The waiting during the pre-event of WoW: Shadowlands is annoying. But Cortyn from MeinMMO has found enjoyment in it – as it brings social interaction.
In World of Warcraft, the pre-event for the upcoming expansion is currently happening. While the first quests keep players engaged for a while and the battle against Nathanos Blightcaller is rewarded with a cool cinematic, there is also criticism. Especially the rare mobs in Icecrown cause frustration, as they only appear every 20 minutes. For many it reminds them of an AFK simulator.
To be honest, my first thought was also: “What a dumb system, you have to wait forever until you have something to do again.”
Basically, the thought is correct. Those who only crave the loot from the rares are condemned to wait. Only three times per hour to hit an enemy for 20 seconds while hoping for a rare drop can be quite frustrating. I understand anyone who can’t get used to this system.
Forced waiting creates opportunities for conversation
However, this waiting has also brought about a nice aspect that I have missed in WoW for a while: almost forced social interaction in the game.
Of course, at the end of the day, waiting time is still waiting time, which may seem out of place in what is essentially a fun leisure activity for most.
Yet the hours of standing around and waiting together for the next mob, until Bronjahm finally appears with his 34-slot bag, were adorned with various social interactions:
- There was shared suffering when somehow everyone got Bronjahm’s bag except oneself.
- A large circle was formed, where no mount was allowed to repeat – not so easy with nearly 80 players.
- A little dance performance where everyone danced around a campfire together.
- A “kneeling” circle for the poor horde player who wanted to see what kind of rare mob it was in war mode, only to get wiped out by 80 alliance players.
Basically, it’s just a cool event where you see some players that you might not have encountered in weeks or months. I kept having “Oh, you’re still around!” conversations with people I had somehow lost track of over the months and years.
If you engage with it and don’t just spread negative vibes in the sense of “Ugh, nothing to do, everything sucks!” you can experience some nice conversations and silliness.
There are alternatives: If you can’t warm up to the idea at all, you can actually use the waiting time differently. Either you farm Scourgestones from other enemies for 20 minutes, or you simply log out so that another character can complete the pre-event quest or take down Nathanos Blightcaller. Anyone who just waits and then complains about being forced to wait is also a little bit to blame.
But honestly: The waiting time was worth it for me, as a little enforced time for social interaction in World of Warcraft was really nice.
This is not something I wish for every event, but as a change from an otherwise increasingly fast-paced game world, I really enjoyed it. I am already looking forward to spinning my “rare mob rounds” again this evening and having some conversations with the players in my realm that otherwise would never have taken place. A few even remembered me from the walks with my tree …
What do you think about it?
