When I logged onto World of Warcraft Classic for the first time last week (August 28th, 2019), a s**t load of memories came flooding back. Though I was a late arrival to the online game (joining around the release of Wrath of the Lich King), the environments, characters and graphic design I'd fallen in love with all those years ago were right back in front of me.
It's no secret that retail WoW has lost subscribers in recent years. Later expansions have been criticised for their content, and though gamers have returned to check out if things are changing, they often don't stick around for too long. I was one of those players. I stuck it out through Cataclysm and even much of Mists of Pandaria, but that was when my WoW journey came to a screeching halt.
So to be given the opportunity to go right back to the very beginning, and play the game as it was built when I was just 12-years-old, was something I had to jump at.
Accomplishment is something you'll feel at a number of times levelling up your first character. It takes some time to reach Level 60, but that's not a terrible thing. Rather than rushing through, you read through your quests and have to take real notice of what you're being asked. If you're playing without addons that show you where you can pick up new missions, and where you need to hand things in, then there's a real challenge of exploration. Rediscovering these beautifully-designed worlds is a treat.
It'd be fair to say that the community on Classic is a true reflection of modern-day society: let's just hope that moderators and staff working behind-the-scenes are ensuring that the comfort of players is at the forefront of their priorities.
If there's one place that many believe they can get away with absolutely anything, it's in a massively multiplayer online role-playing game. Racist, homophobic, and sexist slurs are just some of what you can come to expect if you're logging into an MMORPG, and as players, we've become conditioned to simply scroll past all of the bigotry and let it pass by.
Don't even try to call it out: for every loud bigot expressing their view in the chat, there are 10 more waiting to jump on the "snowflake" fighting for a better future. It's a harsh landscape, but one we've had to learn to traverse if we're anything other than a cis white straight male. Sure, it makes us uncomfortable, but we've faced so much adversity in life that we're at a point where we'd do anything for a peaceful existence.
It shouldn't be that way, of course. But as the great Naomi Smalls once said, "life's not fair".
It's not all bad, though. There are genuinely super-friendly people who have logged onto Classic, not only enjoying their experience, but hoping to make sure those they come across have a great time as well. Having played for just under a week now, I've come across countless members of the Alliance (stay away Horde scum) who have buffed me whilst running past, stopped me to donate some supplies, or even come back to a questline they've already finished, simply to speed my own completion along.
This sense of togetherness is exactly why Classic works so well. I may gripe about the trolls, but whilst they absolutely do exist, sometimes in their droves, the amount of people willing to work together and enjoy what Blizzard has offered up, far outweighs them. Find those people - your people - and you'll be all set to dominate the lands of Azeroth.
World of Warcraft Classic is available now, at no extra charge to those who pay for a monthly World of Warcraft subscription.
Tagged in World of Warcraft