I keep having an internal dialogue with myself that goes something like this: “Ooooooh so excited for Cataclysm! It looks so awesome and I can’t wait to try a goblin and worgen and play through the new old world and see what archaeology and Path of the Titans are all about! Aww, too bad it won’t be out for a year probably. I wish I didn’t know about it at all. Guess I’ll go fish. Ugh, this is boring, and it’ll be better in Cataclysm. Stupid Cataclysm, ruining my enjoyment of the game now. I don’t even care about Arthas anymore. I just want to get to Deathwing. I wish they didn’t announce Cataclysm yet!!!”
I am, of course, glad that I know about Cataclysm. I admit that I still enjoy the game quite a bit, and I’m very glad I have enough forewarning that I can make sure I experience any old world content I never got to before it becomes forever changed. But still, it takes a little something out of my game experience. I kind of wish that all they told us at Blizz Con was that the next expansion will change the old world forever. Then wait until after the 3.3 Icecrown release to give us all the juicy details. I know that isn’t really feasible, since Blizz Con is all about hype, and it makes sense for them to announce what they already know then. What do you guys think? Does the timing of the Cataclysm announcement affect how you enjoy the game now at all, for good or for bad? Are you still pumped to take on the Lich King in 3.3?
I’m right there with you. I really want to get my teeth into Cataclysm. Anything I’m trying to do at the moment in WoW just seems like marking time. Particularly since, inevitably, all the top raiding gear from 3.3 will be obsolete as soon as Cataclysm’s first greens drop!
Yea I’m just playing on a private server until either the Lich King or Catalysm comes out
Unfortunately for me, the details of the Cataclysm expansion were just extremely disappointing overall, mostly along the lines of pushes WoW way into the “casual playstyle” zone. WotLK Heroics are a joke compared to BC in difficulty, particularly in the manner that CC is completely unnecessary. There just does not seem to be any actual *challenge* to the game anymore (Heroic ToC is the new “progression”), particularly if you will no longer have to put any serious thought to your choice of gear and enchants (no more AP, Def Rating, etc). … So I’m hanging up my mantle as a guild/raid-leader in WoW, for the promising immersive experience that is Aion. Judging from the past storylines you featured in your webcomic, I’d think Aion is a game you should consider checking out.
Everything in MMOs is always moving forward so you could say “why play Cataclysm because you know there will be another MMO that makes that moot?” etc etc. I play WoW for the experience, not so much the gear, so getting to play around in ToC and getting to see and confront Arthas will still keep me interested in the game and still be fun to do. (Also, generally speaking last tier epics are not instantly replaced by greens/blues in the new expansion, so you get a good leg up on that content as well).
You can’t just stop playing MMOs because something new is around the corner, because by design something new is always around the corner.
I see what you’re saying, GTSavvy. But my issue is that I get hung up on what’s to come. Knowing there will be something new is fine – the problem for me would be solved if I simply didn’t know all the details. Of course, I could just not pay attention to the news. Oops! Too late.
Thanks for the Aion suggestion Gramdevr. I do want to try some other MMOs, and I’ll put that on the list. But if it’s a more hardcore game I may not actually be into it. I love raiding, but unlike the comic characters, I rarely have time to do it. I really am more of a casual/solo player.
I’ve just rehooked my arm up to the WoW drip feed several weeks back…still tapping that feed…
With the announcement of Cataclysm, I’m looking forward to going through the remade zones. I always tell my friends that Blizzard needs to keep the lower level content engaging for both new players and veterans of the game. For the past two expansions all the engaging content is focused on end-game raiding and heroic instances. Players who regularly raid have been getting the benefit of all the work Blizzard puts into the game. The rest have been sidelined to hearing about the content second-hand and wishing they had the time to invest in the gear.
For those of us with lives, activities other than WoW, and the newly indoctrinated, the past expansions have not always been beneficial to us. (I have never set foot inside of Sunwell nor Black Temple.) A lot of the guilds have been end-game crazy, with the “best” guilds downing the high level content weeks after release. With Cataclysm I hope to play with some of my other RL friends and actually experience the storyline with fresh eyes. I agree with Gramdevr that some of the challenge is lacking in the dungeons, particularly since I have a mage and all she does is Blizzard the hell out of every group of heroic mobs. However, I would gladly take that if it meant that a greater amount of the content is more accessible to players with limited play time.
As the player base ages, more are diverting time away from online gaming and, thus, Blizzard is trying to make sure there is still a player base that they can serve. In a way, they’re similar to the tobacco companies in that they need to hook more players into the game as the veterans start deciding that the game isn’t worth it anymore.
For now, all I can do is take the Lich King update and (again) wish I could experience it.
From experience I know that high-end gear will not be replaced with first random or quest greens. Unlike in BC, where gear replacement was almost immediate, I still have my SSC/TK/BT gear until 75, with only replacing a few from dungeon rares. I am looking foward to the next xpac, but I’m still hook on the current stuff. And to say the current ToC is a joke and easy is off based. My guild has cleared the Toc 10/25 man raids, and it the first night on heroic, it smoked us, the difficulty level is increased insanely, but that’s a good thing, we actually have to try and wipe. The best part is, we know the first and we can clear toc raids in a one-shot, but we still wipe on the first boss. I have to agree that Naxx-uld (mim) was easy and lacked a real challange where most fights were more about getting used to gimics and boss abilities than it was actual a test of player skill. Heroic ToC raid (and the last 2 bosses in ToC raid) is back to the good old testing skill level and gear check. as for 5 mans… yeah they kind ahve been a joke, but that is also because the players are significantly stronger, compared to what we could do at level 70.
But to answer the question, I’ve been a warcraft nut since WC2, so having the chance to take out arthas (and ner’zhul) is very exciting, I just hope there is enough time from 3.3 to the xpac to do so several times =)
I’ve only been playing for a year and have on level 80 toon, so I have a lot of the world left to explore and see before Cataclysm. I’m excited about the changes and the new races, but I’m still having a great time doing quests and wandering about the place as it currently stands.
I don’t know. I’m still pissed at Arthas for being such a (word frequently censored that starts with a “b”) in Warcraft 3… and all this “Hello, little adventurer! You’ve utterly foiled my plan for this place and killed/helped my lieutenant, but I’m not going to kill/recruit you, because you’re too weak, haha!” nonsense is just getting irritating. I want him dead, and quick. Patch 3.3 has my full attention, absolutely.