Sony Online Entertainment (SOE) unveiled EverQuest Next at SOE Live in Las Vegas on August 2, 2013. The pitch was for a free-to-play MMO with player-created content, destructible environments and a world that would respond to players’ choices. Those were announced plans, not features in a released game: Daybreak Games discontinued development in 2016, and EverQuest Next never launched.
What did SOE show at SOE Live?
SOE presented EverQuest Next as a reimagining of the franchise, not a direct continuation of its existing story. Director of Development Dave Georgeson described it as “the fundamental reimagining of the characters, lore and environments of the EverQuest universe.” The presentation followed years of development on the version announced in 2013; SOE president John Smedley said the company had been working on it since 2009 after canceling and rethinking earlier efforts. GamesBeat had received a preview at E3 before the public reveal.
Smedley framed the project as an attempt to change how MMOs played: “We made a decision to modernize the gameplay of MMOs,” he said, contrasting it with what he called older games given “new coats of paint.” He called EverQuest Next “a completely new kind of game.” These quotations describe SOE’s ambitions at the time, not a playable outcome.
What was EverQuest Next supposed to be?
The central idea was a persistent online world that players could help shape, rather than a fixed setting where their actions had little lasting effect. SOE’s planned features combined building tools, environmental destruction, flexible character abilities and non-player characters intended to react to events.
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Player-made objects and structures
SOE planned to let players create objects and structures. The company said selected or popular creations could be considered for the official MMO, connecting community building with the game’s world. That was a proposed route for player work to influence the game, not a guarantee that every creation would be included.
A world that could be changed
The reveal described terrain players could dig into or damage, alongside larger world changes and dynamic events. The intended effect was a world shaped over time by collective action, rather than scenery that remained unchanged regardless of what players did.
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- Enter the fantastic world of Norrath, 500 years before the start of the first EverQuest adventures, for a slightly different adventuring experience in the olden times
- Travel from the land of Tunaria, and explore Norrath as you complete quests and explore a 500-mile continent
- As you complete quests, you'll make friends and forge alliances with other players online
- Work your way up to bigger and better quests, as well as deadlier dangers. Make sure you have the right people at your side!
- Work with a new magical system that combines the old Skills and Spells into a new Ability category, for easier management
Classes and character abilities
GamesBeat reported that SOE described 40 distinct classes at launch, with players able to mix abilities. This was a planned specification for a game that never reached launch; it should not be read as a count of playable classes in a released EverQuest Next.
NPCs and persistent consequences
SOE also described NPCs with motivations and a world that could react to player actions over time. In principle, this could make encounters and events feel less like isolated tasks. The reveal established that this was a design goal, not how a finished game performed.
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Was Landmark the same game as EverQuest Next?
No. EverQuest Next Landmark was a separate, building-oriented online experience, not another name for the MMO. SOE positioned it as a way for players to create with tools related to EverQuest Next; creations could be considered for use in the planned MMO. A GDC 2014 session description likewise characterized Landmark’s tools as intended to create content for a future EverQuest Next release.
The distinction matters when interpreting early hands-on coverage. On January 31, 2014, SOE’s San Diego studio held a franchise event with brief hands-on sessions for Landmark, developer interaction, tours and a livestream recap. The event notice documents hands-on access to Landmark, not to EverQuest Next itself.
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Did EverQuest Next ever come out?
No. Daybreak Games announced on March 11, 2016, that it was discontinuing development. Daybreak president Russell Shanks wrote: “I’m writing today to let you know that, after much review and consideration, Daybreak is discontinuing development of EverQuest Next.” He also explained: “Unfortunately, as we put together the pieces, we found that it wasn’t fun.”
So the ambitious systems presented in 2013 remained announced intentions. The public coverage in August 2013 said SOE had not announced a release date, and the project was later discontinued before becoming a released game.
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Timeline of the reveal and cancellation
- August 2, 2013: SOE revealed EverQuest Next at SOE Live in Las Vegas.
- August 2013: Contemporary coverage reported that no release date had been announced.
- January 31, 2014: SOE’s San Diego event included hands-on sessions for Landmark; its event notice does not establish that attendees played EverQuest Next.
- March 11, 2016: Daybreak announced that it was discontinuing development of EverQuest Next.
Sources
- GamesBeat: “Sony Online Entertainment shows EverQuest Next to its hardcore fans”, Dean Takahashi, August 2, 2013; updated June 18, 2025.
- EverQuest/Daybreak: “Come to San Diego & Celebrate!”, January 27, 2014.
- Game Developer: “With EverQuest Next Landmark, SOE goes all-in on user-gen content”, Kris Graft, August 2, 2013.
- GDC Vault: “Staking the First Claim: Creating the EverQuest Next Landmark Prototype”, GDC 2014.
- EQ2Wire: “EverQuest Next Cancelled, Landmark to Officially Launch This Spring”, March 11, 2016.
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