Return of the (Lich) King: Impressions on WOTLK

With the release of WOTLK, Blizzard proved once again that they understand business far better than the American automobile industry. Regardless of whatever storm of skill and circumstance thrust WoW to the top of the MMO heap, the newest expansion shows that Blizzard isn't content simply to rest on its laurels.

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If/when you get as far as Dragonblight (one of the new Northrend zones) and you complete the Wrath Gate quest chain, THEN you can really talk about the introduction of story. Blizzard have done a brilliant job with their "phasing" quest lines, where certain people can see certain parts of the game based on your progression through a quest.
Without spoiling too much, a few of the quest lines will completely change certain areas of the game such that you can occupy the same space as another player but see different things (sometimes not even the other player).

imo, after so many years of keeping people occupied with no more than trinkets they needed something special, so hope they got it. Still doesnt bring me back to re-installing it though

I think WOTLK is f'ing fantastic. I think the introduction to DKs is about the coolest scenario I have played in a game in years. The wrathgate event is truly epic and the phased questing stuff after the event is fun as hell. I do have a little complaint as I see what they were going for in the armor sets and weapons being more gothic and darker but it kind of made all the new equipment look the same. I would think also from a crafting aspect of folks that have been making these brilliant looking pieces of armor that at least the crafted stuff would look cooler. But eh, still phenomenal expansion in my opinion.

Ding! 200th post... I clearly don't post enough!

Yup, while Burning Crusade felt like more of the same old-world stuff, Wrath has provided something new and refreshing.

I don't remember a point in my grind to 80 when I thought to myself "If I have to do one more gather x, take it to y quest, i'm calling it quits for tonight". It's odd though, at it's essence you're still doing that, but blizz has added in a fun factor by giving you vehicles to do them in or some other unique twist on them. Certain zones are better for this than others (Howling Fjord is currently my favourite) but they're all pretty damn good in that you feel rewarded for a boring quest chain.

Case in point being Zul'Drak. There's a fairly boring chain involving a captive storm giant. You end up releasing him and riding on his back as you steer him around, stomping all the scourge in your way. Gone are the days of a slightly nicer item at the end of a long chain, now you get a really fun final quest AND a nice item.

Cheese, have you been to Sholazar Basin yet?

If you liked stomping scourge on the back of a storm giant, you should like the final quest chain there :)

Of course. I did love riding the Titan into battle.

Though the thing I enjoyed most about that chain was the lore al neatly tying itself up. I remember saying to my friend when we got into Sholazar how it seemed like a mix between Un'Goro and STV. To then be ported to a previously inaccessible temple in Un'Goro crater for the long quest chain was just awesome.

WOTLK is great, but a little to easy in many ways. Leveling goes insanely fast and all heroics are easy even the Raid content is not that difficult.

Hope Blizz will ad some nice content soon/

What exactly did WoW bring to MMO's? Everything WoW did was taken/altered from EverQuest, and lets not forget that EverQuest 2 came out before WoW and had many of the same features.

Not bashing WoW; its a great game for what it is, but they didn't bring much new. Quest log? Been done. Factions? Been Done. Instances? Been done. Slotted item? Been done. The list continues...think the only thing WoW has brought is simplified mechanics, motorcycles and an age average of 12 years old to MMOs.

I will say Blizzard is the best at intertwining story in their MMO.

Quick note...the barber shops that the editor claims WoW invented was done in Star Wars Galaxies 3-4 years ago. =p

I agree with Xiara, when I read this article, I said to myself that the reviewer clearly is a fan of the game.

WoW is a good game, nothing more, I do enjoy playing it from time to time with my friends, but my playtime never exceeds more than 5 hours per 3 months hehe!

When I read the paragraph about game comparisons, it made me discredit the author, I'll explain...You cannot start by comparing elements in a subtle way and then just stop without giving any details, it makes the people who don't know these games, think that they truly are unoriginal, when in fact all the games you sited were much more original than WoW.

LOTRO is a completely original game, the PvMP (Player vs monster player) is a truly nice way to change your pace from time to time. The Epic weapons that level with you, great idea!

Comparing WoW's achievement system with WAR's BoK? Have you even played WAR? I admit the game needs time to add content, but the book of knowledge in that game is amazing, there's nothing in WoW that compares to that.

Again, comparing AoC's great city building and siege building to WoW's siege adds? Not even close, come on.

After that paragraph I stopped reading, so can't comment on the rest. I put this comment because I thought it was important for me to express that this review is biased. Please, when you write a review, either do not bring up other games or if you do, try to be more specific and give the right information.

Thanks

I don't give a frog fart that WoW didn't bring something new and different to the genre... oh wait they did. They took those elements that were good in the existing games and put them together to make a great game. They continue to roll with that and continue to keep multi-millions of players happy. While you will always have the deviants that are "To cool for the room" who will bad mouth the mainstream stuff (IE: the same people who will tell you how much better the indie band from the corner club is than anything on the radio), ultimately commercial success does not equal suck. So ya every article and critique of the game is going to be compared to other MMOs and every MMO that comes along will be compared to the giant machine that is WoW until something better comes along.

I only occasionally comment on comments, but there are few statements that I think warrant clarification. There could be no expectation that WOTLK would be ground breaking. To achieve that you need a new game engine, new premises, everything. Since WOTLK is building on WoW and Burning Crusade, the only comparison can be improvements to its own existant system and comparison with the systems of newer releases. Similarly, this is not an article about what WoW has brought to MMOs, but rather what WOTLK has brought. WoW drew very heavily upon previous games, particularly the EQ line. The question instead is how WOTLK has built upon itself and pushed those already existant premises.

Barbershops were not first introduced by WOTLK. The example given is how WoW caught up with LOTRO in that respect.

As much as I've enjoyed playing LOTRO, I don't find it original at all. Even its storyline is borrowed. The original release didn't really push any envelope regarding gameplay either. Mines of Moria is a different beast in that respect. The Runekeeper and Warder push character class definitions. The leveling weapons is another example of a new innovation. The problem with comparing WOTLK and Moria (which I didn't do) is that they are essentially simultaneous releases so there is minimal opportunity for one to build off the other.

In terms of originality, very few MMOs really are. Speaking in terms of the fantasy genre, almost all games follow the same basic premises of classes and combat (AoC being a rare exception). In terms of storyline, LOTRO is the least original since it is drawing on a world that Tolkien had spent 70 years of his life developing in incredible detail. AoC's world isn't all that much younger. I'd put WAR next because it pulls from a miniatures game that is 25 years old. WoW likewise pulls from its 14 year old RTS line. Truly original fantasy MMOs that have made a great impression are sadly rare. EQ is the biggest example but I would argue that AC is the most original, though its success was somewhat less.

I have played WAR and was utterly unimpressed. One of the few things I did like was the Tome of Knowledge. But my question is, have you seen WoW's new achievement system? It is very similar.

Lastly, editorials (and reviews in general) are by their very nature biased.

Nobody really expected the story to be original. To be honest i'm liking the fact is draws heavily on Norse mythology abd the fact that Icecrown Citadel looks exactly like Mordor architecture from the lord of the rings movies.

Almost all fantasy has drawn inspiration from the Tolkien books, and I think the look of Wrath is more of a homage than a rip-off.

Phasing is pretty new. And awesome :P

Well thank you for clarifying Ithelsa. I just get worked up when I see articles or comments trying to make something or someone look better on the expense of something or someone else :)

Now that you explained more the comparisons, I see your point more clearly.

Thank you