World of Warcraft: Current Year

I have 11 90s with every prof covered and I've done 0 dailies on my alts, ever. Luckily my main is a tailor/enchanter, which are the only profs that have recipes locked behind rep. Alchemy, JC, and inscription are all recipes discovered daily. BS and leatherworking recipes are bought for spirits, which you can grind on your farm (I got enough just leveling 85-90) - well the belt buckle recipe is klaxxi rep, but I don't really min-max enough to give a shit about belt buckles (and you can grind out the rep in 3 hours of questing). So not sure why you are so worried about dailies, even the tailor/enchant ones are a joke now since people have driven the end items to the ground, they were good only for the first few weeks to make money. I ended up equipping every 28 slot bag I made since I didn't want to sell them for the 4500g they were going on the AH (12 freaking silks!)

The best though has been inscription, I've made another 100k or so this week from selling DMF cards from 4 inscriptors. Every month I think the cards are going to be worthless, but every month they sell like hotcakes. Its way better just selling cards, I made about 6 decks and had another 50-60 cards, the cards all sold within 24 hours but I still have 3 decks to sell over the next 3 weeks.

Ao-_sl said:

How'd you get the farm up for the spirits without doing dailies? Or are you doing just 4 spirits a day (so 1 spirit every 2.5 days)?

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needs revered before you can buy the spirit-giving seeds

Reposting this here because any mention of Blizzard, WoW or actually, any shitty Blizzard designer who might be reading needs to fucking read this article til their eyes bleed. Then read it again. Then apologize to every single gamer for their epic, colossal fuck up.

Rathe Council as cockblocked content? Fucking please.

What Games Are: The Fun Boson Does Not Exist

The tragedy of social games is that the companies involved discovered the greatest distribution tool in the history of the industry, and yet proved inept at providing great games to go with it.

Mostly it's about development culture. The thinking behind social games is not unlike the thinking behind television. The bean counters in TV land tend to think that there is a number, perhaps not yet discovered, that will one day explain television viewing to them. They believe that attaining viewers is a process, entertaining them is a process, and that if only the right measurement and formula can be found, television would become a predictable industry.

In the absence of that number they look at ratings, demographic data and viewing patterns and try to infer what it might be. They build products based on that inference, to make shows which satisfy those numbers. And when that doesn't work they fall back to copying other successful show formats and trying to put a spin on them, just like casinos do. And that culture becomes circular and inward-looking over time, so eventually that's all they know how to do.

Fun games are a little bit like those chaotic systems that produce beautiful fractals. In some games the balance between all the mechanics produces an inherently exciting set of outcomes, but are hard to predict just from looking at their rules. They have to be played to see what does and doesn't work, to be genuinely iterated upon in the true sense of the lean startup (not just built) and allowed to be validated in their dynamics. Everything else is just nonsense.

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Dumar_sl said:

Reposting this here because any mention of Blizzard, WoW or actually, any shitty Blizzard designer who might be reading needs to fucking read this article til their eyes bleed. Then read it again. Then apologize to every single gamer for their epic, colossal fuck up.

Rathe Council as cockblocked content? Fucking please.

What Games Are: The Fun Boson Does Not Exist

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The problem is that most video game devs (and corporate america in general) are stuck in a never ending circle jerk of CYA (cover your ass). The reason why manager guy X demands numbers and accountability from designer A is so he has a reasonable cover if things blow up. In a way, it's the same exact mentality as to why most of the coaches in the NFL are braindead stupid and don't go for it on 4th and short in an opponents territory. Why? Because the socially acceptable (and therefore least likely to get you fired) play in that situation is to punt -even when makes no sense.

Going with the status quo is far more defensible on a professional level than trying something new. If you go with something that's worked in the past and has numbers to back it up, you can claim that you were diligent and following things up to the best of your ability. If you go with something innovative and fail,you will be scapegoated and firedas a result of that decision. Only by blending in and not making yourself stand out can you avoid being blamed in the event of a failure.

Mind you, all of the above really, really sucks. But it's more or less inevitable when many of people responsible for green lighting risky decisions aren't actually going to be significantly better off if the risk succeeds. Remember that the manager/producer types in most companies aren't necessarily going to be making more money beyond their usual salary if their game is wildly successful. However, if the game completely bombs, they'll be the first targets of questioning. If that questioning reveals that they took risks for the industry they were in, their jobs are pretty much fucked.

The industry simply rewards maintaining a mediocore average far more than it does having ups and downs. If you stay average, everyone keeps their job. If you have a flop, people get fired becausesomeonehas to be blamed. It's a culture that's not likely to change anytime soon.

Dumar_sl said:

Reposting this here because any mention of Blizzard, WoW or actually, any shitty Blizzard designer who might be reading needs to fucking read this article til their eyes bleed. Then read it again. Then apologize to every single gamer for their epic, colossal fuck up.

Rathe Council as cockblocked content? Fucking please.

What Games Are: The Fun Boson Does Not Exist

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This is why there is, as yet, no social game that has achieved the genuine love and admiration of a World of Warcraft

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Nice article.

Psst. "Social game" in this context means "Facebook game". Just FYI.

Ao-_sl said:

How'd you get the farm up for the spirits without doing dailies? Or are you doing just 4 spirits a day (so 1 spirit every 2.5 days)?

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I've actually never bought any patterns (except one to level to 600) on my BS/LW, they are just there in case I ever decide to switch mains or if a good BS/LW pattern appears. The BMAH (and normal AH) also sells the 496 patterns. But yeah, I had about 6 SOA's by the time I hit 90 on each of them. I am actually at 12 or 16 plot farm on all my chars so all my guys can buy their farms in 5.2, but I let my kids do the farming shit a few times a week, just pulling plants gives you 500-1500 rep (depending on 4 8 or 12) a day when you buy the double rep token, over a couple of weeks it adds up fast. The little "voting: go do a favor for farmer X" quests give tons of rep too when you get them. You don't need to do any of the valley dailies to hit exalted with the Tillers, just planting and pulling will get you there within 10-30 days.

Dumar_sl said:

Reposting this here because any mention of Blizzard, WoW or actually, any shitty Blizzard designer who might be reading needs to fucking read this article til their eyes bleed. Then read it again. Then apologize to every single gamer for their epic, colossal fuck up.

Rathe Council as cockblocked content? Fucking please.

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So that article shits on "social game" designers for basically failing to capture the essence of what actually makes a fun game.

One of the first comments is a good one: "There is one of the most simple game play elements missing in most Facebook games: being able to lose. Without being able to avoid losing, there is little sense of achievement in staying in the game."

Not sure why you're posting that in a WoW thread. Did you read the whole article. Last paragraph:

Unlike every other major game revolution (arcade, console, PC, casual, MMO, etc.), social game developers have proved consistently unable to understand that fun is dynamic in this way. This is why there is, as yet, no social game that has achieved the genuine love and admiration of aWorld of Warcraft, an Angry Birds, a Plants vs Zombies or a Super Mario Galaxy. They are hunting for the fun boson, but it does not exist.

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?

Love this game great way to keep in touch when half your family play

I just can't believe how stupid the player base is. I just came back from a long break and have been tanking LFD as a paladin. There is no communication anymore, there is no concept of how to play your class, it's basically EZ mode. I remember the problem before being it was so easy 1-80, but then as soon as 80 hit you actually needed to know encounters and how to play your class.

I remember atleast in EQ/UO etc even the assholes were intelligent and good at what they did, generally.

Well, they learned a harsh lesson via subs lost when they made entry level content even a little challenging. They're probably scared shitless of making missteps like the initial Garalon LFR encounter again.

They've basically migrated that kind of play/experience to challenge modes, brawler's guild and progression raiding.

Firemonkey69_sl said:

Love this game great way to keep in touch when half your family play

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+1

DeadAgain!?_sl said:

I just can't believe how stupid the player base is. I just came back from a long break and have been tanking LFD as a paladin. There is no communication anymore, there is no concept of how to play your class, it's basically EZ mode. I remember the problem before being it was so easy 1-80, but then as soon as 80 hit you actually needed to know encounters and how to play your class.

I remember atleast in EQ/UO etc even the assholes were intelligent and good at what they did, generally.

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This. When I was leveling to 90 ( a while after MoP came out) as a prot warrior and doing dungeons I hadn't done before, people would just get pissed that I was trying to explain that "shit, maybe the dps should focus the mob that's healing the boss"... or.. "Hey dps that kees on dying.. I'm in purps from the last expansion, but I can only hold aggro on the 20 extra mobs you pulled if you focus on a mob that I have more threat on than you do".. etc..

All I gotta say is look at old scholomance vs new scholomance, with that direction in mind I will never be coming back to the game.

Hand_sl said:

All I gotta say is look at old scholomance vs new scholomance, with that direction in mind I will never be coming back to the game.

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Out of curiosity...what is the change of direction between the old vs. new?

Less bullshit trash? ;p

I was never a fan of the original Scholomance. Too much trash clear just to get the keys so you could fight Gandling.

Old school scholo was a lot like BRD; a lot of bosses, little bits of tricks and additional things that you could get to unlock more rewards or more bosses. I don't know if I prefer new scholo to old scholo, but that's just nostalgia talking. Overall, less trash and a more streamlined dungeon makes for a happier me, but it's a bit sad thinking I'll never do an epic scholo run again.

Also Spronk, I think at some point your apologist attitude is going to have to lean a bit towards the opposite side. Just because you chose not to do any rep grinds on alts, or had your "kids" do it, or your main had the two professions gated behind rep doesn't make it "ok", "fun" or "worthwhile". You're usually in the right with getting people to calm down when their anger over something in the game becomes full blown rage, but white knighting shit mechanics should not be something you get up in arms for.

A lot of people in this thread seem to be the type who like to take care of themselves; ie only have alts to level professions so they don't have to rely on anyone else for enchants, gems, etc. Even if we discount that only tailoring/enchanting are behind reps (which are behind golden lotus btw, let's not forget it's shado pan and august celestials for weapon enchants and wrist enchants respectively) the rest of them are behind spirits - which aren't hard to get, but are farmed either by dailies, tillers (Which is still grinding) or straight up farming. Fuck that.

Even afterwards, leatherworking and engineering still require spirits for their enchants - so if I want to make a leg pattern for someone in my guild, i have to farm that spirit for them? Whattttt? Hunter needs a rifle enchant...well fuck.

Not everything in the game sucks, that's true. But this whole rep bullshit, the way items and gear is stacked, dailies blah blah blah, was a step in the wrong direction. The fact that anyone who is on the opposite side of the fence has only bullshit excuses (My kids farm for me, I only did it slowly, my main has the major professions) only continue to reinforce the stupidity, not mitigate it.

And sorry, but upgrading gear via valor points is fucking stupid. All they've done is throw you a few scraps, when previously a new teir came out with a new crop of valor to farm for, and then you were DONE. You are spending half of the valor on one upgrade for 4 ilvl points that you would have on a real item in the old system. And you're doing this just to get into the next LFR.

This system is fucking whack; whoever decided this was the new vision for blizzard should be castrated.