MoP - Trying too Hard to be Mature?

[invader]

That's the thing that everyone has totally missed about MoP. Everyone is so busy comparing it to Kung Fu Panda that they miss all the dark story lines... And there are plenty.

idd there are. it just feels wrong somehow that pandaren are a playable race and pandaria is so asian themed.. for me it doesnt feel like wow, it doesnt fit in with wow on the whole, it just feels a bit childish and silly to me which is why im not playin MoP. i just dont like it or get it. i do applaud blizzard for trying something new but it just doesnt sit well with me

roll on next xpac i say cos im bored as fekk

[Strakha]

I don't read any of Blizzard's extra curricular story telling, if they thought it was relevant, it would be in the game itself.

[Haven]

I think you're reading too much into that story. The pandaren are just supposed to provide filler content to get you through to the next real expansion. You are meant to see them as 1 dimensional caricatures, a race of peaceful farmers and honorable warriors, nothing more. Their story ends when we leave Pandaria, so there's no sense getting too invested in their lore.

I actually agree. Orcs and humans, remember. And phat lewts. We'll forget Pandaria the moment the next expansion hits the servers.

[Sevyvia]

Anyone remember the torture quests from previous expansions?

Yeah, WoW just does this every now and again. Nothing new, not trying anything.

[Florena]

Have some of you people even PLAYED this expansion instead of going 'eh, it's asian themed I don't like it!'

The storyline isn't 'just' about the Pandaren. 5.1 and 5.2 are both developing characters in the Alliance/Horde, 5.3 is hinted to be even more war content, and 5.4 if most likely the Siege of Org itself.

Sure, the Valley of the 4 Winds is largely silly content. But the Jade Forest, Kun'Lai, Townlong, Krasarang and Dread Wastes all have serious stories with the Pandaren. The pragmatic ways of the Shado-pan stand in stark contrast with the rest of their society and form an interesting dynamic. And I wouldn't neccisarily say the Pandaren will never be seen again after MoP. The Blood Elves have certainly made a come back, and blizz is laying the groundwork for Draenei to stop into the spot light in the future as well. There's no reason to assume nothing will be done with the Pandaren after this expansion, or that the expansion is entirely about them. If anything, the horde and alliance are stealing the spotlight storyline wise in post 5.0 content. The Pandaren story has mostly already been told in the release content, and the patches are developing the horde and alliance rather than them. So you're not just missing out on silly kung fu pandas that won't be imporant in a year and a half, you're missing huge updates to the horde and alliance, especially the rather dark story the Horde is going through right now with Garrosh becomming a full fledged tyrant. You don't like the asian art style? Fair enough, that's a matter of taste. I for one hated most of BC's art style, but it was still a good expansion.

I'd go so far as to say this expansion is overall much higher quality than Cataclysm and BC. Might even be my favorite yet but I won't say for sure until its over.

[Cthulhu 2020]

Sorry, just because you viewed/view Pandaria and the whole asian theme as childish never meant it was. Before the release a lot of people were like "omg panda's are too childish and don't belong in WoW!" and when Blizzard shows that they're in no way childish people start crying "too mature".

[Deleted]

Sure, the Valley of the 4 Winds is largely silly content. But the Jade Forest, Kun'Lai, Townlong, Krasarang and Dread Wastes all have serious stories with the Pandaren.

sure, if the abundance of retarded hozen poop jokes in JF is your idea of serious.....

[Florena]

sure, if the abundance of retarded hozen poop jokes in JF is your idea of serious.....

Doesn't mean that the entirety of Jade Forest is hozen poop jokes.

[Ethenil]

I actually liked that a lot. Reminds me of the cruelty of Game of Thrones. Makes it feel (sadly) more realistic.

[Totle]

If you watch any of the old kung fu movies... this is kind of on par with them.

Doing ridiculous near inhuman tests just to qualify to earn the secret art is sort of a martial arts cliche.

[TheDangerZone]

This is not even moral ambiguity, but merely harsh law.

I don't think "Mature" is the correct term here.

[mysticx]

I don't read any of Blizzard's extra curricular story telling, if they thought it was relevant, it would be in the game itself.

Yeah, like what happened to Thera... ok, how Varian came ba... oh wait, how about the horde invading Ashenv... Dang it! Maybe what happened to Cairne... nope, a book. The emerald nightmare and return of Malfurion? another book, When did Fandral do mad? why, in a book of course!

Seriously, most of the actual storytelling-work seems to happen in books, comics or short stories, what we see in-game is the aftermath, the clean-up work in isle three, to find out what happened in anything resembling detail you have to read the books, just a big marketing ploy really...

[Florena]

Yeah, like what happened to Thera... ok, how Varian came ba... oh wait, how about the horde invading Ashenv... Dang it! Maybe what happened to Cairne... nope, a book. The emerald nightmare and return of Malfurion? another book, When did Fandral do mad? why, in a book of course!

Seriously, most of the actual storytelling-work seems to happen in books, comics or short stories, what we see in-game is the aftermath, the clean-up work in isle three, to find out what happened in anything resembling detail you have to read the books, just a big marketing ploy really...

Very good point. A lot happens in the novels. To add to that list, who the heck are Anveena and Kalecgos? Rhonin and Krasus? The Dragon Aspects? What really happened in the first and second wars, since all the games show us are two campaigns severely limited in their story telling? How did the draenei come to draenor, how did the horde first form? How did Varian go from the rager he was in Wrath to the level headed king he is in MOP? The list goes on and on.