Cortyn has identified a few differences between the two WoW versions. It is clear where the strengths and weaknesses of both games lie.
Those who, like me, have spent a lot of time in World of Warcraft Classic in recent weeks, but have also spent a lot of time in Battle for Azeroth (“Retail”) beforehand, will probably have asked themselves some questions. Why does the appeal of Classic still work so well? What are the fundamental differences and why is what is considered essential in Retail not necessary in Classic? Why is Classic still fun and gives me something that I don’t get in Retail?
This question occupied me, and it did so yesterday as I was farming Fire Essences in Classic – after I had completed my world quests in Retail.
In search of players who felt similarly, I came across a quote from user Avanguardian in the WoW subreddit. He said:
Classic is a video game that tries to simulate a fantasy world.
Retail is a video game that only wants to be a video game.
Exactly this quote perfectly summarizes what I felt and thought about Classic – and can be directly illustrated with several examples.
The world of Classic is based on fantasy logic
One example is herbalism. Herbs do not only grow in areas that match the respective level of the player and the area, but where they “logically” grow. For instance, Purple Lotus always grows near ruins, even in Ashenvale. Since you need herbalism at level 210 for the Purple Lotus, it is unlikely that a player will be able to gather it while leveling in Ashenvale, let alone process it into potions.
Another example is the item “Singeing Wiring”. This is an item that you primarily get in Gnomeregan, a dungeon for about level 30. However, you also need this wiring for a few engineering recipes at level 60, such as the popular Repair Bot. From a “video game perspective”, it is completely absurd that you need such low-level items for high-level objects. However, from the perspective of a fantasy world that operates based on fantasy logic rather than video game logic, it makes sense.
In Retail, such things are relatively strictly sorted according to video game logic. Is an area the current “endgame”? Then there is also only the special endgame resource there. I can’t immediately think of an example where I would have to return to an old dungeon or visit an old area – unless one of the war campaign quests leads me there.
Something similar applies to the areas of Classic. These feel inherently larger because you are indeed only traveling by foot or with a relatively slow mount – flying is out of the question.
How fast do you actually level in WoW Classic?
My assumption is certainly wrong, but the feeling you have in the areas of Classic is this: The developers first created the layout for the area itself and then added things like settlements or special waypoints. The game world feels as if the area “Ashenvale” really existed first and later night elves and orcs set up their camps there to adapt parts of the area to their will. I had the same thought in Azshara, on the Dark Coast, and especially in the Un’Goro Crater, that a fantasy world could have arisen so “naturally”.
In Retail, it feels different. There, settlements and “landmarks” stand out clearly from their surroundings. You can already see at first glance where a settlement is or what the great threat of the zone is looming over everything. Additionally, the world does not feel like “one piece”, but each zone is subdivided into small subzones that often do not fit into an overall picture.
Within an area, there are “hard boundaries” and rarely any fluid transitions. This works well to guide the player and lead them through a world where each small sub-area has a handful of its own quests. In Classic, where entire zones often have only a few quests, this simply would not fit.
In Classic, you had to find your own focus. I often walked down a road only to be surprised to discover: “Oh, there was a small gathering of NPCs here.” You often only see them at the last moment and not from afar. Their small camps are firmly integrated into the environment but do not stand out too much.
I do not mean to say that Retail is worse than Classic – it definitely is not. It simply has a “cinematic” narrative style in its areas that aims to tell the story and bring certain points into clear focus. After all, the massive Icecrown Citadel in Northrend has an oppressive, threatening presence, and the corrupted Shaladrassil in Val’sharah is similarly intimidating.
Also, the places (in my opinion) remain significantly better in memory because their presentation is often an important element in the story of the quests.
Classic is a fantasy world, Retail is a video game
Battle for Azeroth has long since parted ways with many old concepts. Many elements that characterize a cohesive fantasy world have been sacrificed for the sake of meaningful video game mechanics. “Mythic+” dungeons, for example, are a very sensible extension when it comes to video game aspects. Constantly new rewards with increasingly difficult challenges are good and give players new goals continuously.
The same applies to multiple difficulty levels in raids. Anyone who completes the normal mode can then attempt “Heroic” or even “Mythic” if they and their guild are particularly ambitious.
In Classic, it was not like that. In Classic, it would make no sense for mobs from a dungeon to suddenly learn new abilities or become harder because you have a keystone with you. From a story perspective, this also does not make sense in Retail, but that is not important, because Blizzard has long had a clear motto: “Gameplay first”. The gameplay must be fun, and everything else must submit to that.
This was simply not as pronounced in Classic and results in us now having two very different game worlds. Therefore, I also find it difficult to say whether WoW Classic or WoW Retail is the “generally better game”. It probably just depends on personal standards.
From my perspective, WoW Retail is the “better video game”, as it always gives me new tasks and something to do. WoW Classic, on the other hand, is the better fantasy world where you can lose yourself and which functions better according to fantasy logic. I like both.
So how do you see it?
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