World of Warcraft®

Before I begin what will no doubt be a massive wall of text; I would like to request anyone who is content with the direction WoW is currently heading, please know the proposed changes (if ever implemented, however unlikely) would in no way, shape or form effect how you play the game.

The main inspiration for this post came from the recently released figures of the last quarter, where a staggering 1.1 million subscribers were lost.

The fact that the last quarter ended over a month ago means the lost subs is probably closer to 1.5 million by now.

This got me thinking. I've been playing WoW since vanilla all the way to Cata and immensely enjoyed my time playing.
During WotLK my experience began to sour slightly with the host of new “features” that was introduced and the design philosophy Blizzard was taking with the game.
My hopes were raised with Cata with the rhetoric that raids and HC's were going to be hard again. While I enjoyed the beginning of Cata, the problems from WotLK carried over into the expansion and I began losing interest again. Shortly after DS and LFR was released, I was unsubbed.

So, I thought to myself, what would it take to get me back into the game? But far more importantly, what would it take to get me back into the game that Blizzard could easily implement and that did not conflict with their current design philosophy?

The proposed idea was quite simple and would be ridiculously easy to implement.

Heroic Realms. Similar in how there are PvE and PvP realms, there needs to be a recognized distinction between those who merely wish to see the content and... well, I don't want to say hardcore as it seems to have garnered negative connotations lately, but those seeking a challenge.

But distinction is not the only thing required in my opinion, there needs to be segregation. Forcing the two groups together is just festering deep resentment by both sides. It would be like forcing those from PvE realms and those from PvP realms to play on the same server.

I know some people are going to read into this as another thread asking for vanilla or TBC realms, but there's a distinct difference. HC realms would be identical to current realms content and update wise, just the removal of certain “features”.

The usual excuse of people would get bored of vanilla / TBC realms or the cost of sustaining two development teams obviously does not apply.

Normal Realms

Identical to current retail. It allows people who do not have the time, mindset or skills to see the content they pay for.

Heroic Realms

No LFG or limited to realm only. Perhaps like the early version of LFG like in TBC; where you simply list what dungeon you are looking for and what rolls you fill, and then you could browse this list.
People would whisper you and form groups manually, filling the role of the tool that it was originally intended for; I.e forming connections with people so that you had friends to run with and no longer had to rely on the LFG tool.
Once the group is made, no teleports either, you have to travel either in pairs or in a group to the dungeon to use the summon stone.

No LFR.

Removal of badge / valour points. Obviously, this would mean no more gear vendors (apart from reputation vendors), which in turn means no more one tier of current content. No more gear resets.

Linear raid progression, which the above point would solve.

A return to targeted nerfs aimed at specific boss/add health pools and fight mechanics instead of the current model of scheduled accumulative percentage nerfs across all bosses in a given raid instance.

No “optional” buffs in raids, such as the 30% DS or ICC zone wide buff.

No gating.

Perhaps a flat increase in world mobs damage by 100% or maybe even 200%. I'd say bring back real elites and group quests, but I'm trying to keep to suggestions that require almost no extra developer time.

Disabled flying mounts for the majority of zones. Obviously areas that can only be reached by flying mounts are exempt.

Character transfer restrictions. Like it used to be with PvE and PvP realms, those who leveled on a normal server would be unable to transfer to a HC server.

No heirlooms.

Benefits

Easy to implement. It would require zero extra development time as you will only be removing “features” of convenience.

There are so many dead servers it would take a minuscule amount of effort on Blizzards part to re-purpose these realms into the proposed HC realms. Thus, no expense of setting up new servers.

Segregation of the casual and hardcore would end much of the complaints from both sides. Those who fall in the middle ground have the option of remaining on normal servers where they can turn off the “optional” buffs, ect.

Essentially, this would bring back some world PvP and the early TBC raid progression for HC realms. Obviously those who did not like the linear raid system are free to remain on the normal realms.

I cannot speak for anyone else, but I can say with some certainty if heroic realms were introduced at the start of Cata, I would still be subbed.
I would probably be progressing through firelands at this point in time, with DS to look forward too when we finally cleared Raggy. As you can tell, I am in no way a hardcore raider.
I do not mind that I will not be constantly at the cutting edge of raiding and stepping into new raids the moment they are released. Just because I will not see new raids until a few months (maybe more), after they are released does not make the content any less special or interesting.

This is, of course, completely contrary to Blizzards current design philosophy.

Though after watching beta videos of MoP and reading about the “features” they are introducing, I honestly doubt even the introduction of HC realms would be able to retain my subscription. I would hope to be pleasantly surprised, but throwing away talent trees in MoP for what is essentially the same system they are using in Diablo 3 is a giant leap in the wrong direction, among many other things. But that is a topic for a different thread.

I would also like to pre-empt some common replies that seem to inevitability get copy-pasted when someone asks for more challenging content, which is what this essentially is.

Special Snowflake + variations.

There is nothing wrong with wanting to be unique, inside a game or out of it. I've never understood why people look for ways to belittle others who strive to be the best they can possibly be.

Lost subs are down to the game being old, not the design philosophy.

Everquest is old as sin and is still going strong. Eve online was released long before WoW and has never stopped growing, despite it's rather glacial pace of feature addition. Age of the game is not a valid excuse for lost subscribers or poor design decisions.

You grew up.

This I assume is mainly posted by the younger generation. When I began playing WoW I was 20, an adult in the eyes of almost every country in the world. The majority of people I have interacted with over the past years have been equal or older than myself. I am now 26, married and have a job. My passion for WoW still remains, though just a dull ember rather than the raging inferno it once was. Peoples interest or enthusiasm does not fade when they reach some magical age that constitutes growing up, else my 40+ year old acquaintances would like a word.

If you do not like it, leave.

While this is pants on head retarded and I want to throttle those that say this, the sad fact is people are doing just this, as indicated by the subscriber losses. Also, I have left, this is perhaps the last real effort I'll spend on anything WoW related.

Why do you care what other people do? It does not effect you!

This is perhaps the strongest argument I have heard against the constant nerfs in the game so people can “see the content”, as ironic as it sounds. Exactly that, why do you care that dedicated raiders or the hardcore guilds are clearing tier 13 while you are still half way through tier 11? You will see the content eventually, at your own pace, just not as fast as those who dedicate more time and effort into raiding.



Well, this is the end of my rather long winded post. Apologies for any inconsistency or errors, insomnia is one hell of a drug. When the mild hallucinations begin, you know it is time to concede defeat and take the damn pills.


Please feel free to make suggestions, negative or positive and I will edit them in. All criticism is welcome, as long as it is constructive. Thanks for reading.


Edit: I cannot believe you need to have a current subscription to be able to merely post on the forums. I have bitten the bullet and brought a single months sub, but this will undoubtedly be the last time I pay for WoW unless there is some major changes. I did not even use all the free week I got from the scroll of resurrection... I suppose I can use the time to collect the last shards in ICC and pick up a frostmourne.