It's quiet isn't it? No, not just on RuneScape, it's the forums as well. It's almost as everyone has gone away for the weekend, and they forgot to wake you up to come along for the ride.
Now look at your friends list. That's busier than ever, correct? Sure, most of the people on there you haven't spoken for years, and given that they play on Old School RuneScape it's unlikely that you'll ever run into them on the game itself.
Yes, the 07 servers brought a lot of people back to the game, and for a while there, the discussion between fans of either version of it cast a significant and gloomy shadow on this new reality. Most of it I could understand, some of it I would even go as far to say that it was justified. Both sides laid claim that whatever they were playing was the "real" RuneScape. Both sides would argue why their particular side was better. Both sides would not be persuaded to change their position. And both sides called the other ones idiots and other things for not switching over. It really is the internet in a nutshell.
To clarify; I don't play on 07 servers, because I feel I've already done that in 2007. But of those who do play 07, how many of those have switched from EoC? I'm just guessing based on what I see happening on my own friends list and in the clanworld, but I don't think this is a very high number. A large chunk of the people currently dedicating themselves to 07Scape have come out of retirement from their RuneScape careers just for that. These people have little to no knowledge on what the current state of EoCScape is, and more importantly, have no interest in it either. This has left EoCScape relatively unaffected. of course, virtually nobody who started playing after this particular snapshot in time is going to make those servers a permanent home now. When you consider the addition of the Godwars Dungeon and the Grand Exchange, as well as the removal of the Wilderness and Free Trade shortly after the date of this particular back-up, you could say that whoever started playing after those updates ('08 and onwards) are a different generation of players.
If you noticed something of a drop in bots and gamblers in EoCScape, however, this is not due to the opening of the 07 servers. Another addition to Botwatch, the removal of the Software graphics mode, and the auto-muting of hot/cold advertisers contributed to this. But who's to say that these won't move on to 07Scape?
Some people would have you believe that the interaction between friends across servers is limited to RuneScape-unrelated chitchat. Yes, while asking how much an Abyssal Whip costs can lead to confusion, I don't think this is enough to terminate a friendship over. And if it is, I doubt that these people would've been friends outside of RuneScape anyways.
No, the ones hit hardest have been the Clans.
The Clanworld has slowly been withering away to oblivion ever since the removal of the Wilderness, only months after the date of the back-up that now makes up the 07 servers. But some people hung in there, against all odds, hoping Jagex would give them the updates they needed, rather than a customizable City that's a lot more effort than it's worth. With busloads of veterans returning to re-level their accounts and do their thing on 07 servers, the amount of people showing up for a war has jumped from a dozen or two straight into the triple digits. Impressive to say the least. But this has forced the ones that stuck it out with RS into making a tough choice. Do they continue to level on EoC, do they start over on 07 and join their clan, is there time for both? The leaders and staff of those clans also had to make such a decision, but for the entire clan effort at once.
Regardless of where they go, the most important thing can't be forgotten; You've been given a choice to what kind of game you want to play, and more and more people are enjoying what they like best.
But therein also hides a danger.
The first poll for 07 updates came out. While most of those options are a clear given, and aren't much else than convenience, things like adding the Easter event of those days and changing unidentified herbs to grimy ones are what some would consider a slippery slope. The same frustration that I saw with actually trying to GET the 07servers going is one that we'll undoubtedly see when there is a poll asking for the implementation of the Godwars Dungeon. And there will be others as well. Right now there is an almost 50-50 split between active logins on EoC and 07 servers. This will change with the wrong update on 07 servers much more so than on EoC. It is then that the generational divide becomes even more obvious, as people who have quit RuneScape in the past are more likely to push back from the table once again.
So yes, there is still a divide. Clans are doing their best to cope, and the strength of many friendships is being tested as well. We all have what we wanted; even if it's not everything we wanted. Sadly, we're all too easily satisfied with our bread and games for anything to be done about this.
