In the middle of a game of Hearthstone last night, the friend I was playing with casually said, “Oh, Shadowlands pre-patch is live. This is a good week”. Now, I have no frame of reference for how good this news actually is but if I take him by his word, then World of Warcraft players are probably stoked that Shadowlands is drawing ever closer and that a new chapter in the saga of The Lich King is nearly upon them. So knowing that the pre-patch was live, I went to go take a look at what it all included, just so I could save you WoW players some time and the effort of looking up all the changes and additions yourself.
The biggest change comes in the way players will level new characters as the level cap has been dropped from 120 to 60 for new characters, meaning that the time to grind them up to max level has dropped significantly. You’ll also be able to level up in an entirely new zone, Exile’s Reach, so you want to have to grind through all those drab, familiar environments we’re all so tired of at this point. According to PC Gamer, Exile’s Reach does a much better job of introducing new players into the current World of Warcraft loop, so newer players will be able to enjoy their more tailored introduction and veterans will at least have something new to look at.
Once you’ve reach level 10, you can run off and complete Battle for Azeroth, the game’s latest expansion. If that doesn’t tickle your fancy and you’ve already played the game before, you can choose to rather do one of the older expansions which, from the sound of things, most WoW players would prefer.
You’ll also no doubt notice the hordes of undead running around the world, which serves as a cool nod to the Wrath of the lich King expansion many years ago. You can earn some cool loot and limited-time rewards by slaying these undead nuisances or even becoming one yourself! How long this event is running is yet to be seen but given how Shadowlands was delayed from its original 26 October launch to the general time frame of “later this year”, I have to assume all those zombies will either disappear or grow even stronger when the expansion finally drops.
Last Updated: October 14, 2020
Viper_ZA
October 14, 2020 at 10:51
Wish I could get into this, still not capable of playing a MMO as yet :/
Kenn Gibson
October 14, 2020 at 11:35
I have played WoW since launch, Guildwars 2 as well.
However the last few expansions for WoW I have played at the end of the expansion, (last 6 months), that way all the content is in the game, the catch up systems that allow you to get reletively powerful are in the game, you are able to do all the content you want basically. GW2 is a grindfest though its purchase without a monthly sub so it fills the gaps when I want to play online. Having said that. I have friends that play both games so I do have groups to play with at any given time.
Shadowlands looks great. Will play but probably towards the end of 2021.
For the Emperor!
October 14, 2020 at 11:03
It starts feeling like a full time job after a while. And some content is difficult (or not fun) to do without a guild or group of friends. I tried getting back into it in Legion, but it did not last through that entire expansion. However – If you find the right group to play with, of course, the experience can be great, as it was in the past before cable-theft got me out of it.
I rather play many different games now and do 3 or 4 D&D sessions a week with 1 or 2 Warhammer 40K sessions, and fitness stuff.
Again, If you find the right group to play with, of course, the experience can be great, as it was in the past before cable-theft got me out of it.
Banana Jim
October 14, 2020 at 11:17
The last time I played WOW was during the Cataclysm expac, and I still remember the day I quit. I had just loaded up the game, and I was about to start one of the dailies when I thought to myself, why am I doing this? I don’t even enjoy this game any more.
I can’t say, I want to play MMOs ever again, although I did solo Neverwinter on the PS4 for a couple of months to platinum. Neverwinter is interesting, because you don’t have to team up with anyone. It’s nice if a friend joins you, but for the most part you can carry on by yourself. I tried Elder Scrolls online a while back. I gave Guild Wars 2 a shot, but WOW ruined MMOs for me.
For the Emperor!
October 14, 2020 at 11:35
Yeah. Only MP game I actually even consider playing these days is Heroes of the Storm, and have not played it in a year. Games, as in life, are best enjoyed Single Player 🙂
For the Emperor!
October 14, 2020 at 11:35
Yeah. Only MP game I actually even consider playing these days is Heroes of the Storm, and have not played it in a year. Games, as in life, are best enjoyed Single Player 🙂
Insomnia is fun
October 14, 2020 at 11:40
Same, I play games when I feel like it. MMOs you have to schedule and if you miss a few games you’re liable to be kicked from the group
Insomnia is fun
October 14, 2020 at 11:40
This isn’t a game, it’s a job. But only when you get to the endgame stuff.
Banana Jim
October 14, 2020 at 11:55
It’s also a job where you get to pay for the pleasure of being in said job…
15 dollahs every month!! https://media2.giphy.com/media/QZmqDHZSuvnbnqiaw8/giphy.gif
For the Emperor!
October 14, 2020 at 12:16
I even forgot about that issue with it. That is why it felt like a job, because you feel you have to “get value” for the subscription. I believe in China they had to change the subscription model to something like you only pay for the time you play. If they did that…