Sorry for the lack of updates…I’ve been extremely busy this past couple of weeks wrapping up CivRev. I’ve been so busy in fact that I’ve yet to explore GTA IV, and I’ve even put aside Lost Odyssey for a while. Pretty much all I’ve played in the last week or two (other than my own game) has been World of Warcraft*.
Yes it’s true…I’ve become everything I hate — I’ve been playing World of Warcraft. Now, before you start with the questions I can’t answer, let me get this out of the way: I’m a human paladin, playing on some server with an unpronounceable/gibberish name, and I’ve been playing solo. I’m level 16 at this point, and still very much a n00b. Hell, I was level 8 or so before I had some coworkers laughing at me because I hadn’t figured out what my abilities actually did.
In any event, I’m enjoying it, to a point. I sort of peaked around level 12 – 15, and my interest has started waning already. But I think I get the appeal at least, and that was kind of the point. I mean, this is the biggest (PC/mulitplayer) game in the world right now, and here I am, steadfastly swearing that I Just Don’t Get It. Which would be fine if I made my living as an accountant or a chef or whatever it is normal people do for a living, but in my line of work, that’s not wise. So I’m playing WoW.
The quests so far have been not terribly original…they’ve been pretty much bog standard RPG faire, which has been disappointing. But frankly, I like bog standard RPG faire, so that hasn’t been a problem. Getting past the utter lack of a story has been a challenge, and it’s still the #1 problem I have with the game…it’s given me everything I enjoy about RPG gaming except for the story, which is, oddly enough, why I play those games in the first place. And that’s probably what will ultimately get me to stop. There’s nothing I’ve encountered so far that I can’t get by playing Morrowind, only in Morrowind, I get to be the Nerevarine, where in WoW, if I stick with it, I get to be one of those stuck up level 70 guys with their sweet, sweet rides.
For now though, I’m going to stick with it. This week things should be a little more normal than they have been the last two, so I’m hoping to either get back to Lost Odyssey or put that aside and get on with GTA IV already, but I’m not done with WoW just yet. I may have grasped the basic appeal, but I’m a long way from figuring out where the true addiction here is.
I will say this much…while I’ve been soloing, the few opportunities I’ve had to team up with other people have been pretty enjoyable. I’ve yet to do a raid or an instance or anything, but in my travels I’ve both helped out another player and been helped out myself, and that was pretty cool. In a few more levels maybe I’ll try my hand at something a little more ambitious. For now though, I’m sticking with the solo thing, as I know some very high level players who did it all 100% solo, and at the end of the day, I just don’t like playing with other people.
But hey, I’m playing WoW. That’s a big step for me. You gotta give me that.
*Ever notice how Blizzard spells Warcraft with a lowercase c and StarCraft with an uppercase C? What’s up with that? And why is it that they write it out with a lowercase c, but the logo is clearly uppercase? And why is the <title> tag on the official Warcraft III site spelled with the uppercase C, but nowhere else on the page? These are the things that keep me up at night.
[...] and at the end of the day, I just don’t like playing with other people.
Well, you nailed it right there – that’s the reason why you don’t ‘get it’. WoW is most enjoyable when played together with friends you already know, or friends you make in the game.
Playing as a team in dungeons or in random PvP encounters throughout the world can be very exciting, while grinding your way through the game all alone is both tedious and cumbersome – in the long run at least.
I’ll agree though that the game is not very innovative and that it does become repetitive rather soon. I’ve leveled up my fair share of characters myself, but what I don’t understand is where people muster the interest after hitting max level and then manages to get stuck in some laborious raiding scheme. This really eludes me as WoW’s always lost my attention at that point – but apparently this is where the real addiction lies if the forums of gamerwidow.com are to be believed.
I tried the expansion when that came out too, but it was just more of the same and I grew tired of it quickly. Feels good though, there’s so much more inspiring ways to spend your time.
Anyway, good luck in Azeroth. ;-)