The Jagex team have just announced Gower Quest, a “love letter to RuneScape and 15 years of MMORPG history,” according to the press release, as part of Runescape's 15 year anniversary celebration. It’s apparently a yearlong celebration.
Gower Quest is named after the three original brothers who created and released Runescape in 2001 — Andrew, Paul and Ian Gower. The quest has new rewards for players, including a new sword forged in the name of the cabbage god called “Brassica Prime.” According to the press release, the new quest is “dedicated to disappearing cabbages and three familiar cabbage mages.”
"Without the Gowers, we would not have RuneScape, and there would be no Jagex," said Runescape ’s Design Director Mark Ogilvie. "I've been working on RuneScape for 14 years now, and treasure many, many fond memories of working at the near-dawn of Gielinor and its lore. This quest harks back and pays homage to some key events and characters from across the game's history, and is the perfect way to celebrate its milestone anniversary."
If you haven’t thought of Runescape since you were in middle school, there are currently two types: Runescape Old School , colloquially called 2007scape, and the modern Runescape. Jagex released a rather large update for 2007scape back in January 2016, which added a new continent for players.
While the overall reception was warm, there was complaining about the kitsch factor of the update, with some players taking offense at the amount of easter eggs and meme-related references Jagex decided to include. Gower Quest seems to be in the same vein of thought, “packed with nods and winks to vintage RuneScape memes and jokes,” according to the press release.
"Bringing back the three brothers to design a celebratory quest has been simply fantastic, and we're already hearing from players how nostalgic and wonderful Gower Quest is for them," said Runescape Lead Designer David Osborne. "We're grateful to Andrew, Paul and Ian for returning to RuneScape for one more occasion as guest designers on this epic quest. Fifteen years is a phenomenal milestone -- so few MMORPGs have ever reached it, and fewer still get there while experiencing a resurgence in player numbers!"
In slightly unrelated news, it seems like Runescape is on its way of being MMO Games’s 2016 MMO Of The Year . . . So Far , with almost three times the amount of votes as its closest competitor, Eve Online.
