The Perils of "WoW-nnui"
by Mike Schramm 
Aug 29th 2006 at 9:47PM
Terra Nova has an interesting piece up about what they call "WoW-nnui": After stepping away from WoW for a while, Mike came back to the game experiencing ennui. Don't worry, I had to look it up too-- ennui is "a feeling of utter weariness and discontent resulting from satiety or lack of interest." Coming back to WoW after a long break can give you exactly that feeling-- the thought that you've seen everything there is to see and do in this game and you're just plain done with it.Is that possible? Of course it is. If Blizzard has failed to hold your attention (even after an extended break), then they don't deserve your fifteen bucks anymore, and it's time to quit. But ennui isn't always the end, as TN suggests-- lots of players have gone through it, even after a respec, or (to a lesser extent) after a particularly comprehensive revamp. And for me personally, even if I'm faced with a little boredom after a long break, even a short bit of grinding usually gets me right back in the thick of things, looking for loot and XP.
Now, as TN notes, anybody experiencing "WoW-nnui" at this point will probably be back for the expansion anyway, and there's a whole slew of games waiting in the wings to grab anybody walking away from WoW. Obviously, Blizzard has an impetus (see? I can do it too, Terra Nova) to keep ennui out of the game, or at least in control. Is it out of control? When you come back after a long break, are you back in the game, or thinking about getting out of it?
Filed under: Analysis / Opinion, Tips, Virtual selves
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Deafdumbandblind Aug 30th 2006 7:13AM
In my view those who get bored wit WoW obviously have a hormone/sugar imbalance and should see a doctor.
But seriously I too will suffer ennui when:
1. I have a toon of every race and every class.
2. All my chars are 60th lvl (70th when the expansion comes out)
3. All my crafters know ALL the recipes for ALL their profession/skills and have kitted out ALL my alts.
4. I've been through every instance with each alt
5. I've PvP'd sufficiently to buy the best gear for ALL my toons
6. I have epic mounts and flying mounts for all my toons
7. I have a zillion gold
You see, you would have to play for some time to have this disease. The ppl you're talking about must be 110 yrs old!
PodMonkeys Aug 30th 2006 8:23AM
I tend to get bored when I hit that point where my quest log is full of quests thats I'm not high enough to complete. At that point my game becomes all about grinding just for the sake of leveling up to be able to even attempt those quests. Thats the part I hate. What usually solves this is going through the quests and figuring out which ones I really don't need, and can pick back up later. I drop those, then go to a new area where I can get quests I actually can do. Bamn! I've got the fun of quests I can complete and areas I havn't yet ran through with that character.
Zigbee Aug 30th 2006 9:11AM
I've run into this feeling on a character level. I've got a lvl 30 rogue that I haven't touched in months. I hit this void in leveling, quests, zones and difficulty - and it just felt like it wasn't worth it to keep going. Somewhere in my mind, I know there's great post-40 content...but the thought of grinding through 30-40 with no major rewards...well it sucks. At least with my Warlock I've had Bloodrobe and Dar'Orahil quests to keep my interest. I had hoped 1.12 would help with the new talent revamps, but at lvl 30, the changes didn't do much for me (yet). For now, I'm happy to play my lock - here's hoping the expansion is enough refresh to go back to my rogue.
Zweibel Aug 30th 2006 12:48PM
See, I took a break for about five months (break meaning playing only a few hours a week either grinding or BGs). When I came back to finish leveling my priest from 46 to 60, I suddenly hit a huge roadblock. Apparently during those few months, every single person seemed to get Tier 2 gear. I couldn't go through Tanaris without some Tier 2 60 corpse camping me for a bit.
I have no problem with ganking. I'm on a PVP server and I knew what I was in for when I signed up. However, there comes a point when it becomes absurd that you can't even level up without people going out of their way to kill you. =/