World of Warcraft: Cataclysm

Before World of WarCraft, there were tons of great MMOs. Ultima Online , Everquest , Shadowbane , Dark Age of Camelot , just to name a few, where I made my first steps. Was Blizzard's game better than them? It is impossible to say that, it is undoubtedly better received on the market. MMO games are usually very difficult to compare, because much depends on the attitude of the players themselves. However, I think I could have a good look at World of WarCraft before and after the expansion, and I am pleased to announce that this list definitely falls in favor of the latest work, "Snow Blizzard".

MMO games are not as user-friendly as typical games for a lone player. The amount of information provided at startup can be overwhelming at times. World of WarCraft has always been characterized by this, and it was probably one of the reasons for the game's success, that it offered a very friendly interface and a fairly clear and transparent introduction to the game. This feature also has Cataclysm and it's fair to say that it has been improved even further. Thanks to this, the new player has a much easier start than before.

Each starting location has been more or less changed and equipped with a storyline that is definitely more complex than before. The starting locations of the Worgen, Goblins and Trolls are real gems and can confidently compete with those in cRPG games. Not graphically, of course, there is also a lack of a voiced dialogue path, but the storyline is a completely different level than what MMO games are used to.

The character development method has also been significantly modified. In the past, our hero's first steps were boring. Mainly because access to interesting skills appeared only in the later stages of the game. It has now been completely rebuilt. We get some interesting abilities practically at the beginning of the game. This makes the gameplay much more entertaining. The downtime between fights was also eliminated. The heroes regenerate both energy and life very quickly, thanks to which the entire process of gaining levels becomes more fluid and dynamic.

However, the plot stands out in the first place. If someone wants to take the time to read the tasks thoroughly, he will have a lot of work ahead of him. If, however, the path to the maximum level is planned to be covered quickly, it is enough to focus on the target points indicated by the built-in quest tracker.

World of WarCraft: Cataclysm is designed to entice as many new users as possible to play. Recently, Blizzard representatives have noticed a disturbing trend, namely - a very large number of new players leave Azeroth after reaching level 10. Cataclysm is one way to reverse this trend.

The developers from Irvine also met the old players, especially those who fondly remember the times of the basic version of the game. The latest additions aimed at making the gameplay easier, which meant that at some stage some, once attractive aspects, ceased to be a challenge and, unfortunately, became boring. Heroic and raid instances were mostly affected by this condition.

But let's start from the beginning, which is new terrain for advanced characters. As in Wrath of the Lich King, we can start the adventure in two different locations. This should allow the initial population to be smaller, but unfortunately it still does not solve most of the problems. For the first hours after the expansion's release, it was difficult to perform any tasks, because the crowds of players were so large that finding a living opponent was almost a miracle. Of course, the situation normalized after a few days, and players who start their adventure with Cataclysm at least a week after the premiere, i.e. today, should not have any problems with it.

The new way of constructing tasks is undoubtedly worth noting. In the past, you could collect 20 of them in one location and perform them in any order, now they are 3, sometimes 4 - and only after completing them, you can proceed to the next stage of the story. Everything has become extremely linear, which is quite unusual for MMO games and does not always have to be liked. However, this has a positive effect on the story, which is coherent, interesting and full of cinematic inserts. This makes all the leveling fun now much more fun. However, this has some disadvantages. If someone rejects the quest or forgets to pick it up from an NPC, it may be difficult to return to it. There are no clear suggestions on where to activate abandoned or missed quests. If for some reason the main storyline is interrupted, even for a moment, then you have to look for quests in large locations, which can be annoying. This aspect of the game, despite some imperfections, has to be counted as a plus. What has always been tiring for many players, i.e. reaching the maximum level, is now much more enjoyable.

The next step in the adventure with World of WarCraft are instances, and they are now much more complicated than what we were used to in the previous expansion. Already during the beta it was noticeable that the difficulty level has been raised significantly, and the fights require much more coordination. The so far neglected skills that made it easier to control opponents (crowd control) have returned to favor again. It must be admitted, however, that not all fixes survived until the premiere of the game. The underground has been slightly changed. The ones intended for 81 levels are a bit easier, but with each successive instance the degree of difficulty increases, so that in the dungeons for 85 levels the bar turns out to be quite high again.

It is no different in the heroic mode, where very good cooperation between players and knowledge of tactics is necessary. The combat mechanisms, even with minor enemies, have been designed in such a way that with much better equipment than currently available, you have to work hard and avoid making mistakes. The times of mindless passing of the instances are probably over and nobody will miss them very much.

The above change is one of the most important from the point of view of gameplay mechanics. For a long time, instances were not spoken of as an interesting challenge, but rather as monotonous, undemanding tasks to be performed on the way to raids. Now the dungeons can be an important and interesting element of the game again. However, there is no doubt that they will eventually become a bit boring too. The whole system of acquiring new equipment is based to a large extent on endlessly repeated trips to instances, and no matter what the dungeons are, we will have enough of them in some time. It must be admitted, however, that the challenges were constructed so interestingly that this moment does not have to come too soon.

PvP in battlegrounds has also returned to favor. So far, the most important aspect of the fight between players have been the arenas. Now this is slowly starting to change, which is a nod to the old gameplay model. Battles on the battlefields are also much better rewarded and team fight (the so-called premade) is rewarded.

Each MMO game is an extremely broad topic and it is impossible to capture all the nuances in the reviews. The thing is that everyone chooses the part of the game that they like the most, and the role of the game is to provide enough possibilities. World of WarCraft: Cataclysm is doing very well in this regard, offering extensive PvE, PvP, crafting skills, wide and varied character development opportunities, as well as a lot of attractions resulting from participation in the guild. There is definitely something to do, and every player who spends a few hours a day in Azeroth will be busy for the next few months.

Now let's look at some technical aspects of the add-on. Of course, the graphics that have not undergone any special changes go to the first fire, although it must be admitted that the modifications that have appeared are by far the largest since 2004. We have the opportunity to admire the new environmental effects - the water looks much better than before, the sun's rays are also visible, which makes a very pleasant impression. Other than that, however, it's the good old World of WarCraft that invariably focuses on engine performance rather than stunning realism. Models of both buildings and characters tend to be a bit angular, which camouflages the textures a bit. All the changes are obviously very pleasing to the eye, but almost every player would like to see something new, especially in terms of character appearance, and there is still no significant improvement here. Although the models of the new races, i.e. the Worgen and the Goblins, are much more detailed than the older ones, these are not very significant differences. However, if we focus on performance on the one hand, and the quality of graphics on the other, then in the case of MMO games, performance should always win, and this is what happens in WarCraft.

Location designs deserved a definite plus. Here the details are less important, what matters is the overall impression. And this is just phenomenal for most of the new areas - I am writing this with full awareness. First of all, the locations themselves are really big, but that's not all. Starting from the underwater Vashj'ir through the underground Deepholm up to Uldum, we are dealing with extremely spectacular areas, which we can admire from the bird's eye view (or from the fish level). In addition, there are a lot of attractions, such as giant earth elementals, coral reefs and pyramids that are remnants of titan technology. It all looks hellishly attractive and you can have a lot of pleasure from simply observing the surroundings.

It is no different in the instances themselves. Each project makes a great impression, and the dungeons are completely different. The first visit to Throne of Tides will remain in my memory for a long time. Before I went there, I had read enthusiastic announcements, but I wasn't prepared for what I saw anyway. Everything looks just beautiful, and the mechanics of boss fights are difficult and interesting at the same time. The situation is similar in other instances - Vortex Pinacle, Halls of Origination or Stonecore sometimes knock you off your feet.

The whole thing is accompanied by nice music that sounds much better than before, while maintaining the characteristic atmosphere of the series. Unfortunately, most of the time it's hard to focus on it anyway, but archeology can help. During the excavations, you can listen to music in practically all locations and put yourself in a very pleasant mood.

World of WarCraft: Cataclysm is by far the best and biggest expansion in the history of the game. It introduces some interesting solutions, the most interesting of which is undoubtedly the possibility of developing your guild. I have not seen such enthusiasm in the guild chat after earning achievements since the time Algalon was killed in Ulduar, which was once quite a challenge. What may be disturbing is the fact that we are still dealing with exactly the same gameplay mechanism. Getting items, taking on tougher challenges, then getting items again and so on. It must be admitted, however, that hardly anyone cares about this, because everyone is too busy having fun, which the average player will probably be able to spend the next few months.

Remigiusz "Rock Alone" Maciaszek

PROS :

MINUSES: