World of Warcraft (Classic Era)
Details
Verdict
Still undoubtedly a valid & solid MMO choice despite its "Sell-By Date" but only if you: have time, enjoy a bit of jank & socialising! If you don't like the sound of this - probably give this one a miss - It will always hold a special place in the heart of those who don't though.
Context
Having played World of Warcraft briefly when I was younger I decided (against my better judgement) I to return to WoW in search of my "forever game". I chose classic version because I learn towards retro versions in general.
Hex Radar
Visual breakdown of core metrics.
Visuals
Visuals score: 6/10
Audio
Audio score: 7/10
Engagement
Engagement score: 8/10
Enjoyment
Enjoyment score: 6/10
Value For Money
Value For Money score: 5/10
Replayability
Replayability score: 8/10
Tags
Features
Platforms
Availability & pricing by platform.
Pros
- JANK. If you enjoy the quirks of an older game. (I did :D)
- Slow gaming at its best! Makes you appreciate travel.
- Social gaming at its best (most of the time). Leads to unscripted and genuinely fun moments.
Cons
- JANK. If you dislike jank. Virtually no "quality-of-life" updates.
- Time sink. But its WoW so I mean what did you expect.
- Without Addons it will require a decent amount of help from the internet to understand concepts & quests.
Visuals
This value will most likely be far too high for a majority of the readers here. How could such an old game get such a score? Because I like it ok? No but seriously I justify the score by saying that the art style, while cartoonish, has retained its charm and allowed the game to age graciously. Sometimes landscapes especially still feel visually striking.
Audio
The score is pretty awesome to be honest. While I can't say that it is all hugely memorable (minus the log in screen music that slaps) I can say that its incredibly fitting and generates a real atmosphere. As in many games the unscripted "kick-in" of music sometimes just hits. Also the troll & dwarf voice acting alone justifies this no questions asked.
Engagement
The engagement is undeniable here. At times this can actually be a danger of this game! But being a game, that is what it is designed to do and it does it well. It would have scored higher however WoW classic era is slightly less of a raw dopamine machine and sometimes has longer grinds.
Enjoyment
The number 6 felt appropriate here because while there are times that are immensely enjoyable (often in social & unscripted settings) there are also the long periods of downtime with occasionally grindy quests. Sometimes you may question if you're still enjoying what you're doing but "1 more mob" prevails.
Value For Money
Value for money is a really hard one here. I went straight down the middle with a 5 however as a subscription based game it's really impossible to tell as it depends how much you play. There is no upfront cost which is great but if you aren't playing it as your main game it can be hard to justify the reoccurring bill. That said there is plenty of content to explore so if it is your main game you can get so much out of the game.
Replayability
While I haven't yet seen what the end-game looks like for WoW Classic I can say that there is a huge amount of content. With the two Alliance & Horde factions there is a huge world to explore and plenty to do. The only reason it doesn't score higher is due to it's lack of endgame content compared to other versions of World of Warcraft.
Full Review
This review doesn’t have a long-form write-up yet.