Some possible lovin' for the Marsh
by Amanda Rivera 
Aug 9th 2007 at 1:16PM
For a while now there has been a clamor amongst a vocal minority on the forums regarding mid-level content. So much TLC has gone into the end-game content, many (myself included) would love to see some of those warm fuzzies thrown toward those zones that are less than fun to play. They've done it before, why not spend a bit more time revamping older zones?
A recent comment made on the forums has given me new hope for some new content. In a post about what we might do until Wrath of the Lich King arrives, Nethaera dropped this little gem: "Even some changes to Dustwallow Marsh people might be interested in." hmmm....Dustwallow, eh? Certainly, it's a zone with room to expand, and I admit that I don't do much there other than visit Tabetha, Nat Pagle and that firey red-head in the cave. So breathing new life into this zone would be a wonderful thing, especially if it connects to storylines elsewhere in the game.
Rather than jump to conclusions, I file this one away in the "interesting to ponder" category. What do you think? Is any mention at all from the uber secretive Blizzard clan a signal of things to come, or are they just tantalizing us with yet another item to guess at?
[via Rufuscrim]
Filed under: Odds and ends, Blizzard
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
Sylythn Aug 9th 2007 1:26PM
One thing they have GOT to quit doing in regards to leaving content behind, is just plain leaving it unfinished. The series about the burned inn in Dustwallow is awesome...and then suddenly dead-ends. The series with Archmage Vargoth and the Kirin Tor - suddenly dead-ends. These are storylines that are worth reading, quests that are worth doing to see what happens - to hell with the rewards...and to see those sorts of questlines not only show up unfinished but never get finished is really really sad.
konoko Aug 9th 2007 1:32PM
*cough*King of Stormwind*cough* :D
Eric Aug 9th 2007 1:41PM
if Blizzard's stance is to spend their production time working on end game content, then, as a player, i interpret this to mean that the grind from 1-58 is just that, a grind. If it is not worth their precious time to fix and balance it in comparison to the "rest of the game" then why not just let players skip over it completely. that way if someone really is interested in seeing the "old" Azeroth they can. for those just wanting to play a polished game, they also can.
Tiforix Aug 9th 2007 1:55PM
Two things come to mind:
1. They'll re-tune the Onyxia encounter in an attempt to make it interesting again.
2. They'll add some sort of lame world PvP objective, à la Eastern Plaguelands.
Yes, I guess I'm a bit cynical about this one. :P
Velanne Aug 9th 2007 2:00PM
I have to say having leveled numerous Horde the first time I got an Alliance to 40 I wanted to cry. The issue really isn't more midlevel content for everyone, just for the alliance. Horde have gobs more quests in Hinterlands and Feralas, Dustwallow march has several Horde quests, and even STV is better for the Horde. Badlands has more Horde quests (and a better town) and so does Swamp of Sorrows.
Worst of all the many of the quests Alliance can do in the 40-50 are Neutral! Searing Gorge is a nessecity to Alliance, for Horde its just another stop for some extra XP.
They helped this a bit by adding a few new Draeni quest spots to Ashenvale (forest Song) and Swamp of Sorrows but it still hurts real bad to go from 40-50 as alliance.
Jetles Aug 9th 2007 1:44PM
you guys should have a pod cast
Paul Aug 9th 2007 1:44PM
Too little, too late for me, as i think i would go crazy trying to slog another character up through 1-40 or so, but as far as new players and altaholics go, i think this would be very beneficial.
I think there should be twice as many quests in a level range than are need to level up, so you can choose the most interesting ones, instead of being stuck doing almost every single one just to avoid grinding, and adding stuff to the marsh is a step in the right direction.
I know it can't be anywhere near as outwardly profitable as selling another $40 expansion to 9 million people, but the more robust they make the game, the more immersive they make it, the longer people are going to stick around in general. They will see profit in someone quitting the game 3 months later than they might have otherwise way off in the future.
Coherent Aug 9th 2007 1:45PM
They're probably going to add an endgame connection there or something. I agree, they need to consider the whole game for upgrades, not just the "NEW FRESH EXCITING" parts.
It's criminal how there are so many promising quests in the game that start so interestingly and then just dead-end into nowhere. The Scythe of Elune is a major pet peeve of mine. It's a really cool quest that starts in Darkshire and you follow it around for a while and then... nothing.
Supposedly the Scythe of Elune currently rests somewhere in Karazan, but it doesn't drop anywhere there.
Blizzard needs to have a larger lore department, someone to shepherd special storyline quests from a low-level beginning to a satisfying endgame conclusion. Apparently a lot of promising material is simply dead ending. It happens over and over in the game, great start, you follow it around for a while, but once you leave the zone, blizzard changes writers and you never see it again.
Blizzard needs to change their quest staffing structure so that excellent lore and story quests can continue beyond the zone that they begin in. I suspect the problem occurs because quest writers were given authority over ONLY their starting zone and didn't have the authority to influence other zone's quest writers to follow up on early quest chains.
This would explain a lot of the player's pet peeves about the lore and resolution of favorite quest chains. Blizzard needs to go back and follow up on these!!!
This is why I say that Blizzard still has massive blinders on that makes them VULNERABLE TO COMPETITION. Another company could come along, deliver WoW-like depth, but actually FOLLOW UP AND PAY OFF early quest chains, and deliver a much more satisfying experience.
Urthona Aug 9th 2007 1:49PM
Dustwallow is one of the few zones that need some serious review. Thank Buddha Blizz is getting back in the business of quests, rewards, and exploration in the World of Warcraft.
While I'm excited for mid-30s - early 40s questlines in Dustwallow, I'm going to AGAIN suggest there be an Alliance Flight Path put in Bael Modan. It would allow easier Alliance access to RFK, RFD, and Wailing Caverns for the really adventurous types(which involve an even riskier run through Dustwallow from Theramore to Bael at level 17+).
Any news about fleshing out Azshara, Stonetalon, Hinterlands, Feralas, Blasted Lands, and Swamp of Sorrows?
Laukidh Aug 9th 2007 1:51PM
There goes my safe leveling spot that I use to avoid STV gankage.
Paul Aug 9th 2007 1:57PM
"This is why I say that Blizzard still has massive blinders on that makes them VULNERABLE TO COMPETITION. Another company could come along, deliver WoW-like depth, but actually FOLLOW UP AND PAY OFF early quest chains, and deliver a much more satisfying experience."
Agreed. Other than the wonderment i get from seeing new, beautiful zones, without the lore, and the questlines which uncover the lore (the one leading down into the deadmines is one of my favorite, the entire zone of westfall is devoted to it), the game is just a big math problem- gather x of these by doing Y damage to this.
Paul Aug 9th 2007 1:58PM
"This is why I say that Blizzard still has massive blinders on that makes them VULNERABLE TO COMPETITION. Another company could come along, deliver WoW-like depth, but actually FOLLOW UP AND PAY OFF early quest chains, and deliver a much more satisfying experience."
Agreed. Other than the wonderment i get from seeing new, beautiful zones, without the lore, and the questlines which uncover the lore (the one leading down into the deadmines is one of my favorite, the entire zone of westfall is devoted to it), the game is just a big math problem- gather x of these by doing Y damage to this.
Paul Aug 9th 2007 1:59PM
sorry, double post :(
Ortai Aug 9th 2007 2:12PM
@8 I had the same reaction.
Matthew Aug 9th 2007 2:13PM
Agree on the level 40 woes. Especially at level 40 and 41 there just isn't much to do. I'm grinding up a warrior at this point and it's pretty boring. That whole set of levels is awful, especially if you solo them. There's definitely room to expand in Dustwallow, and a couple of other zones as well.
Although I hope they increase the amount of experience you gain from all the quests in Azeroth with the next expansion, it would also be neat to have an older zone get packed full of new quests to do.
Todd Aug 9th 2007 2:16PM
I'm still waiting for the whole "Essence of Eranikus" chain to be finished. I'm sure they'll get around to this when the next expansion, "Nightmare of the Emerald Dream," comes out.
Paw Aug 9th 2007 2:19PM
Where ever they add, they need to add something. Currently working a gnome warlock (booooo!) through and it it currently at 47. Thank the maker that I am through any dealings with STV. I dropped over half of those quests earlier and tried to get my XP in different zones. Quiet zones. Zones away from the standard gank-a-thon locales.
As one of those evil casual, non-raiding, non-arena-ing players, I will get to 70, then turn back to one of the alts and work on them. I won't be spending much, if any, time running through the end-game content. I like questing, I like solo. I have a few friends I play with from time to time, but no guild. I would love it for Blizzard to throw me a bone here and add some mid-game content. Not make it prettier. Add to it. Fix the dead-end chains. Add new chains. Add new chain-less quests. Just add. I don't know if the new expansion will be finding its way to my computer if they don't add to the content I play. That will be $40 less that Blizz will get.
Make all your players happy, Blizz, not just the raiders and the professional PvPers, and you will continue to grow.
Paul Aug 9th 2007 2:47PM
My god, the blues over in the forums need to start coming over here and reading these. As opposed to the cesspool that is the wow forums, this place is all constructive criticism. Sorry for the meta-ness, back to the marsh.
drakar Aug 9th 2007 3:05PM
@#16. They did finish it. It was a little piece of the opening of the AQ gates. Unfortunately, most people never got to see it and it was really an unsatisfactory ending.
Pingmeister Aug 9th 2007 3:11PM
If they actually start adding questlines to existing zones I will be so very happy. I am almost afraid to hope that this will happen.
With my luck they mean they are adding some MORE endgame content to this game, leaving those of us who enjoy trying new classes sloshing through the same old mid-level questlines.
If they want to keep folks' subscriptions going longer they should really add low-level and mid-level content that people WANT to see. I think it really worked with the addition of the new starter zones in the last expansion.