A Solid Launch And Some Welcome Changes
I expected the addition of the expansion to play havoc with the servers, and that the game would be unplayable for the first three days after the release. I could not have been more wrong. Certainly there was more lag in Outland during the first day of the expansion's release than before, but it was very playable. Queues to get in were expected, and they did run long for a few days, but I was impressed with how well the launch went. Not only did Blizzard meet the needs of the extraordinary number of people playing all the time, they were able to handle all the people returning to the game after swearing off it sometime in the past year.
The first day in Hellfire Peninsula was just like the first day the game came out, except this time all the people running around laying waste to the indigenous populace were decked out in uber-gear. If you're one of the players who hit 60 and quit because you weren't into PVP and weren't part of a raiding guild, you'll find that Burning Crusade has plenty to keep you busy. I apologize, but I do find it amusing that the newly christened 60 characters are able to play for a few hours and get upgrades rivaling the ones that took literally months of raiding to acquire. I hope no one believed all that Blackwing Lair and Naxxramas gear was going to be the best forever. Just disenchant or vendor it and move on.
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One of the most enjoyable parts of the expansion so far is the shorter instances. I can't speak for the level 70 raid instances, but running through Hellfire Ramparts, the Blood Furnace and the Underbog in about an hour is a nice change from the two-hour or more runs through Stratholme and Upper Blackrock Spire. The end game content at level 70 may run longer (Molten Core could take multiple four-hour sessions depending on your familiarity with it). But if the same philosophy that went into the lower-level Outland dungeons went into Karazhan and Magtheridon's Lair, there will hopefully be fewer trucker bombs going out the window next to my desk.
While playing through Molten Core over and over, I began to realize that I was not so much enjoying it as just hoping to get some good loot. It was like playing a slot machine where it takes you three hours to pull down the handle. Hopefully the Burning Crusade raids will run shorter and not require as much of a commitment. That way, more casual players will get a shot at them as well. Speaking of Molten Core, I wonder what the residents are up to these days. It's got to be pretty lonely in there. I imagine Ragnaros and Domo calling up Onyxia to come over and play Guitar Hero 2 or Wii Sports (they don't call Nefarion anymore because of all the trash talk).
The Blizzard art team really outdid themselves on the Burning Crusade's design. They took a decidedly sci-fi approach to the setting, but made it feel like a Warcraft environment. Whether it's the towering mushrooms of Zangarmarsh or the purple, swirling clouds of Netherstorm, the visuals are above and beyond anything in Azeroth. They aren't Ogrimmar, Stormwind and Ironforge, which accounts for some of the luster. However, I think that even a year from now people will see the difference in quality when crossing through the Dark Portal. The very nature of Outland lends itself to more creative landscapes. Along with the environments, the bestiary gets an upgrade featuring some exciting new animals and monsters to hunt down and destroy in their homes. Some of the creatures do border on Star Wars-ian silliness, but more variety in the enemies is not a complaint I'm willing to stand behind. If only the items had gotten that much attention. I was a little disappointed when I tried on a new helmet only to see that same tired old plate-helmet model from level 40. Getting your character to look cool is much of the reason we strive for the new loot. Just because we're running around acting like we're level one again doesn't mean the loot should make us look like level one.
