What is this? A fucking joke?

Yes, those are 50 hours of download.

I WAS going to write down some sparse comments because I just received the retail version of “Kingdom of Sky” but what I see under my eyes is a level of incompetence UNMATCHED till today.

I ordered the expansion from play.com. This is the english, european version distributed by Ubisoft. I received the box sealed and intact. Inside there are the two install DVDs, a map and two sheets, one with the exp code and another with a trial code.

The fun begins as I start to read the sheet with the expansion code:

Quick Start Guide

Installing EverQuest II Trilogy

EverQuest 2 Trilogy? What the heck is this? Let’s continue:

Follow these steps and the setup prompts to install.

1. Insert the “EverQuest II Trilogy Disc 1” into your DVD-ROM drive. If the disc does not automatically play, open “My Computer” and double-click on your DVD-ROM drive. Double-click the “Trilogy” icon.

2. Follow the prompts trough the setup process.

3. If you don’t have the original version of EverQuest 2 installed or Desert of Flames, the installation program will prompt you to install both as well as Kingdom of Sky.

WHAT?

To begin with there is no fucking “EverQuest 2 Trilogy”, secondly there is no fucking “Trilogy Disc 1” nor a “Trilogy icon”. But just “Kingdom of Sky Disc 1” and a setup program. The expansion is NOT supposed to include “Desert of Flame”, but just the base game and “Kingdom of Sky”.

But you want to know the very best part?

THE EXPANSION INSTALL DVDs DO NOT INSTALL ANY EXPANSION FILE

Yes, you got it right. These install DVDs not only do not install “Desert of Flame” as erroneously reported in the quickstart guide, BUT THEY DON’T EVEN INSTALL THE EXPANSION I BOUGHT.

I swear I tried and retried, I unistalled everything and restarted from a clean state. The only part that these DVDs install is the music files of the expansion. But NOT A SINGLE FILE OF THE ACTUAL ZONES, TEXTURES AND MODELS. NOTHING. NADA. ZILCH.

This is the log of the patcher:

[14:17:48] Patcher: — File Discrepancy M for [Expansion 2: Kingdom of Sky] exp02_ZDDS.vpk: File not on local machine
[14:17:48] Patcher: — File Discrepancy M for [Expansion 2: Kingdom of Sky] exp02_ZSet.vpk: File not on local machine
[14:17:48] Patcher: — File Discrepancy M for [Expansion 2: Kingdom of Sky] exp02_ZShdrs.vpk: File not on local machine
[14:17:48] Patcher: — File Discrepancy M for [Expansion 2: Kingdom of Sky] exp02_dun_halls_of_fate_epic01_sepulcher.vpk: File not on local machine
[14:17:48] Patcher: — File Discrepancy M for [Expansion 2: Kingdom of Sky] exp02_dun_dragon_necropolis_sg.vpk: File not on local machine
[14:17:48] Patcher: — File Discrepancy M for [Expansion 2: Kingdom of Sky] exp02_dun_halls_of_fate.vpk: File not on local machine
[14:17:48] Patcher: — File Discrepancy M for [Expansion 2: Kingdom of Sky] exp02_dun_halls_of_fate_epic01_sepulcher_sg.vpk: File not on local machine
[14:17:48] Patcher: — File Discrepancy M for [Expansion 2: Kingdom of Sky] exp02_dun_halls_of_fate_epic02_devourer.vpk: File not on local machine
[14:17:48] Patcher: — File Discrepancy M for [Expansion 2: Kingdom of Sky] exp02_dun_halls_of_fate_epic02_devourer_sg.vpk: File not on local machine
[14:17:48] Patcher: — File Discrepancy M for [Expansion 2: Kingdom of Sky] exp02_dun_halls_of_fate_sg.vpk: File not on local machine
[14:17:48] Patcher: — File Discrepancy M for [Expansion 2: Kingdom of Sky] exp02_dun_lair_of_scale.vpk: File not on local machine

This is just an excerpt because it continues for EVERY SINGLE FILE starting with “exp02” or “kos”.

If there was a reason why I didn’t got the expansion through the digital download is because EverQuest 2 has these huge downloads that I’d gladly dodge since I’m not on broadband. No, I’m not in broadband, okay? I have no problems with CD-sized downloads, I can wait. But things get a bit more annoying with DVD-sized downloads. So I decided to go with the retail option.

And what I get? Install DVDs that do not even install the expansion files? Are you kidding me?

So I got it for a code, a map and two pieces of paper filled with WRONG INFORMATIONS?

I don’t know. This goes just WAY beyond everything that is believable and remotely acceptable. Congratulations.

I can only HOPE that this is about the european distributor screwing up big time and that SOE isn’t in any way involved.

EDIT: I added the detailed patcher log for all the files of the expansion. They are ALL missing with the exception of half of the music files and five of the sound files.