Is WoW Getting Too Easy: What the Trend Toward Casual Gaming Means for You
It’s not a major surprise to anyone who has played WoW in the last two years that the game has been skewing more and more towards being a game for casual players, trying to draw in more players and give them things to do at all levels so they don’t need to devote hours and days at a time to enjoy it. This has certainly worked out for Blizzard and its shareholders, but how well has it worked out for players who have been with WoW since day one? The answer can go either way depending on who you ask.
The Positive Side of the Casual Trend
Casual style play adds a lot of fun things to the game that might otherwise be left out. Changes like Achievements, lower level requirements for mounts, lower XP requirements to get to the higher level content and a slew of special events scheduled year round, all add a great deal of depth and detail to the WoW universe. For hardcore players who spend large blocks of time repeatedly playing through the same area trying to earn that new epic shield or pair of spaulders, or other gear, it is a welcome distraction and adds some depth to your gaming days.
The Negative Side of the Casual Play Trend
On the flip side, all that time spent putting new content into the game in the form of Achievements, non-combat pets, and lower level instances uses up resources that Blizzard could otherwise use to create raiding content and things for more devoted players. Surprisingly, the highest level raid for Level 80 players is significantly easier than the top raids for Level 70. Raid sizes are now 10 and 25 men as well. Players who reached Level 80 days after the expansion came out have been reduced to waiting around for the higher end raids that are eventually coming. In the meantime, these players are stuck grinding Achievement or spending all their time in PvP while they wait..
What Casual Play Means for You
While there are drawbacks as well as benefits, I think attracting casual gamers to WoW benefits us all in the end. Remember that Blizzard needs to make money to stay in business, and more players means more income. With increased income Blizzard also has the resources to keep developing new content for all levels of player. It might seem like the faithful are getting shortchanged, but it is the price we have to pay to give the company the resources to develop new content in the future that might not otherwise get the go ahead.
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