(This was a reply to a poster who objected to a recent show, where Starman said that the new 10-man/25-man instance model of the upcoming Wrath of the Lich King expansion might mean that the highest level content might be reachable by casual players, and that more hardcore raiders might not have anything to reach for or unique to do. We got a reply from a listener who objected to his 'elitist' attitude. This was my reply on the subject of hardcore raiding vs. casual raiding).
One of the strengths of our show is exploring different perspectives. Different people have different approaches to the game. That includes the perspective of the raider AND the perspective of the casual.
I am more the casual perspective of the cast, but I can see the points of the raiders. They DO put more time and effort into the game and I do -- and why they do this is not really the point. They simply do. And they believe, and not without some justification, that those who work the hardest at the game and put the most effort into it should get the best rewards. At first, I did not see this perspective either. But if you REALLY believe that everyone needs to accept all play styles, you need to put yourself in their shoes as well.
If the highest level content was available to everyone, even people who, for whatever reason, were not able to invest a lot of time in the game, that sort of defeats the purpose of being a high-level raider. It's about putting the extra effort and time into it that gives them a "high" in the game. If everyone can do it, it's not worth doing.
It sort of reminds me of climbing mountains. Mt. Washington is the highest peak in northeastern United States, at 6,288 feet. I can tell you, since I climbed it in November, that this is a hard climb, especially when you get to the top and the winds are howling at 45mph and there's a whiteout. There is also an access road; you can drive your car up to the top during the nice weather season (not in November). But I can certainly imagine the disappointment if I'd climbed this mountain in season, struggled my way to the top, and saw a parking lot full of overfed tourists looking at me like I'm crazy because, "don't you know there's a road?" (a friend of mine actually got this question on a similar experience climbing Whiteface in New York).
So I laugh every time I see the "This Car Climbed Mt. Washington" bumper stickers, and say my boots need little "These Feet Climbed Mt. Washington" plates. But, I also realize that for some people, for whatever reason, this is the only way they'll get to the top of the mountain. It may be no fault of their own. It may be simple laziness, or they might have small kids, or they may have a physical disability. There are lots of reasons.
But does that mean I want access roads built to the top of all mountains? Hell no. There should be some things that are only for those who have the tenacity and drive to do it themselves. Is this fair? Define fair. Is life fair? If you're hoping everything in life should be available to everyone, no matter what their circumstances, you're going to live with constant disappointment.
So do I mind that I will never see the highest level content? No, because I got to that point through a series of choices and priorities. I choose to place other things over raiding, like spending time with my husband who hates raiding (not that I am that fond of it either), or working on silly experiments for this show. I COULD choose to become a hardcore raider, join a guild with a strict raiding schedule, and see the highest level content, but I would have to make sacrifices in other parts of my life. I choose not to do so.
It's about choices and priorities. And I have come to the conclusion that there needs to be a place for everyone in the game -- including those who choose to make WoW a major priority in their life. And I can't do that if I don't realize that they have to be kept entertained too.
One of the strengths of our show is exploring different perspectives. Different people have different approaches to the game. That includes the perspective of the raider AND the perspective of the casual.
I am more the casual perspective of the cast, but I can see the points of the raiders. They DO put more time and effort into the game and I do -- and why they do this is not really the point. They simply do. And they believe, and not without some justification, that those who work the hardest at the game and put the most effort into it should get the best rewards. At first, I did not see this perspective either. But if you REALLY believe that everyone needs to accept all play styles, you need to put yourself in their shoes as well.
If the highest level content was available to everyone, even people who, for whatever reason, were not able to invest a lot of time in the game, that sort of defeats the purpose of being a high-level raider. It's about putting the extra effort and time into it that gives them a "high" in the game. If everyone can do it, it's not worth doing.
It sort of reminds me of climbing mountains. Mt. Washington is the highest peak in northeastern United States, at 6,288 feet. I can tell you, since I climbed it in November, that this is a hard climb, especially when you get to the top and the winds are howling at 45mph and there's a whiteout. There is also an access road; you can drive your car up to the top during the nice weather season (not in November). But I can certainly imagine the disappointment if I'd climbed this mountain in season, struggled my way to the top, and saw a parking lot full of overfed tourists looking at me like I'm crazy because, "don't you know there's a road?" (a friend of mine actually got this question on a similar experience climbing Whiteface in New York).
So I laugh every time I see the "This Car Climbed Mt. Washington" bumper stickers, and say my boots need little "These Feet Climbed Mt. Washington" plates. But, I also realize that for some people, for whatever reason, this is the only way they'll get to the top of the mountain. It may be no fault of their own. It may be simple laziness, or they might have small kids, or they may have a physical disability. There are lots of reasons.
But does that mean I want access roads built to the top of all mountains? Hell no. There should be some things that are only for those who have the tenacity and drive to do it themselves. Is this fair? Define fair. Is life fair? If you're hoping everything in life should be available to everyone, no matter what their circumstances, you're going to live with constant disappointment.
So do I mind that I will never see the highest level content? No, because I got to that point through a series of choices and priorities. I choose to place other things over raiding, like spending time with my husband who hates raiding (not that I am that fond of it either), or working on silly experiments for this show. I COULD choose to become a hardcore raider, join a guild with a strict raiding schedule, and see the highest level content, but I would have to make sacrifices in other parts of my life. I choose not to do so.
It's about choices and priorities. And I have come to the conclusion that there needs to be a place for everyone in the game -- including those who choose to make WoW a major priority in their life. And I can't do that if I don't realize that they have to be kept entertained too.
4 comments:
Thank you for your voice of reason. For a long time, I've felt that there were only two "real" approaches in the game: raiding or PvP. Your post shows that there are other approaches as well. For some, myself included, this can relieve some of the "raider or nobb" anxiety. My guild recently started raiding Karazhan and it's a laborious endeavor, as you described (I also understand now why some raiding guilds have materials quotas from lowbies). I agree that content should be made available according to level of effort. The game already supports this in the form of instance boss drops, long quest chains and group quests. I sometimes long for the simple days when it was just me and my rogue, travelling the world, relieving mobs of their loot and their tenure on this mortal coil.
I will never believe that it is better to lock people out of content. It is obvious that from the moves they've made in BC and WOLK that Blizzard wants to get the content to the people.
Even Starman could'nt come up with a compelling argument. On the show he said that he didn't like the change because more people would be able to see the content. When you provided the alternate view, his best rebuttal was "Mmmmmmmmmmmmm..."
If raiders are no longer able to feel superior to non-raiders here is the world's smallest violin, playing a symphony just for them.
I'm totally with you ren, priorities are not the same for everyone, therefore their needs to be lvls of play for everyone. That's why you don't have to be a hardcore raider to play. Hate pvp? then don't do it, hate lvling, get one main and roll with it. Love crafting? good, go make me a potion! In the end, this is still a game, make of it what you want, and let others do the same!
I still can't believe how people are running around over this. We haven't seen Blizzard's implementation, so we don't know how much different the content of the 10-toon instance will be compared to the 25.
Is Black Temple and Mount Hyjal not worth doing because they removed the attunements? I mean just ANYONE could waltz in there.
I happen to like things like key/attunement quests, as it gives a player something to strive for, and also gives them a measuring stick of the content ahead. I know I'm in the minority there.
What is the "reward" for raiding? Hasn't Blizzard already said that the 25-toon versions would have better loot? Isn't that loot the badge of honor that makes a person stand out in Ironforge, Undercity or Shat'rath?
Just because 10-toon versions of raids will be available, it does not mean that downing the bosses are more accessible. If anything, there's less room to hide for players that don't put in the effort.
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