World of Warcraft and It’s Miss at PvP Combat
Blogged in MMORPGs, Games by Matt on Friday May 26, 2006Note: This is part one out of a series of articles, titled “PvP Combat, Release Dates, Innovation and MMORPGs; A Death Sentence“, covering some of the aspects and short falls that I feel numerous MMORPGs have been plagued by.
The debate whether game developers rush products to achieve an optimal release date has always been a hot bed for discussion, however in MMORPGs it seems skipping some small yet vital additions to the game can make or break your release. Back in later 2004 we saw two should be giants going head to head, World of Warcraft and Everquest 2.
When World of Warcraft was announced the gaming community was sucked up in a cyclone of press and hype. Could Blizzard deliver a MMORPG that would catch on with the hardcore gamers as well as with the more casual players, in this case the Blizzard audience Warcraft and Diablo, while staying true to it’s roots of being a highly polished titled developed by Blizzard? The buzz from the closed beta of World of Warcraft was one of a highly refined MMORPG experience even in it’s infants stages, however there was still that group of players who cried for balance before release. Everquest 2 was in development head to head with World of Warcraft. As the two were developed, the open beta/stress tests were fast approaching.
World of Warcraft, Blizzard’s amazing entrance to the MMORPG Scene.
As the beta test (or Open Stress Test) for World of Warcraft carried on, Sony Online Entertainment announced they would be releasing Everquest 2 in the middle of Novemeber 2004, almost 6 months ahead of the expected release date. Was SOE feeling the dragon of World of Warcraft breathing down the neck of its lovechild Everquest 2? The majority sure seem to think so.
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