Ok, this essay is my view on why World of Warcraft (WoW) is addictive.
First, lets split the case to pre level 60 and post level 60.
These are almost two different games, and I didn’t believe it before I turned 60. I thought I’d play to lvl 60 and quit.
I’ve been level 60 for a few months and am still playing, although I
have been considered quitting on several occasions, so my original
plans of play till 60 and quit didn’t work.
So there are two questions:
1. Why play till lvl 60 ?
The answer is the same as why climb mount everest ? Because it’s there.
Warcraft is a game that many people play, it’s a fun game, online game
where you interact with other players, and I’ve had to play it and do
all the quests like i do in all other RPG’s i play.
So there’s no big discussion about the first question.
BUT:
2. Why play post lvl 60?
The casino effect.
Yes, World of Warcraft post 60, is like a damn huge casino where you go
in the main floor and from all over you here slot machines dispense
money. In any given moment one person in the casino wins something, and
the casino is built in such a way that you can hear it and think, hey,
if they win, so can I !
Now, it works in casinos, and it works in Warcraft, why ? because there
are MANY people in it, but only ONE person wins at a time while the
rest don’t.
You are lead to think that the rewards for winning in warcraft are
awesome, and very rare. And they are, that’s what I’ve been slowly
brainwashed while playing the pre-60 game. By the time you get to
60, you see all those 60 people with epics (very rare items) and
having got one yourself, you think: Hey ! I can get more, and be
awesome !
But that’s the point. They are VERY rare, but you constantly see people
winning them so you don’t lose hope and you just keep trying more and
more and more to gain these items.
But they are SO rare, that you can’t get them yourself. You have to
keep playing more and more and more, and every time you play you see
other people getting items (which you can’t use, but are still very
rare). There are your guild friends who keep getting epics, and people
in the city bragging about their epics, and you think again : Hey ! I
want this for myself !
And then when you realize you won’t be able to achieve it anyway, you
meet with a player that has an ALL EPIC item set ! like 20 epic items
while you have 1, and you get to think that it’s attainable. It’s not.
So you keep playing your addiction thinking you’ll get something on your next trip. You don’t.
That’s why it’s an addiction.
To conclude :
The house always wins. Blizzard keeps winning 12 euros out of my pocket every month.
Edit: Welcome all Carnival of gamers readers. You can check the rest of my blog here.