Wildstar was a failure because it appealed to a hardcore playerbase with a sub as well. You just cannot do that in this age especially with a sub model. There has to be something for everything from Casual to Midcore to Hardcore. Also yeah that shitfest was buggy as hell on launch. I tried to run Stormtalon and it decided it didn't want to actually load me in or spawn a boss when I did eventually get in.
I think everyone should be able to see content. Even casual players should be able to see the raids, experience the lore and do the boss fights. If your enjoyment of the game is limited to simply seeing content then there is no point in doing anything above LFR. However, even now, people that want to have their characters decked out in the strongest gear, will push through and get the best in slot. People that queue for LFR only might get epics, sure, but it's nowhere near the scope of power a hardcore raider will obtain.
I don't care. I just want enough stuff to keep me busy.
Ironically the only problem with this system was how players took things to the extreme.
The reality of the MoP reputation system was that weekly VP cap meant that you didn't need to do a lot of dailies per day in order to spend your VP on the reputation rewards. While we had the option to tackle all four factions (plus the farm) simultaneously and get it done in two weeks of flat out playing, doing it over 8 weeks worked just as well while ensuring the content lasted longer, and we didn't burn ourselves out....
The problem is that the system was set up in a manner that enabled and encouraged players take it to that extreme. This is why rules and restrictions exist, there are always going to be people who go to the extreme limit of what can be done. The system should be set up in a manner that doesn't let these people reach that point, and it would've just required any number of changes to avoid that. If only cosmetic items had been locked behind exalted/revered, it wouldn't have been nearly so widespread an issue. If they had locked you into only being able to do dailies for one or two factions per day that would've also prevented the issue from being so pervasive.
A system that is set up poorly isn't somehow the fault of the players, the players aren't the ones who created that system and structured the rewards to require you doing 40+ dailies a day to proceed down the most efficient path.
That is what you think. You think raiders do not want epics? If that was the case, why did they complain about having to run LFR? For giggles? Remove epics from the other difficulties and see how raiders continue to raid that.
I do think that some of the LFR are not that interested in raiding. So, yes, why be there. Because there is little character progression outside raiding. If players wants to acquire gear, the only place get them is raid. Because Blizzards wants players to raid.
Whether you like it not that more players are getting into raid, that is what Blizzard is focusing on. Because otherwise, Blizzard will need to focus on something else. If that happens, you can kiss your "exclusive raids" goodbye.
Be happy that you are getting what you want. Yeah, you don't get to be that special snowflakes in shiny raid gear in front of the bank anymore. That is the price YOU have to pay for having raids. The others are paying more because they are not getting the content that truly want.
So what you're saying is it should cater to the no effort crowd where it all just drops out of the sky and into their laps. Well, I suppose you got your wish, and I suppose wrath-like game play level would be entirely too much for the new WoW playing crowd that the game (temporarily) attracts these days.
As long as there is a decent amount of content, as well as a lasting progression/reward structure, for most levels of effort/time invested, I don't see anything wrong with exclusiveness. In a manner of speaking I actually like having "something above me" (be it mythic raiding, high rated PVP, what not...), since there's something to strive for if/when I outgear/outskill/outwhatever my current level of content.
I dont think WoW necessarily needs to be 'hardcore', but it also doesnt need to be mind numbingly easy and convenient like it is now. No moderation is the issue, and what balance they once had has since been destroyed. Wildstar was just bad, I tried it thinking I may like it, but its theme sucked, the game play sucked (full of technical issues), it just sucked all around. The 'silly slapstick' theme killed it for a lot of people as well. Had nothing to do with being "hardcore".
I have "legendary ring" and I don't really remember doing anything to get it. When you have end game content, like THE end game content avaialble for everyone, it damages the game. Mystic Archi is not in and of itself, THE end game, just archi is. I don't see a point in doing the same content, but on a harder difficulty, as being content or being more of an end game. I'm glad it is there, but it doesn't make it exclusive. Especially, when anyone with 500K can pay for a carry.
Not according to Ghostcrawler: "Most of the players doing LFR just didn't raid at all before. [...]"
TBC Started easy epics? False. You were heavily gated in TBC you had to kill Vashj/Kael to get into BT/Hyjal which a lot of guilds couldn't do. They ended up nerfing the fights and then later of scrapping the attunement all together but that wasn't for quite some time.
Yes epics existed easier in TBC in terms of crafting and heroics having 1 epic on the last boss but that was it in terms of ''ease''.