You login - you find the instance you want to do - you find people looking to do it... tada.
So you log into EQ - you find the dungeon you want to do- you find people looking to do it.....
By your own analogy the only thing that made eq 'not' a lobby game, was the absence of a loading screen......but then later they added dungeons with loading screens, so I guess by your estimation EQ is now a lobby game.
And I could pretty much say this about 99% of the games out there....
When the vast majority of 'lobby games' are designated mmo's....guess what they are: MMO's.
If you truly can't see the difference between Diablo and Guild Wars from Warcraft, I'm not sure anyone will convince you. I see the similarities, but apparently you can't see the differences.
My thoughts as well. I had an aweful feeling of being railroaded there At least the story felt good
But no offense... If you think the Worgen zone was linear... I thought the follow up (Darkwold) feld pretty linear as well. You kinda had to do all quests there as well to progress. It was almost impossible to skip a quest or you couldn't continue on the rest of the content in certain area's there.
Lets hope Fellwood is less linear...
Well after the Worgen Zone anything else feels 100% alinear lol.
Originally posted by BarCrow
I did order "Cataclysm" but won't get it until the 12/14/10
You can still wander aimlessly right? It's not all instanced is it? Where you have to wait to travel to the next area. You can still ride from one end of a continent to another. Yeah?
No, its not all instanced, except the Worgen Zone and Goblin beginner zones, which is a shame, everything else though isn't instanced except dungeons of course. Yeah I'm doing Archaeology right now, and it really gives you the idea that the WoW is actually a world, not just a staged thing.
The Worgen Zone wasn't one of my favorites either, I only liked it because of the story, but it is extremely linear and you have to do every quest., I definantly wouldn't do it again.
My thoughts as well. I had an aweful feeling of being railroaded there At least the story felt good
But no offense... If you think the Worgen zone was linear... I thought the follow up (Darkwold) feld pretty linear as well. You kinda had to do all quests there as well to progress. It was almost impossible to skip a quest or you couldn't continue on the rest of the content in certain area's there.
Lets hope Fellwood is less linear...
Let's say that Blizzard, before releasing WoW asked themselves, 'how long should it to take for a new person to get from level 1 to max level, in such a way that it keeps the customer entertained?'
A reasonable question to ask when deciding how to pace the content.
With every expansion this pacing would be compromised. It would take the new player longer to reach max level due to the content. What if they decided that their customers would get frustated and quit....because it just took too damn long. What if they actually did a study that showed this would be true?
What if they decided that if back in 2004 it was fair for it to take x amount of time to reach max level, that it would only be fair for a new player in 2011 to reach it in the same time frame?
What if this required re-pacing the questing for cataclysm so that a new player would be paying for the same experience you paid for when you started?
Guess what, I think that's exactly why the train tracks came in. Because it is only fair to a new subscriber that they have the same pacing to reach max that you did.
The Worgen Zone wasn't one of my favorites either, I only liked it because of the story, but it is extremely linear and you have to do every quest., I definantly wouldn't do it again.
My thoughts as well. I had an aweful feeling of being railroaded there At least the story felt good
But no offense... If you think the Worgen zone was linear... I thought the follow up (Darkwold) feld pretty linear as well. You kinda had to do all quests there as well to progress. It was almost impossible to skip a quest or you couldn't continue on the rest of the content in certain area's there.
Lets hope Fellwood is less linear...
Let's say that Blizzard, before releasing WoW asked themselves, 'how long should it to take for a new person to get from level 1 to max level, in such a way that it keeps the customer entertained?'
A reasonable question to ask when deciding how to pace the content.
With every expansion this pacing would be compromised. It would take the new player longer to reach max level due to the content. What if they decided that their customers would get frustated and quit....because it just took too damn long. What if they actually did a study that showed this would be true?
What if they decided that if back in 2004 it was fair for it to take x amount of time to reach max level, that it would only be fair for a new player in 2011 to reach it in the same time frame?
What if this required re-pacing the questing for cataclysm so that a new player would be paying for the same experience you paid for when you started?
Guess what, I think that's exactly why the train tracks came in. Because it is only fair to a new subscriber that they have the same pacing to reach max that you did.
I gotta disagree. Expamsions are ment to extend the amount of playtime, not zero sum it to vanilla.
The Worgen Zone wasn't one of my favorites either, I only liked it because of the story, but it is extremely linear and you have to do every quest., I definantly wouldn't do it again.
My thoughts as well. I had an aweful feeling of being railroaded there At least the story felt good
But no offense... If you think the Worgen zone was linear... I thought the follow up (Darkwold) feld pretty linear as well. You kinda had to do all quests there as well to progress. It was almost impossible to skip a quest or you couldn't continue on the rest of the content in certain area's there.
Lets hope Fellwood is less linear...
Let's say that Blizzard, before releasing WoW asked themselves, 'how long should it to take for a new person to get from level 1 to max level, in such a way that it keeps the customer entertained?'
A reasonable question to ask when deciding how to pace the content.
With every expansion this pacing would be compromised. It would take the new player longer to reach max level due to the content. What if they decided that their customers would get frustated and quit....because it just took too damn long. What if they actually did a study that showed this would be true?
What if they decided that if back in 2004 it was fair for it to take x amount of time to reach max level, that it would only be fair for a new player in 2011 to reach it in the same time frame?
What if this required re-pacing the questing for cataclysm so that a new player would be paying for the same experience you paid for when you started?
Guess what, I think that's exactly why the train tracks came in. Because it is only fair to a new subscriber that they have the same pacing to reach max that you did.
I gotta disagree. Expamsions are ment to extend the amount of playtime, not zero sum it to vanilla.
Maybe for some games, but go try and reach max level in EQ now without being pl'd to max level. There are few active leveling guilds, most zones are ghost towns and it is very frustrating trying to obtain a balanced group for low level content, some of the expansion content could be removed and people wouldn't notice it for weeks. Then go look at WoW's entire content - relatively speaking it is alive and well. And then ask, who do you think has a better retention rate for new players, WoW or EQ?
I am waiting for the day WoW puts an auto-route button in for quests. Hell, better toss a bot program in there as well so it will play itself when you are gone....
The Worgen Zone wasn't one of my favorites either, I only liked it because of the story, but it is extremely linear and you have to do every quest., I definantly wouldn't do it again.
My thoughts as well. I had an aweful feeling of being railroaded there At least the story felt good
But no offense... If you think the Worgen zone was linear... I thought the follow up (Darkwold) feld pretty linear as well. You kinda had to do all quests there as well to progress. It was almost impossible to skip a quest or you couldn't continue on the rest of the content in certain area's there.
Lets hope Fellwood is less linear...
Let's say that Blizzard, before releasing WoW asked themselves, 'how long should it to take for a new person to get from level 1 to max level, in such a way that it keeps the customer entertained?'
A reasonable question to ask when deciding how to pace the content.
With every expansion this pacing would be compromised. It would take the new player longer to reach max level due to the content. What if they decided that their customers would get frustated and quit....because it just took too damn long. What if they actually did a study that showed this would be true?
What if they decided that if back in 2004 it was fair for it to take x amount of time to reach max level, that it would only be fair for a new player in 2011 to reach it in the same time frame?
What if this required re-pacing the questing for cataclysm so that a new player would be paying for the same experience you paid for when you started?
Guess what, I think that's exactly why the train tracks came in. Because it is only fair to a new subscriber that they have the same pacing to reach max that you did.
I gotta disagree. Expamsions are ment to extend the amount of playtime, not zero sum it to vanilla.
Maybe for some games, but go try and reach max level in EQ now without being pl'd to max level. There are few active leveling guilds, most zones are ghost towns and it is very frustrating trying to obtain a balanced group for low level content, some of the expansion content could be removed and people wouldn't notice it for weeks. Then go look at WoW's entire content - relatively speaking it is alive and well. And then ask, who do you think has a better retention rate for new players, WoW or EQ?
took me a year and a half the first time, why would I want to see the same content again?
It's why I generally don't have alts. I'm an explorer type, I don't do the same content over again. I tried several times, but I just can't do the same roller coaster ride twice. All it does is make me quit when I have to repeat stuff too much.
ATM in WoW I'd perhaps get an alt to 60 since the content is new, but once I'm to BC I know I wouldn't have the heart to continue.
Aion makes me want to slap the devs and spit in their eye for making garbage repeatable quests and low drop rates of gear.
Lets cry over to much grind, lets cry over not enough...grind?
Hardcore gamers ruin mmorpg's and Game companys do realize that the casual market is whom they will make the most cash from. I applaud Blizzard for what they have done - Leveling is faster and easier, quicker to get through and enjoy the end game.
Lets cry over to much grind, lets cry over not enough...grind?
Hardcore gamers ruin mmorpg's and Game companys do realize that the casual market is whom they will make the most cash from. I applaud Blizzard for what they have done - Leveling is faster and easier, quicker to get through and enjoy the end game.
I think you view MMOs wrong. If you view them as a race to max level, you'll definately get tired of the game much faster than someone who enjoys their time leveling.
WoW end game continues it's tradition of dungeon and raid grind for lewts that the next expansion will obsolete. Excuse me if I play the end game for only 4 months then leave the game for some other game.
I am not saying anything about not enjoying the level process - That is a big part of any mmo; journey though the game learning the world, your class etc but Ihowever find it more enjoyable that your quests are all streamline now; No having to seek them out and let's face it after 6 years of playing who really wants to spend months trying to level an alt? the first 60 should be quick and the last 35 at a normal pace imho .
My thoughts as well. I had an aweful feeling of being railroaded there At least the story felt good
But no offense... If you think the Worgen zone was linear... I thought the follow up (Darkwold) feld pretty linear as well. You kinda had to do all quests there as well to progress. It was almost impossible to skip a quest or you couldn't continue on the rest of the content in certain area's there.
Lets hope Fellwood is less linear...
Well after the Worgen Zone anything else feels 100% alinear lol.
Originally posted by BarCrow
I did order "Cataclysm" but won't get it until the 12/14/10
You can still wander aimlessly right? It's not all instanced is it? Where you have to wait to travel to the next area. You can still ride from one end of a continent to another. Yeah?
No, its not all instanced, except the Worgen Zone and Goblin beginner zones, which is a shame, everything else though isn't instanced except dungeons of course. Yeah I'm doing Archaeology right now, and it really gives you the idea that the WoW is actually a world, not just a staged thing.
Cool..thanks. Actually just received "Cataclysm" in the mail this morning. So..be starting up my Goblin Hunter and Worgen Rogue soon enough.
took me a year and a half the first time, why would I want to see the same content again?
It's why I generally don't have alts. I'm an explorer type, I don't do the same content over again. I tried several times, but I just can't do the same roller coaster ride twice. All it does is make me quit when I have to repeat stuff too much.
ATM in WoW I'd perhaps get an alt to 60 since the content is new, but once I'm to BC I know I wouldn't have the heart to continue.
Aion makes me want to slap the devs and spit in their eye for making garbage repeatable quests and low drop rates of gear.
Ummm....because in most games, EQ especially, and even in WoW you can level a new toon to max without touching the same content twice....
In EQ especially you will pass by mountains of content the first time you max a toon, I bet most new folks to that game never have even seen ldon content. Heck, they even added a whole dragon people expansion with new content so you could bypass the original content and several expansions without blinking an eye....
It is my central point, when an expansion merely packs on more content without readjusting the game pacing, you just end up with a lot of empty zones where no one is experiencing the content as designed if they are experiencing it at all.
Cata was designed to be streamlined and tell a story which goes in the opposite way of free form.
A game with a tight story can't be free form and vice versa. Oh you can put in 'side' roads but at the end of the day it has to lead to the same place.
The Goblin and Worgen are suppose to tell why they joined the horde/alliance and to tell that kind of a story they had to do it in linear fashion.
Gdemami - Informing people about your thoughts and impressions is not a review, it's a blog.
Not sure why the 'linear' is bring brought up. Cata was designed to be streamlined and tell a story which goes in the opposite way of free form. A game with a tight story can't be free form and vice versa. Oh you can put in 'side' roads but at the end of the day it has to lead to the same place. The Goblin and Worgen are suppose to tell why they joined the horde/alliance and to tell that kind of a story they had to do it in linear fashion.
Yet somehow they did it before without the quest on rails.......
Cata was designed to be streamlined and tell a story which goes in the opposite way of free form.
A game with a tight story can't be free form and vice versa. Oh you can put in 'side' roads but at the end of the day it has to lead to the same place.
The Goblin and Worgen are suppose to tell why they joined the horde/alliance and to tell that kind of a story they had to do it in linear fashion.
Yet somehow they did it before without the quest on rails.......
This. I mean I don't mind the idea that they may have a quest to lead to a new quest hub, but in the Worgen zone you are literally getting on a carriage going to the new area lol, the only multilinear part was the part before Gilneas Mansion area was flooded, and you warned the citizens too flee...and that was nothing compared to what they did in other beginner zones. Honestly, when I think about the Draenei and Belf beginner zones, I think of how a beginner zone should be. 1-5 really linear (though it was a lot more free then the whole worgen zone) and told you about the race, 5-10 tell you about some of their problems, then their 10-20 zone told you why they joined the Alliance/horde. Very well done in my opinion, Worgen zone...fun the first time, but it is bullshit that we literally have to do it again if we want to level another Worgen...
Cata was designed to be streamlined and tell a story which goes in the opposite way of free form.
A game with a tight story can't be free form and vice versa. Oh you can put in 'side' roads but at the end of the day it has to lead to the same place.
The Goblin and Worgen are suppose to tell why they joined the horde/alliance and to tell that kind of a story they had to do it in linear fashion.
Yet somehow they did it before without the quest on rails.......
This. I mean I don't mind the idea that they may have a quest to lead to a new quest hub, but in the Worgen zone you are literally getting on a carriage going to the new area lol, the only multilinear part was the part before Gilneas Mansion area was flooded, and you warned the citizens too flee...and that was nothing compared to what they did in other beginner zones. Honestly, when I think about the Draenei and Belf beginner zones, I think of how a beginner zone should be. 1-5 really linear (though it was a lot more free then the whole worgen zone) and told you about the race, 5-10 tell you about some of their problems, then their 10-20 zone told you why they joined the Alliance/horde. Very well done in my opinion, Worgen zone...fun the first time, but it is bullshit that we literally have to do it again if we want to level another Worgen...
The 'story' aspect is much stronger in Worgen/Goblins with cinematics and phasing being used that Drae/BE areas did not have.
Gdemami - Informing people about your thoughts and impressions is not a review, it's a blog.
How is that "story" going to feel the second time through? Or the third? Or the fourth?
I saw through the "story" the first time through and it makes me ill that WOW has gone down this design path. Cannot believe I'm paying an online fee to essentially game alone, or practically so.
Waaaay back you only had the illusion of not being linear. You would see the cinematic, then get to the first quest giver (usually standing in front of your character) then had few quests to go kill x mobs until you get a fedex quest to get to the next quest hub. Now it's pretty much the same while using heavy phasing to tell you a story.
Well ok sure you could bypass most quests and just grind if you felt like it... But who did?
The only real downside I can agree with is you cannot take your level 1 toon to another starting zone to play with a friend from a different race.
Well, in Vanilla WOW, while a zone might be set up to give you quests and finally a quest leading you to the next zone, you were not phased or instanced and could choose to tackle different level appropriate zones. Not only that, but if you stayed in the one zone, you could tackle the quests (most of them) in pretty much any order, so there were at least some "free range" aspects to the game.
But in Cata, what I've seen of Cata anyway, lots of phasing and very linear quest layout seems to dominate, making the game dry (for me) the first time through and intolerable any subsequent times through. I "might" get one toon to 85, but I sure as heck am not repeating any of the 80 to 85 content; I just cannot tolerate phased storytelling on-rails gameplay, just way too fake and annoying for me.
I agree, it's really 'on rails'. Well from what I did in the Worgen zone anyway.
But previously you would almost always do the same quest in the same order. Personnally, I was always trying to regroup my quests by area in order to be efficient. I'd even be a little upset when I was forgetting a quest, forcing me to run back to the area.
Now they just did that work for you. Well in my opinion anyway :P
I really don't know what people want in quests and storyline. I hear that they want persistency, but that's damn near impossible to have worldwide persistency. How would you like someone else F****ing up the world for you? Not having quests or storlyline to complete because someone got there first?!
I think the closest we are going to see to some sort of persistency, where every decision you make matters and changes YOUR world, is personal storylines in GW2. I really don't want asshats ruining my gaming world, that's what real life is for.
Starter zones are ment to teach people how to play. Once you are out of the starter zone nothing is holding you too the ground. if you don't like the current quests you are given go to the next area and start them there just like before Cata. Phasing is just a way to make players think they shaped their world? I see no problem with this, its no diffrent then GW starter zones as you complete missions citys get destroyed. I applaud Blizzard for making the world alittle more interactive with the player. Yes, it can be played solo until end game, Is somthing wrong with Solo games? I'm a lone adventurer its what I want to be in WoW I should not be forced to party with a bunch of shit heads to get a lvl.
Who ever said that WoW story was indepth as a puddle you my good sir no nothing of WoW's story.
The more i see of WoW at the moment, the more i see why Bioware is doing what they are with SW:TOR, the games are definitely aimed at the same kinds of audiences, barring voiceovers, which, also are in WoW, if not to the same degree, its highly quest driven with less emphasis on grind, with lots of phasing and instances, its possible that TOR will be less open world than WoW, but i think its pretty much a given now, that if you hate WoW, then the chances are, SW:TOR probably won't appeal all that much either, the big question really is that will TOR appeal to WoW players, if Cataclysm is as popular as seems to be the case, then its possible it will. Interesting times ahead i think
I just played the worgen starter race to level 8 on a friend's account. I don't understand why some people rave about the new questing. It seems far inferior to the old school approach. It feels limited, isolated, a simplistic single player experience and I had the sense of being on rails the whole time.
WoW used to be about the great and immersive world. The worgen zone feels anything but.
uh what?
What starting pre-15 areas were NOT linear? You just do quest after quest, and at least with the worgen area there's an actual plot, and quests other than fedex kill-x.
I just played the worgen starter race to level 8 on a friend's account. I don't understand why some people rave about the new questing. It seems far inferior to the old school approach. It feels limited, isolated, a simplistic single player experience and I had the sense of being on rails the whole time.
WoW used to be about the great and immersive world. The worgen zone feels anything but.
uh what?
What starting pre-15 areas were NOT linear? You just do quest after quest, and at least with the worgen area there's an actual plot, and quests other than fedex kill-x.
You must be thinking of some other game.
I'm thinking you really don't know what the word "linear" means. In the new goblin and worgen starting areas, you progress on a track. There is no deviation whatsoever. You have to play through the whole "movie" to get into the actual gameworld. In fact, most of the quests can't be skipped. If you miss something in the chain, you're pretty much stuck where you are.
Previously, without the horridly excessive phasing, you could travel to any other racial area and do the quests there, if that was your choice. Not linear. The quests branched instead of running in a straight line. Blizzard has used phasing so much that if you don't do the quests in a certain area, there is a chance that your "reality" will be different than someone who has gone through that area.
Also, I found the new system to be designed to breadcrumb you completely through a continent until you hit level 58 when you you are sent to Outlands. I tried skipping an area where the quests were green to me only to come up short when I hit Outlands and had to go back and do those quests unless I wanted to grind for that last level.
Blizzard is gradually removing player options from the game. Unless they change direction, you will play the way the developers want you to, period.
"Soloists and those who prefer small groups should never have to feel like they''re the ones getting the proverbial table scraps, as it were." - Scott Hartsman, Senior Producer, Everquest II "People love groups. Its a fallacy that people want to play solo all the time." - Scott Hartsman, Executive Producer, Rift
Comments
So you log into EQ - you find the dungeon you want to do- you find people looking to do it.....
By your own analogy the only thing that made eq 'not' a lobby game, was the absence of a loading screen......but then later they added dungeons with loading screens, so I guess by your estimation EQ is now a lobby game.
And I could pretty much say this about 99% of the games out there....
When the vast majority of 'lobby games' are designated mmo's....guess what they are: MMO's.
If you truly can't see the difference between Diablo and Guild Wars from Warcraft, I'm not sure anyone will convince you. I see the similarities, but apparently you can't see the differences.
Well after the Worgen Zone anything else feels 100% alinear lol.
No, its not all instanced, except the Worgen Zone and Goblin beginner zones, which is a shame, everything else though isn't instanced except dungeons of course. Yeah I'm doing Archaeology right now, and it really gives you the idea that the WoW is actually a world, not just a staged thing.
-I want a Platformer MMO
Let's say that Blizzard, before releasing WoW asked themselves, 'how long should it to take for a new person to get from level 1 to max level, in such a way that it keeps the customer entertained?'
A reasonable question to ask when deciding how to pace the content.
With every expansion this pacing would be compromised. It would take the new player longer to reach max level due to the content. What if they decided that their customers would get frustated and quit....because it just took too damn long. What if they actually did a study that showed this would be true?
What if they decided that if back in 2004 it was fair for it to take x amount of time to reach max level, that it would only be fair for a new player in 2011 to reach it in the same time frame?
What if this required re-pacing the questing for cataclysm so that a new player would be paying for the same experience you paid for when you started?
Guess what, I think that's exactly why the train tracks came in. Because it is only fair to a new subscriber that they have the same pacing to reach max that you did.
I gotta disagree. Expamsions are ment to extend the amount of playtime, not zero sum it to vanilla.
Maybe for some games, but go try and reach max level in EQ now without being pl'd to max level. There are few active leveling guilds, most zones are ghost towns and it is very frustrating trying to obtain a balanced group for low level content, some of the expansion content could be removed and people wouldn't notice it for weeks. Then go look at WoW's entire content - relatively speaking it is alive and well. And then ask, who do you think has a better retention rate for new players, WoW or EQ?
I am waiting for the day WoW puts an auto-route button in for quests. Hell, better toss a bot program in there as well so it will play itself when you are gone....
took me a year and a half the first time, why would I want to see the same content again?
It's why I generally don't have alts. I'm an explorer type, I don't do the same content over again. I tried several times, but I just can't do the same roller coaster ride twice. All it does is make me quit when I have to repeat stuff too much.
ATM in WoW I'd perhaps get an alt to 60 since the content is new, but once I'm to BC I know I wouldn't have the heart to continue.
Aion makes me want to slap the devs and spit in their eye for making garbage repeatable quests and low drop rates of gear.
Lol.
Lets cry over to much grind, lets cry over not enough...grind?
Hardcore gamers ruin mmorpg's and Game companys do realize that the casual market is whom they will make the most cash from. I applaud Blizzard for what they have done - Leveling is faster and easier, quicker to get through and enjoy the end game.
I think you view MMOs wrong. If you view them as a race to max level, you'll definately get tired of the game much faster than someone who enjoys their time leveling.
WoW end game continues it's tradition of dungeon and raid grind for lewts that the next expansion will obsolete. Excuse me if I play the end game for only 4 months then leave the game for some other game.
Levelling is now so trivial I'm not sure I can stick with the game.
If only EQ2 hadn't also dumbed down the game so much...
There's scant choice for anyone who wants to enjoy the process of advancing through a game these days.
I am not saying anything about not enjoying the level process - That is a big part of any mmo; journey though the game learning the world, your class etc but Ihowever find it more enjoyable that your quests are all streamline now; No having to seek them out and let's face it after 6 years of playing who really wants to spend months trying to level an alt? the first 60 should be quick and the last 35 at a normal pace imho .
Cool..thanks. Actually just received "Cataclysm" in the mail this morning. So..be starting up my Goblin Hunter and Worgen Rogue soon enough.
Ummm....because in most games, EQ especially, and even in WoW you can level a new toon to max without touching the same content twice....
In EQ especially you will pass by mountains of content the first time you max a toon, I bet most new folks to that game never have even seen ldon content. Heck, they even added a whole dragon people expansion with new content so you could bypass the original content and several expansions without blinking an eye....
It is my central point, when an expansion merely packs on more content without readjusting the game pacing, you just end up with a lot of empty zones where no one is experiencing the content as designed if they are experiencing it at all.
Not sure why the 'linear' is bring brought up.
Cata was designed to be streamlined and tell a story which goes in the opposite way of free form.
A game with a tight story can't be free form and vice versa. Oh you can put in 'side' roads but at the end of the day it has to lead to the same place.
The Goblin and Worgen are suppose to tell why they joined the horde/alliance and to tell that kind of a story they had to do it in linear fashion.
Gdemami -
Informing people about your thoughts and impressions is not a review, it's a blog.
Yet somehow they did it before without the quest on rails.......WoW Sidequests
This. I mean I don't mind the idea that they may have a quest to lead to a new quest hub, but in the Worgen zone you are literally getting on a carriage going to the new area lol, the only multilinear part was the part before Gilneas Mansion area was flooded, and you warned the citizens too flee...and that was nothing compared to what they did in other beginner zones. Honestly, when I think about the Draenei and Belf beginner zones, I think of how a beginner zone should be. 1-5 really linear (though it was a lot more free then the whole worgen zone) and told you about the race, 5-10 tell you about some of their problems, then their 10-20 zone told you why they joined the Alliance/horde. Very well done in my opinion, Worgen zone...fun the first time, but it is bullshit that we literally have to do it again if we want to level another Worgen...
-I want a Platformer MMO
The 'story' aspect is much stronger in Worgen/Goblins with cinematics and phasing being used that Drae/BE areas did not have.
Gdemami -
Informing people about your thoughts and impressions is not a review, it's a blog.
Waaaay back you only had the illusion of not being linear. You would see the cinematic, then get to the first quest giver (usually standing in front of your character) then had few quests to go kill x mobs until you get a fedex quest to get to the next quest hub. Now it's pretty much the same while using heavy phasing to tell you a story.
Well ok sure you could bypass most quests and just grind if you felt like it... But who did?
The only real downside I can agree with is you cannot take your level 1 toon to another starting zone to play with a friend from a different race.
I agree, it's really 'on rails'. Well from what I did in the Worgen zone anyway.
But previously you would almost always do the same quest in the same order. Personnally, I was always trying to regroup my quests by area in order to be efficient. I'd even be a little upset when I was forgetting a quest, forcing me to run back to the area.
Now they just did that work for you. Well in my opinion anyway :P
I really don't know what people want in quests and storyline. I hear that they want persistency, but that's damn near impossible to have worldwide persistency. How would you like someone else F****ing up the world for you? Not having quests or storlyline to complete because someone got there first?!
I think the closest we are going to see to some sort of persistency, where every decision you make matters and changes YOUR world, is personal storylines in GW2. I really don't want asshats ruining my gaming world, that's what real life is for.
I like the new azertoh questing. It's more interesting, faster paced, better story, the quests are now lumped together as in BC and Wrath.
Starter zones are ment to teach people how to play. Once you are out of the starter zone nothing is holding you too the ground. if you don't like the current quests you are given go to the next area and start them there just like before Cata. Phasing is just a way to make players think they shaped their world? I see no problem with this, its no diffrent then GW starter zones as you complete missions citys get destroyed. I applaud Blizzard for making the world alittle more interactive with the player. Yes, it can be played solo until end game, Is somthing wrong with Solo games? I'm a lone adventurer its what I want to be in WoW I should not be forced to party with a bunch of shit heads to get a lvl.
Who ever said that WoW story was indepth as a puddle you my good sir no nothing of WoW's story.
The more i see of WoW at the moment, the more i see why Bioware is doing what they are with SW:TOR, the games are definitely aimed at the same kinds of audiences, barring voiceovers, which, also are in WoW, if not to the same degree, its highly quest driven with less emphasis on grind, with lots of phasing and instances, its possible that TOR will be less open world than WoW, but i think its pretty much a given now, that if you hate WoW, then the chances are, SW:TOR probably won't appeal all that much either, the big question really is that will TOR appeal to WoW players, if Cataclysm is as popular as seems to be the case, then its possible it will. Interesting times ahead i think
uh what?
What starting pre-15 areas were NOT linear? You just do quest after quest, and at least with the worgen area there's an actual plot, and quests other than fedex kill-x.
You must be thinking of some other game.
I'm thinking you really don't know what the word "linear" means. In the new goblin and worgen starting areas, you progress on a track. There is no deviation whatsoever. You have to play through the whole "movie" to get into the actual gameworld. In fact, most of the quests can't be skipped. If you miss something in the chain, you're pretty much stuck where you are.
Previously, without the horridly excessive phasing, you could travel to any other racial area and do the quests there, if that was your choice. Not linear. The quests branched instead of running in a straight line. Blizzard has used phasing so much that if you don't do the quests in a certain area, there is a chance that your "reality" will be different than someone who has gone through that area.
Also, I found the new system to be designed to breadcrumb you completely through a continent until you hit level 58 when you you are sent to Outlands. I tried skipping an area where the quests were green to me only to come up short when I hit Outlands and had to go back and do those quests unless I wanted to grind for that last level.
Blizzard is gradually removing player options from the game. Unless they change direction, you will play the way the developers want you to, period.
"Soloists and those who prefer small groups should never have to feel like they''re the ones getting the proverbial table scraps, as it were." - Scott Hartsman, Senior Producer, Everquest II
"People love groups. Its a fallacy that people want to play solo all the time." - Scott Hartsman, Executive Producer, Rift