online players can suffer huge RL financial loses. It adds tension to the game making it more exciting. As one gets invested, whether emotionally or financially, the game play gets more personal as people get attached. Fear of losing an expensive (iRL $) ship in EVE is real and changes how one plays.

So, I am curious how Sony will deal those issues in EQ Next and Landmark.

Beta signups are open on: Sony’s EQ Next Beta Sign Up site. A Beta Testing Agreement is involved. I assume this is probably a bit of NDA and some donation of your rights in things you create to Sony Entertainment.