EverQuest history: EverQuest, EverQuest II, EverQuest Next and Landmark

EverQuest Next was supposed to rebuild Norrath for a new generation. Instead, it was cancelled in March 2016. This history follows the whole franchise, from the 1999 original and EverQuest II to the doomed reboot and its building spin-off Landmark, and ends with how you can play the surviving games today.

EverQuest (1999): the game that set the template

EverQuest launched on March 16, 1999. Verant Interactive developed it, and Sony published it. Brad McQuaid, Steve Clover and Bill Trost designed the game under John Smedley’s project leadership. Sony later absorbed Verant into Sony Online Entertainment (SOE).

Norrath was not the first online world. It was, however, the first 3D one to pull in a mass Western audience. Corpse runs, camping rare spawns, pulling trains and forming pickup groups all became shared vocabulary.

Expansions arrived at a steady pace:

The run never stopped. EverQuest has now passed 30 expansions, roughly one per year, and it celebrated its 25th anniversary in March 2024.

EverQuest II (2004): a sequel that lived alongside the original

EverQuest II launched in November 2004. It is set about 500 years after the original, after the moon Luclin has shattered and torn Norrath apart.

The sequel brought more modern systems: voiced NPCs, a deeper crafting system, player housing and a more guided questing flow. SOE kept both games running side by side rather than retiring the original, and each kept its own community. EverQuest II marked its 20th anniversary in November 2024.

Both games went free to play. EverQuest II made the switch in late 2011, and EverQuest followed in March 2012.

EverQuest Next: the 2013 reveal

SOE unveiled EverQuest Next at SOE Live in Las Vegas in August 2013. The pitch was the most ambitious in the franchise’s history:

• A voxel world you could destroy. Terrain could be blown apart, and the destruction could reveal hidden layers underground.
• Emergent AI built with Storybricks. NPCs and monsters were meant to act on their own desires. Orcs, for example, would settle where they found safety and ignore static spawn points.
• Multiclassing. You would collect classes and mix their abilities, with more than 40 classes promised.
• A lore reboot. This was a new Norrath, separate from the timelines of the first two games.

SOE kept sharing developer updates and concept work for a few years after the reveal. A playable EverQuest Next never reached the public.

Landmark: the building game that shipped instead

EverQuest Next Landmark was announced alongside Next. It was a voxel building game that would let players create the tools and assets SOE planned to use in EQ Next. The “EverQuest Next” prefix was dropped in early 2014, and it became simply Landmark.

Alpha opened in 2014, and access came through paid founder packs. Beta followed later that year. Landmark fully launched in June 2016, after EQ Next had already been cancelled. Daybreak shut its servers down in February 2017.

Daybreak and the cancellation

Sony sold SOE in February 2015, and the studio became Daybreak Game Company. On March 11, 2016, Daybreak cancelled EverQuest Next. Its stated reason was blunt: the team had built a lot of impressive tech, but the game itself was not fun enough to finish.

The Storybricks partnership had already wound down by then, and so had much of the original leadership. The reboot simply ran out of road.

Where EverQuest stands today

Enad Global 7 bought Daybreak in a deal announced in late 2020. The EverQuest games now sit with Daybreak’s Darkpaw Games label. Both titles still ship yearly expansions. EverQuest released The Outer Brood and EverQuest II released Scars of Destruction in late 2024. The official sites list whatever is newest when you read this.

The big draw for returning players is the time-locked progression server. These servers restart Norrath at classic content and unlock expansions on a schedule:

• EverQuest calls them TLP servers.
• EverQuest II calls them TLE servers.

Daybreak has never published hard subscriber numbers, so treat any population claim you see with suspicion. For games that do report concurrent players, our most played MMOs breakdown uses Steam data.

How to start playing EverQuest or EverQuest II now

What you need:

• A Windows PC
• A free Daybreak account
• An email address you can verify
• An optional All Access membership if you want progression servers

What you should end up with: a patched client, a character on your chosen server, and the free-to-play content open to you. Members-only perks and servers will show as locked until you subscribe.

Common mistakes

• Mixing Steam and direct accounts. Both games are on Steam, but if you create a new account through Steam, it can end up separate from an older Daybreak login. Use one account and stick to it.
• Joining a TLP or TLE server without membership. These servers are All Access only.
• Skipping account security. Turn on the extra login protection Daybreak offers. Old EQ accounts have long been a target for phishing.

FAQ

Why was EverQuest Next cancelled?

Daybreak said in March 2016 that the game was not fun enough to release, despite its technology.

Is Landmark still playable?

No. Its servers shut down in February 2017.

Is EverQuest still free to play?

Yes. Both EverQuest and EverQuest II are free, with an optional All Access membership that adds perks and progression servers.

Which game should you start with?

Pick EverQuest on a progression server if you want old-school group camps. Pick EverQuest II if you want more modern questing and housing.