Don't miss out on this opportunity of getting an in-game food or drink item named after your character. Submit your entry for the Norrath's Timeless Heroes Contest by Sunday, May 3, 2009 11:59pm Pacific Time!

Want to submit an entry for Norrath's Timeless Heroes contest but aren't quite sure what to do for the image? Here are some tips on how you can make an image to submit…

Tip of the Week – Norrath's Timeless Heroes Submissions

Don't miss out on this opportunity of getting an in-game food or drink item named after your character. Submit your entry for the Norrath's Timeless Heroes Contest by Sunday, May 3, 2009 11:59pm Pacific Time!

Want to submit an entry for Norrath's Timeless Heroes contest but aren't quite sure what to do for the image? Here are some tips on how you can make an image to submit…

Tip of the Week – Norrath's Timeless Heroes Submissions

If you need a little convincing that Fan Faire is the place to be this June, or if you're already planning to go and you just want to add a little jolt to your excitement, then we've got some fuel to add to the fire! Here are our Top 10 Fun Things To Do at Fan Faire 2009!

 Top 10 Fun Things To Do at Fan Faire 2009

Free Realms Launches!

We are pleased to announce that SOE's new fun and interactive online game where family and friends can play together in a safe and wholesome environment is now live! Free Realms is a whimsical virtual world, loaded with fun for gamers of all ages. Whether you want to race karts, raise a pet, explore mystical forests or chat with friends, in Free Realms, you can do it all.

Read More

Hey all,

I spoke with Sapphyra today and she asked me to pass along a Hi her.  HI!  She said she misses working on EQOA and really misses the community.  She wants to let everyone know that she's doing fine.  She's busy with her new job but can't reveal any details about her current project.  Personally, she's fixing up an older home, training 5k race, and still enjoy a chardonnay or two every once in a while.

As announced in a press release today, effective April 1, 2008 Sony Online Entertainment (SOE) will report to Kazuo Hirai, President and Group CEO of Sony Computer Entertainment Inc. (SCEI). The new structure is designed to mutually benefit both companies by further accelerating the PlayStation business through SOE's strong online gaming expertise.

SOE is currently part of Sony Pictures Entertainment. Under the new structure, SOE will continue to develop its games for the PC and the PLAYSTATION®3 (PS3®) computer entertainment system.

The day to day workings of SOE will not change and no employees will be let go. We are thrilled and excited by this change in structure! As Smed was quoted in the press release, "This move is going to broaden our capabilities and expand the development of our products into new and exciting directions."

Press Release

Temporary Loss of Network Connectivity

A brief loss in network connectivity has impacted all games hosted at SOE San Diego. SOE Operations has identified the issue and is working to ensure that all affected game servers are connected, and back in service as soon as possible. Games affected by this connectivity loss include: EverQuest II, Vanguard, the Matrix Online, EverQuest Online Adventures, and Station Web Services.

Please note that all servers for the games listed may not be affected, and we are working now to bring them all up. We apologize for the inconvenience and will update you further should this issue persist beyond the next thirty minutes

Hi, its me... Zatozia the Totter!

I'm still around.  I'm Community Manager for EverQuest now.  I still look in on EQOA though because I got attached to it!

Thanks Everyone.  As my boss can tell you, it's hard for me to give up EQOA.  Unfortunately, since taking on EQ as one of my games, I did get a bit behind on some of my EQOA projects. Now EQOA will have someone that can focus mainly on EQOA! 

I'll miss you all but will still be around to help Elionia make the smooth transition over!

Elionia wrote:

We will not get rid of her that fast. =) She has to teach me her evil ways.

What's this? So what about my pm to Zat? Are you responding to those as well?

Hey Crazyivan. Everything is still in the workds.  Elionia will be handling all the projects that I have done in the past and had planned for the future for EQOA's community.  She'll also have projects of her own she'll scheme up!

All SOE forums and services are undergoing maintenance. Everything is expected to return to normal around 2:30pm pdt. Forums and login may be available sooner. We'll keep you updated if this timeframe changes. Yes, you may be listed as General until the maintenance is completed.

We invite you to join us at Gen Con this year in Indianapolis, IN for a Gen Con Meet and Greet!

 SOE Gen Con Celebration!

Here's a recap of the 2007 EQOA Vegas SOE Fan Faire experience...

 Zatozia's Fan Faire Recap

The SOE Block Party held on 7/28/07 was a great deal of fun.  Here's a recap...

 Zatozia's Block Party Recap

All SOE services will be unavailable on Tuesday, August 14th at approximately 4:00 AM PDT utnil 12 noon.

Scheduled Service Maintenance for Tuesday, August 14th

Greetings,

The Legends of Norrath beta will not be launching until Tuesday, August 14, 2007.  We'll keep you updated if that date changes.  In the meantime, here's a link to the forums for it:

http://forums.s...d=7

The Beta forums for LoN are now live.

Check it out here:

http://forums.s...d=7

Greetings Marinia,

I'm sorry I missed you at Fan Faire.  Unfortunately, much of my day on Saturday was spent preparing for and running an event for EverQuest. I'm glad you got a chance to speak to Gnobrin though.

Later in the afternoon we held the Quest Workshop. I'm sorry you weren't able to make it.

Regarding the workstations, there were supposed to be 4 stations set up for EQOA, but unfortunately, we were unable to get them set up.

For the first time ever at Fan Faire, we will be unveiling a never-before-seen brand new game!  SOE's own John Smedley will be personally announcing this exciting new game and attending fans will have the first opportunity to see and even play it live.  This exciting event will happen at the Community Address at 5:30 p.m. on August 3rd.

For those unable to attend Fan Faire in person, a live video stream of the announcement will go out through Station.com to accompany the introduction.  Stay tuned for this and more exciting news about the upcoming Fan Faire!

The fine folks from Online Gaming Radio are not just going to be at Fan Faire, they are going to be offering streaming coverage of many of the events!

They have made me aware of the fact that they will be offering video and audio streams of the SOE Fan Faire Panels. they will also be hosting an official Fan Faire show at 10:30 AM PDT on Saturday, August 4th. If you are going to be at Fan Faire be sure to pay them a visit. If not, check out their website for more information and then tune in!

One thing to keep in mind about content is that we can put it through testing for months and months, but there's always a chance that something will be overlooked or will occur differently on the live servers.  This is true especially for EQOA because there are so many variables to the mechanics of the game. 

5:00 pm PDT - Unfortunately, they made an typo error when scheduling it.  I already tossed info up on the announcement banner up top

 We'll be there at 5pm. I'm actually sitting in the room right now waiting while I work on some other things.  I fyou are there, feel free to /join #everquest to yap beforehand.

Zatozia's Thursday Night Chat

Zatozia's Thursday Night Chat

skippyy wrote:

You can still play the original Everquest which has been around forever.   EQOA isn't going anywhere until there's not a drop of money left to squeeze from it.  Why stop making money? 

As long as people pay to play in sufficient numbers there will be eqoa.  There just won't be a PS2 update for it.

Why stop making money?  Well they might stop, because EQOA may be spending more money than they are taking in.  Spending on housing and running the servers, paying customer service, developers, programmers, community relations people, and QA.  All that costs money and lots of it.

With the big loss of players (AKA paying customers) we've had, Euro EQOA shutting down for good, and the multiple monthly price increases we've had (AKA they need more money) doesn't look so hot.

Does the cost of running EQOA's servers and support teams go up? Of course, it goes up for all MMO's and computer products.   Computers aren't cheap to take care of.   Have no fear though, while EQOA may not have the exact numbers it did 4 years ago, it continues to hold its own.  We see an increase in numbers each time we run special promotions for the game.  We are currently working on some  new promotion ideas for the remaining months of this year.

Ive been out of the loop since about class balancing and would like to know how the game has been holding up...

Im sitting here in bw looking for old faces, and happen to see none, is there a new hang out?

I see the new zone has finally come out... How does one get attuned? Link me to a walkthrough?

Can I still afk xp? LOL - I wouldn't recommend trying it.

Idk whats been going on is anyone 1500cms besides that one guy that lived in his bed or something?

If anyone cares to catch up try and catch me on or send me a mail or something i dunno...

Join us for a Chat! On Tuesday, Tuesday, July 24, 2007 at 5:00 pm PDT the Stratics Network will be hosting a House of Commons for EverQuest Online Adventures.

Stratics HoC IRC Chat for EQOA on Tuesday, July 24th

Hello Norrathians! It is about that time again! Daemaas talks about the Storyteller Adventure Series and more in his first State of Norrath Address...

Daemaas' State of Norrath Address - July 2007

Tune in to Podcast #20 where you get to hear interviews from the EQII Community Manager, a Human Resource Manager, and from our Marketing Services team.

Visit the Podcast Website today and catch up on any podcasts you may have missed in the past.  Be sure to send your feedback to Brenlo@soe.sony.com or you can head over to the Station Forums and post your feedback there!

Come One, Come All - Saturday, July 28th!

The second annual SOE Block Party is quickly approaching! Join the SOE team, from Development to Marketing, for an outdoor event that's sure to be filled with fun, sun and plenty of entertainment!

Come hang out and feast on free food and drinks while you enjoy the music of a live, local band! There will be giveaways for all, and exclusive sneak-peeks at upcoming SOE titles!

Block Party is FREE for everyone; gamers, neighbors, friends and family of all ages. For those of you lucky enough to be attending this years' Comic-Con, SOE will have buses shuttling people between Comic-Con and Block Party starting at 3:30 p.m. The bus will stop picking folks up at 6:00 p.m. but will be returning to the Convention center every 30 minutes as needed.

Location if you are driving:

SOE Headquarters
8928 Terman Court
San Diego, CA 92121

For those of you coming on your own, we highly recommend carpooling, as parking will be limited.

It's sure to be an event to remember! We look forward to seeing everyone and having one heck of an afternoon in sunny San Diego!

RSVP is not required but you can let us know that you are coming at BlockParty@soe.sony.com. .

The first annual SOE Players of the Year contest results are in, and it's time to share the winners! Each of the following awesome players will be brought to Fan Faire and celebrated by the SOE Community.

 SOE Players of the Year Winners

Greetings,

We know that many of you, like most of us here at SOE, cannot wait to read and discuss the latest Harry Potter novel.  We ask that out of respect for those of us who might not read as fast as some of you, that you please use care when posting spoilers on our forums.

If you would like to discuss the newest Harry Potter book on the forums, we have created the following threads for you to use:

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows (Spoilers)

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows (No Spoilers)

Please do not post anywhere but these threads.  Also, anyone who does post spoilers outside of the spoiler thread will be suspended.

Thank you!

This thread can be used to discuss the latest Harry Potter novel.

Do not post spoilers in this thread.  Anyone who does post spoilers information in this thread will be suspended.

Spoilers may be discusssed in the Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows (Spoilers) thread.