Did you know it's almost impossible to replicate the L2 PVE experience?
(The in depth explanation)
Many games have tried almost none succeed. Newer games use non target based systems, and try to incorporate an action based feel, but even they become mundane and do not equate to what L2 managed.
It revolves around "Weight" a term used in video game reviews to explain the feel and combat interaction. It's all the little details combined. The sound effects, distance, timing, pathing, responsiveness, etc.
In Street Fight 4 there are hits that "feel good". The animation, distance, and effect are in sequence. It matches visually.
In many of the newer games this isn't accomplished. You don't feel like your hitting enemies and most often there isn't much challenge.
Aggro and pathing. While there are huge issues with moving off cliffs and glitches near walls, the AI pathing works fairly well. It's part of why you can AOE and pole effectively. The mobs stick decently (in general).
Responsiveness and polish. The actions generally feel correct. This is the hardest part of the game engine. For classes like dagger the image, timing, and sound is correct. It gives you a good representation you are hitting something rather than just hitting a box area which is common in other games.
Pole arm AOE was very effective given the mechanics mentioned above. The hit radius was always an issue that made pole arm aoe an art.
Several players would run through dungeons collecting mobs and meeting up at a central location. Along the way dropping the train over a bot or farmer group and picking it back up.
There where limits to how much could be tanked and heals where often needed much more than today.
I am so excited to level in atellia fortress from now to infinity...so boring...game is designed for bot because nobody in right mind will grind for next 2 years in same spot/mobs/etc...or whenever next update/patch/new zones?
Moving locations isn't that important in this style of game.
When you start as a new player you move locations quickly, do many worthwhile quests and it flows rather quickly. The guides walks you through the process and teleports you to every location. In some ways it's to easy.
It then slows down and quickly dies. Games like Vindicitus, D&D, 9th are about moving areas (they do become redundant, but not to the L2 extreme)
L2 1-90+ Runs like a Hacked or Private server. The NPC buffs are basically the equivalent of full stacked parties in the older days.
You have dances, songs, wc, self, prophecy, up all the time, AND a full time recharger all the time.
It allows you destroy group rooms solo and is actually quite fun.
It also allows you to use skills as they should have been designed originally.
Did you know some players used to kill a few mobs and then sit? It was a very slow tedious process at times on release. The normal player regen is almost nothing, it's all about mana/hp pots/vr.
Now you can spam skills, over hits, all the time without downtime. You can also clear rooms, and kill some group mobs.
what kills the real player experience is, the lack of zones to exp after 85, lack of worthwhile dailies too makes the game monotonous very fast, while 70% of the open areas is unused or used for lvl 1-70 when you can get though those lvls in 1 day if you know how to play or a week for a guy who has never played L2 before.
Try doing Kartias with 3/4 ppl to get spice a bit your everyday lvling, depending on your lvl, gear and partnes it would not be as easy as a classical full party Kartia :P
The dailies right after 85 tend to become boring, but the 88 RBs offer you some extra experience and there are some options for Solo/Party grinding. Then when you hit 90, 93, 95 and 97 and need to lvl-up both main and dual class, your daily option increases at a point where you are not able to do everything unless you play some hours each day... at that's a good thing. If you don't play that much you always have something left to do, reducing your death-times if you feel like being active, specially when you have some friends or clannies to do those activities
what kills the real player experience is, the lack of zones to exp after 85, lack of worthwhile dailies too makes the game monotonous very fast, while 70% of the open areas is unused or used for lvl 1-70 when you can get though those lvls in 1 day if you know how to play or a week for a guy who has never played L2 before.
This is a separate design issue. Some older areas where revamped, and some left behind. There are areas like the mines which are not used/updated. They give older exp values so killing tough group mobs inside gives the same exp as quick killing easy newer mobs.
The forge of gods (the stakato lava dungeon) was empty from players/bots. It's to low level now and probably not worth the exp. It could use an update as it's a pretty massive and nice dungeon.
It shows one of the better design aspects you don't see to often also. The very over sized areas not just in the layout of the dungeon, but the size of the walls, entrance, areas. It gives a perspective of the player size vs the area.
I recently tried EOS and it just doesn't have it. As mentioned in the original post, the combat mechanics in L2 are unique. (While it's plagued with problems this will stay focused on the mechanics only).
When I restarted L2 I immediately got the sense of danger/consequence. Without much equipment and starting out pulling aggro and ranged social mobs becomes an issue.
In EOS it was way to easy even the bosses and it just didn't have the same impact. While the graphics are fairly good by today's standards it was dull and just not engaging. It didn't have the refined spacing, sounds, distance either.
L2 remains a difficult game. (The game was actually better without having the best). When top areas in the game got destroyed by boss jewel groups stacked with buffs it got boring.
With Raid Bosses, Epics, Solo/Group events and Pvp there is usually at least something in the game that can't be crushed immediately. (At least the entire time it was a paid game)