I played WoW since release and other than a month layoff before the release of TBC and WotLK, I have played it constantly up until about 7 months ago. But, my time with WoW is at an end. It is still an excellent game and I do not begrudge those who still enjoy it. It still has some amazing art direction, some of the coolest boss fights in the business and, except major patch days, a solid game engine. But, alas, it is over for me.
I spent my last couple of weeks in WoW roaming all of my old haunts; Blackrock Mountain, Silithus, Hillsbrad Foothills and Stranglethorn Vale. There was no one there, I saw no players except for the occasional lone leveler or gatherer but it brought back a lot of good memories. Memories of intense PvP fights, 40 man raids, trying to get into Blackrock Mountain on a Horde dominated server. All these memories dredged up.
Nostalgia.
The announcement of the Cataclysm expansion really drove it home for me; those days are gone and they are never coming back. The game has changed and moved on and I am left wandering where it went. I don’t blame Blizzard, they followed the money and there is certainly more players who enjoy WoW as it is now to WoW as it was then. But, no matter the reason, WoW is gone for me.
Cataclysm even makes it worse somehow. At least now I can still go back and visit those old areas, though there is no one there and little to do, they are still there. After Cataclysm most of that area will be gone or irrevocably changed.
It is almost like an old child hood home. If it isn’t torn down you can go back and visit, maybe even walk the halls. The halls may be empty, the posters may be gone but it is still your home. Then they tear it down and there is nothing to even visit anymore. It’s gone.
Yeah, this may sound like a weeping sentimentalist post but I do it to illustrate why I will not be playing WoW after Cataclysm. Why I did not cheer the expansion news like most of the other WoW fans did. WoW was the most fun, for me, pre-TBC and Cataclysm will only take what I liked most about WoW and turn it into what I like least.
I will miss it but I hope the current fans enjoy themselves. WoW will continue to be a juggernaut for the forseeable future and for very good reason.
Corpse Run 
Good post
‘WoW was the most fun, for me, pre-TBC’ I want to agree with that and I would have prior to Wrath of the Lich King, dont get me wrong WotLK introduced alot of things I didnt like however the graphics/landscapes, mobs and the most polished PVE in MMOs with involving questlines make it propably the best experience in any game I’ve played.
Sure I think back on Vanilla WoW with great memories however the game was getting stale and probably needed the changes to keep subscribers interested.
Cataclysm will either make it my MMO of choice for another 3 years if it delivers on its promise of ‘improving old zones and questlines, i like having a good few alts so if all goes to plan I’ll be a busy boy with all my werewol…. umm Worgen
I almost got a tear in my eye. Srsly. I remember leveling Kaldeem my undead rogue in vanilla wow, I start playing 6 months before TBC, and I dinged 60 2 days after it launched, I was pissed! lol.
I too enjoyed the old world for a while. Watching my friends raid MC and having large PvP battles in areas I have never taken the time to explore (silithus? I think I quested there for 58-59) due to the release of TBC and having to grind another 10 levels. Most of my memories stem from watching my friends play, and how fun it was to see.
I know, and agree on how Cataclysm will be the end of Wow for me. I’m not hardcore in any sense of the word when it come to getting to cap level and all that it entails. It’s as though (for me) every time I could or would be able to start enjoying the game they release an expansion and I find my self grinding/questing again before I can even stop and take it all in. Wow has been an amazing journey in which I have met great “friends” and people whom I talk to daily (Facebook!), and in which I have learned so much about the gaming industry and MMO’s, and even partially the reason I started my own blog (to vent) on my experiences, thoughts, and ideas on the game’s I play.
Wow, is that best friend from elementary/middle school that you grew up with, but then you hit high school and it all changes. You grow apart, and don’t necessarily hate or dislike each other, but know that you no long have that “special” connection that made you best friends to begin with. And with that we do say “Goodbye” to our old friend, and wish him well.
I felt the same about EQ. What’s worse is that even if you find something that you absolutely love.. it won’t ever be the same as your “first love”. You can never recapture that initial feeling of awe and excitement. It’s a one time thing. Sad.
Pingback: “It’s all said and done, it’s real, and it’s been fun!” « No re-rolls in real life