I remember when World of Warcraft was in beta.  The original beta, I mean.  Oh, a lot of the spells/skills didnt work, quests were bugged, some items had weird graphical glitches, and such.  Then again, it was only a shadow of the game it is now.  Even with buggy graphics, lag like a semi with eighteen flat tires, and balancing issues that would make the Chinese gymnastic team puke, I knew that the game would be a smash hit (actual quote: "This game reeks! If this thing lasts more than two weeks, it'll be a miracle..").

Okay, so maybe I didnt think it would be the massive entity that it is now.  But I definitely knew that the game was going places (actual quote: "this game is going right into the trash").  Anyway, the game launched, and heroes were born.  (We call them nerds in the real world).  Now, I'll be the first to admit, I was on the fence about picking it up ("I'm not buying that piece of crap!"). I was also engrossed in the newly released Everquest II, a game which made Everquest I look like King's Quest V.

As I had predicted, the game took off, partly due to its engrossing gameplay, its user friendly interface, and the general population's everlasting love of lawn gnomes.  The game was a treat, especially for those of us who'd played less than stellar MMO's in the past ("When I was young, all we had was Pong Online, and everyone's character was the same!").

Fast forward a couple years and the first expansion, "The Burning Crusade", was released.  Long overdue features were added, like the ability to create solid gold toe rings.  The options for creating your virtual self were expanded too, to sapphire colored demons or pinkish hued elves.  The biggest addition was for experienced players though.  Now you could battle new and more powerful enemies, in a whole new continent.

Now as the game's fourth anniversary is upon us, you could argue that the game has changed a little bit since it was first released.  Eleven million people now populate the servers (That's way more than the entire population of Guam!).  The scene now shifts to the frozen north, and the new continent of Can-err I mean Northrend.  Death Knights now lay waste to everything in their path and spells can now be enhanced with glyphs for truly terrifying effects.  Mages, who once simply turned enemies into sheep, can now turn enemies into penguins.  The horror.

You don't have to be a fan of, or even play World of Warcraft, to notice its effect on the MMO scene, and maybe even the gaming scene as a whole.  Who would have thought that Blizzard, previously known for a little played game named after Mexican wrestler "El Diablo" (take that, "El Guapo"!), would be able to create worlds that enraptured so many and caused so many sleepless nights?  Probably none of us.  Except me. :P