Tabletops and Minatures…. Not for Me.

I am a firm believer that Massively-Multiplayer Online Role Playing Games (henceforth referred to as MMOs) are the natural progression of social gaming.  Please don’t get me wrong…. a bunch of buddies around a table with snacks and dice is still a wonderful experience, but in a world where interactions are going increasingly digital, it only makes sense that such activities migrate to the great underdark that is the internet.

While I do not wish to diminish the in-person greatness that can happen at a FLGS or your dining room table after a particularly great session, I also do not wish to diminish the validity of the online greatness that can happen when your online dungeon party works together as a team to down that last boss and revel in your own greatness.

I’m fairly certain that I am the only Geekcentricity writer who regularly plays MMOs.  I know that many of our readers are at least interested in these games, so allow me to throw down some credentials and get into the meat of this post.

I’ve been playing one MMO or another, non stop, since the launch of Final Fantasy XI (FFXI) in the US in October 2003.  Since then I’ve run the gauntlet of fly-by-night MMOs, terrible money-grabbers, premiums and freemiums, and of course the top shelf games as well.  I’ve taken the time to become a Jedi (before Sony nerfed the game) in Star Wars Galaxies, I’ve farmed HNMs in the Tomb of the King of San d’Oria in FFXI, and I’ve made dozens of crime-fighters on City of Heroes.  I’m currently awaiting my beta invites for DC Online and The Old Republic.
One game, however, has oft stood above the rest, proudly wielding its epic player-base like a warrior atop a pile of corpses, holding high the head of Illidan the Destroyer and the legendary Twin Blades of Azzinoth.  I’m talking, of course, about World of Warcraft.

Just the mention of World of Warcraft (WoW) incites one of exactly three responses, with zero room for compromise.  When you approach John Doe on the street about WoW you’ll get back:

a.)   “ZOMG, WoW roxors! Let me tell you about my level 80 Night Elf Druid”

b.)   “Ugh…I hate WoW, I will never play (or I will never play AGAIN) and I hate you just for liking it.”

c.)   “What the crap is this “WoW” you speak of? Is that one of them Vidja Games? Shut up and get the hell away from me before I call the cops, NERD!”

I’m not exactly sure why Mr. Doe gets so easily offended, but there you have it.

Love it or hate it, right or wrong, the World of Warcraft is undeniably relevant.  With over 12 million players worldwide, it’s the subject of scandal, nerd rage, documentaries, podcasts, countless websites, epic wins, and epic fails.
WoW players have their own language (4.5k GS Hunter LFG 4 ICC25, pst!!!) WoW players have their own memes (Barrens Chat, anyone?) and WoW players even have their own convention.  I myself have spent many moons, and many hundreds of dollars, playing WoW over the years, often breaking for other geekly interests, but always crawling back without fail.
Now, on the cusp of the Cataclysm, I find it the perfect time to take a spin around Azeroth, steel myself against the impending doom, and hopeful take the Lich King down a peg or two before the expansion drops.

After dusting off my authenticator, switching servers, and joining a new guild (thanks to a DBLR fan), my Draenei Paladin is ready to search the World of Warcraft and bring its greatest sites and moments directly to you here on Geekcentricity.

What about you?  What are your experiences in the World of Warcraft, or just MMOs in general?  Leave your comments below; be they positive or negative.  Inquiring authors want to know!

Stay tuned for my next post: “The Rise and Fall and Rise of Jasiggity”