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Well, pretending that I didn't notice you, Alegis, calling me moron and dipshit, just because I criticized a game you seem to worship and are addicted to, I'd like like to make some comments (just in case you feel like reading):
About the above posts being to you the dumbest thing you've read all week, that's probably because it was the only one you did read this week. I'd suggest you to play a little less WoW and go have other activities. I'm pretty sure that you're yourself a teenager (if not in biological age, at least in mental age) , and I'm glad your parents are rich enough to pay every month for your virtual fun. Once you realize that there are plenty more important things on a person's life, you'll possibly stop with your immature and spoiled attitude. Grow up, dude, and learn how to have a decent healthy discussion.
Nobody here rated the game only based on it's price or periodic fee. I'm not sure if you read all carefully, but each person had their own specific points besides the price tag.
It's quite obvious it's not that expensive in your specific case, for example. People with the whole day free to play PC Games might find spending 8 hours a day on it amusing. But, considering the fact that not everybody can do this, this isn't a fully valid point, at least it doesn't apply to anybody.
In WoW, if one cannot spend more than 8 hours per week playing it two basic things will happen: first, it'll take a long time to reach the fun part of the game, and once you reach it, you'll lose several times just for the lack of equipment and skill training, which is based upon play time. Second, you'll have a much more expensive game comparatively to people who can play the whole day.
I have no doubts you had your best game experience ever, as it can be seen by your post. I'm not sure if I ever played a game for that long, even ones like Starcraft I still play nowadays, or Baldur's Gate. I could also sell any of my games' CD-Keys as well, as I could get a high ladder rank and sell the account without even giving away a key.
You just have contradicted yourself, since you say they release it for free, but then you remember that's because of the monthly fee you pay. So, it's obviously not free.
Also, the extra content released is pretty much like any game expansion. They didn't even add new classes, and now they allow bizarre things like Horde Paladins and Alliance Shamans, things completely against Warcraft world lore. Just for the sake of making gaming balance easier for them. Two new races... new items and places. Nothing I didn't get in Warcraft, Starcraft, Diablo II or any other games' expansions.
I'm sorry but that's the big truth...
About GW, I won't dare calling it a MMORPG or not. People seem to call games what they want to. Where in the hell is Diablo II really an RPG? For making linear quests and spending skill points? This is definitely *not* the definition of a RPG game.
About your point about a product granting something others can't, this is *completely subjective*.
For you who have lots of spare time, it might look that way. WoW has more things to do than GW has, so you can waste your entire week in front of the PC.
To me, free time is not as much a "free" good. Then, having a game I can play as much I want a week and still not being slain by better equipment is a must. That's basically why I like much more Guild Wars than your belove WoW.
Actually, what WoW delivered was events like this:
http://www.astahost....raft-t7810.htmlI'm not sure about Runescape, but I can tell many much better PvE games. Diablo, Baldurs Gate and Elder Scrolls franchises for instance. Play One of the last two and then you'll know what is nearest to the real roleplaying of a RPG.
I'm pretty sure not everybody doesn't love WoW, and can't talk about the comparisons with Runescape, for example, since I barely know the game.
About the storyline... Well...
If you call making random chain quests that were created based on Warcraft World lore, fixing inaccuracies and conflicts with the old stories, a storyline, then I won't argue with you. If you mean it can't have a main plot since theoretically it couldn't happen many times, and that the point on a MMORPG is acting like yourself, it's not true as well. You simply cannot do whatever you want in the game, or even basic RPG things like killing citizens of your own, or stealing, etc. That's where your definition of roleplay fails badly. The game imposes so many restrictions that it doesn't allow real roleplay.
I'm not saying Blizzard employees didn't had their time documenting everything and making the story at least a little coherent. I'm saying it doesn't offer you a plot, neither the ability to do all the things you should be able to do for roleplaying.
About the graphics, I'm well aware that they're cartoony.
I agree they had an wonderful job making many kinds of somehow detailed scenarios, and they give a nice immersion feeling to the gaming experience. But I was mainly talking about the rendering engine, which is kind of poor compared to other games. It needs too much power processing for no that much eye candy.
I wasn't comparing WoW to GW in every aspect. Indeed GW scenarios lack some "life" let's say.
Also remember that your so belove World of Warcraft was deserted by *key* coders and software engineers, together with some artists. People who founded Blizzard Entertainment, created the very first Warcraft series, as Diablo and Starcraft ones. Even they didn't like the greedy way the company was heading to (search over the net and find it out). Guess where they are right now? Ah yes, developing Guild Wars... quite fun.
After all, the only thing I can say is:
Rich, spoiled, teenager, with lots of free time and patience to do item and skill farming the whole week - Play WoW, is suits your personality and empty schedule perfectly.
Person with not so free much time/no patience/poor - Play Guild Wars or another game, even offline ones, you might feel it's perfect for you.
Person who doesn't care - Go play soccer, it's much nicer...