Panda Explosion

Well, it's here. World of Warcraft's fourth expansion has been released into the wild, and with it comes loads and loads of the much-sought-after Pandaren. I have no bad blood or regrets with WoW and me quitting, and yet, here is the boat to Pandaria, sailing away in front of me while I wave a fond farewell.

Aside from my personal reasons as to why I'm unable to play Mists of Pandaria, I'm finding this day a little bit bittersweet. I have fond memories of my guild and all the friends I made through the game over the years, and through good times and bad, I definitely had a lot of fun and I wouldn't have changed a thing if I had gone through it all again. Still, even today, I follow the same news feeds and websites that I always followed when I played, just to keep up with the current times, though I have to admit, I skimmed over the new talent system and some other major features.

Regardless, tell me this: Don't you think it's strange that I'm both glad and sad about not playing WoW anymore, and yet, I'm still following the game along however I can? Why do I even care anymore about recent events and news involving this game when I don't even play it anymore out of boredom?

This is something I think is truly cool about video games, especially games that are designed to last a long time like MMOs or games with a lot of DLC (however expensive and annoying that DLC might be), or even a series of games like Sonic the Hedgehog or the classic Mario titles. Even after you quit playing or you "leave" the series, you're still compelled to follow it along because you loved the time you spent with it. As much as you might deny it, you care enough to see what's going on because it's something that interests you, and you just might want to return some day when something really, really cool happens that cures your boredom.

That is the feeling I have. That is what I want from World of Warcraft. Even today, this god of MMOs rolls on, and even though it may have begun to show its age here and there, like I've said time and again, it's still a fantastically designed game and is loads of fun when you really get into it. Even though I'm bored and I probably won't be there to fight for these newly discovered lands in the name of the Alliance (sorry Horde, but I gotta stick with my friends!), I'll be watching them every step of the way, right here in my computer chair.