Old Blizzcon footage and new coliseum

#0 - June 26, 2009, 8:59 p.m.

Watch this video. Skip ahead to 13:25.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TSYtaXPUe6s

It's wicked funny to me how it was a joke to everyone to have a raid where there was no trash and Kaplan was pretty adamant about never removing trash because of how important a role it played with pacing, etc.

Now, we already have VoA which has virtually no trash and soon a brand new coliseum with no trash at all.

I have to say, it's sad to see how something that was once a joke to everyone (designers and players alike) has made it into the game.

Blizzard, you're way overcompensating. You're catering to the speed freaks, i.e. the people that could care less about how the the game is played and only care about OMGpurple! Kaplan even went on to explain the importance of trash saying, "[Trash] is a pacing mechanism first and foremost. Believe it or not if the dungeon were just all bosses it would sort of lose it's appeal. It also let's classes shine." He goes on but you have to watch it to hear his entire philosophy on trash.

It's one thing to make the raids 10-mannable, that's fine, it's more accessible to more people. Good idea. Grats. But instances with just bosses for free loot? Come on. We know you're making everything more puggable and that's cool, I agree, I like that. But a line up of bosses where the strats will be online almost instantly and everyone will just go there weekly for loot with very little effort.

I think you're swinging the pendulum too far in the ezmode direction.

Zarhym

#8 - June 26, 2009, 10:04 p.m.

Q u o t e:
bump, this is worth discussion.

How has Blizzard philosophy changed on raids?

I don't see how adding in the Crusaders' Coliseum suggests to you we've suddenly departed from any core philosophy on raiding. It's a departure from dungeons like Naxxramas and Ulduar, to be sure, but the Crusaders' Coliseum layout doesn't signify the future of World of Warcraft raiding in the sense that we're ditching the idea of having trash pulls and expansive halls in which players must fight. If anything we simply expanded upon the ideas seen in the Ring of Blood or Amphitheater of Anguish, this time providing players with more epic challenges and a break from the standard raid format. Beyond that, the core values Jeff has discussed with BlizzCon audiences in the past have not been abandoned... aside from the fact that you will need a 2200 Arena rating in 3's or 5's to fight Arthas, which will take place entirely on Mechano-hogs as you chase him through the citadel (hint: the red shells track your target).