Landmark’s servers blinked off for the very last time last night, with our own EverQuest franchise columnist MJ Guthrie there to stream the end. The sandbox hadn’t even reached its first birthday after its long-awaited but still hasty launch last year.
“Such a waste,” former SOE and Daybreak CEO John Smedley remarked on Twitter. “It’s tragic to see this game turned off. EQ Next would have been brilliant based on it. We could have done it.”
We’ve rounded up some memories from the current and former Daybreak and SOE reps, plus we’ve included MJ’s stream and some of our favorite Landmark content in the last couple of years.
First, MJ’s stream of the sunset. If you just want to see the end, skip to about 1:50:00, as the fireworks go off and the countdown timer trails off to blackness.
Former SOE and Daybreak CEO John Smedley:
@Landmarkgame goodbye to a great game. I'm sad to see this go and bummed it never got built into EQ Next like it should have.
— John Smedley (@j_smedley) February 22, 2017
Daybreak Lead Game Designer Emily “Domino” Taylor:
In the end, all we have is memories …. these were good ones! Thank you for being part of them <3 #Landmark #LandmarkMemories pic.twitter.com/s799MIadCu
— Emily C Taylor 💉💉 (@pentapod) February 22, 2017
Former SOE Director of Development and Creative Director Dave Georgeson:
Alas, poor Landmark, I knew it well.
— David Georgeson (@DaveGeorgeson) February 22, 2017
Daybreak Communications Manager Colette “Dexella” Murphy:
Was here the day @LandmarkGame first turned on, so of course, I'm here to say goodbye to it too. (Trying to fight those tears…) pic.twitter.com/ZTaRcoWoFD
— Colette Murphy (she/her) ✨ (@ThatColette) February 21, 2017
Final screenshot in @LandmarkGame. It was quite a joy getting to be part of the whole experience. pic.twitter.com/GCOvnGhiol
— Colette Murphy (she/her) ✨ (@ThatColette) February 22, 2017
Former SOE Senior Brand Manager Omeed Dariani:
Man… lots of memories working on this, which have turned into great friendships with devs and players… lots of love to @LandmarkGame! https://t.co/PJI9XsjF3u
— Omeed (@Omeed) February 21, 2017
Former SOE Associate Producer Eric Smith:
RIP @LandmarkGame. Sad to see our efforts (and yours!) wasted.
— Eric Smith (@F4Felgon) February 22, 2017
And here’s a recap of some of our more interesting pieces about Landmark from the last two years.
EverQuesting: Ten things to do in Landmark before it’s gone - T minus 11 days and counting. That's all the time Landmark has left. That's not a lot of time. If you haven't built all your intricate ideas yet, chances are…
EverQuesting: The loss of Landmark - Daybreak did it again. Boy, that phrase has come to mean a great many different things over the years. However, in this case it refers to the art of dropping…
Global Chat Extra: In remembrance of Landmark - Obviously, the reverberations of the news of Landmark's closure continue to be seen across the MMO community, including in our own comments sections. The MMO blogosphere was alight with discussion…
Dave Georgeson offers players encouragement on Landmark shutdown - Former Landmark lead Dave Georgeson took to Twitter on Friday with a note of encouragement for fans of the soon-to-be shuttered MMO: "To those reading about the [Landmark]Â shutdown. Your dreams…
Landmark is shutting down on February 21 - Sad news for fans of Landmark who were happy to see it have its own life after the closure of EverQuest Next; Daybreak has announced that the Landmark servers will…
EverQuesting: Let’s lay the Landmark hate to rest - May I respectfully make a request to my fellow gamers? Let's lay off the hate. It's time to for us to throw down that torch (extinguished, of course!) and and…
EverQuesting: Landmark is offering new races – for a price - I knew that new races would eventually come to Landmark! From the beginning it didn't make any sense to me that Daybreak would ignore something the community really wanted, especially when…
Global Chat: The verdict on Landmark - Landmark's launch hasn't gone unnoticed by the MMO blogging community. Several players have decided to use the game's official release as an opportunity to check it out again (or for…
EverQuesting: First impressions of Landmark’s launch - So it finally happened. Really and for truly! Landmark launched into the realm of released games. I can officially remove the alpha/beta tag off this column. But other than that,…
Landmark bombs on Steam while WildStar fans deliver positivity - It was probably inevitable that Landmark's official launch on Friday afternoon -- against the Warcraft movie and pre-E3 hoopla and following basically zero PR and a bizarre Daybreak forum announcement…
EverQuesting: Preparing for Landmark’s launch - Admit it: At least at some point, every single one of you had doubts that Landmark would actually ever launch. Hey, it's understandable. I have been there, too. After such an…
Landmark announces a June 10th launch date - It's a little later in the "spring" than expected, depending on how strictly you adhere to the season or the solstice, but it's finally happening: Landmark is launching on June…
EverQuesting: First impressions of Landmark’s new story system - When I shared my first impressions of Landmark's big spring update, I admitted that there was sadness to be had, but I also noted that the one aspect of the update…
EverQuesting: Let EverQuest Next live on in Landmark - Well, then. When it rains, it pours. After a lengthy drought of EverQuest Next and Landmark news, we finally got some. And not just a few drops, but a bit…
Daybreak has canceled EverQuest Next, Landmark is launching ‘this spring’ - Daybreak has officially canceled EverQuest Next. President Russell Shanks just broke the news on the official site this afternoon: To Our Daybreak Community, I’m writing today to let you know…
EverQuesting: A 2016 franchise forecast for EverQuest Next, EverQuest, EverQuest II, and Landmark - We've looked back at 2015 for the launched games EverQuest and EverQuest II, the long-lasting beta of Landmark, and the MIA-and-presumed-dead (by some) EverQuest Next. Now it is time to…
EverQuesting: EverQuest, EverQuest II, Landmark, and EverQuest Next in 2015 - When it comes to the EverQuest franchise, looking back at 2015 is a much different experience than looking back at 2014 was. That previous year ended on such a high…
Daybreak shifts dev focus from Landmark to EverQuest Next - Daybreak senior producer Terry Michaels has posted a new letter on the Landmark website. He says that the dev team has been shifting its focus and resources to EverQuest Next,…
Our condolences to players who’ve lost a favorite world or pile of money this week.
