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Welcome
to The
Overpull, Ten Ton Hammer's weekly newsletter that discusses all things
WoW. Want to get it in your inbox each week? Click here to subscribe.
Big news last week was the Celestial Steed, but the preview of the Cataclysm zones was a big hit with the community. BlizzChat gave us a ton of new info about Cataclysm.
The Forsaken in Cataclysm
Excerpt:
Essentially, Kelthuzad placed the Lich King's/Ner'zhuls plague of undeath inside of the grain in the outlaying areas of Lordaeron to prepare for an invasion by the Burning Legion. This grain turned many of the inhabitants into undead soldiers directly commanded by the Lich King and began to spread the plague turning the living into the, well, un-living. Arthas, being a good guy at the time, tried to stop it but somehow found Team Rocket the Scourge to be his new ally after he found a Master Ball and caught Mewthuzad Frostmourne.
This week I could very well talk about the celestial pony or that retarded horse or the scrub pony with due diligence, but I have already done that this week. For the traditional Overpull article that you all so know and love please visit Blizzards Celestial Cash Cow. In its absence, Im going to post my thoughts for this week.
The Warhammer Falls
My topic this week involves the other big piece of MMO news that is quickly being overshadowed by the burning rage of thousands of nerds whining about the scrub pony. As many of you know, Mythic Entertainment had a billing error similar to Dreamhosts billing error of 2008. Everyone who has had a subscription with Mythic had a chance of being charged more than 40 times at whatever subscription bracket they were at.
Most arm chair MMO analysts such as me have predicted that this is the end of Warhammer Online along with Mythic Entertainments brand. Soon well see them in GU Comics dead MMOG fly zapper as Shadowbane and Horizons laugh on. The subscribers have been leaving in droves. No game is worth bounced rent checks or days without your hard earned cash accessible to you. Yet, there is still salvation, and it is on a topic that I was thinking about long before Blizzards maverick move last week.
See, WAR has something called the endless trial. You can level up to level 10, out of 40, which allows you to do the first tier battlegrounds and experience the first main area of the game. You can stay that way forever, or move on out into the wild blue open by giving Mythic your credit card number. Something many are now hesitant to do in light of recent events.
Yet, salvation could come by opening the doors to a DDO type revenue model where you buy access to content, quicker experience, and the usual item shop type items. Sure, it might not work 100% in a game dominated by PvP, but itd be a lot better than to see another AAA title fall and crash.
Especially since there is no other way in my eyes to come out of the tail spin that is, Warhammer? You mean the MMO that comes in 150 easy payments of $14.99?
Endless Trials and Tribulations
I was writing this long before Blizzard released the scrub pony for the community to go into an uproar about. A $25 abomination to everything thats tried and true to our American MMO playing ways. Yet, the apple pie isnt drenched completely in the scent of cash. WoW isnt offering endless trials or some F2P option yet. Its riding a hybrid model where you still have to pay to get on the plane, but extra peanuts are going to cost.
Yet, I ponder, how would it really affect us if Blizzard allowed WoW to have an endless trial? How many of your friends want to play WoW with you but dont have credit cards or the spare cash to pay essentially 150 long distance minutes at 10 cents a minute each month? The economy is still rough and people arent so willing to add another bill to the already piling stack on the kitchen table.
Imagine it, your friends being able to play with you forever stuck at level 19. You could make an alt, play the battlegrounds with them, and they could quit whenever they wanted. If you didnt want to pay anymore, say you wanted to hop to another game, there would still be the ability to play your alts. Itd be something that allowed everyone to stay connected but wouldnt unbalance the game in any major way.
Sure, WAR only did it because the subscribers dropped off at an alarming rate with the patented MMO trend that seems to happen to everything that has released since WoW blessed our computers. Yet, I see a lot of promise in incorporating more of these unique ideas in order to help keep the WoW community healthy and strong.
What Else Is Blizzard Going to Sell
Im calling it now folks, Overcloaks, the new feature coming up in the next patch will be their big thing in the shop. I can see it now, cosmetic changes to your characters outfit for a low payment of $10. Every console game has pretty much done it and Im actually very guilty of giving up some of my Microsoft space money to snag a new outfit in a game Im playing where you stare at the character for a deceitfully long period of time.
Yet, thats sort of pushing the envelope. The community is already at edge crying foul for that stupid horse. What would they do if the store was full of items such as the Murloc on your shoulder, turn your weapon into a glowing gunblade, or give yourself an amazing glowing aura? I smell riots in the virtual streets as players explode foaming at the mouth, throwing their bags of Cheetos and crushing their empty Mountain Dew cans in rage.
Perhaps they may add virtual Mountain Dew cans and interject advertising into the game as well. Imagine Coca-Cola signs hanging outside of Orgrimmar, the Stormwind jousting tournament brought to you by Axe bodyspray, and the Undercity giving out free samples of Hershey Chocolates new undeath flavored chocolate.
Whatever they do, I trust them enough to steer the ship in the right direction. You cant please everyone and WoW is a game famous for having the majority of the players angry about something or another. Whatever they add well adapt. Well become stronger. That or well quit and go play something else. Such is the industry.
This may also apply to whatever new game they have in the works, but that's for a different Overpull.
Thats this weeks Overpull folks. Come on over to the Ten Ton Hammer forums to rant and rave or talk about what brands youd like to see in the WoW of the future.
-David "Xerin" Piner
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