Monday, February 15, 2010

Too Small a World for Me... (WoW, EQ)


Too Small a World for Me
I tend to skip around from games sometimes. I do like to mix it up and play different things, there are a lot of really cool games out now. However there are a couple that I call my main games- Warcraft and Everquest. Even if I am not playing one atm, I will surely be playing it again at some point. Lately though WoW has just felt too small a world for me, I find myself getting bored easier.

My friend Pouncealot from Heals and Dots asked me to explain why WoW wasn't big enough a world for me. So today I thought I would elaborate. This will be long winded I'm sure, heh. I started Everquest in 2000, even back then the world was quite large, many places to explore and level. It could take at least half an hour to run somewhere. It truly was a huge world. Today the game is even bigger than before, sixteen expansions later! Today travel is a lot easier and faster, with portal stones, guild hall ports and fast mounts. Had I not played Everquest would I still think WoW such a small world? Probably not. Ignorance is bliss. Just kidding...!! Would I still be bored within it? Probably.


Zones
When I went to World of Warcraft it was indeed a smaller world than I was use to. It was new and still didn't have the zones it does now. Today though, there are not all that many zones. I just feel I am spinning circles with each expansion, finding myself in the the same areas day after day. Same instances day after day. It doesn't change up quickly, as the expansions are not put out once a year as I was use to with Everquest. It still, six years later, feels rather small to me. Everything is outdated very quickly. Which continues to make the new content used up faster and the world feel smaller once again, not expanded.

I love WoW, but for one who likes to change things up with scenery, it's just not possible at high end. While leveling there are a few different zones, but why go to one when the other is better with quests offered ect. No mobs to camp for an item .. something special you want. If there is, well it's in an instance, in most cases. It can feel limited. Holiday events that have you travel are like a breath of fresh air to me, but they are far in between at times.

Another thing I notice is my Bard and my fast mount in Everquest, they seem to go double the speed of my epic flier, even with the Paladin's crusader aura in WoW. Because there is more area to cover, you travel at a faster rate. Zoom.. Zoom.. Zoom!

Get tired of one place, go somewhere else. If you are wondering just how many zones there are in Everquest here is a list. And here is a visual picture to consider, note the newest expansion isn't listed here and these are full of instanced and raid zones as well.  It's massive for someone who loves to explore. It could be overwhelming to a new player, I think it adds a depth to a game. A huge world to explore. Mobs that drop rare items hidden across it, many quests and epic quests to be had.  Go visit the 'Gods' of Everquest in the Planes if you like! Maybe even kill them if you're strong enough! I like things like that. I got tired of visiting Vancleef :( I am sure he misses me though.

Content
It depends on how you look at content while leveling and once you are at high end. I like something to do when I am at the top still. Things I can work on alone or with others. I don't like it so much in one direction, where if I log on for a short time, I can't do anything worthwhile. That is a big thing with me. I like to be able to duo and group as well, I don't like being pigeonholed into one aspect of play at high end.

In WoW while leveling there are so many things to do quest wise. However, once you reach the top it's instances and raids for gear. Which is fun. Though this can really be a burn out for some people. Ok, I want to just solo a bit, let me do daily quest. Do you know anyone who actually likes them? I don't. They get old quickly too. I am glad they are there for the option to acquire gold, it just gets boring fast.

So.. what can you do on your own or with a partner once you get high end in WoW- besides daily quests? Achievements or PvP. But what if you don't like those? That's what gets to me sometimes. I remember in BC I logged on some nights and just spent time fishing... for days. I thought why the hell am I still playing this game? Sure, I enjoy fishing but it was quite boring, I had PvP'd for gear, raided a couple times a week and did my daily quests. When I wasn't well.. I didn't feel like instancing all the time.

But you can't solo in Everquest! How many times I have heard that. With mercenaries, you can. Some classes can solo better than others. It just depends on what you solo. Everyone can solo to 85. Everyone. It's not as fun at times, so groups are always welcomed. The Mage is the posterchild for soloing now. A bit overpowered if you ask me when compared to other classes with less gear and alternate advancement points. That doesn't stop me. With better gear and AA points all the classes get stronger.

You have to keep in mind it is an older game, so a massive overhaul wouldn't work out well with such old coding. Plus do we want it to be like WoW? It is it's own game with it's own feel and play-style. Skills have more meaning to them. Things do not die so fast, so skills are more utilized. Slowing the mobs attack speed makes a big difference where it wouldn't matter in WoW.

High end? There are raids, group content, instances and quests. When you don't feel like doing any of those you can just xp for alternate advancement points. These are like talent points on crack. You can build and tune your character into something much stronger than you started with. The great thing is you can work on these starting at level 51, so there is much work to do to keep you busy with that aspect. Want to stay in a place for awhile and work on them? Kick the aa xp to 100% and you won't level.


Exploring
Not everyone likes to explore. I don't just run around la la la and smelling the flowers in all the pretty zones. However, I do like to go back to some of the older zones, kill some rare mobs.. kill an old raid mob.. something worthwhile still. Hey it could drop something worthwhile still, maybe some spells or a clicky item I never could get. I like places to explore while getting xp also.

There is no invisibility in WoW. Which makes exploring some areas more of a pain. I always thought it was odd that WoW didn't offer this ability to all classes. Ok, Mages get it and there is also stealth. It's not the same. Stealth mobs can see through if you get too close, not fun. Where being invisible you can dance in front of the mob if you want and they don't mess with you- that is unless they see through it! Then again it is a much smaller world so the need for something like this is not as great.



Adventure!
I suppose to sum things up, I like a slower pace these days. Everything is so fast in WoW. Groups are done so fast in Heroics, I guess that might be a good thing though! You know everything inside out by the time you hit 80 and have played for a month at least. It stagnates quickly. The longer you play, the less fascinating the world can get. The content is slowly put out, so it is to be expected.

When I want to adventure, I want it to be an adventure.  I don't want to always have to go to the same zone day after day. That's like going to the grocery store every week and calling it an adventure. You need gold- you go do daily quests. You need food you go to the grocery store. I consider them both to be the on same level of excitement- Zzzz....

I like to quest or camp for things. There really isn't an option at 80 for much of this in WoW. If you go around adventuring, there really isn't much of a point besides the scenery. If you do like to go sight seeing, well.. you can get bored of event that after awhile.

So there you go readers (And my dear friend Pouncie!) that's the best way, I suppose, I can sum it up. This isn't a brag about EQ post either, it's just EQ ties into why I feel as I do about WoW. Why do I not always play EQ then? I still like my other games, I miss them at times and still like to visit them and try out new games. For now though I am back in Norrath adventuring my heart out!

May your adventures be exciting and full of fond memories!
-kaozz

Edit* Someone smack me for posting when I am tired.. Sorry for all the typos- I think I caught them all this time >.<

10 comments:

  1. Great post,
    For the record I tried out EQ before I tried WoW but I really wasn't impressed with it. It went way too slow, and came across as very grindy? Which I didn't like at all. I agree it is large but even that factor didn't sell me on the game.

    I occasionally play Free Realms and Wizard 101. I like those games, and my daughter enjoys them too. It's neat to that we can have some tech bonding time. :)

    For myself, I tend to hop around a lot in any game I play. In WoW at times I focus on leveling, other times I play the Auction House. Outside of the Jewelcrafting daily. I don't do dailies. There are so many ways you can make a ton of WoW gold with in 15 minutes or less. I play the AH.

    In the next few months I'll be picking up another MMO. I've really wanted to check out LOTRO and the new Star Wars so I'll definitely be giving those a try. I have tried Eve Online before I tried WoW but didn't like that either.

    You definitely won't find me doing the typical things within the MMO's I play. I know the same will hold true when I start playing another MMO again too.

    Releasing expansions at a slower rate really doesn't bother me too much, then again I move at a slower pace than most folks within my game. Sure, I'm a fast leveler (when I want to be) but when my toons hit end-game the slow down and do whatever the heck they want. You know, there are still heroics I haven't been into with my toons. ;)

    At times I find that some people gorge themselves on the new content way too quickly and are left feeling bored/burnt out. That can be true of any game. Personally, I always thought it best to pace myself, so I don't get bored.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Thanks for taking the time to reply Pounce :) I suppose we started at different times with gaming. When I started, games were not so fast paced and so it doesn't bother me as much when a game isn't as fast as WoW. So we have different perspectives of what gaming should be.

    I am curious about what you do, that typical gamers don't do :) I've seen a few posts about the adventures you have gone on, I'd like to know if there is more than that.

    ReplyDelete
  3. I started playing computer games when I was 11 or 12. I'm 39 now, so I've been gaming for quite a while.

    Even then, I never liked games that moved extremely slow simply because I really didn't have too much time to devote to them. I was fairly active in school, played sports too so my gaming time was small. I always thought that developers would grab a higher % of the audience if they appealed to those who wanted to game but wanted to do it at a faster pace.

    Hmm, perhaps I'll write a post about that. I RP with all my toons even though I'm not on a RP server, so I go on various adventures based on the character I'm playing. I also enjoy controlling various markets. That for myself, is a lot of fun. with the markets my toons control it doesn't take too much time.

    I use to AOE mobs with my Holy Priest. I think the most I did was 9 or 10. It was a lot off fun.

    Pretty much anything I think about doing I will do on my toons if only to see if it can be done. I'm a risk taker in real life and that carries over into the games I play too.

    PvP
    With my Paladin I refused to use my bubbles in PvP. I've found Pallies to easy-mode in PvP so after two games in the 50's bracket I stopped PvP. It simply wasn't fun mowing down level 60's in AV. Some of them were fairly well-geared too. With my Warlock I rarely used fear. I looked for other was to win against my opponents. I like being creative in game. That goes for any game I play, even the FPS games. :)

    Healing at end-game
    End game I strip down to 'ok gear' and will heal a heroic that for me is challenging and not a snooze fest that occurs when you are ridiculously overgeared.

    Regardless of level, I enjoy a challenge and if the encounter is too easy well I'll see what I can do to make it more difficult. I'm currently doing that with my Mage. Sure I like rolling along and not bringing my A game but most times I do enjoy a challenge.

    ReplyDelete
  4. I also enjoy a challenge. I guess lately WoW hasn't really offered me much in that area.

    The funny thing is, while EQ mobs take longer to kill vs WoW, I can pop in and out as I like. I can get something done without having to join an instance and be tied into it just to get anything done. I like that a lot.

    I was thinking about leveling a new priest up in WoW but I may just wait till Cataclysm to make a Worgen something lol. Not too sure yet. What's your website? I'd like to check it out :) The link doesn't direct me to a page.

    ReplyDelete
  5. lol..Oh my well now you know my real name. I'm Pouncie. ;)

    ReplyDelete
  6. Lol was that you Pounce? I thought I had a new reader, you tease!

    ReplyDelete
  7. Yes twas me. I thought I was commenting as Pouncie but alas I made a boo boo. :(

    I rarely use that login to comment, now that I think about it. I don't think I've ever used it, heh.

    I bet you have a lot of lurkers that just prefer to read and not comment. I've had several like that on some of my websites it's always shocking when some pop out and say they've been reading my stuff for months.

    ReplyDelete
  8. Hehe yeah I do have people who never comment. I found I was on someones blogroll the other day and I was shocked =p

    It's nice when people take the time to let you know they enjoyed a post or shared their thoughts.

    Sometimes when nobody says much at all I wonder why I even bother. I enjoy writing this blog though so until I get bored I will keep at it.

    .. Though lately i feel I can be quite boring lol.

    ReplyDelete

Search

Blogroll

Blog Archive