Gaming after WoW, struggling to put one finger in front of the other

I'll never forget one of the most boring nights of my life. I had a fileplanet paid account, and was just looking for something to do. I had completely passed by the WoW closed beta test, thinking that orcs and dwarves was just not my thing. Long story short, I ended up becoming curious about it. So I downloaded it. Like heroin, the first time I stepped foot in the game, aside from all my previous hesitation towards the genre, I was addicted full blown. I was a warlock at first, getting a pet (imp) that followed me around was probably the coolest thing I had seen in a while in a game. I felt some sort of companionship with my little computer programmed creature. Where ever I went, he just danced behind me and followed. It was great. Still, I had no idea exactly what this game was. I just loved the art direction the game followed, it really opened my eyes up to a whole new playing field. Being as cynical as I was at the time towards games of this nature, WoW instantly put me into submission.

When closed beta ended, I waited like a fiend for open beta. I knew I wasn't even playing the game right, but I had not a care in the world. I was blown away by the attractions that even the starting areas had to offer. I knew there was a game progression, and if it only got better, I had to see it. When open beta ended, I swear the month or two before it launched officially was hell. I remember reading everything I could about the game, watching videos, just staying involved however I could. I played City of Heroes to help pass the time. I had people emailing me that I had met during beta, all trying to coordinate which server our group of friends would be playing on. Thinking back, it was insane being so excited for a video game. Some people look forward to a number of things, maybe finishing school and getting a degree, or having their first child born. Here I am, aggravated by my own impatience, and dieing for a video game to be released. Amazing to say the least.

When WoW officially released, I bought two copies. I passed one on to my good friend, which was a somewhat early birthday present. He had never played it, and vaguely knew what it was. I figured I was doing him a favor, showing him the game that I swore was probably the best thing next to Affleck's performance in Phantoms (snoogins lol.) He still plays to this day, and I don't really blame myself for it. Most likely, he would've stumbled across it anyway. I had rolled on a roleplaying server. I have no shame in admitting that I had no idea between the different server types, and was informed by my beta friends to go there. The sheer amount of players was unbelievable. The early zones were absolutely packed. It was so bad, we had groups of people waiting for the simplest of mobs to spawn. It would take nearly a half an hour to finish a quest that would take less than five minutes to complete today. Looking back, those times were the best. There was no Molten Core, no Blackwing Lair. It was just a bunch of absolute scrubs running around like a chicken with its head cut off.

The game never got dull. Just when you might have become numb in the head from quests, a raid of horde characters would show up and battle us for hours. It was always hilarious to be chased back to a town, then see guards easily dispatching the low level horde characters in a few swings of their sword's. There was no strategy, just two mobs of people going after each other, with tons of players most likely just pressing whatever attack button they could. There were no 'pros', no gear imbalance. The worst thing you had to deal with was someone of higher level. It was to me the best times WoW had to offer. If you missed out on it, sadly you'll never know.

An mmo like WoW really delivers a lot of experiences. Some of the best for me were the simplest of features provided by the players. My roleplaying server really served up some excitement. I had never seen anyone role play in a video game, or in life for that matter. Events would be held where 20 or more people would get together and act out fantasies. These people were adamant about their rp, and some guilds really enforced you to be in character. Horde vs Alliance roleplaying scenarios would be created through guilds, whether it was a guild versus another of opposite faction, or trying to get a certain character through a zone without getting killed. We had some fun ideas. Throughout my term in WoW, being on pvp and rp, I'd easily say the rp server was more fun. Before leaving WoW, rp had really gone south, and was pointless to even try to perform. The players had become gear hungry, and forum discussion pretty much become a place for people to find raiding guilds, or complain about someone in a pvp related problem. The game quickly shifted to an epeenfest, to who was further in progression, or who had the better gear.

Surviving both expansions, and experiencing a lot of raid bosses, loot, and arena seasons. I finally decided my time was up. Letting my addiction go was a beautiful thing. WoW didn't have a negative impact on my life. Maybe it did the first year I played it, since I was so devoted. Throughout the times, I'd mainly sign on for a raid. Or if my wife was out, and I had the house to myself, I'd pvp in the battlegrounds. Still, being casual was a time sink. These days, I have better things to do with my time, like spend it with my newborn son.

A lot of people like to tease others to get out of the house more. Especially to people who have become social outcasts due to WoW. The bottom line, going out can cost you a lot of money. When my wife played a resto druid, she loved the game (during tbc.) We saved so much money by getting our dose of fun through WoW. When we go out to our favorite restaurant (Carrabba's) we can easily drop a hundred on food and drinks. A single martini can run you eight or nine bucks. If we want a 'real good time', we definitely pay for it. You have to have some fun in your life, and sometimes it costs. WoW made it easy to save money. If you ever complain about monthly fees to play an mmo, you have to understand that you're paying pennies on the dollar for entertainment. Even the movies these days cost a ridiculous amount, and for one trip to the movies with a special someone, you could be looking at thirty dollars. Thats two hours worth of entertainment, when WoW was basically the same on a monthly scale, and you could get in as many hours as your playing time allowed.

Still, my favorite hobby is gaming. I grew up on it. I'm 27 now, and I'll probably be gaming until my eye's fall out. Being completely over WoW has made my hobby a difficult one to thoroughly enjoy. Perhaps I don't see that I'm just outgrowing video games, or perhaps WoW was so much fun that I'm having a hard time adjusting back to my console. After WoW, I became a pretty frequent customer at Gamestop. I was ripping through game after game, and burning a hole in my wallet. I could beat any game in less than a few nights. I've really calmed down my spending these days, and I've resorted to renting from Blockbuster maybe once or twice a month when I feel like playing something.

WoW was absolutely captivating, regardless of class imbalance, people crying over pvp, or whatever it is people are doing right now. Until you quit WoW, you really forget what the other side of gaming has to offer.. and when you realize this, you soon realize how special WoW was during its prime. In my opinion, it simply could not be touched in value. I doubt any game will grab my attention like WoW did, and anything branded 'mmo' I will be avoiding. My time is real important now.

Sorry if there is any weird spacing. My browser doesn't seem to like this website =( Sincere thanks to those of you who made it through this story

I cant understand how something like Wii Sports will surpass the genius that is Super Mario Bros.

sadly though it probably will....

Darkman2007

It should be easy. Times change, population grows. There's a much larger consumer base for video games now than there was when super mario hit. Next, I really take a games sales numbers with a grain of salt. I remain very suspicious about the truth behind the numbers.

That's a pretty broad question. Personally, each console over the years has had at least one game I absolutely hated.

The twisted metal that was designed by 989 studios. Absolute rubbish compared to the first 2 whom were designed by the original team.

I'm pretty sure that was one of the worst games I ever played.