This is the typical attitude to MMO's. If the MMO in question is not the one you like they tend to spit on it. The MMO playerbase is a very juvenile one in that sense sadly.

Overall, especially for a first timer WoW can be a very enjoyable game, it was certainly well worth it when it came out. You're coming in late in it's lifetime though if you buy it now, although a new expansion is coming out in a few weeks.

There should be a trial available to at least *try* it out for a bit before even spending any money.

There is a trial. I did the trial, didn't like it. My grandmother, thinking that I'd like the game, got it for me for Christmas. I played the month that came with it since she was living with us and I didn't want to hurt her feelings, but it still wasn't enjoyable. The grind is worse than many Asian MMOs, the community is a mixture of what sounds and acts like 4chan denizens and Gamespot forum users, and the content feels like I've already done that. Just my opinion. I'll stick to Everquest.

I got it from Trade Me earlier today - simply on this recommendation. I bought hard copy because 12 gigs is a bit to choke down through the net.

I think they're saving up for Black Friday.

Impulse deal of the day: S.T.A.L.K.E.R. Bundle Pack (S.T.A.L.K.E.R. Shadows of Chernobyl & S.T.A.L.K.E.R. Call of Pripyat) for 9.99$/7,46 € (normal price $49.99/37,35 €).

Edit: There are other deals as well like Galactic Civilizations I: Ultimate Edition for 0.99$, Tropico 3 for $10.03, Sword of the Stars - Complete Collection for $20.07, Space Rangers 2 (not reboot) for 9.99$ and so forth.

Thansgiving this Thursday probably means a long weekend sale with a pile of daily mark downs is looming.

Crap. Stupid me, another reason I shouldn't have got Devil May Cry 4 just now.

That WoW deal on the Blizzard store just might get me back in the game. God knows I need a head start to hit the level cap before Cataclysm.

You don't like it. That's fine, but this stuff just makes it impossible to take you seriously because it's simply not true.

Thanks. Sure I will give it a try if it is free. And it looks like I can force a pseudo offline mode by hosting a private server. I will be sure to give that a try as well.

Np. I doubt you'll find a private server a workable let alone satisfying option though. Not to mention it's illegal to do so ^^

I'd just try the game for a bit with the trial and if the gameplay already doesn't suit you then that already settles it. MMO's however derive much of their value from a certain persistance and mostly having other people to play with or against in the same gameworld. That's why I doubt a private server will do much for you.

It's an acquired taste that's for sure.

As for the monthly fee.. I used to think the same. But these games have a tendency of sucking you in and absorbing your life because of their communal nature and their tendency to have stuff to keep you busy on a daily basis. Before long I found myself staying home on a friday night just having fun in the game and that single night already saved me more money than a few months fee probably. I never really frowned on the fee since then, it's worth it as long as I enjoy the game.

That said, I haven't played a MMO in over a year, exactly because of the above. I already have a low discipline level so it was better for me to disconnect from it alltogether for now as I have other priorities ^^

Here is a different version of that story...

Most complete MMO ever. It probably has the best community I've seen in any game, I don't know how many nights I've wasted in the trade channel just chatting about jokes and stuff, many nights we would gather up (around few dozen players) and go together on a quest (killing low level hordies and stuff is fun!).

Sometimes we would go roleplaying, like, we would gather up in Goldshire, someone will be cooking, someone else will be fishing, then we would all eat together, have fun chatting.

Sometimes we would make a nice group and play together in Alterac Valley perfectly as a team, or go help out a person with one of his achievements, maybe do some low level raid just for fun...

All I can tell you is that you get a lot more for those $15 for the month than you get from a lot of other games during their whole existence. :)

EDIT: @Rohan15, something tells me that you didn't get pass level 20... :)

WoW has split the world into two parts :D Some people love it, others hate it, it is hard to find something in between :)
I didn't play it on official servers, but from what can I say, WoW is not a bad game. In the end, there has to be a reason why millions of people keep playing it.
I avoid that game from a different reason... I consider it simply dangerous :) WoW is designed to suck you in and not let you go. And in those years, Blizzard brought this tactic almost to perfection. If you want to try, it might be wort it, just watch out :)

Honestly, the fuss doesn't have much to do with the game itself. The game isn't bad, but if you have played other MMOs, you probably won't find much that's unique about WoW. If you haven't played other MMOs, there are much worse games to start with than WoW, but even the best MMOs generally have subpar gameplay by single-player standards. WoW is not an exception to this - you likely won't care to play it long-term if you play exclusively by yourself, and there's a good bit of content that you won't be able to touch without a group unless you far outlevel it.

As for the community, though, I have to side with Rohan. Maybe Kavazov's server was a lot better than mine, but I found the WoW community to be the most childish, virulent and boneheaded I've ever seen in a subscription MMO, both in-game and on the forums - and MMO communities are pretty crap in the first place. I played the game for some 2000 hours over the course of several years, and this never changed. Near the end of my time with my game, I simply refused to play with strangers anymore.