A Few Thoughts About (the future of) WoW

[Nanotrev]

Seeing that my newest post on the official forums relates to the future of WoW and this forum is the next best thing considering it also regards the future of WoW I thought about all of the things they're incorporating into 4.2 and what perhaps should be next in their development.

It was mentioned by Ghostcrawler that he'd like to see less abilities on our bars. Indeed I think it would be nice to have simple action bars to the point of maybe filling a bar or two yet very unique classes. I thought this over for a while and I wondered about what I would really like to see in the World of Warcraft in general and I thought of something I felt would make the game a lot better. To me, getting new spells every few patches and having my talents overhauled every expansion seems to be old hat and more of a tiring process than anything past the initial joy of getting something new to stuff in my already packed actionbars.

What would I rather see instead of this? How about completely new game features, though not something like improved guild recruitment. How about new game features to make the game fun no matter how quickly you progress? How about something all levels could benefit from? I once played an MMO larger than WoW from across the pond.

It doesn't get much voice here in the United States though it is very interesting in its own right. There are many ideas I'd like to see be absorbed into the World of Warcraft. What about zones that always remain significant? I'm tired of never visiting places I once liked due to the resources from that location becoming useless. How many people are in Westfall or Shadowmoon Valley nowadays? Is it really acceptable to see players in such dense masses over certain areas? Instead wouldn't it be better to have old zones be just as significant to us as they were when we first wandered through them? I'm sure it could be figured out. Putting Onyxia near Theramore was (relatively speaking) somwhat in the right step. Things that are useful to all levels in most zones would be better though. They did it..

What about talents? I like balance more than I like new talents. Perhaps we could have something similar to what The Path of the Titans was supposed to provide us? I really enjoyed the idea of being a hunter of a certain spec remaining different from another hunter who chose the same spec as me because it would create much more variety. I'd rather have that over more levels. If you're concerned about content and levels why not just create more zones and merely provide better gear from those zones instead of routinely changing our abilities and giving us higher numbers to reach? It would keep us busy. Group quests that actually require groups would also be nice. An idea stemming from that would be spontaneous world events becoming more common people can come together for and take advantage of. It would make people of the same realm more involved with one another.

Graphics? FPS games, along with other MMOs have proven that graphics becoming more improved are all part of becoming immersed in a game. A dark forest isn't the same without more detailed looking trees and more convincing textures. Many of the textures in WoW seem flat and boring to me. The trees look like the shrubs in the front of my house, only 2D. Even the rooftops don't have individual shingles but instead are painted on in a manner that makes them look cartoony. While WoW's cartoony charm lasted for quite some time it's losing its touch with me. I eyeball other more detailed MMOs out there and wonder what they could hold for me in terms of immersion and visiting another world.

Where is WoW going? I like it, sure, but it seems that the things that really power a game seem to be taking the back seat in terms of WoW itself progressing as a whole. All that's been left to do is raid, or do dungeon runs which seem to be versions of raids, only smaller. There are battlegrounds, and then little battlegrounds we call arenas. I've been doing the same things for years now and it would be nice to see some more variety of things with significance to them reach our fingertips. Archeology and its involvement with Path of the Titans would have been a great start if it hadn't been scratched in mid developement of the expansion. I want more choices of things to do. I want to make things that effect different parts of the game never before imagined. There are interesting ideas such as those who could make one-use keys to specific dungeons. Perhaps those contested areas could all become capturable with the reward of dungeons and such accessible with those same keys.

Why do we need new abilities every expansion? Why not just work on the game itself? The new features in terms of graphics and environmental interaction, along with player to player interaction seem to be the largest hits in games like this lately. People enjoy farming strawberries and facebook so why not introduce something like that where a faction can harbor resources, where people work to cultivate them on a large scale and provide benefits to everyone? You could also have those same mechanics be attackable to add more to the World of WARcraft.

As a hunter there isn't all that much as there used to be that made me feel unique, especially with the disappearance of leveling my pet and feeding it. There also used to be something required that I go out and find skills to teach my pet for battle. As mind-numbing and a pain as those tasks could be it at least made us less likely to toss our pet in a heartbeat if we didn't like the way he looked at us that day, and it made us more unique as a class. It was also stated that things would be less grindy and actually take skill and effort. Where are those things?

It seems to me that developers are focusing too much on new abilities that rotate around balance, and keeping balance, and buffs and nerfs to really get the actual gameplay and features improved, let alone add new ones. Other games are beginning to take ideas from WoW so would it be so bad if we took a few hints from what makes them successful as well? WoW is a great game but it feels like it's slowly degrading over time with a repeat of the same things to do happening almost every expansion that WoW has endured over the past six or seven years.

Would you give up brand new abilities to further crowd your action bars every six months for more content and features and overall better experiences from the World of Warcraft? Would you like better balance in the game rather than get new spells that slow the progress with their own need to be focused on and balanced as well? Just my thoughts on a few things is all.

The link to the official forum thread for WoW is here.
http://us.battle.net/wow/en/forum/topic/2522073905

[Chimera]

I like the idea of them reducing how many spells and abilities they have on our bars and i agree with you on everything. Id like to see more events (like maybe those expansion events that transition us from one era to another), more single boss raids who live in regular zones such as Onyxia.

I know why they removed the Dragons of Nightmare but i wish they'd have more world bosses that had their own niches in zones that required a large raid to defeat (also made it lotta fun when they wandered around freely in their niche so that when you try to sneak past them they have the chance to see an kill you if you arent careful).

I would also like to see Outlands updated, we defeated Illidan, so why is the war continuing? We lost some quests like the Wrathgate quest, a statue of LK's demise was erected in Dalaran, the loading screen was changed to the guy who got burned by dragonfire (god i will never in a million lifetimes remember his name and yet always go 'oh why didnt i remember that!' when someone tells me). Even npc's in azeroth are like 'oh hey Arthas is dead we can focus on whats going on here at home' when they're at the same time going 'oh god we have to keep the burning legion from coming through the dark portal or we're all going to die, wont anyone defeat them and Illidan?'

We also still have no idea what happened to Turlyon and Alleria and while the book implied to me that they ended up on another world in the twisting nether since they lept through a portal to save themselves when draenor was suffering its destruction but like, id still appreciate confirmation on if they are dead or alive.

They brought back Jarod Shadowsong (who is my second favorite NPC, tieing in for 2nd place with Emeriss, Ysera, and Nozdormu) so pleeeease blizzard bring back Alleria and Turlyon? It kills me inside seeing Arator the Redeemed tell me his dream a thousand times over cause i just cant help but talk to him when i visit Honor Hold lol.

[Lisaara]

I wish they'd bring Malygos, Illidan, and Kael'thas back. Yes, I know they're 'dead' but they shouldn't have been killed off, imho. Their end was too quick and too.....bland or undeserved.

[Saturo]

More dumbing down? No thanks. -.-

[erwil]

Considering the graphics, I wouldn't want the cartoony style to go. One of the reasons I play Warcraft over other mmos, is because I love the cartoony look. But more details and upgrade to the ambience would probably make it even more enjoyable, as long as it doesn't come at the cost of system requirements suddenly sky rocketing.

But WoW is getting old. For veterans, it rarely has that "awe" feeling anymore (My last one was in Ulduar). For new players however it'll be amazing and wonderful, even if for us it has already lost its shine.

[Nanotrev]

Dumbing down?

http://us.battle.net/wow/en/forum/topic ... ?page=1#16

http://us.battle.net/wow/en/forum/topic ... page=6#102 This link had its topic deleted, more than likely because of derailment or perhaps because I'd already made a thread on the topic.

You should check out both of these threads because there's a whole lot more than just talents being discussed. It's more about livening things up and making us want to go outside of the major cities and do things in older zones, let alone have something other than raiding, BGs, and arenas to do without rep grinding and grinding dailies.

Edit-
I'm off to work, see you guys in roughly six hours. Oie..

[Sukurachi]

My thoughts: I suspect that no matter what changes were brought to the game, anyone who has been playing a game for more than a few years will hit that wall of "it's old, I'm used to it, it lacks awe-factor".

For myself, I still gasp a little when I fly around Grizzly Hills. Just south of Conquest Hold there are icebergs in the bay, and they still elicit a reaction from me. They're just damned gorgeous.

I love the simple textures and brilliant colours of WoW. I remember being amazed at the incredible realism and detail of FFXI, yet, in the end, it felt faded and boring, to me. Wow has a bit more colourful "punch" for me.

I think it would be an excellent idea for some resources for higher levels to appear in lower-level zones. Give level 80+ players a reason to be in Durotar, or Barrens, a reason other than "Crossroads is under attack... Crossroads is under attack... Crossroads is under attack....".

I constantly read people posting about the demise of world PvP. But there has to be a REASON for higher-level players to BE somewhere. Even on non-PvP servers, I can easily imagine flagged players roaming lower-level zones searching out resources, and "protecting the lowbies from the enemy".

Bu the right resources have to be IN those low-level zones.
And the 80+ players have to have a good reason to go to those zones.

I think Blizz was on the right track, for example, with the introductory Horde quests to Twilight Highlands being in Azshara. They just didn't go quite far enough with it. A few easy quests in Orgrimmar, then some running around in Bilgewater Harbor, it was fun, but it COULD have been more.

There could be quests that force us back to lower level areas, possibly to continue the storylines of low-level quests? Why not?

I guess I'm into questing.
Like the siggy says: I don't PvP, I don't raid, I barely group.
But hell yeah, do I quest.

[Nanotrev]

My thoughts: I suspect that no matter what changes were brought to the game, anyone who has been playing a game for more than a few years will hit that wall of "it's old, I'm used to it, it lacks awe-factor".

For myself, I still gasp a little when I fly around Grizzly Hills. Just south of Conquest Hold there are icebergs in the bay, and they still elicit a reaction from me. They're just damned gorgeous.

I love the simple textures and brilliant colours of WoW. I remember being amazed at the incredible realism and detail of FFXI, yet, in the end, it felt faded and boring, to me. Wow has a bit more colourful "punch" for me.

I think it would be an excellent idea for some resources for higher levels to appear in lower-level zones. Give level 80+ players a reason to be in Durotar, or Barrens, a reason other than "Crossroads is under attack... Crossroads is under attack... Crossroads is under attack....".

I constantly read people posting about the demise of world PvP. But there has to be a REASON for higher-level players to BE somewhere. Even on non-PvP servers, I can easily imagine flagged players roaming lower-level zones searching out resources, and "protecting the lowbies from the enemy".

Bu the right resources have to be IN those low-level zones.
And the 80+ players have to have a good reason to go to those zones.

I think Blizz was on the right track, for example, with the introductory Horde quests to Twilight Highlands being in Azshara. They just didn't go quite far enough with it. A few easy quests in Orgrimmar, then some running around in Bilgewater Harbor, it was fun, but it COULD have been more.

There could be quests that force us back to lower level areas, possibly to continue the storylines of low-level quests? Why not?

I guess I'm into questing.
Like the siggy says: I don't PvP, I don't raid, I barely group.
But hell yeah, do I quest.

Post those ideas! The way way to get your voice out there is to post on the official forums and if you want to be heard it's there waiting for you. Both of those threads I linked could both use postitive reinforcement right now and being at work I'm powerless to counter people who try and shoot them down. I enjoyed your ideas and I'm sure other people would love to hear them as well. If the entire World of Warcraft had its graphics pulled up to the level of awe that you describe you saw imagine how much better the game as a whole would be. If the zones were not only updated for Cataclysm but all treated equally and had the kind of detail that the new zones have imagine what that change would be like. You have good ideas and I'm sure everyone else does to but you have to support threads like those two in order to get them out there as well as putting in your own two cents as well. I vouched for a bug mount outside of AQ40 because most of the scarab lords I've known have sold their accounts anyways. I brought that up and then let them know how happy I would be if I were allowed to work for my own bug mount to ride about in the world. I suggested updating one of the AQ instances and brought up that it wasn't just me who had suggested the idea beforehand and look what happened. I said silithids should have invaded a portion of Uldum and while we don't see that, where is the Scepter found through archeology? Visit the threads and give it a try. Support what's there and give your own input on things like this you think would improve the game as a whole.

[Cerele]

I would also like to see Outlands updated, we defeated Illidan, so why is the war continuing? We lost some quests like the Wrathgate quest, a statue of LK's demise was erected in Dalaran, the loading screen was changed to the guy who got burned by dragonfire (god i will never in a million lifetimes remember his name and yet always go 'oh why didnt i remember that!' when someone tells me). .

they were going to delete the quest, but my pally got well after LK was dead, one of my friends just told me he got it at 83

[cowmuflage]

If they changed the graphics itwould not be WoW anymore it would be another shitty "realistic" looking MMO.

[Chimera]

they were going to delete the quest, but my pally got well after LK was dead, one of my friends just told me he got it at 83

:O When Cata hit people said that the quest was removed so i ragequitted doing DB (i hate that zone i hate that zone i really really hate how horribly boring the quests are, i only do the quests where i slaughter Scarlet Onslaught, the dragonshrine quests, and the WANTED posters at the orc camp and ignore the other 70-80%)

[Nanotrev]

If they changed the graphics itwould not be WoW anymore it would be another shitty "realistic" looking MMO.

Ouch! Really though, Lord of the Rings (the movies) had quite the nice graphics while granted we won't get anything THAT good I think better graphics could bring a lot to WoW without making it further away from magic. To see the fumes waft off a mage casting fire spells would be something to see let alone all the eerie feels you could create with an enhanced graphics engine. Blizzard would not half-ass WoW if they were to upgrade the graphics.

[Cerah]

I think the graphics in WoW are pretty good, and not really "cartoony" at all. If you want cartoony, look at Warcraft III or Zelda: The Windwaker. I don't want them to update the graphics in WoW ... it would require me to buy a new computer if they did, and I can't really justify spending money on a new computer just for a game, when my current laptop is perfectly functional.

I used my grandfather's hand-me-down mid-nineties laptop until it literally died. That bugger lasted me halfway through university! I have the same not-at-all-flatscreen 12-inch TV and radio alarm clock I've had since grade 6, and I still have a small collection of cassette tapes and a functioning tape player. To hell with this "give me the latest X technology or it's crap" culture we live it. I keep electronics for as long as I possibly can!

I'm also a classic gamer, and proud of it. There's still 8 and 16-bit NES and SNES titles I play fairly regularly, and enjoy -- I'm currently replaying Final Fantasy 6 as a Natural Magic game (only Terra and Celes use magic, and only the spells they learn as they level. Everyone else uses their own character abilities). Graphics don't make the game for me, not by a long shot.

[Novikova]

I'm glad I'm not the only one who still likes sprites. XP

[Saturo]

Elder Scrolls: Arena. 'Nuff said.
Also, SNES! <3

That said, I definitely think a graphical UPGRADE is in order, not an overhaul though. The style of graphics in WoW is perfectly fine, but some of the models and the physics (oh, the PHYSICS. ABHORABLE.) need an upgrade. For example, all the old races look EXTREMELY outdated next to the goblins and worgen, hell, even the belves and the draenei suffice for that comparison. It doesn't make the game, though. Nice graphics are a sizable plus, but it's nowhere near required. As long as I can see what's happening everything is fine to me. The problem with WoW recently is that it's starting to focus on the bad players, meaning that Blizz are doing everything they can to dumb it down. Hell, Ghostcrawler has stated that he wants our actionbars to only be half-full, if that. That's bullshit to me. -.-

[Lisaara]

Elder Scrolls: Arena. 'Nuff said.
Also, SNES! <3

That said, I definitely think a graphical UPGRADE is in order, not an overhaul though. The style of graphics in WoW is perfectly fine, but some of the models and the physics (oh, the PHYSICS. ABHORABLE.) need an upgrade. For example, all the old races look EXTREMELY outdated next to the goblins and worgen, hell, even the belves and the draenei suffice for that comparison. It doesn't make the game, though. Nice graphics are a sizable plus, but it's nowhere near required. As long as I can see what's happening everything is fine to me. The problem with WoW recently is that it's starting to focus on the bad players, meaning that Blizz are doing everything they can to dumb it down. Hell, Ghostcrawler has stated that he wants our actionbars to only be half-full, if that. That's bullshit to me. -.-

Totally agreed. Graphics need some major updates....Taurens(males in particular) would like to have a neck and male Draenei might like to have some wrists. Just a thought.

I really wish Blizz would incorporate something that Totalbiscuit suggested -- quests that actually TEACH YOU to play the class you've chosen and the spec you picked(or hell, make you learn the basics of all three specs at the very least).

[Nanotrev]

I'm not talking about seeing the light bounce off the moistness of an eye should an animal that has some sort of glow to it float on by. I'm talking about making everything slightly upgraded to the point of having a nice engine that computers can handle easily. Grass that sways in the wind depending on environmental factors and having the bare bones of things just look better. I want a tree stump to actually look like a tree stump and have some nice detail to it. I want my human to be just as detailed as a goblin. I want mountains. I don't want blobs of hardened mashed potatoes in place of them like what we have now.

Also...

Post on that first link! Posting here will get us nowhere, and if you think you have good, positive input of what could be done then give it the go-ahead! Don't post on NEGATIVE things though. This is just a thread on the official forums where ideas are brought across. What could be done to improve the game? The greater portion of developers do not visit other forums. There's one we know of here that sometimes spontaneously pops in without letting us know. He may not even visit anymore.

http://us.battle.net/wow/en/forum/topic ... 5?page=1#5

There's more than graphics to fix. New things to do are up there too as well as the player base needing to get out of the capital cities and have things to do in the older zones other than leveling professions. Just take a visit and give it a try.

[AdamSavage]

It would be nice to simply pick a toon to go do a heroic with or a raid vs picking the best geared one. I don't think I will ever have 2 toons equally geared. I always have one toon that's far better geared then my others. That toon is usually my hunter. It's always been something I've wanted as trying to gear up more then one toon just sucks. Some people can do it and all the power to them. Right now my druid is only geared up because I've gotten it off the AH. I rather farm then run endless heroics to get the gear.

However I highly dought it would ever be possible to simply pick a toon that's equally geared. It would remove a time sink that keeps you playing the game and probably all sorts of other problems.

[Xella]

I would very much like it if female humans got slightly larger feet and hands. Especially compared to... well, every other race/gender combination out there, their hands are TINY. I'm almost tempted to say they're smaller than hands on real humans, though I suspect that's just because my own hands are quite large, and I haven't done the hairline-to-chin test in-game

[cowmuflage]

Well thats better than looking at your toons icon and seeing that they don't have eyes........ Come on I want my god damn cow eyes!