The slippery slope has finally ended.

[Leare315]

Yeah, this still isn't "too far." All they're doing is giving you an early expansion feature. And i imagine the 90's are still limited to people who bought WoD. Again though, buying a fresh 90 and buying an RAF copy to get 3 toons to 85 in a weekend? They've already cut out 90% of the work with RAF, now they're just giving you that extra time back. Plus we still have no price or rule information. Too soon!

[Pickynerd]

Assuming that people who want it spend their mommy's money instead of their own and that principles are same for everyone is ridiculous.

If it were 10€ for new 90 and I would be changing server/faction I would most likely pay it and do what I want to do. I earn money and I would rather pay up for this catch up mechanic then do for the Nth time all 1-90 content that I did lots of times already and am bored with. That + waste of time.

Location, location, location... jk bud, but seriously, do they really have to milk what's left of us?

Posting on MMOC is to much like this...

[Deleted]

lvl 90 boost is not max lvl char for WOD

If you pre-order you get the 90 straight away (in MoP)

because it may actually bring new blood into the game.

I honestly don't think it will. WoW has an aging population, new players simply aren't playing, old ones might return for a month to see if WoD is any better than MoP/Cata then they'll leave when they find out it probably isn't.

----

If you don't see this as selling 90s you are deluded, you can make as many account as you want and add WoD for the 90.

Sell-able Blizzstore pets is gold selling as well, you shouldn't care though, the game is a cash-cow.

I remember a blue post from TBC saying faction changes and gold selling were against their design philosophy, the exact quote is "your standing outside the game should never effect your standing within the game.". Its funny to see how 'far' the game has come.

Most people that cared about the direction of the game quit at the start of Cata though.

[DemoBytom]

The only downside to buying 90s is how terrible people will become at their class.

Just dinged a 90 mage? Better go to timeless isle and spam Frostfire bolt!

Same concept in the LFR. Whoopty fuckin' doo.

In Wrath, I dinged my first lock as affliction, spammin drain life (that used to give you nightfall procs) + incinerate (when affli still had it). I rarely ever refreshed dots "because it does shit dmg anyway" and it's better to spam more cast-bar spells. I ran with imp (when you should have felhunter) and thought I know how to play.. That was after about 3 months of leveling to max level. I've never done an instance before max level, never really done much with others, maybe few group quests if there was anyone. I wasn't in a guild till max, I almost didn't use AH etc..
A week or 2 later I respecced destruction, spec I never played and had to learn it to go to my first raid.
Then I changed to demonology, another spec I never played and stayed like that for 1.5 expansion.. So ye - leveling process hardly taught me how to warlock...

Later, in Cataclysm I leveled a DK. Leveled as blood. When I hit lv 85 I respecced frost and learned how to play it. Again - leveling process did nothing to teach me how to play the spec I later played a lot.

Since then every class I level is just by grinding instances (Except levels +-50-58, bit of Northrend, bit of Cata). That's how I leveled my monk, 1-90 as Brewmaster spamming keg smash + breath of fire.. Sometimes a bit of Spinning Crane Kick.. Didn't care about selfbuffs I should keep etc.
At max level - again I had to go Windwalker, spec I never tried before, and again - I had to learn it from scratch at max level.. Later the same with Mistweaver..

In the end - my lock got everything up to and including Lich King during Wrath, my paladin healed up to and including Lich King. Then all the 4.0 instances, my DK everything up to and including Madness in Cata as main tank, now I'm main tanking on my monk and got Garrosh on farm..

So to sum up - the whole leveling process taught me only a little how the game works, though most of it I learned at max level. Same with specs and roles - I learned it all just doing those at max level.
Tanking my way up was a little help, and showed me basics, but then I hit my first HC dungeon and had to relearn everything, because It suddenly required some CD usage, watching up who's got aggro etc..
I learned healing at max level only..
So I really, really doubt that leveling process is that much needed to learn your class :? For me, at least, it taught me nothing valuable, just ate a big chunk of time.. And I really doubt that instant lv 90 will have any major impact on the quality of players you meet in LFD/LFR.. And guild Flex/normal etc are an environment when players learn/teach anyway..

[TheRealDavidTwo]

Now they are officially selling lvl 90 characters, even offering you a lvl 90 while the lvl 90 expansion is still out.

No they're not. Don't make things up.

We’ve also heard feedback from players that they’d be interested in boosting multiple characters to 90, including alts they play with friends on other factions and realms. We’ve been evaluating ways to make that possible without having players go through roundabout methods (such as purchasing multiple boxes and performing multiple character transfers), and in the near future we’ll be testing out a feature that gives you the option to purchase a character upgrade directly. We’ll have more information to share later—including details on our character-upgrade plans for Asian regions where players don’t buy expansion boxes—but you’ll start seeing pieces of the process soon on the PTR, so keep an eye out.

Sounds a little like "selling" level 90 to me. But I'll give my two cents on the issue:

I.. honestly don't see this as a bad thing. I do think Blizzard should rethink their stance, and maybe only allow an account to buy 'one other level 90' apart from the free upgrade, but that's really about it.

[Keristrasza]

I fail to see the issue really, from what I am seeing a good deal of people are FINE with the 1 free one with WoD but NOT the buying of a boost to 90 from the store? They have been trying to think of ways for blizzard to limit this amount (1 per account 3 per account etc) or even arguing to not do it at all. Now lets say that they just do the free one with WoD.

Do you think that will stop people from getting as many 90s at they want? No. People with money and no amount of patients to reach max level OR those who just want to be with friends WILL get those 90s regardless. Buy account #2/3/4 etc, upgrade said account to WoD, get free 90, move 90 to Main account/new server, rinse and repeat.

Blizzard knew this would be a thing (and said it would be allowed) and is at least trying to save their players some money (I know foreign idea for some people on MMO-Champ the way they preach about bleeding the player base for $$$) by simply allowing this boost to be paid for outright. As for P2W I fail to see how this is a thing either. Reaching level 90 on alt #50 is no feat of strength, no one cares that you (or myself) have no life in leveling that many alts (Surprise I have a truck load of them, I know this.) You don't get rolling credits over your screen for hitting max level on your first or final level 90. Hell you don't get a credit screen on ANY MMO (other than Gw2 *spoilers*) so you cannot now or ever "Win" at an MMO.

The day I will consider the store to be a BAD idea is the day they actually start putting legit good gear on there. No I don't mean transmogrification gear; I mean actual BiS gear that would be found in a heroic raid. THEN I would complain because as it stands now the entire purpose of this game, no matter what aspect you play for, is the raiding.

[Deleted]

careful with that line of thinking on these forums, since pretty much everyone here is going to slit your throat for having an opinion that differs from theirs...

this^^

yes OP it's troublesome, but what did you expect?

[DemoBytom]

Leveling is as obsolete in an rpg as shooting in an fps.

RPG is about character progression, not just leveling. WoW for a long time (since beginning) was much more about gear progression, that increased your char power - than the leveling process on it's own.
WoW leveling process was always very basic an you had close to no real impact onto your character's power through this system. Even old talents didn't have as much impact on your char, than changing from full greens to full purples did. Threre's hardly any choince how you level your character, how you branch his abilities, stats etc.. It all comes from gear.

[makak]

1. Make part of youyr game borring.
2. Dont let ppl simply skip it
3. But let them PAY to skip it
4.???
5. Profit
And there will be ppl happy to pay for ability to not play part of your game.
Seriously one day potatoes will rule the world.

[rda]

1. Make part of youyr game borring.
2. Dont let ppl simply skip it
3. But let them PAY to skip it
4.???
5. Profit

Add some more items, too, because other games which were following that route did them as well:

6. Make the part of the game that people can skip by paying extra money MORE time consuming and MORE boring. If you can, make it MORE important.
7. Profit more.

Plus, of course:

8. Repeat this with other areas of the game.

[mvaliz]

You get it with a purchase...

One of the things they're trying to do is get new and old players to return, and giving them "free" 90, which requires you to buy it with the expansion, or as a service. IT is not a bonus with those intentions, it is a bundle... so yes... this is SELLING MAX LVL CHARACTER.

The level cap with said expansion is 100. It's not a max level character

[Varabently]

They are offering a level 90 right before level 90 isn't the max anymore...I think you're pushing it a little.

[coldrain]

Darsithis will pretty much be in denial over this until he sees "buy level 90 characters $29.99" featured on the launcher screen

[Deleted]

i agree with the OP and think the same.

this game is only a shadow of itsself. and yeah.. this is just the start of the end.

(in fact wow is a big name, it will never really end.)

in my opinion this game turns slowly into a cheep crappy free 2 play game without a soul.

[Dormie]

I would argue the same point, but on the opposite side. What does somebody bypassing leveling do to affect endgame, the majority of content in MMOs?

- - - Updated - - -

Sounds like a bunch of people that don't want to level, but don't want to pay, getting upset.

And I disagree with you that this is game-breaking in any way but let's leave it here while we're still cordial to one another.

That's because you've already accepted the broken game. What's it matter if there's a broken steering wheel in a broken car?

[Deleted]

That's because you've already accepted the broken game. What's it matter if there's a broken steering wheel in a broken car?

What?

I fail to see any logical conclusion that providing a service of paying for leveling = a broken game.

You can in essence already do it. Pay some gold farmers or something to do it.
Not that it's HARD ... And i mean, if you LEVEL something, it is safe to assume that you would want to play that said character.

[shoc]

Copied from my post in the other thread.

We already have "buyable" level 80's already, by doing the recruit-a-friend instant 80 and transferring them to your account. I think it costs $40, a month of subs + transfer.

I don't see what the big problem is. There is already a method in place that would allow you to skip most of the levelling grind, not sure why everyone is suddenly starting to complain now. They are just giving players a "legit" way of going about their laziness.

Also, what the "slippery slope" logic I'm seeing in this thread is ridiculous. The game is 10 years old and for new players, 10 years of content is a huge barrier to them being able to reach max level and join their friends for the real game. To add "buyable gold and epics" would go against every single design decision they've ever made ever.

I don't see where the reasoning of Letting players play current content = letting players skip current content.

Blizzard would lose millions of subs out of player protest if they put items with stats in the shop, and we all know how Blizzard is when it comes to corporate profits. Stats in shop = lost subs = lost money. The lost sub money would outweigh the profits from the shop and therefore Blizzard won't do it.

You are all terrible /thread

[DeadmanWalking]

I have 9 level 90’s. That means I have leveled through vanilla 9 times, I have done every questing zone in BC, I have leveled 9 times through wrath from level 68 to 80 and thats 12 damn levels. I have done firelands 9 times. I have done Jade forest -> Dread wastes 9 times, I have done the same dailies for profession recipies at least 6 times.

I don’t want to do this anymore. I want to play other classes but I don’t want to footslog through quest zones for 20 levels for the 36th time (as I have deleted alts.) I dont want to do another starting zone -again-. I know how to play wow, I’m a raider and a raid leader. I know the most efficient ways to gear up and I know how to look up guides on how to play any class.

If buying a 90 is a problem for you them you have two choices, don’t buy it or quit playing. If you quit playing can I have your stuff?

[Blazemoore]

I've been pretty vocal about my feelings regarding the store in the other posts, but I have to say, I don't mind the instant 90. I actually wish they would have done it sooner, as I have tried to get friends into the game before but they never leveled past 30 or so because of how mind numbingly easy everything is at that level. Had they been able to get into current content, there is a good chance they would still be playing. Same for players that have been away for a while but don't want to come back to an expansion just to be behind from the beginning. I personally hope they can limit it somehow beyond the initial 90 with the WoD purchase, as I think it would be good for players to eventually level through all the content, but I don't really know how that would be possible if loopholes exist. Hopefully the cost will be enough to at least make people weigh the decision.

[Deleted]

No they're not. Don't make things up.

Directly from Blizzard:

and in the near future we’ll be testing out a feature that gives you the option to purchase a character upgrade directly

Purchase a character upgrade. Meaning a lvl 90 character can be bought. The OP is 100% right.