Shamus Plays WoW, Part 6:
Overwhelmed by Kobolds

By Shamus Posted Thursday Dec 2, 2010

Filed under: Column 88 comments

I’ve been forgetting to link to this lately. Here is the entry from last week:

Shamus Plays WoW 5: Another Day, Another Mine

And yesterday:

Shamus Plays WoW 6: Overwhelmed by Kobolds

Next week, Cataclysm launches!

Although…

Am I the only one who is wondering what the selling point of Cataclysm is going to be? I mean, everyone gets the new Azeroth. Everyone gets access to the new class / race combinations. (I think 95% of all players just rolled Human hunters. The other 5% rolled Night Elf mages.) What does the expansion offer, besides the ability to be a Worgen or Goblin. Don’t get me wrong, those are pretty cool. But I don’t know if they’re $40 worth of cool. Especially with so much other new content to explore. Maybe there is other content in the expansion, but Blizzard is doing an uncharacteristically poor job of tantalizing me with them.

 


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88 thoughts on “Shamus Plays WoW, Part 6:
Overwhelmed by Kobolds

  1. krellen says:

    I hate to be “that guy”, Shamus, but your link to the old Shamus Plays is actually a link to the forum thread for this Shamus Plays.

  2. Robyrt says:

    Much of the WOW user base is high-level, so the level cap increase with corresponding end-game content is always a big selling point.

    I picked up the game as part of a Black Friday deal, and I hate how much easier it is to play as a hunter than any of the classes I would rather be playing. I had a boss respawn on top of me in combat as a level 8 hunter and I was totally fine. As a level 8 paladin, any two normal enemies mean a corpse run and a strong feeling that I would be having more fun achievement hunting on the Xbox.

    1. pffh says:

      Huh I’ve leveled a paladin from 1-60 since patch 4.0 and when you get word of glory you should easily be able to solo 4-6 mobs by using crusader strike and word of glory spam.

      1. Robyrt says:

        Thanks for the encouragement – I didn’t realize I’d get a useful heal spell at level 9. :)

        1. thebigJ_A says:

          *sarcasm alert*

          1. Wolf says:

            This might not mean much to you, but hunters actually deserve to be awesome at level 1-9.

            Because in olden times they got they pet at level 10 and so had to spend the first 9 levels as a ranged fighter with a minimum range and no reliable way to keep the enemy at a distance. They finished every fight in melee and felt like idiots pummeling the enemy to death with their boring melee skills.

            Not that the newfound awesomeness at low levels will help those poor hunters of old now.

    2. Randy Johnson says:

      Silly Shamus. The big selling point is 80-85 and the new dungeons, aka fighting that big mean dragon that they have been advertising.

      1. thebigJ_A says:

        This is exactly why I can’t get into mmos. Yay, time to fight the big mean dragon! That everyone else either has fought or will fight! That will be alive again if I do this instance again! So killing him is meaningless! Exclamation point!

        I love RPGs, but I love them for the stories first. All the loot and levelling is awesome, but only when tied to a meaningful narrative, preferably one I can shape by my choices and actions. I mean, just look at Too Human. Tons of loot, much of it even cool. But the story was utter tripe. This (among other problems) made the game awful.

        I’ve actually just started getting into Planescape: Torment for the first time. I’m blown away by the amount of story in that game. My first serious RPG-love came from Morrowind, so I missed all those old school rpgs. I don’t know if it’s solely because of the lack of voice-acting, but there’s just so much more to talk to people about in Planescape.

        You don’t get any of that in an mmo. You get a window that pops up with the description of the quest, but it doesn’t matter how well written it is (I’m the type that never skips it, hoping, hoping…) when it’s just a florid way of asking me to kill x monsters, which the quest-giver will ask the next thousand people after me to kill.

        I had hope for the Star Wars mmo, because of The Old Republic, but the more I see of it, the more I doubt it’ll be the solution to my problem.

        Sorry for the rant. Anyone else feel like me?

        1. Athan says:

          WoW does have good story lines both whilst levelling and often for the end-game too. You just have to actually bother to read quest texts rather than hitting ‘Accept’ and then following the now built-in questhelper arrow….

          1. thebigJ_A says:

            Try reading comments next time. Here, let me show you. The section of my comment in questions starts off with: “You get a window that pops up with the description of the quest, but it doesn't matter how well written it is (I'm the type that never skips it, hoping, hoping…)” and it goes on from there.

        2. Zekiel says:

          Absolutely! It’s one of the main reasons I’ve never been interested in MMOs.

          Glad you are enjoying Planescape Torment – it is a genuinely amazing game which feels very pleasingly personal. It’s also the only RPG I can think of where I’m actually genuinly interested in the non-companion NPCs. Lots of Bioware RPG games have interesting companions, but the other NPCs (who can’t join your party) still tend to be pretty bland. Whereas Torment has characters like Mourns-for-Trees and the Crier of Es Annon… minor characters but brilliant (and evidently memorable!).

    3. Greg says:

      Paladin’s are one of the easiest classes to level, although I struggle to imagine how 2 normal enemies could be a problem for any level 8. So either you’re wildly exaggerating or you really sucked at playing a paladin.

      1. Robyrt says:

        It’s probably that I’m terrible, although it’s not like the game helps with that in any way. The lack of tutorials beyond a couple paragraphs of text like “Click on bad mans to kill them”, the ability to bankrupt yourself by buying items like a normal human being, and the ability to turn off things you would never actually want to turn off by hitting 5 instead of 4 in a moment of panic are really shocking in a game that punishes death like WoW. (i.e. by wasting my time).

        Anyway, the problem cleared up in a couple levels once I had enough skills to keep me busy, instead of relying on auto-attack with my Rusty Sword of Mild Disapprobation while I waited for the cooldown.

      2. Witteafval says:

        Paladins are easy to level, it’s true. But my level 7 mage I started the other day could do just fine on one enemy, while two was impossible. The joys of a cloth wearer. Rogues can get in trouble easily as well if they don’t approach their fights carefully.

      3. Christine says:

        Strange. I had a retro paladin and she is pretty much broken since the changes went through. No more soloing elites 2 levels above me.

        I liked kicking butt.

        1. OEP says:

          That is strange, I guess it would depend on your level. But I have 3 paladins, one raid ICC25 geared at 80, and 2 little ones. And ret paladins have never had it easier. With Word of Glory, I have been able to solo elites much more easily than I could have before. In fact, Paladins are probably the easiest class to solo with now. I speak as someone who has leveled 11 80’s and raided ICC with 8 of them.

  3. Ace Calhoon says:

    The ability to level to 85, and the content from levels 80 to 85. This is appealing to the (significant) chunk of the player-base who have a level 80 character already, and would like to continue on with their existing characters. Probably the new battlegrounds, too.

    That said, if you DON’T have a character at the cap, and if you don’t care about being a goblin or worgen, not buying the expansion pack seems like a pretty valid option at this point.

    1. Veloxyll says:

      It so is, there’s nothing wrong with not buying Cataclysm until you have a level 78 character, unless you really want a goblin or worgen.

      Oh, cept missing out on Archeology I guess. And flying, which is more important to anyone who wants to use Orgrimmar because the FP is in a stupid spot.

      Also: Anyone who has an active WoW account, I highly recommend the new Undead starting area, right up to at least the end of Silverpine forest (or even right up to reaching Tarren Mill). It is all sorts of awesome in so many ways :D

      1. Moriarty says:

        if you don’t want to play bloodelf/draenei/goblin/worgen or use the “new” professions, you won’t need to buy any expansions until you hit a level cap.

        1. Trix says:

          This has been the case since Burning Crusade, and part of the reason I don’t see any problems with selling the expansion. You really never needed to buy them until 60 anyways unless you wanted new races/profs.

          The largest portion of the game (at least for most people, but not all) is the max level content…but it gets old after a while, so new patches and expansions add more to that endgame bit that a majority of the playerbase experiences/will experience for some time.

      2. Psychoceramics says:

        They actually changed the undead starting area? Elwynn Forest was mostly unchanged, except for the 1-5 area and a couple convenience tweaks (flight points at Goldshire and Logging Camp, yeah!).

        Westfall and Redridge? All kinds of awesome though.

        1. skalpadda says:

          I just played through it today and yes, it has changed dramatically. Tirisfal is mostly the same although many of the quests are tweaked or replaced (there’s the story of a forsaken girl that’s especially memorable) and you’ll see the new Forsaken architecture all over the place. Silverpine is completely different with a huge campaign that spans the whole zone (and takes you into Gilneas as well).

          The “campaign” design is present in most zones now; you have some overarching goal that drives the story throughout and creates a whole different feeling of momentum in the experience. It really makes a huge difference, and on the topic of why you would want to buy the expansion when you get so much for free, I think they’re far more concerned with holding on to new players and keeping them as subscribers than getting people to buy the Cataclysm box. After all, if they keep playing they’ll get to a point where they will have to buy it eventually anyway.

  4. Paronomasiac says:

    Yes, everyone gets the new Azeroth. But not everyone gets the entire new Azeroth. There are zones only available to those who purchase the expansion. As well, five new levels, new instances, and the Archeology profession are all only available to purchasers of the expansion.

    That said, I can easily wait until after Christmas to purchase, in the hopes that someone will sate my addiction and purchase it for me. >.>

    And that said, I understand your unenthusiasm. It’s hard to be WoW’ed by such little new content when, outside of starting areas and heading to the new endgame, everyone can access the new quests. Anyone can start a new anything, work through their starting zone, then play around in the new levelling zones without dropping forty bucks.

    In the end, people who want it for whatever reason will buy it. People who don’t will probably end up with it anyway. Blizzard keeps their money machine functioning, and all is right with the world.

    1. Ian says:

      Indeed.

      To add to that, I’d go so far as to say that the new areas in Cataclysm offer nearly as much playtime as you’d get in any other expansion, judging from the beta. Vashj’ir alone took quite a bit of time to plow through (that area alone is three zones and has quite a bit of questing), and it looks like there was quite a bit to do in Hyjal. I didn’t even get to the other zones, like Uldum, the Twilight Highlands, and Tor Borad, and I barely had a chance to look at Deepholm. Not to mention the new dungeons and raids that will be offered, the ability to fly in Azeroth, all of the new profession recipes, archeology, and stuff like that.

      All in all, it feels like it offers about as much new content as any other WoW expansion, even in addition to what everyone else gets with no additional cost. We’re getting about the same number of zones that we got in BC and WotLK, they’re just part of the main land instead of in a separate area.

    2. Shamus says:

      “Archeology profession”

      Curses! I knew they’d get me somehow.

      1. Katesickle says:

        *looks up Archaeology profession in WoWWiki*

        Oh sonofa…

        Dangit, Blizzard, stop making me want to give you money!

      2. Trix says:

        Archeology’s a secondary profession too (like first aid and such), so everyone can get it provided they have the expansion :)

      3. Alastair says:

        Oh yes, the Archeology profession. I might forget to level to 85 because of that. One of the things you can get from archeology is a skeletal raptor mount… A SKELETAL RAPTOR MOUNT! That is ridiculous amounts of awesome!

    3. Nyaz says:

      It’s funny, whenever Blizzard mentions new professions*, it reminds me why I quit playing WoW.
      “New shiny world where shit has happened” is kind of tingling my spidey-sense, though. Oh hey, I still haven’t used up those free seven days of game time yet. Hmm.

      * = Translation: “More grind”

    4. Witteafval says:

      In addition to archaeology, all the other professions will have more to do from the 450-525 range. I hear there will be a lot of fun perks in those areas–only available with the expansion, of course.

  5. Ambience 327 says:

    Don’t forget, you cannot purchase the “Flight Master’s License” – which allows the use of your flying mounts in all of Azeroth, without the Cataclysm expansion. Travel is much easier when you can fly everywhere yourself.

    1. Valaqil says:

      This annoys me greatly. Honestly, it’s the _only_ thing I want out of Cataclysm, but there’s exactly zero chance of buying an expansion for the chance to fly over the continent for a while. I was hoping I could explore some and then go back to not playing. Oh well.

      1. Drue says:

        Isn’t there a free trial that will let you do just this?

        1. Sumanai - a grouchy ball of bile and cynicism says:

          Free trials have intentionally limited gameplay. No auction house, no leveling past 15 or something, no old accounts (I think), no tells except when responding to a one etc. IIRC, of course.

          And in the past, I don’t know about post-Cataclysm, none of the expansions are in use. So no Draenei, B-elves, no starting areas for either, no new professions etc.

          1. Sumanai - a grouchy ball of bile and cynicism says:

            Bothered checking about the trial, so an update:

            The level cap is 20.
            There are several trials now, depending on if you have nothing, base WoW or base and Burning Crusade. Each give 10 days.
            No whisper (which I meant by ‘tells’), unless responding or added as a friend.
            No auction house, no mail box, no “I can’t remember what the third method was for item moving, but I’m somewhat sure it wasn’t trading”.
            No owning more than 10 gold. For some reason.

  6. Meredith says:

    I find it strange that the free update happened before the expasion went live (I keep hearing that Cataclysm happens 7th December and so was confused to hear everything updated already). Is there some marketing reason behind this, or do I just have my details all confused?

    1. Robyrt says:

      The new content goes live just in time for them to serve ads for the new expansion pack to you while you load said content. It’s also way easier to justify a $40 expansion pack when you’ve spent a week playing around with the free parts of Cataclysm.

      1. Meredith says:

        I figured it was something like that, but it still seems odd for this particular expansion. It’s such a world change, it seems like people wouldn’t be excited to spend money having seen it already. Then again, I’m not an MMO-type person, so what do I know.

    2. Museli says:

      Part of the reasoning behind the staggered updates is technical. By spreading the updates over a couple of months, it’s easier to fix any issues that occur. If the talent and ability changes, the Shattering, and the new areas all came in one patch the bug list would be immense.

    3. Khizan says:

      It’s to get all the server maintenance issues and such out of the way before Cataclysm drops, so that the release date isn’t filled with server downtimes and bugs.

      Also this is just the 1-60 content, which is pretty maybe 10% of the “WoW experience” at the most. If you don’t run many instances, it’s a single player game in many ways.

      The expansion pack will be necessary for all the new PvE content and for rated battlegrounds and arenas and such. If all you want to do is explore most of the world and then quit, then you don’t need it at all. You only need it if you actually want to play the game for the end game PvE/PvP.

  7. Riesz says:

    The reason behind the confusion is that Cataclysm is actually two separate things:

    1) Is the remake of classic WoW. This is what is now live, which brings the old world up to the standards of 2010. This is essentially WoW 2.0 and is free to everyone who owns the original game. This simplified and modernised questing, talents, skills and aimed to create a more friendly environment for new players.

    2) Is the expansion pack which will release new endgame content. I.e. increased level cap, new zones for 80+, new dungeons, new raids, new PvP stuff, new crafting tiers and so on. This is the real “expansion” pack, much like TBC or Wrath were handled.

    As I understand it, Blizzard wanted to revamp the old content for a while now, as 90% of most (trial) players apparently never played beyond the first 10 levels. In fact, I’m fairly certain work on revamping the old world already started while Wrath was still in development. They decided to go with a unified theme which would link both the expansion pack and WoW 2.0 and make one big event rather than two separate ones. Since you’re not playing at the level cap, basically all that is relevant to you are the things listed under the first bullet point. For people with max level characters, those things are just gravy (an excuse to create an alt) and the “real” content is coming Dec 7.

    1. Aldowyn says:

      heh.. heh heh… most trials only went past 10? I found a class I liked and blasted to 2x…

    2. MrWhales says:

      Glad to know I am now a statistic that has made a difference! Woo!

  8. Gahazakul says:

    Patch 4.0.3a brings with it the Shattering of Azeroth, remaking the 1-60 zones permanently for all players, regardless of expansion status.

    WHAT IS IN THIS PATCH
    – All of the 1-60 content changes, including the changes to capital cities.
    – Removal of ZG. Retune of AQ20 as a 10 man. Miscellaneous dungeon rebalancing; not all of the cuts they talked about at BlizzCon are in now (some, like WC, will wait for 4.1), but several dungeons have changed level ranges, and a couple are entirely revamped (the normal modes of the redone SFK and Deadmines are accessible).
    – City portals in Dalaran/Shattrath removed. Class trainers in their place; auctioneers are also near the emblem vendors.
    – New race/class combinations for existing races.
    – New Gnome and Troll starting areas.
    – Cataclysm loading screens/login screens, new music, and the Cataclysm intro cinematic (which depicts the Shattering itself and thus logically goes here in the world event progression).
    – City quartermasters, with rep tabards and level 35 blues. Yes, this means you can get exalted with Bilgewater Cartel and Gilneas now.
    – Miscellaneous bug fixes and class balancing.
    – Experience required to gain levels 71 through 80 is reduced by 20%.

    WHAT IS NOT IN UNTIL THE EXPANSION RELEASE PROPER (and you buy it)
    – The ability to create goblins and worgen, and the ability to play through their 1-12 zones.
    – The 80-85 zones. Sort of (they’re in the game but No Man’s Land is on for them and there’s some terrain phasing in the way). An interview on MMO-Champion puts it this way: “we won’t be surprised when the players find a way in”.
    – Archaeology.
    – Professions past 450 (Illustrious Grand Master).
    – Old world flight.
    – Guild leveling, reputation, and achievements. Will be turned on December 7th for everyone, evidently.

  9. Kian says:

    Can someone explain (or point towards an explanation) why Deathwing got cranky and torn the world apart, and just how much more powerful this thing is than a world full of lvl 80 characters that routinely thwart demonic invasions and stuff like that?

    Blizzard keeps bothering me with ads everywhere, and yet they manage to avoid answering the one question that I’m curious about.

    1. Ace Calhoon says:

      Your answer is probably somewhere around here:
      http://www.wowpedia.org/Deathwing

      Short version:
      He’s powerful because he’s one of five creatures empowered by the world’s creators to shepherd over an aspect of the world (in his case, earth, I think).

      He’s cranky because, due to various influences, he now sees himself as the aspect of death with the goal of unmaking the world.

      1. Irridium says:

        His power is less threatening when you realize that he’ll be tanked by a gnome.

        1. Jarenth says:

          I’d go as far as saying that he’s cranky because in the past he’s been thwarted by a whole slew of inferior creatures. And he may be mad, but he’s not stupid, and probably has a sense of pattern recognition.

          1. Will says:

            He’s actually batshit insane. He’s spent too long in the Chamber of the Aspects listening to the Old Gods whispering madness into his mind.

            The reason for the snapping the world in half is he’s trying to crack open the Old God’s prison, which is in the center of the world, and thus requires cracking open the world too.

            1. Trix says:

              Malygos, the magic aspect, also sorta went mad like that in WoLK…although in his case, it was more of a “you guys are stupid and use magic wrong, I’m gonna take it all and blow up the world with it”.

  10. Mari says:

    The Cataclysm ads are amusing me. As soon as I started hearing them I thought, “Oh, cool. WoW is going post-searing!” Yesterday the hubs said the same thing after sitting through a Cataclysm ad. As pretty as WoW is, I bet even roaming a post-apocalyptic wasteland is going to be a treat for the eyes. It’s almost enough to suck me in but the whole monthly fee keeps putting me off.

    1. Skyy_High says:

      “WoW is going post-searing!”

      Brilliant! XD

    2. Jarenth says:

      I’m tempted to say something about WoW not having Ascension-related questlines, but I’m much too classy for that.

      I am, however, not too classy to resist making a meta-joke about it.

      1. Mari says:

        LOL Touche! I really wasn’t mocking WoW when I thought it. I have a soft spot for post-apocalyptic settings so I really do think it’s kind of cool.

    3. Alastair says:

      It’s not like the searing that turned Ascalon into an unending sea of brown and grey. Yes, Deathwing came and destroyed some stuff, but he’s only one dragon and can only do so much to several continents. Most of the changes are (plot-wise) from the fact that the time-line has caught up to where it’s supposed to be. We’re suddenly getting all the changes that the old world was supposed to be going through while we were off in Outlands and Northrend (plus the year that is supposed to have occurred plot-wise between Deathwing’s emergence and where we are now). For instance, now the Lich King is dealt with, Western Plaguelands is healing and is nice and green and sunny (which is weird).

      1. tremor3258 says:

        Man, I may re-subscribe just to see the Plaguelands as a vacation spot.

  11. Tizzy says:

    Shamus: isn’t most of Wow’s revenue stream from the monthly fees anyway? If so, Blizzard shouldn’t be too worried about who buys the expansion: the new and improved Azeroth might be more likely to lure old players back in than a brand new location, people curious to see how their old stomping grounds have changed. That would make up for the sluggish sales of the actual expansion.

    1. Tizzy says:

      Mari‘s post suggests that a few ex-players will be tempted indeed.

      1. Trix says:

        More than a few. Every expansion I’ve seen, a whole bunch of people who “quit forever” come back to check things out…if only for a little while.

        1. krellen says:

          I’m still quit forever, because they have not fixed two glaring problems I have with the game: Chris Metzen is still hacking the lore, and Trolls still can’t be Paladins.

          I’d probably come back if either one of those was fixed.

  12. Mike C says:

    Worgen, Goblins, and Archaeology as previously mentioned.

    Also, a new level 85 cap, new zones and quests, new dungeons and raids, new profession caps and recipes (all for level 80-85 players).

    Oh, and for those below level 80, flying in the old world.

    There are also new battlegrounds, but I’m unsure as to the level ranges they’re meant for.

  13. Dev Null says:

    Wait, what?

    You just did an entire comic about mines without one single Minecraft joke? Are you feeling ok? Can we get you anything?

    1. Theo says:

      Mines…in Warcraft, no less.

  14. Mina says:

    I feel so bad for Norman now, heh.

  15. Jarenth says:

    I can’t be the only one thinking that Shamus’ interpretation of the Cataclysm proper is going to involve Norman’s mother in some salient way.

  16. Mark says:

    I’ve heard conflicting reports of the quality of the revamped quests. Some people have said that they are awesome and interesting, and other people have said that you’re still collecting badger testicles by the dozen. Which is it?

    1. Amstrad says:

      It’s a mixed bag. There are certainly a whole lot fewer ‘go kill x of y’ type quests, and there are some awesome quest lines and even some really fun quest mechanics (I’m really fond of the ‘rail shooter’ type quests on offer). But it’s still an MMO so collecting animal bits at some point is par for the course.

      The overall progression does feel much quicker however.

    2. skalpadda says:

      It’s also a little different in that while those quests still exist, and plenty of them, you’ll more often actually see the point in why you were doing it. For example (slight spoiler!), as horde you’ll gather parts for a bomb in Ashenvale which plays part in the questing throughout Stonetalon Mountains all the way up to the epic finale of the zone. Just having someone standing around giving you a quest to pick 20 flowers, giving you your XP reward and then nothing more seems like a fairly rare thing now.

      Then there’s amazing things like this:
      http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s4-fCjjbh74

      1. Sumanai - a grouchy ball of bile and cynicism says:

        That was less “amazing” and more “a delusional knight? Never heard that one before.”

  17. Zukhramm says:

    High leveld areas, and now five levels instead of ten? Meh. Instances never seemed to interest me, raids even less so. While everyone else seems to complain that WoW gets worse with each expansion, I found the questing more enjoyable with WotLK than previously, so now I can get newer quests without the expansion and without being high level?

    Great! The new races… I liked Blood Elves, I even liked the Draenei, Goblins are ok, but Worgen? Meh!

    Flying and archeology I guess are what interest me with the expansion.

    1. Trix says:

      It should be noted that the 5 extra levels won’t be a lot different from the 10 past expansions give. They specifically used less (for reasons I can’t remember) but kept the leveling time about the same to max.

    2. Witteafval says:

      It makes sense to limit the number of levels, considering how many million xp points one needed just to reach 80. And if the game has two or three more expansions left in it, a level 120 player will be so far and beyond anyone below the cap it won’t even be funny. I still remember my level 70 paladin getting one-shotted by an 80 mage; the disparity in power between levels will only get worse as the levels get higher.

  18. ngthagg says:

    I didn’t realize that I get the new class/race combinations for free. I’ve been wanting to play a troll druid for ages, but the thought of dropping the $40 plus monthly fee held me back. But I can get it for free? I thought I was going to escape this time. Curse you, Blizzard!

  19. Steves says:

    You get all this stuff:

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QKR7rSI4JUE&feature=player_embedded

    Looks pretty cool to me! Loving the new ancient Egypt-themed zones & the silly goblin, er, ‘architecture’

    And, wow, listen to the epic music!

  20. Vekni says:

    You’re not the only one-with almost all of the changes effecting everyone, I definitely feel a little gypped by paying $40 for the expansion. But hey, they price it because they know they’ll get it.

  21. Mumbles says:

    I’ll tell you what it offers. Mumbles playing WoW for the first time since like 2005.

    1. Jarenth says:

      I’ll never understand why Blizzard hasn’t made that their main selling point.

      Whichever marketing genius decided to go with the crazy-dragon-smashing-the-world angle instead should be fired.

      1. Mumbles says:

        Maybe one day Team Fortress 2 will take a hint and use my drunk pyro video as a commercial.

  22. Adam says:

    Hey Shamus,

    Just wanted to write a quick note to tell you that this series is REALLY GOOD. Like top-shelf fantasy writing good. The other Let’s Plays were funny deconstructions of how crazy MMORPGs are. This one is an actual story, complete with entertaining characters and a completely new look at the gameworld. It’s a real shame that it’s relegated to a comedy section of a website instead of bound and available at bookstores all over the country.

    Definitely looking forward to more.

    1. ngthagg says:

      I was just thinking the same thing. The meat of the story is the interaction between the two main characters, which is all original. Well done, that’s a big step forward.

  23. someguy says:

    Still enjoying the hell out of this.
    I was expecting cataclysm to be Dethbringerr finally snapping and unleashing the demon upon the world. Oh well wrong again.

    1. Tizzy says:

      I really liked the idea of the big scary demon who must incarnate into a puny imp on Azeroth. I’m not sure which interpretation I like better; either it’s true and it explains Gobstab’s attitude, or it’s a story that Gobstab’s telling himself to feel better about his predicament.

  24. thebigJ_A says:

    I thought you could already be a goblin in WoW? I don’t play it, but I’ve definitely seen video (on GiantBomb, for one) of people playing as goblins, running around in a town full of goblins.

    1. skalpadda says:

      There have been goblins in the game since day one and there are goblin towns, but they haven’t been a playable race. As far as I know there haven’t been any items that disguises you as a goblin either (apart from some event thing that only lasted through one quest). Perhaps you’re thinking of gnomes?

    2. Mayhem says:

      Some videos will be from the beta, where they tested everything. Others will be from industry demos of the new expansion where they showed off the new starter areas.
      On the live servers, there are a few items that make you appear cosmetically as a goblin or worgen but your character is still one of the existing races. There is already a small goblin city available in Azshara, but the main city of Kezan is only available as part of the goblin starter zone and is destroyed at the end.

  25. Alkey says:

    I think what you may be missing is the “free” content upgrade isn’t to convince you to buy cataclysm. It is to keep WoW “current” making little improvements here and there. This keeps others MMO’s in it’s shadow. WoW is what? 5 years old? It needed an update to keep first place.

  26. Christine says:

    You buy the upgrade so that if you are Horde you can “explore” Teldrassil because they broke the world and it’s really, really hard to get there now without flying. Can’t get the exploration achievement without it.

    And does anyone else really, really, REALLY hate the “minigames” quests? Which apparently must be done to get the Loremaster achievements?

    Ugh.

    Broke my Pally, broke my world. LAST year they gave us a cute bear. This year they broke everything.

    I’m not shelling out for Cata.

  27. Angie says:

    I just sent my husband links for a bunch of your Let’s Play posts, ’cause they’re a lot of fun, and found that the “Shamus Plays” tag on Escapist gives a list of links which aren’t completely in order. It’s pretty hosed in places, in fact. If you could nudge the Escapist people and get that fixed, that’d be awesome.

    In case they can’t/won’t fix it, though, it’d help a lot if you had the name of the game and the episode number in each post’s title. You did that for most of them, but the new WoW episode titles are getting creative. That’s fun for those of us following along via RSS, but for someone who goes back and wants to read them in a batch, it’s a bit of a pain. :/

    Thanks,

    Angie

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