EverQuest II: Rise of Kunark

EverQuest II Allakhazam is proud to announce the 4th EverQuest II expansion titled "Rise of Kunark". We sat down with EverQuest II Senior Producer Scott Hartsman to talk about Kunark and all that will come with it. The interview which is available in both a 34 minute audio file or a 9 page transcription, will tell you everything you need to know about Rise of Kunark. Enjoy!

Thanks to Scott Hartsman for taking the time for the interview, to all the good folks at OGR for their help, to Gethani for participating, and to Kiara for transcribing.

View Rise of Kunark Interview w/ Scott Hartsman
(Transcription)

Download Rise of Kunark Interview w/ Scott Hartsman (Podcast)

Online Gaming Radio will be airing this interview once an hour for 48 hours between shows for those of you who don't want to download the file, so tune in!


Fact Sheet

 

Game Description:

Centuries of war have left their mark on the continent of Kunark. Explore this massive region as your existing character or as the new playable race – The Sarnak – and discover a world full of intrigue and danger. Engage in all-new adventures as you embark on a crusade to reveal the truth of the wars between the reborn Iksar Empire, Sarnaks, and Dragons and uncover artifacts long since thought lost to history. The lush, nostalgic continent of Kunark begins your courageous path from the new starting city in Timorous Deep.

Rise of Kunark is the fourth expansion pack for the critically acclaimed EverQuest II franchise. With the introduction of the new playable race, the Sarnak, and new starting area, Timorous Deep, Rise of Kunark provides a full range of content for new player’s levels 1-20 as well as advanced, high level players whom can now achieve up to level 80 in high level zones, both increasing their Adventure and Tradeskill classes.

Rise of Kunark includes many highly-detailed areas that are fondly remembered from EverQuest as well as brand new areas only recently unearthed! Hundreds of new quests, dozens of new NPCs, brand new Epic Weapon quests for each class, and new armor sets await those who dare set foot on this fabled continent.

Feature Set:

All-New Player Race – Start up a brand new Sarnak – the classic dragon-like humanoid creature that now inhabits Timorous Deep. Exiled from your homeland and magically altered, discover how your new breed came to be, and eventually return home to help your race triumph over the evil Iksar.

New Starting Area – Begin your adventure from the new starting area in the islands of Timorous Deep. Conclude your day of epic quests and retire to new housing within the Village of Gorowyn.

Level Cap Raised – Continue your adventures on your existing character in Kunark, expanding on your achievements as Adventure, Tradeskill and Guild levels all increase to 80.

More Unique Zones – Advance your way through new massive regions, containing many zones filled with nostalgia and danger, such as the Emerald Jungle and the Skyfire Mountains

Hundreds of New Quests The tale of Kunark is told through hundreds of new quests, aimed at gameplay of all types: solo, group, and raid.

More Weapons & Armor – New Epic Weapon quests for all 24 classes, with new weapons for both those who raid and those who choose not to. Battle through the opposition and acquire additional fabled and legendary armor sets as well.

New Mount – Explore the world on the shoulders of a new rampaging beast - The Kunarkian Rhinoceros.

New Deities – Recent activities on Norrath have again attracted the attention of the gods. Bertoxxulous the Plaguebringer, Karana the Rain Keeper, and the mysterious Tribunal return to exert their influences on planet. As with the existing gods of Norrath, players may pledge to these new deities to gain access to their Blessings and Miracles.

Dozens of New NPCs – Encounter and engage a wide variety of new enemies that inhabit the menacing lands of Kunark.

 

About Sony Online Entertainment

Sony Online Entertainment LLC (SOE) is a recognized worldwide leader in massively multiplayer online games, with hundreds of thousands of subscribers around the globe. SOE creates, develops and provides compelling entertainment for the personal computer, online, game console and wireless markets. Known for its blockbuster franchises and hit titles including EverQuest®, EverQuest® II, Champions of Norrath®, Untold Legends™, and PlanetSide®, as well as for developing Star Wars Galaxies™: An Empire Divided™, SOE continues to redefine the business of online gaming and the creation of active player communities while introducing new genres on various entertainment platforms. Headquartered in San Diego, CA, with additional development studios in Austin, TX, Seattle, WA, and Taiwan, SOE has an array of cutting-edge games in development. SOE is owned by Sony Pictures Digital and Sony Computer Entertainment America.

 

SOE, the SOE logo, EverQuest and PlanetSide are registered trademarks of Sony Online Entertainment LLC. Untold Legends is a trademark of Sony Online Entertainment LLC. All other trademarks and trade names are properties of their respective owners.

 

 

Comments

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Buy the whole game AGAIN!
# Nov 26 2007 at 3:43 AM Rating: Decent
Rise of Kunark bullshat..Sony is full of it.
Already play the game, have all the previous expansions.
WHY the hell do I or anyone else have to shell out another $40 bucks + tax buying the All-In-One just to get Rise of Kunark?!
Where is the $19.99 expansion pack for the faithful
who have stayed despite the mass exodus of players leaving EQ2?
I DO NOT WANT TO BUY THE WHOLE FREAKING GAME PLUS
ALL THE EXPANSIONS ALL OVER AGAIN !!!!!!!

and I will not for that very reason...

Edited, Nov 26th 2007 6:44am by Shiakhan

Edited, Nov 26th 2007 6:45am by Shiakhan

Edited, Nov 26th 2007 6:45am by Shiakhan
Buy the whole game AGAIN!
# Jan 12 2008 at 7:19 AM Rating: Decent
17 posts
I think $20 is a bit optimistic, since even EQ1 expansions normally went for $30 at launch, but I agree there should be a "Kunark Only" edition.
Rise of Kunark/General
# Oct 07 2007 at 4:47 PM Rating: Decent
I don't know how there can be any complaints. SoE has done an awsome job to make this game the way people want it. I am very pleased with how this game has come since it was first released. And with their last 2 expansions bringing old EQ stuff into the game, just make it better. EQ was a great game, and being able to play EQ2 and have some remembrence of the fun times I had on EQ is great. All I have to say is keep up the good work SoE. If they keep working hard for our needs, then I will be playing this game for a long time.
sarnaks
# May 22 2007 at 2:03 PM Rating: Decent
have they said what classes the Sarnaks can be?
sarnaks
# Jun 19 2007 at 6:28 AM Rating: Decent
If you played EQ1, You would automatically think that they would generally lean towards the Evil Side, the Sanraks that is. Not to mention that had a weird graphic.. And bringing back epic 1.0's is an alright idea, but 1.5's and 2.0's would be rediuclous. Why dont you just make the Plane of Knowledge while you're at it SoE? This way everybody can be lazy, and the boats will be useless. I bet they will bring back Trakanon and Venril Sathir. If they do then that will be the end of it for me. Work on LORE and Originality Sony, not like you have in the first place, Verrant created the original lore. Then you poped in with Luclin with AA's. RUIN'd. Kek. RoK better be ******* good and not retarded. Is your next expansion going to be Velious? Or you could bring back Odus.... Im done ******** :)
which classes for Sarnaks
# May 22 2007 at 2:02 PM Rating: Decent
what classes can you be?
Good or Evil?
# May 21 2007 at 1:04 AM Rating: Decent
One question, are the Sarnak going to be good or evil race? Kinda hard to tell...
Hmmm....
# May 21 2007 at 1:03 AM Rating: Decent
One question, are the Sarnak going to be good or evil race? Kinda hard to tell..
Sorry in advance.
# May 11 2007 at 7:57 AM Rating: Default
Coming originally from EQ1 into EQ2 at first the game was graphically amazing and the story was fresh and new in the beginning. The introduction of DoF was a nice add on to the game and a nice balance of eq1 and a lot of new content.

Now. This is starting to suck really bad. By bringing back the Gods(which were said to have exiled us for rebelling against them at eq2 launch), and then adding all this old eq1 content, Kelethin, Neriak, and now Kunark... Not to mention epic weapon quests??? Sorry soe, but start being original. I left EQ1 cause I was tired of doing the epic quests 1, 1.5, and left when I heard about epic 2s.... This is just a sad sight to see, that the creators of the "critically acclaimed EverQuest II franchise" can't think of anything else to add to the only SOE title they really care about these days, except for the stuff they already used in the last game they cared so much for.

You just threw 2 new playable races into the game with EoF and then the new live update with Neriak coming back. How about a new playable class! Oh wait... I got one that will fit your liking. Beastlords! They're from eq1 as well!

So in short. Here's my finger SOE and it's not the index, ring or pinky.

Get a bit more creative and be friggin original
Sorry in advance.
# Jun 03 2007 at 12:02 PM Rating: Decent
EverQuest 2 *is* supposed to be a sequel. I'm glad that they are finally treating it as such rather than a completely different IP with only a handful of names connecting it to the original.

Echoes of Faydwer was the most successful expansion they've had for EQ2, so following that it only makes sense for them to follow it with another expansion bringing back more of the world from EQ1 and exploring how it's changed. With Rise of Kunark SOE is openly pandering to their player base.

Personally, I can't wait for November.
Sorry in advance.
# May 13 2007 at 7:28 AM Rating: Default
Alot of these old zones that are brought back have a different style to them than the original ones did in some ways the new versions are better than the old imo. SoE has improved EQ2 alot since launch it is now one of the best games on the market. When the game came out it lacked alot of content. Not only has SoE brought old zones like greater faydark back into norrath but they also have introduced alot of new areas. Most of us are very excited about the new release and the direction EQ2 is going. I think its a great idea to bring back old content from EQ1 and show what happened to it 500 years later.
Sarnaks finally!!
# May 10 2007 at 2:59 PM Rating: Decent
I can't wait to play a female Sarnak! Woohoo! I was hoping this would be the next race. You naysayers didn't believe me! Great fun to be had soon :)
Sarnaks finally!!
# May 12 2007 at 7:38 AM Rating: Default
<edit>

Edited, May 12th 2007 8:56am by Wurdipus
Great
# May 10 2007 at 9:23 AM Rating: Decent
This is great news indeed.
But what they really need to do now is to advertise EQ2 big time. This game have so much to offer but way to few customers.
Awesome!!!
# May 09 2007 at 10:42 AM Rating: Decent
25 posts
Holy sh*t, I'd never think they'd announce it lol. Totally STOKED that there's an increase to 80!!! And a new playable race AND new Epic quests that sound really awesome. Soooo happy with the new features so far. Oh yeah, and another mount!!! I AM SO FRIGGIN EXCITED!!!!!\

Note: It's not a 1-80 xpac. It's a 1-20 than I guess 68-80.

Edited, May 9th 2007 2:50pm by MutantG
cant wait too!
# May 09 2007 at 7:37 AM Rating: Decent
**
636 posts
Lol nice...a level 1-80 expansion :) way to go SoE lol and Sarnak is a good playable race to choose too :P now im going to see the complaining on the eq2 forums.
Release?
# May 09 2007 at 5:09 AM Rating: Decent
When is it being released?
____________________________
EQ1: Gooshy: http://eq.magelo.com/profile/1870652
EQ2: Gwenythe: http://u.eq2wire.com/soe/character_detail/468152233422
Can't Wait
# May 09 2007 at 4:01 AM Rating: Default
Wow this sounds great can't wait until realease =)
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