modern-gamer.com - Returning To WoW

Within my circle of friends, about 4 of us have made the trek back to the lands of World of Warcraft. At first I was a little apprehensive to return to a game that became so stale to me last year. Yet after playing the game for a few hours I can truly say I'm happy with the changes and the additions. This is why I've dusted off my level 60 Undead Warlock, jumped into the Outlands and drooled over the idea of hitting the icy lands of Northrend. I only hope the new expansion keeps my interest long enough to get into the end game content. Along the way I might even create a new character or even break out my level 70 human Warlock. Join me for the next few weeks as I get back into one of the most popular video games ever made.

During my time in the World of Warcraft I first leveled an Undead Warlock to level 60, pre-Burning Crusade. Shortly before the release of the Burning Crusade I was invited with a few friends to join a large Alliance guild on another realm. Because of my interest in the then newer end game content I leveled an Alliance character. To do this in quick fashion I leveled a class I aready had a good grip on and brought a Human Warlock to 70. I had a good time with some of the Burning Crusade content, but after I hit 70 I didn't get into the endgame content. I slowly became unhappy with the game and made the decision to leave the World of Warcraft. This wasn't an easy decision, but I felt it was the right one at the time. My real world friends had left the game and while the guild I was in did welcome me with open arms, I just stopped caring about the game. The additional content was too much of a time sink and I just didn't have the time or passion to bother. Spending multiple hours questing to get "keyed" for an instance only to wait hours to find a pick-up group stopped being but. To finally play the quest on my time felt like an impossibility. My guild would run instances, but I would have to wait my turn to do endgame instances. Which was fine and understandable. Along with players having to wait almost a week to return to most high level content, I felt like I missed out on too much of the then new Burning Crusade expansion. So with the inability to sit with the cool kids at the lunch table, I just left the game unhappy and angry.

A year later and I still felt a little jaded by WoW, but I began to hear stories of the new changes in-game and overall fixes. These changes to the game just made WoW sound better and better. It sounded so good that I had a hard time saying no to reactivating my account. No more getting keyed for instances, no long waits to get back into instances, achievements and a new class made re-joining WoW easy. I wasn't sure if I was going to like the game at first, but I wanted to see the changes for myself. Which is why I came back, but since all my friends have re-joined the Horde, it would mean I need to break out my trusty Undead Warlock and get through the Burning Crusade. I was told this too would be easier, I just hope stories are true.

Over the next few weeks I'll keep you posted on my progress in the World of Warcraft and the Wrath of the Lich King expansion. I won't say it's a full out review of the new contain, just my impressions of the game as I go through it. The game has changed too much and I would spend too much time talking about small updates that have been implemented before the start of the new expansion. So if you're a current WoW player, this review might not be for you. If you've played the game in the past or you're thinking about joining the millions of others in the World of Warcraft I hope this helps you make your decision.

Written by Kevin Kaminsky
Saturday, 10 January 2009
Within my circle of friends, about 4 of us have made the trek back to the lands of World of Warcraft. At first I was a little apprehensive to return to a game that became so stale to me last year. Yet after playing the game for a few hours I can truly say I'm happy with the changes and the additions. This is why I've dusted off my level 60 Undead Warlock, jumped into the Outlands and drooled over the idea of hitting the icy lands of Northrend. I only hope the new expansion keeps my interest long enough to get into the end game content. Along the way I might even create a new character or even break out my level 70 human Warlock. Join me for the next few weeks as I get back into one of the most popular video games ever made. During my time in the World of Warcraft I first leveled an Undead Warlock to level 60, pre-Burning Crusade. Shortly before the release of the Burning Crusade I was invited with a few friends to join a large Alliance guild on another realm. Because of my interest in the then newer end game content I leveled an Alliance character. To do this in quick fashion I leveled a class I aready had a good grip on and brought a Human Warlock to 70. I had a good time with some of the Burning Crusade content, but after I hit 70 I didn't get into the endgame content. I slowly became unhappy with the game and made the decision to leave the World of Warcraft. This wasn't an easy decision, but I felt it was the right one at the time. My real world friends had left the game and while the guild I was in did welcome me with open arms, I just stopped caring about the game. The additional content was too much of a time sink and I just didn't have the time or passion to bother. Spending multiple hours questing to get "keyed" for an instance only to wait hours to find a pick-up group stopped being but. To finally play the quest on my time felt like an impossibility. My guild would run instances, but I would have to wait my turn to do endgame instances. Which was fine and understandable. Along with players having to wait almost a week to return to most high level content, I felt like I missed out on too much of the then new Burning Crusade expansion. So with the inability to sit with the cool kids at the lunch table, I just left the game unhappy and angry. A year later and I still felt a little jaded by WoW, but I began to hear stories of the new changes in-game and overall fixes. These changes to the game just made WoW sound better and better. It sounded so good that I had a hard time saying no to reactivating my account. No more getting keyed for instances, no long waits to get back into instances, achievements and a new class made re-joining WoW easy. I wasn't sure if I was going to like the game at first, but I wanted to see the changes for myself. Which is why I came back, but since all my friends have re-joined the Horde, it would mean I need to break out my trusty Undead Warlock and get through the Burning Crusade. I was told this too would be easier, I just hope stories are true. Over the next few weeks I'll keep you posted on my progress in the World of Warcraft and the Wrath of the Lich King expansion. I won't say it's a full out review of the new contain, just my impressions of the game as I go through it. The game has changed too much and I would spend too much time talking about small updates that have been implemented before the start of the new expansion. So if you're a current WoW player, this review might not be for you. If you've played the game in the past or you're thinking about joining the millions of others in the World of Warcraft I hope this helps you make your decision.