The "Rush Mentality" of WoW needs to die.

[Deleted]

The "Rush Mentality" which currently defines WoW's gameplay and the community mindset has led me to the conclusion that this game is on the verge of entering its death throes and I can no longer put up with it.

DPS rushing on ahead and pulling for the tank. Intentionally.
Tanks chain-pulling entire dungeons like complete idiots without a care in the world, then blaming others when things go awry.
Everyone and their dog ALWAYS doing stuff as fast as possible in vain attempts to get as fast as they can up the gear ladder.
Leveling being reduced to a power-grind up levels as quickly as possible, and feeling left behind if you don't take advantage of the statistically overpowered heirlooms.
The constantly funneling of players into the newest content.
Many bits of content and grinding being time-sensitive, in the sense that they WILL be removed if you don't complete them by the time they're no longer current.
Even the most friendly guilds and groups proscribing to this attitude and the idea that they NEED to push through content as quickly as possible.
Insane stat-inflation enabling all of the above behaviours.


Fundamentally speaking:
The game is currently built in such a way that NO ONE can slow down and simply enjoy the game at their own pace.

Either you hop on board with the "Rush Mentality"... or both the game and the community will push you off the boat because you aren't constantly trying to get ahead.

New players trying to learn the ropes of the game don't even get the chance to get their bearing with the game's mechanics, nor do they get the chance to explore the game world and actually enjoy the many great sights there are in this game. Everything and everyone just pushes them to progress, progress, and progress.

... so yes, I've had enough of this load of ********.

And no, this isn't quite another "I'm Quitting WoW" topic.
... or at the very least, not quite yet.

---

At this time, WoW is at the cross-roads.

The "Rush Mentality", the sum of the game's overarching design and the community's driving motivations is looking at going straight off a cliff.

There's no new players coming into the game. Old players are leaving the game as they always do... and it seems like they aren't coming back this time.

By hook or by crook, WoW needs slow down and get rid of it's obsession with quickly progressing and always becoming stronger; players need to be able to slow down, breathe, relax, and enjoy the game. No one should feel they've been left behind if they have to stop playing the game for a few weeks, for any reason, let alone a few days. This is one of the things people forget about Vanilla WoW -- there was no rush back then, and the community was happier for it.

If it doesn't slow down, the game becomes disproportionately stressful and simply not worth playing.

The "Rush Mentaility" is just as much a community issue as it is a game design issue... but the community certainly isn't about to fix itself, so it's up to the game designers to make the appropriate changes to encourage the community to move in the right direction.

Let's hope they do... before the community begins tearing itself apart.

[thilicen]

Yes, this is all new and not something that's been around since WOTLK. Actually it is. And look, we're still fine by some freak accident.

[xcitng]

nice blog man

[Deleted]

cyka blyatt

[Deleted]

Form your own groups and go as slow as you want, otherwise pick up the fucking pace. I don't need to wait 5 minutes for a ready check and then another three for a pull timer.

you literally cant go slow in this game, you enter a dungoen and come out 3-4 levels higher than when you entered, its beyond a fucking joke.

[Eleccybubb]

you literally cant go slow in this game, you enter a dungoen and come out 3-4 levels higher than when you entered, its beyond a fucking joke.

Because that is how the levelling process is supposed to be.

A lot of MMOs do it nowadays. Even a lot of older MMOs are starting to adapt to it as well.

[Frolk]

ok grandpa, nice blogpost.

Most people value their time, going faster means most of the time they can do more things.

[Sithalos]

There's no reason to go slow in dungeons, because everyone is so powerful. The tank pulls 5 packs at once because he can. DPS pull because they can. The dungeon doesn't punish you for it, unless you're in a very high level keystone.

As long as heroic and "mythic" dungeons are a joke, people will speed ahead.

[Nnyco]

literally no reason to waste time when u can do it fast

There's no reason to go slow in dungeons, because everyone is so powerful. The tank pulls 5 packs at once because he can. DPS pull because they can. The dungeon doesn't punish you for it, unless you're in a very high level keystone.

As long as heroic and "mythic" dungeons are a joke, people will speed ahead.

good luck speeding ahead in higher mythic dungeons

[Nynax]

verge of entering its death throes

Sorry but. Literally any OP that opens with that statement looses like 90% credibility.

[Sithalos]

good luck speeding ahead in higher mythic dungeons

...Did you not read my post? Or did you just read the last little bit?

Common sense is dying, not WoW. I swear...

[Deleted]

When I was a kid with no job, I used to love the grind and just enjoying the game so I feel where you are coming from. Now that I only have an hour or two of my day that I may or may not assign to gaming I really just have 0 patience with games that require me to be in front of the screen for hours on end.

[Valrysha]

When going through new content, and new stuff. Yeah I agree. I like to take it easy, learn things and progress at a steady pace. When it's stuff I've done before though. I just want to get through it, especially if it's easy.

Why would I pull one pack at a time in a heroic dungeon I've done 30 times before when I can solo three packs at once?
When Cathedral first came out. I took it easy, but now. Not going to do that, unless I'm on a high level key, which I'm not, Because fuck Cathedral lmao

[Luxeley]

People have been rushing through group content since the end of Wrath. And it's probably no coincidence that the sub decline is in perfect with it. So there may be some truth to this.

[Deleted]

Everyone goes fast because the content is boring. When you do your WQ/dungeon/raid for the 100 times, you do it fast because it's les painfull this way.
And the game is a lot more fast - paced nowadays than before. A fast gameplay enforces people to do things fast.

[Eggroll]

Most people value their time, going faster means most of the time they can do more things.

If you valued your time you wouldn't spend it playing video games.

I'm with the OP. But ofc this is all very subjective. It seems many players play the game like they are ticking off check lists. People like me or the OP maybe playing more for enjoying the act of playing itself, not checking off chores.

Or maybe it's what they find enjoyable. Personally I wouldn't want to rush something I find enjoyable. You don't go to the movies and want the movie to be played in fast forward so you can do something else fast, or do you?

[callipygoustp]

Preach on brother! I've always firmly believed that everyone else should play the game the way I think they should play it.
/s

[CaptainV]

Yes, this is all new and not something that's been around since WOTLK. Actually it is. And look, we're still fine by some freak accident.

Its been around since Vanillia, people were still unused to the fact aggro existed back then.

[Kallisto]

you literally cant go slow in this game, you enter a dungoen and come out 3-4 levels higher than when you entered, its beyond a fucking joke.

And which dungeon is that? Even the longest ones in Vanilla with full heirlooms would give you 1 level if you're lucky.

As for the Rush there's nothing Blizzard can do to slow the pace down. It's all down to the community. People rush because they want to. Not because anything Blizzard did in the game.

[Manabomb]

Because that is how the levelling process is supposed to be.

A lot of MMOs do it nowadays. Even a lot of older MMOs are starting to adapt to it as well.

Except for FFXIV, oddly enough.

Perhaps that has more to do with class not being bound to character than it does anything else.