Zero Punctuation: World of Warcraft: Cataclysm

[Frozengale]

My journey through WoW sounds a lot like Yahtzee's except I was Warlock instead of a Mage and I played til I hit level 60... then I looked around realized, "What's the point, I've wasted so much time on this tripe" and I got off and have never played the game since. The only reason I want to go back is for the Worgen (and possibly Goblins), but that's a pretty piss poor reason to go waste hundreds of dollars and hundreds of hours of my life.

 

[DJShire]

I love reposting this

Back when I played WoW (years ago), I tried many a time to play as an Alliance character, and never got past level 12. It wasn't that the gaming experience was any different, but back then, the Alliance community was all pre-teens and teens that were loath to help you out if you asked for it. Horde players were helpful, sometimes more than you'd expect, with any question.

 

[0986875533423]

Sorry, it's not wrong. They are providing a service. You are paying for the service, the same way as you would pay for a product. It just happens that in this case, you need to buy a product (the WoW account - the software, essentially, is worthless) to access the service. Much like how you need to pay for a computer in order to use the internet, or a TV in order to watch your cable.

There is absolutely nothing wrong with charging a fee for the use of a service.

No there isn't, but there IS something wrong with withholding access to the full functionality of a consumer's OWN PROPERTY until they pay you more money. You can use a computer offline, and a television as a screen for a computer/home media player, but Wow's software is completely and utterly useless until you fork out to Blizzard AGAIN, on top of the frankly criminal amount you paid for the discs, and continue to do so monthly.

 

[Fellsabucket]

I fivebox mages.

Five mages. Mirror image.

It's as horrific as you're imagining.

 

[Frozengale]

I am suprised by this shallow opinion.
Wow is bad, because it ruined a few lives?
Doesn't make that gaming bad, because it ruined a few lives?

No, it doesn't. If you let your life get ruined by something as easy as Wow, then there weere clearly problems there before.

Like... oh, lets say: A child, that you didn't want in the first place and that shackles you to your home.

A "few" is an understatement when it comes to WoW. I've watched several people have their lives ruined in some way by this game. If it isn't neglecting their job or their school work, it's neglecting their family and friends and becoming obsessed by increasing their numbers in a silly little game.

Some games are WORTH spending several hours of your life on. Minecraft is not only a game but a very nice creative outlet for example. WoW is just an endless stream of killing the same enemies in the same ways until you get a level to kill them in a slightly different same way. Then you rinse and repeat. Raise your numbers, and at the end of the day find that you you've wasted a large amount of time on something incredibly pointless.

 

[spartandude]

finally! it was good

 

[AdamG3691]

huh... I expected yahtzee to roll a warlock...
what with all of the soul draining and destroying all that others hold dear...

 

[Gizen]

Personally, I'm the exact opposite of the people Yahtzee asked as far as raiding goes. I don't raid to get items, I get items so that I can raid. Raiding is just enjoyable to me, as raid bosses frequently have the most complex and interesting mechanics in the game, and usually requires a bit more paying attention than the rest, plus it gives me something to do with my friends that also play. Personally, I really couldn't give a shit what my numbers look like so long as they're good enough to get the job done and I'm not holding other people in my raid group back, so I do have to get more items, if only to keep pace with everyone else, but if raid bosses suddenly stopped dropping loot entirely I would still do them. Once I've done all of the raids is usually the point in the game where I become bored and want to go and play something else, as to me, beating all the raids is the equivalent to beating the game.

Though I fully realize I'm probably in the minority as far as this opinion is concerned. Hell, I'm one of those rare people who actually enjoys levelling, whereas everyone else I've ever spoken to hates it with a passion.

 

[BabyRaptor]

I think I have fallen in love with Yahtzee all over again.

 

[Marowit]

Can't wait to watch it once I get home from work.

All these pages of people complaining about WoW has made the afternoon pretty entertaining to be honest. You'd think that WoW was the virtual equivalent of Crack from a lot of posts. It's just funny how every time WoW is mentioned, addiction is thrown around like crazy.

Yet, mention DAoC, SWG, EvE, GW, etc...and no addiction-tags. EQ, I remember, was called evercrack back around 2000, and now...not so much. It's just a few obsessive personalities doing what they do - be obsessive. You'd think that fellow Gamers would realize that stereotyping an entire genre is a pretty bad thing to do... The Big Picture episode comparing comic book collectors to sports fans is spot on with this respect. It's even more funny to see Gamers calling fellow Gamers out on a Gaming forum - 'My Apples clearly are better than your Oranges!!'

 

[freakonaleash]

Holy crap he liked it

 

[Exterminas]

I am suprised by this shallow opinion.
Wow is bad, because it ruined a few lives?
Doesn't make that gaming bad, because it ruined a few lives?

No, it doesn't. If you let your life get ruined by something as easy as Wow, then there weere clearly problems there before.

Like... oh, lets say: A child, that you didn't want in the first place and that shackles you to your home.

A "few" is an understatement when it comes to WoW. I've watched several people have their lives ruined in some way by this game. If it isn't neglecting their job or their school work, it's neglecting their family and friends and becoming obsessed by increasing their numbers in a silly little game.

Some games are WORTH spending several hours of your life on. Minecraft is not only a game but a very nice creative outlet for example. WoW is just an endless stream of killing the same enemies in the same ways until you get a level to kill them in a slightly different same way. Then you rinse and repeat. Raise your numbers, and at the end of the day find that you you've wasted a large amount of time on something incredibly pointless.

Sorry but, you are reducing a MMORPG to it's gameplay, which ignores the two M.
If Minecraft is a crative outlet, then Wow is a socializing platform.
So what you might have seen as "neglecting friends and family" might actually have been "finding new friends" for the playing person.
I met a lot of people via wow who are now close real life friends. It's a great hobby to do with great people. Playing it alone would result in said parade of numbers.

I don't raid to get a bigger sowrd. I raid to achieve something with friends. It's like building an IKEA-cupboard together. Often frustrating but uniting.

 

[Zanaxal]

They added achievement collecting and pet and recipie collection that is totally pointless to do, like collecting different colored rocks which only serve to give you a certain rating number (a stupidity of time & monthly fee waste rating perhaps?). = evil

Also they dumb down the game soooo much that trained monkeys can play it.

But blind fanmasses choose to overlook the bitter reality of the devolution of wow.

 

[WOPR]

I really dont see the point to WoW...

I mean, I know a lot of people like it, but I guess it just isnt my style...cataclysm makes it look almost playable...but meh...

Same, I have hated all MMORPG's I have played

there's no skill involved (unless you considering "accounting" to see which item is better to be a skill) it's just grinding, I remember when RPG's required skill and thinking, not just being better depending on how many hours of your real life you wasted on it

on that note, yes I have played WoW, I had an Undead Warlock, got him to level 12, and was bored out of my mind.

I also played Runescape for a year, and the only reason I'll tolerate that one is because it's free... but it's just as boring if not more so.

and I hate how my "friends" that play these games will yell at me every time I make a comment about "grinding" or "subscribing"
...I guess they're very insecure about their obsession hobby.

EDIT: *sniff* *sniff* you smell that? I think it's another mailbag showdown from all these WoW fans getting mad

 

[The Human Torch]

Sorry, it's not wrong. They are providing a service. You are paying for the service, the same way as you would pay for a product. It just happens that in this case, you need to buy a product (the WoW account - the software, essentially, is worthless) to access the service. Much like how you need to pay for a computer in order to use the internet, or a TV in order to watch your cable.

There is absolutely nothing wrong with charging a fee for the use of a service.

No there isn't, but there IS something wrong with withholding access to the full functionality of a consumer's OWN PROPERTY until they pay you more money. You can use a computer offline, and a television as a screen for a computer/home media player, but Wow's software is completely and utterly useless until you fork out to Blizzard AGAIN, on top of the frankly criminal amount you paid for the discs, and continue to do so monthly.

This has to do with the nature of the game. It's a game that relies on a community to function. A community that needs to be on a server due to the massive amounts of traffic (PvP, PvE, auction house, in-game item mailing, etc.), due to size of WoW's playing community, they require a ginormous amount of servers to function properly. Not too mention a staff to keep it running.
Just selling 13 million copies of Warcraft is not enough to sustain such a large financial drain.

You always have the right to not buy the game because you don't want to pay the monthly fee, that is fine, but don't say that it's "wrong" to charge. It's not. This is not Modern Warfare 2 or Little Big Planet, this is much bigger.
And before you start commenting about free to play MMO's, they are not completely free and they have a way smaller player-base.

 

[Madara XIII]

OMFG this was epic!

NUMBEEEEEEEEERZ!

But like most people said, this was indeed a unexpected, but it was fun I should get my lazy ass to buy Cataclysm soon.

However I believe Yahtzee is wrong on one part......I Destroyed my sanity trying to 100% Metroid Prime on hard....SO MANY FREAKING PIRATES!!! AAAAAAGH DX

 

[WOPR]

And before you start commenting about free to play MMO's, they are not completely free and they have a way smaller player-base.

Runescape could count

and so what if there's a smaller player base?

...on that note I should mention I have interest in Global Agenda; it's an MMO that DOSEN'T cost monthly fees (anymore- apparently it did at one point) and pretty much to bring this down to a level any WoW player could understand

It's World of StarCraft
(pretty much)

...I don't have it yet, just played it a bit on my friends computer
seems like the best deal if I'm going to throw away money to grind a game

and I need something to do so that I CAN say "I'm busy!" the next time some guitar hero fanboy wants me to play through the fire and flames... on a real non-plastic instrument...

 

[Yvl9921]

200+ posts. I'm sure someone's said what I was gonna say about raiding being just plain fun by now.

 

[garfoldsomeoneelse]

Sums up why I stopped playing years ago.

 

[Buccura]

Surprised that Yahtzee actually reviewed Cataclysm. Also surprised he didn't make a furry joke when talking about the Worgen. Guess that would be too easy.

Also NUMBERS!