Everyone has pretty strong opinions about this game and all of its versions, and I won't have anything thoughtful to add that hasn't been said but I will add my 2 cents anyway why not! At least just about vanilla WoW as its the only version I have an overwhelmingly positive opinion of.
Since its release, the original version of World of Warcraft has been one of the greatest online games ever made. The further you advance through the game, the more your appreciation for it is solidified. Like in the comedic pop culture Easter Eggs in many quest chains that today evoke a sense of nostalgia for the kind of things we all thought were funny in the early 2000s, honestly its a bit like a time capsule in that way. Or appreciating how thoughtfully some quests have been designed to interact with other areas, maybe by giving you the good ol' breadcrumb quest to follow to a new questing hub.
Nothing feels here "just because it is", every location has purpose and genuinely interesting story and it isn't just the cliche "this is the dwarf kingdom", "this is the night elf kingdom" etc that you see in a lot of similar games. There are diverse settlements across the world for one reason or another and it all just makes sense together and there's like a reason for everything. The point is there was real heart and thought behind the development of the game and it shows itself plainly.
The mechanics and combat system in WoW were so beyond good for their time and to this day make other MMORPGs look painfully mediocre by comparison. Even the titles that are beginning to supersede WoW in popularity today have pretty uninspired gameplay and usually appeal for different reasons, which is of course valid, because today's version of the game is a shadow of its former glory anyway.
But until subsequent expansions dropped the ball for one reason or another, this game ruled the roost in the online multiplayer landscape for very good reason.
It also goes without saying that the aesthetics of WoW are extremely good looking for their time and one of the few praises I'll grant to today's version is that the artstyle has certainly kept up to date and the game today looks visually unreal.
Unfortunately, every expansion since the original release hasn't captured the whimsy and heart (and even the lovable janky-ness) of the vanilla version. Vanilla WoW will always be one of the best online games ever in spite of some of its inconveniences or flaws (or the painful monthly sub) because during its time in the sun it raised the bar to heights unforeseen.
Since its release, the original version of World of Warcraft has been one of the greatest online games ever made. The further you advance through the game, the more your appreciation for it is solidified. Like in the comedic pop culture Easter Eggs in many quest chains that today evoke a sense of nostalgia for the kind of things we all thought were funny in the early 2000s, honestly its a bit like a time capsule in that way. Or appreciating how thoughtfully some quests have been designed to interact with other areas, maybe by giving you the good ol' breadcrumb quest to follow to a new questing hub.
Nothing feels here "just because it is", every location has purpose and genuinely interesting story and it isn't just the cliche "this is the dwarf kingdom", "this is the night elf kingdom" etc that you see in a lot of similar games. There are diverse settlements across the world for one reason or another and it all just makes sense together and there's like a reason for everything. The point is there was real heart and thought behind the development of the game and it shows itself plainly.
The mechanics and combat system in WoW were so beyond good for their time and to this day make other MMORPGs look painfully mediocre by comparison. Even the titles that are beginning to supersede WoW in popularity today have pretty uninspired gameplay and usually appeal for different reasons, which is of course valid, because today's version of the game is a shadow of its former glory anyway.
But until subsequent expansions dropped the ball for one reason or another, this game ruled the roost in the online multiplayer landscape for very good reason.
It also goes without saying that the aesthetics of WoW are extremely good looking for their time and one of the few praises I'll grant to today's version is that the artstyle has certainly kept up to date and the game today looks visually unreal.
Unfortunately, every expansion since the original release hasn't captured the whimsy and heart (and even the lovable janky-ness) of the vanilla version. Vanilla WoW will always be one of the best online games ever in spite of some of its inconveniences or flaws (or the painful monthly sub) because during its time in the sun it raised the bar to heights unforeseen.