Scenic Routes
by Mike D'Anna 
Jan 4th 2006 at 10:00AM
I
had the unique pleasure of helping out an MMORPG newbie in the game today, and while we were running around Darkshire,
they couldn't help but gush on & on about the sheer beauty of some of the scenery in the game. The waterfall north
of Auberdine, the view from the Hippogriff route to Darnassus; they talked about it like an actual tourist on vacation.
It made me realize that, I've been playing this game for so long now, that I almost take the scenery for granted.So much care & detail went into even some of the most obscure & remote areas of the game, and there are plenty of spectacular views & vistas throughout the land. What are some of your favorite scenic spots or landmarks in the game? Any places you'd take a new player to try and really dazzle them? Give me some ideas, here...
Filed under: Polls
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Dyyne Jan 4th 2006 10:41AM
Hel ya! Best place for scenic views is Desolace. Love it there, go there often just to enjoy the sights.
PodMonkeys Jan 4th 2006 10:55AM
Gotta love Deadwind Pass!
I personally like the more realistic areas to the more fantasy looking ones. I rather be in someplace that looks like Redridge than Astranaar. But thats just my personal opinion.
That said. Theres something about areas like Deadwind Pass, Duskwood, and Un'Goro Crater thats very attractive. The huge dinos really add to the charm of the Crater. I think its more of an ambiance attraction than just something pretty to look at.
L'Emmerdeur Jan 4th 2006 11:14AM
Sunset in Southshore.
mike Jan 4th 2006 12:02PM
Sunset in the Hinterlands is breathtaking. They really hit that one out of the park.
A friend and I made sure to jump off the dam in Loch Modan, too. And I'm just shocked silly by the beauty every time I see the twin colossals during late afternoon in Feralas. Man, Blizzard has some talented people working over there.
Cort Jan 4th 2006 12:05PM
Heh heh, I had this experience again yesterday. My good computer had been down for about two months, laden with issues that took that long to unravel. In the meantime, I was on my much older, much slower machine, and the game didn't have quite the same effect on me. Yesterday I finally got my machine back up and running, and was completely blown away by the sheer beauty of the game. The spell effects, the buildings, and the scenery... All beautiful. I rode the hippogryph from Auberdine to Felwood, and marveled at the beauty of the area as I flew. Sure, it's green, polluted waterfalls, but it was still amazing.
I think one of my favorite spots was running down the Southern Tunnel from Dun Morogh into Loch Modan for the first time. I first realized that there would be no loading time between zones, which was awesome in itself. Then, I turned the corner on the path and found myself staring at two giant statues of dwarves, clearly patterned after the Argonath from Lord of the Rings. I was awestruck. Travelling through the game for the first time was amazing. Ashenvale, the Barrens (clearly patterned after the Savannah plains of Africa), Ironforge, the Great Tree of Teldrassil. No game has ever impressed me that way.
Mark Jan 4th 2006 1:50PM
Similar experience to Cort's, I had an old washed out looking crt monitor, seemed to be stuck on some bad contrast/brightness settings that couldn't be changed back to a good place. This past week I bought an lcd, hooked up with the dvi cable and holy crap the game's colorfulness and contrast blew me away.
I kind of dig the darker zones, Silver pine on a clear night on Fenris Isle facing towards Dalaran, but far enough away such that it's partially silhouetted.
uncaringbear Jan 4th 2006 8:18PM
Last night I was bored, and was running through Elwynn Forest on my way back to SW. The server time was about 4:30AM, and the game world sun must have started rising. The trees took on a beautiful glow from the transistion from night to morning. I had never noticed that before. Duskwood is quite pretty in its dark moody way. Some of the more desolate areas like Desolace aren't my cup of tea, but Thousand Needles has some nice views. One of the nice vantage spots is the Thalanaar Alliance flight point on the border of Theralas overlooking Thousand Needles.
Aaron Jan 4th 2006 9:06PM
Desolace? Are we kidding here? Yuck, just....gross. I play Horde, but I honestly can't stand Desolace.
Feralas, on the other hand, really mystified me when I first ran through its forests. Beautiful.
And I was in awe when I first saw the huge scaling walls of 1K Needles. Those are two places I vividly remember.
Dr. Woo Jan 5th 2006 4:16AM
The Gates of Ironforge made my eyes wide with amazement, and Stormwind with its giant statues did the same thing.
I love the view from Bloodvenom Post in Felwood, down into Darkshore. Also, the waterfall in Orgrimmar's Valley of Honor is a sight to behold.
Though my favorite view, above all, is the Thandol Span from Arathi to the Wetlands.
Blizzard's environment team is a really talented crew.
Amorales Jan 5th 2006 12:41PM
Last night I was running through Feralas, and my wife (who doesn't play) was there. She was asking me how much longer I'd be and then I told her to look at the screen. All she could get out was "wow, that's nice". Got me an extra half hour of play time. :p
Droozle Jan 6th 2006 7:44AM
I have been playing this game now for a month, so I can't compare my favorite vista's to places like Silithus or the Un'Goro crater, simply because at the moment it is too dangerous for my lvl 30 druid to go there. However, being a druid has the advantage of being able to swim for long, extended periods of time and therefore I have been able to swim from Hillsbrad foothills to the eastern parts of the Hinterlands. I have seen the Thandol span when I surfaced briefly during that journey and indeed it was a marvel to behold. But I still prefer the rolling grasslands and the mighty mesa's of Mulgore. The way the grass has a yellowish summer-like glow is so beautiful. Compare that to the grim stones of Blackrock Mountain, which I have seen from the back of a Gryphon flying from Stormwind to Ironforge. Both are spectacular sights and it makes me feel priviliged to play this fantastic game every night!
RighteousDork Jan 6th 2006 2:11PM
Well there are a lot of scenic areas in the game. The first time I saw grass after coming out of Dun Morogh was really nice. I'm not sure if I can do it anymore since they fixed some terrain exploits but there's some really interesting things to see from the top of Ironforge. I guess the mountain is Khaz Modan. I only wish I had a more powerful graphics card when I made my way up to the peak. Anyway, there's also the Gnomish airport, which is pretty cool. Where there would have been a gryphon master there is a dwarf that waves to people flying over into the Wetlands.
If you make your way carefully down the back of the mountain you come across a small farm and some ridiculously unfinished areas. There's one tunnel in particular that was probably meant to go into IF at some point. Instead it leads into the blue abyss. If you go through the gateway, you end up falling through the geometry to your death. If you go back and go through again as a spirit, you get stuck in limbo. I don't recommend doing it, assuming you can even get up there now.
Limbo is pretty damn cool though. You basically just keep falling with nothing but the swirling spirit vortex above and below you. You also start falling through the continent. I ended up in the Badlands before I hit some body of water. It's extremely bizarre. If the terrain is solid ground, you fall and start moving in the last direction you were facing. If you hit some body of water, you stop and can actually start swimming. You are completely surrounded by murky water. From the minimap, if you swim back towards land you go back to falling and head in a new direction. I made my way back up to Menethil Harbor doing this. There's no way to get out and had to get a GM to help me. I then got a stern talking to. I've got screenshots if anyone wants to see. Just mail me. righteousdork@yahoo.com