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WoW Thoughts: No Variety?
Rijndael
Member Posts: 4
So far I've been playing World of Warcraft since the day it came out and have loved it. By the late 40s I've taken notice to something and it's changed my views about WoW. I'm noticing an extreme lack of variety in this game. I'm doing harder versions of the same quests I did since level 1 and fighting bigger more powerful versions of the same creatures I fought at level 1 also. I play on a pvp server - even with the random element there, there is no variety in it. 
When it comes to individuality, I see very very little. Everybody from one particular class plays nearly identical to everybody else who plays that class. I'm looking a few levels ahead at the possibility of end game stuff, and there isn't anything to speak of. Oh yeah, I can go do the higher level instances, but then I run into the same thing as all the other instances - harder versions of the same thing. I know it isn't EQ, but I played that game off and on for 4 years and there was always some sort of variety to speak of. At least there were 'high level encounters' to speak of which required carefully planned tactics and the right combination of people of appropriate level. There is no strategy involved in WoW fights, the game mechanics don't really allow for it. Every boss type encounter is handled the same way. I know what some of you are probably thinking at this point. What about raid quests? Yeah, those are about as close to end-game as it gets - Read: harder version of the same quests done at level 1. Right now I'm hoping battlegrounds will offer enough variety for me to continue enjoying the game. At this point I have had no motivation or desire to play the game for a week straight, when before I didn't want to go a day without playing it. Just looking for a little feedback - does anybody agree with me? Why or why not?
Note: I am not trying to start a flame war, nor am I trying to bash WoW as a game. I think it's great, I'm just trying to get realistic opinions from other people. If you're going to come here and tell me 'go back to EQ' or 'go play xxx game instead', save it - that's not what I'm asking for.
With that said and done, thanks in advance to anyone who chooses to respond and give me their thoughts on this topic.
Rijn
Orc Hunter/Deathwing
Runas
Orc Rogue/Deathwing
Comments
Nothing in WoW is very hard, its like Diablo II MMORPG, in a way. You wont find yourself in a group, thinking of various strategies to make it work, cuz its so easy to get a group to get anything done (many classes fill different roles). If your group fails, you dont even notice the consequences, so a lot of experience is done by trial and error.
Some of the quests are interesting, some of them are the same old. The one time quests are usually very boring, but the quests that are in series can be pretty interesting, if you actually listen to the storyline.
Wat Im trying to say I think, is that WoW isnt *extremely* immersive, cuz theres not really any way to get hopelessly addicted, playing 18 hours a day. Theres no reason to. You can get everything done that you need to in a few hours. In games where you have to grind for 10 hours, in a party, just to get one lvl, youll be more addicted, cuz its harder to accomplish everything :S Just be glad youre not forced to do that.
Have fun with it. If you dont feel like playing it atm, dont play it. When you do feel like playing it, itll be a fun time.
Manday, I'm going to have to say thanks for your thoughts. I would have to agree with that point you made there. I'm not sure what level you are in WoW at the moment, but for me, whether I'm grinding solo or questing or even grouping in an instance, I still spend 10 hours (maybe not 10 hours playtime, generally around 6-8) trying to get each new level. Once you hit about 35 things slow way down compared to how they are pre level 30. Things seem to stay fairly consistent in the level speed from the low 30s through the mid 40s though, not sure if it will slow down again post 50, I imagine it probably will though.
Anyway, please keep the comments coming, I appreciate it.
I probably play 10+ hours straight too, but Im not in a group mindlessly killing mobs. Im exploring, crafting, killing, questing.
Im playing 5 chars right now, lvl 27 Rogue and lvl 2425 Hunter are my highest, but I have 7 other chars that Ive been experimenting with :S Ive never really felt any pressure to just lvl, n if I did, Id probably ignore it. I like exploring, finding new places, n as I lvl Im getting to do more interesting stuff.
Doing stuff like mining in Thousand Needles as a lvl 2X hunter is fun.
Cuz for me, doing different crafts is entertaining. Making new chars to store new crafts on is like kinda a bonus, cuz I get to check out how other classes work.
Another thing thats fun is doing instances with a small group, preferably friends. Good way to make money too!
Anyways, I do understand wat youre saying. Its not really, really immersive, it does seem abit unoriginal, but I do believe its the best choice us MMO players have atm. (Note: That statement is *not* meant to cause any __ vs __ wars, it is *just* my opinion, n I respect anyone who has a different opinion on this).
I have a lvl 60, and I don't think that it slows down very much. Yes, it does get slower, but it's not by a huge amount. You have to kill more enemies to ding as you level up, but I'd also say that you should be killing even-level enemies faster as you get higher in level. Of course, this could be skewed by my class choice. I primarily play a mage and a rogue -- the two classes with the best solo capability, in my opinion. Part of the problem is also knowing where to level. My second char is levelling a lot faster because I know where and what the quests will be ahead of time. You will probably miss some quests the first time around that would have made levelling faster.
As for instances, I have done almost all the instances, and I don't know why you'd say they're all the same. Maraudon is the same thing as Deadmines? That's not really true. Admittedly, there is one small part of Stratholme which is very much like the Scarlet Monastery. It even uses the same key. I guess their locksmiths suck. That's probably because that part is the Scarlet Bastion. Each of the instance bosses offers a unique challenge in my eyes. Many of them are not easy to kill with a party of the same level.
Quests, also, can offer some interesting insights. The quest that tells you about the Scythe of Elune, the quest that explains what happened to the King of Stormwind: all of these, I found interesting. The bulk of the quests, though, are generic as you said. With that in mind, I'd say it's still the best quest system of any MMORPG. The quests actually feel like they have a point, like they make sense. They actually contribute to some story. Maybe it's as trivial as getting a woman ingredients to make pie. It also might be as important as stopping a conspiracy to destroy the Kingdom.
As far as raid quests, there are very few of them. The only one I have completed was to kill Nathaniel Blightcaller. It was actually not very difficult. Strategy was hardly involved at all.
You're almost right as far as skill goes. It takes very little planning or tactics to be decent at WoW. However, some strategy is involved in tackling some of the game's tougher challenges. If you think Everquest is the only game with specific challenges for high-level players that require teamwork, coordination, and effective class use, you're wrong there.
In the end, though, I'd have to say that I agree with you for the most part. You hit lvl 60, gain 300 in your crafting skills, and can make some items that are very much sought after. You do all the instances, beat almost everything. Then what? Boredom. I was one of the early 60's on my server, and all of us are starting to get a little tired of what is left for us to do. We've gone through Stratholme ad nauseum. Personally, my playing time has dropped sharply. It has gone from an every day affair to only logging every few days. The same thing goes for a lot of my lvl 60 guildmates. It seems like it would be great to be lvl 60, but you soon find yourself faced with the reality that it gets boring fast. Alts help a little in that regard, but they only serve to delay an inevitable burnout.
With all this said, I'd still say that WoW is one of the best MMO's. There are so many quests that you almost never need to grind. Some people don't think an MMO is real unless you need to grind for hours each day for at least six months to get to the max level. Luckily, WoW doesn't cater to such people. You can actually play casually and reach the max level in two or three months. I never really viewed the quests as repetitive, but I can see where you're coming from. I'd say that repetition is more an illness of the genre than WoW in particular, though. All MMO's recycle content in some limited fashion. I'd say WoW does a good job of keeping a certain level of variety. Most areas have unique terrain types and a few unique enemies.
The underlying reality is that WoW doesn't really add anything new or groundbreaking to the genre. It is merely an improvement over what has been done by previous games. That said, it remains one of the most enjoyable.
You are not alone.
a large number of my friends played in beta with me as I got them invites. They were all facinated by the game, to me it lost its luster before beta ended. However they are starting to all arrive at the same conclusion that I did a while back which is the same one you stated. While wow is a good game, in a nutshell it lacks staying power. Its super fun for a bit but its like Bubbleyum bubble gum, Really good but loses its flavor quick then it taste's like ass. They all started hitting 40+ a few of them 50+ and a couple more 60 and started playing less and less, why? same reason to a one. Lack of variety, lack of anything substantial to do. They were even all on PVP servers, and they simply got bored, it was the same quest different spin, no storyline, no plot, nothing to immerse you into the world.
Each of us still states, WoW is a great game, just a sorry mmorpg.
Solid, stable, fast, beautiful, well-balanced and reliable. For me, it is also not terribly fun. I recommend the game to anyone new to MMOGs, anyone who wants to see a well-done MMOG, and anyone that wants to see what a MMOG is capable of in a broad sense...but I find it lacking in complexity and depth in the long run, and that spelled its immediate doom on my systems.
Maybe in 12 months I may reinstall, when they've added more depth...assuming that they do, that is. But for today, it remains in limbo.
I agree generally with the OP. I still think WoW rates high as a game because in the early going it is a heck of a lot of fun, all its foibles and weaknesses aside. My issue with it is that in the later game things got very repetitive for me (very much like what the OP wrote about the same exact battles just bigger versions of the same exact monsters as 10 levels ago) and it lost its shine for me, I lost the drive to keep playing that I had when I had been playing for 3-4 weeks.
I guess that was a little disappointing for me, but it depends on personal taste. I like a MMORPG that is very intensive and deep and can be played for months on end, and I guess I was disappointed that WoW is so easy to get to the end bit so quickly and that the other areas of the game (like tradeskilling, for example) are simpler and not as involved (which I prefer, I know not everyone does) as in other MMORPGs.. I'm not criticizing the quick levelling per se, it does make the game more accessible to casual gamers, but I think that WoW has less depth and richness than some other MMORPGs. So I guess that's where I come out ... as I've said before, it is a lot of fun for a while and then it becomes less fun and has less depth and staying power than some other MMORPGs .... but that's an opinion based on my own gaming preferences, not universal and it's very much a YMMV type thing. I find EQ2 more deep and satisfying, but I know others find it annoying and irritating --- same for EVE, which I also find more deep and interesting, but others find mind-numbingly dull. It's good that we have a variety of games to choose from that are appropriate for the differing preferences of online gamers.
I'm saying the game is well-balanced, not suggesting classes are well balanced. Class nerfs are simply a way of life in MMOG.
I can't believe that you said EQ has more variety.
EQ: Kill one monster over and over for a week until you level. After leveling, move over 10 feet and kill another monster (same model as last monster, just a foot or so taller) over and over again for a week. Add to this that 2/3 of your time is spent doing things like finding a group, finding a camping area that isn't taken, and corpse runs.
Amount of class and races I can group with matter a lot.
Diversity is something everyone want, and since in the questing, all teams, no matter how good or bad, will eventually become repetitive after a point, you want as much diversity as you can on every topic.
I have nothing against an awfull grind, I have everything against it if the grind must be done in a particuliar way, it can be solo, grouping, raiding, PvP or tradeskilling, if it is enforced that way, I will be complaining.
Groucho: EQ have more variety then WoW in the sense that you can group more then 4 races, you can encounter more then 6 class. WoW in fact is doing extremely poorly on the diversity level. EQ grind was awfull and you didnt like it, but EQ diversity, be it in monsters type, in class type, in races types, completely outmatch WoW. Your issues with EQ is over the grind, not the diversity. A hard grind is better then an easy grind in long term interest, but an endless easy grind that you cant ever max is better then any of those 2. I rather level to often for my personal tastes then be done and have no more levels to earn.
- "If I understand you well, you are telling me until next time. " - Ren
I miss DAoC