For the past six years, in order for a player to reach the cap level of 80, players had to grind through some of the most grueling quests we've seen since Everquest. Kill, collect, rinse, repeat, this was the old scenario until Wrath of the Lich King. When Wrath was released players saw a sprinkling of new mechanics, where players could use the environment, machines and objects to accomplish quests. Even then players after six years still had to go through old Azeroth just to experience this new content. The problem was all the fun was had at lvls 70 - 80. The grind prior was old and stale and Azeroth was just something you did to get to the good part. Then the Cataclysm hit and our world was changed forever.
Cataclysm brought with it new Dungeons, a higher player cap (80 -85), two new races (Goblins and Worgens) professions and it also brought with it a face lift to old Azeroth that was greatly needed.
Game Play
Questing in Cataclysm is ridiculously fun, be it playing a simulated Joust game or throwing baby bears from the top of a tree as part of a rescue mission. Blizzard has taken all that it's learned from previous expansions and applied its mechanics to Cataclysm. Questing is tighter and breadcrumb quests are easier to come upon. You're not stuck in a single city or Hub for more than ten to twelve quests then it's off to the next area for more story and more quests. It's a whirlwind adventure that makes questing quickly pass by, but an entertaining experience at the same time.
This now applies to Azeroth as well. Almost every old world zone revamped and rebuilt players can enjoy a more streamline quest system that is highly entertaining. New and old players will run through this new and old content without the old 'grinding' feel. One of the zones, Westfall, has had almost 9%5 of its zones and quests changed just to accommodate this new game play model.
The only downfall is that the Burning Crusade expansion was left untouched. The Outlands retains a lot of the old style of questing and players can really feel like they hit a wall when they hit 60 through 70. Yes it's only ten levels, but it's the only part of the game that doesn't feel fluid or nearly as clean as the rest of the game. I recommend you tough it out though because the rewards are great!
Zones
Taking a look at the new zones in Cataclysm we have Mount Hyjal, Uldum, Vash'jir, Deepholm and Twilight Highlands. Each area has its own distinct look and feel. Uldum is the Indiana Jones ride wrapped in WoW lore, Twilight Highlands is the explanation of Deathwing and Vash'jir is completely under water. These zones are well laid out and immerse you in each of their story lines creating a stronger connection with the lore in this expansion.
Two new starting areas for the new races are Kazan for Goblins and Gilneas for Worgens. If you do nothing else in this game I recommend you roll a new one of these races just to experience the starting zones. These are probably the most fun and interactive starting zones we have seen so far. Plus the Worgen top hats are awesome.
Finally the entire old world has been wrecked by the coming of Deathwing and you can see his devastation across the lands of Azeroth. From flaming claw prints embedded in the walls of Stormwind to deserts that have completely turned into green and lush landscapes. Also the ability to fly in Azeroth now makes traveling a breeze so you really have no excuse not to see this new world.
Dungeons
This is the highlight of this expansion. It seems that toward the end of Wrath of the Lich king players were face-rolling through dungeons. This was not always the case. In vanilla WoW players had to know Crowd Control, manage cool-downs and know each fight mechanic. Wrath brainwashed players into "walk into dungeon, punch bad guys and leave with shinies". Cataclysm will be a rude awakening to players of this caliber.
A smart group of friends or guild mates playing over voice chat and taking their time should have little trouble with these new dungeons while players that use the dungeon finder tool and just expect to be carried and hoping that the off-set DPS class will cover for you will be sadly mistaken. It's taking time for all of this to sink in with players and although the new dungeons are a lot of fun it's also a realization of a hard truth; this game just got harder. I recommend taking your time instead of trying to blow through a dungeon quickly and save yourself the heartache.
Overall
This is practically a new game from the ground up. Blizzard has done a great job breathing new life into an old MMO and giving players a new lease on their game-time. There is so much that has changed that I can't cover it in a full review, but if you haven't checked out World of Warcraft yet, now is the time to do it. By destroying everything the Warcraft team has built over the last six years, they have saved this game and increased its lifespan for the years to come. Twelve million players can't be wrong.
World of Warcraft: Cataclsym was developed and published by Blizzard Entertainment on December 7th 2010 for the PC. The game retails for $39.99. A digital PC copy of the game was supplied by the publisher for review purposes.
