>"If World of Warcraft is credited with a smooth initial launch..."
Then whoever can be credited with saying so can also be credited to never have played the game at launch.
WoW's initial launch was about as smooth as a cheese grater. In fact, every other MMO I can think of had more of a "smooth initial launch" than WoW.
Restricting the flow of game boxes to stores is also something done by other MMOs and developers, not just WoW and Blizzard. It's a standard population control measure. Still nothing special to be said there.
TL;DR - Why are we still talking about WoW's launch in 2004 when it's 2012, and there are more interesting things to talk about?
It's really hard to pick a side of something that really has no side. You don't really choose the 'Yin' or the 'Yang.' They just go together. One does not work as efficiently without the other.
If you have a bad tank, then sometimes even a great healer will just simply run out of their casting pool - and your party dies.
If you have a bad healer, then sometimes even a great tank can't heal themselves - and your party dies.
If you have a good tank and a good healer squabbling over whose job is more important rather than actually DOING the job, then sometimes we need to realize that we're not really better than anyone else and work as team - or your party dies.
So in this instance - I want to vote 'Or.' Tanks are important. Healers are important. You need both working together, or everything falls apart.
>blazenor asked: Is there a legal reason why MMOs don't have gambling within the game? (Not real gambling, but minigames like slots, poker, etc.)
Sorry to state the obvious, but the true "legal reason" why there's no gambling mini-games is because of the age restriction on real gambling. For the same reason why that movie got an 'R' rating because of some swear words, cigarette and alcohol use - an MMO that is available to 13 year old's cannot put casino-like gambling mini-games into their universes without opening a whole legal "can 'o worms." If video games like GTA can be blamed by the mass media for inflicting harm upon children with violent content... the imagine what would happen to a franchise like WoW or FFXI if parents found out they were getting their children addicted to gambling from an early age.
A game with a "T" rating from the ESRB may have some suggestive themes, a few swear words and/or adult situations... while I may be wrong on this, I believe that if MMO's were to ever develop casino-like mini-games into their content, their ESRB rating would have to be raised due to simulation gambling. WoW will never lose their "T" rating over a slot game.
(( True fact - once upon a time in WoW land, a group of role-players got together and played dice for gold through in-character role-play. Several participants received warnings and/or suspensions due to the fact that gambling (even role-playing gambling, if you're using a trade window to exchange real gold) is/was against the ToS. - I have not played WoW in over a year. ))
Blizzard admits to 'grossly underestimating demand' for World of Warcraft in 2004
Feb 13th 2012 1:43PM (Massively)Then whoever can be credited with saying so can also be credited to never have played the game at launch.
WoW's initial launch was about as smooth as a cheese grater. In fact, every other MMO I can think of had more of a "smooth initial launch" than WoW.
Restricting the flow of game boxes to stores is also something done by other MMOs and developers, not just WoW and Blizzard. It's a standard population control measure. Still nothing special to be said there.
TL;DR - Why are we still talking about WoW's launch in 2004 when it's 2012, and there are more interesting things to talk about?
The Daily Grind: What dead game would you play in a second if it revived?
Feb 13th 2012 1:34PM (Massively)Leaderboard: Tanks vs. healers
Feb 13th 2012 1:28PM (Massively)If you have a bad tank, then sometimes even a great healer will just simply run out of their casting pool - and your party dies.
If you have a bad healer, then sometimes even a great tank can't heal themselves - and your party dies.
If you have a good tank and a good healer squabbling over whose job is more important rather than actually DOING the job, then sometimes we need to realize that we're not really better than anyone else and work as team - or your party dies.
So in this instance - I want to vote 'Or.' Tanks are important. Healers are important. You need both working together, or everything falls apart.
Ask Massively: We do not play games for a living edition
Feb 13th 2012 1:18PM (Massively)Sorry to state the obvious, but the true "legal reason" why there's no gambling mini-games is because of the age restriction on real gambling. For the same reason why that movie got an 'R' rating because of some swear words, cigarette and alcohol use - an MMO that is available to 13 year old's cannot put casino-like gambling mini-games into their universes without opening a whole legal "can 'o worms." If video games like GTA can be blamed by the mass media for inflicting harm upon children with violent content... the imagine what would happen to a franchise like WoW or FFXI if parents found out they were getting their children addicted to gambling from an early age.
A game with a "T" rating from the ESRB may have some suggestive themes, a few swear words and/or adult situations... while I may be wrong on this, I believe that if MMO's were to ever develop casino-like mini-games into their content, their ESRB rating would have to be raised due to simulation gambling. WoW will never lose their "T" rating over a slot game.
(( True fact - once upon a time in WoW land, a group of role-players got together and played dice for gold through in-character role-play. Several participants received warnings and/or suspensions due to the fact that gambling (even role-playing gambling, if you're using a trade window to exchange real gold) is/was against the ToS. - I have not played WoW in over a year. ))
Happy birthday: take a trip in America's largest flying gadget (part 6)
Mar 28th 2008 4:19PM (Engadget)