World of Warcraft
Setting: Fantasy | Developer: Blizzard | Platform: PC | Release Date: November 23, 2004 (February 11, 2005 in EU) | Model: Pay2Play
What kind of game is this? When World of Warcraft was released at the end of 2004, it was considered the most accessible, user-friendly, and rewarding MMORPG on the market. Over the past 20 years, Blizzard developers have utilized this to expand these areas, modernize WoW step by step, fine-tune, and continuously add new content.
The mix of quests, dungeons, raids, PvP, and many other activities still works so well today that Blizzard can continue to require a subscription for WoW. Today, you have more different WoW versions to choose from than ever before: from the modern The War Within to the classic experience to hardcore and seasonal worlds.
Why is the entry here easy? With the Island of the Exiled, there is a starting zone where you can learn the most important fundamentals during the first level-ups. The initial quests are quickly mastered, and the tutorial pop-ups are easy to understand. Moreover, with quick level-ups, you regularly experience success as well as new skills for your playstyle.
The gameplay feels good because WoW remains one of the MMORPGs with the highest comfort factor. Due to the old-school tab-target combat system and the quests that are varied but simplistic, you won’t face an action-fest or difficult challenges at the beginning that could overwhelm newcomers.
Due to the focus on story and quests, the following leveling experience is fairly linear. Quest assistance always guides you along the way. Most content can be easily mastered alone. If you don’t want to buy WoW right away, you can install the trial version and use it to level various characters up to level 20. Read about how good or bad you can play the MMORPG for free in this experience report.
Is there a catch? The different versions of WoW can already pose a difficult choice for newcomers. The next decision comes right after leaving the starting area. To access the current content of The War Within, you have to play through the content of one of the numerous WoW expansions. But which one to choose?
As standard, the Dragonflight campaign from the latest expansion is selected. However, you can also visit Chromie in the Alliance capital Stormwind or in the Horde capital Orgrimmar and choose one of the other time-travel campaigns there. It is likely impossible for any newcomer to make the best possible decision for themselves here.
And no matter how one decides: It will likely instill a feeling that one is missing out significantly with their character, and this feeling is justified since you will miss a lot of story this way. You can find out more about the current starter experience in WoW here: Starting anew in WoW with The War Within – is it worth it?
