EverQuest is a 3D fantasy-themed massively multiplayer online role-playing game (MMORPG) originally developed by Verant Interactive and 989 Studios for Windows.

[9] EverQuest has had a wide influence on subsequent releases within the market, and holds an important position in the history of massively multiplayer online games.

[12] In EverQuest, players create a character (also known as an avatar, or colloquially as a char or toon) by selecting one of twelve races in the game, which were humans, high-elves, wood-elves, half-elves, dark-elves, erudites, barbarians, dwarves, halflings, gnomes, ogres, and trolls.

[13] At creation, players select each character's adventuring occupation (such as a wizard, ranger, or cleric), a patron deity, and starting city.

Players move their character throughout the medieval fantasy world of Norrath, often fighting monsters and enemies for treasure and experience points, and optionally mastering trade skills.

As they progress, players advance in level, gaining power, prestige, spells, and abilities through valorous deeds such as entering overrun castles and keeps, defeating worthy opponents found within, and looting their remains.

The design of EverQuest, like other massively multiplayer online role-playing games, makes it highly amenable to cooperative play, with each player having a specific role within a given group.

EverQuest featured fourteen playable character classes upon release in 1999, with two others - Beastlord and Berzerker - added in the Shadows of Luclin (2001) and Gates of Discord (2004) expansions, respectively.

These include the Warrior, a tank-based character which wears heavy armor and is designed to take damage for its group using a taunt ability; the Monk, a character which uses a combination of martial arts and barehanded fighting techniques; the Rogue, a combination of thief and assassin classes which can sneak and hide in the shadows as well as steal from enemies; and the Berserker, a strong fighter who specialize in two-handed weapons such as axes and are able to enter a state of increased fury and power.

The Priest classes are made up of the Cleric, a heavily specialized support class that wears heavy armor and is adept at healing and strengthening their allies; the Druid, a magic-user who draws power from nature which can restore the vitality and magic power of their teammates; and the Shaman, tribal warriors who draw upon the spirit realm to heal, empower those around them, and weaken their enemies.

Those among them include the Wizard, a specialized damage-dealing class which uses the power of fire, ice, and pure magic energy for devastating effect as well as teleportation abilities; the Magician, a summoner who is able to call upon elemental servants which aid them in dealing damage; the Necromancer, a dark caster who uses the power of disease and poison to wither away their opponents while commanding undead allies to aid them;[16] and the Enchanter, an illusionist who can take on many forms, support allies with strengthening spells, and pacify enemies with mesmerizing abilities.

Finally, Beastlords are primal fighters who are constantly joined by their animal wards which help them deal damage, and can assist their teammates with healing and support skills.

[17] These zones represent a wide variety of geographical features, including plains, oceans, cities, deserts, and other planes of existence.

John Smedley, Brad McQuaid, Steve Clover and Bill Trost, who jointly are credited with creating the world of EverQuest, have repeatedly pointed to their shared experiences playing MUDs such as Sojourn and TorilMUD as the inspiration for the game.

[20] Development of EverQuest began in 1996 when Sony Interactive Studios America (SISA) executive John Smedley secured funding for a 3D game like text-based MUDs following the successful launch of Meridian 59 the previous year.

Other key members of the development team included Bill Trost, who created the history, lore and major characters of Norrath (including EverQuest protagonist Firiona Vie), Geoffrey "GZ" Zatkin, who implemented the spell system, and artist Milo D. Cooper, who did the original character modeling in the game.

Other guides would serve in administrative functions within the program or assisting the Quest Troupe with dynamic and persistent live events throughout the individual servers.

In 2003 the program changed for the volunteer guides taking them away from the customer service focus and placing them into their current roles as roving 'persistent characters' role-playing with the players.

In anticipation of PlayStation's launch, Sony Interactive Studios America made the decision to focus primarily on console titles under the banner 989 Studios, while spinning off its sole computer title, EverQuest, which was ready to launch, to a new computer game division named Redeye (renamed Verant Interactive).

The expansion Shadows of Luclin (2001) gave a significant facelift to player character models, bringing the dated 1999 graphics up to modern standards.

EverQuest II faced severe competition from Blizzard's World of Warcraft, which was released at virtually the same time and quickly grew to dominate the MMORPG genre.

In June of the same year SOE removed the ability to buy game subscription time with Station Cash without any warning to players.

[38] SOE devoted one server (Al'Kabor) to an OS X version of the game, which opened for beta testing in early 2003, and officially released on June 24 of the same year.

With the advent of the New Dawn promotion, three additional servers were set up and maintained by Ubisoft: Venril Sathir (British), Sebilis (French) and Kael Drakkal (German).

[46] The reviewer would find fault with its repetitive gameplay in the early levels and lack of sufficient documentation to help new players, urging them to turn to fansites for help instead.

[49] The reviewer did feel that the title suffered from a lack of player customization aside from different face types, meaning all characters of the same race looked mostly the same, but its visual quality on the whole was "excellent" with "particularly impressive" spell, lighting, and particle effects.

[74] The sale of in-game objects for real currency is a controversial and lucrative industry with topics concerning practices of hacking/stealing accounts for profit.

Sony discourages the payment of real-world money for online goods, except on certain "Station Exchange" servers in EverQuest II, launched in July 2005.

[79][80] There was one well-publicized suicide of an EverQuest user named Shawn Woolley, that inspired his mother, Liz, to found Online Gamers Anonymous.

[85] The call to boycott was rescinded after SOE held a summit to address player concerns, improve (internal and external) communication, and correct specific issues within the game.