More calls for midlevel content, the return
by Mike Schramm 
Jun 2nd 2008 at 3:00PM
Back before patch 2.3, one of the most repeated calls from players was not for new raiding instances or a particular class balance change, but for new midlevel content. As we've said on the WoW Insider Show, a large percentage of the population of Azeroth is perfectly content hanging around the 30s and 40s and not bothering with endgame PvP or raiding, and previous to patch 2.3, they wanted new content to roll through.Then patch 2.3 came, and with it, a whole new series of quests, and even a new hub in Dustwallow Marsh. Midlevel players finally got what they wanted, and for a while, the requests for new things for midlevel players to do were quelled.
Until now.
Yes, there are new rumblings that Blizzard should aim to renovate old content rather than adding more new stuff onto the end of the game (which, as Neth confirms, is what they're planning on doing right now).
But the question I have for you all is: do we need more new midlevel content? I was definitely on the side of those asking for new midlevel content before the new Dustwallow Marsh, and yet I've only found myself questing there a few times -- I've been doing exactly what I didn't plan on doing, and pushing onwards towards 70 rather than sticking around the midlevels. There's no question that patch 2.3 was a popular patch (it also included those leveling changes, and those were such a huge hit that Blizzard's working on other ways to make the leveling grind easier), but was the new Dustwallow Marsh really all that popular? Did it compare, for "instance," to all the people who played Magisters' Terrace when it first arrived, or all the people who worked on the Sunwell Dailies?
To me, that provides pretty clear evidence that no matter how much we wanted new midlevel content before patch 2.3, Blizzard has more incentive to provide new late game content (casual as it may be). Even if there's lots of calls for new midlevel content and revamping of old areas (I'm still convinced that we need Heroic versions of classic instances like Deadmines and Wailing Caverns), Dustwallow Marsh's revamp seems to show that players are much more interested in having new things to do at the end of the game.
Filed under: Analysis / Opinion, Odds and ends, Blizzard, Instances, Quests
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 4)
Vendrill Jun 2nd 2008 3:21PM
I agree that new midlevel content would be most beneficial to the game, especially to people rolling alts. Those people on Pvp servers would have a less frustrating time leveling if more options for qquesting were presented to them (less STV ganking) also, new midlevel content will encourage people to visit areas that they may have passed over.
Mullinator Jun 2nd 2008 3:15PM
The people that demand new mid level content are often players who have already leveled through the areas multiple times. They just don't stick with higher level characters because the kind of experience they want doesn't exist in 'end-game'. So really I see two options: Add more mid-level content or add end-game content that recreates the mid-level experience.
Tim Jun 2nd 2008 3:21PM
Mull, you nailed it. There's a reason some of us are alt-aholics, and it's because for us, we don't have the time or interest to commit to full-time raiding. Plus, we prefer the solitary nature of the game, the ability to have a relaxing hour or so playing chars and blowing off steam.
Once the quests that take you to 70 are all used up, what is there left to do except PUG instances and maybe join a guild? Dailies? Too much like chores. Professions? Same deal.
Blizz should create one or more utterly epic questlines, ones that take a couple of months to complete and have a degree of challenge to them so that people can't just breeze through for the rewards. Repeatable solo instances with the possibility of a random drop that would unlock the next part of the quest? Who knows. Just use your creative noggins and make it happen. We'll love you long time if you do.
Sirg Jun 2nd 2008 3:36PM
Very well said - I'm also leveling an other char. I have a main which is very dear to me, but after I've done almost all the quests that seemed interesting to me, regardless of level, I wanted to reroll, and I want even more quests.
The end game experience is very repetitive and can be also time consuming (raids). Even though I've been through, that the end game content doesn't offer me enough "RPG material", which is chain quests, great NPCs and fun things.
Blizzard still has to create deep NPCs, with personality and background. Each great game has a few, and they aren't stuck in the memory of the gamers that played those games because of some shiny gear or oversized stature. They had personality.
niko Jun 2nd 2008 3:17PM
You can't just focus on the end if you're an MMO. It's about staying fresh, sure, and that's why they focus a lot on the endgame... keeping people playing, etc.
As much as I'm sure Blizzard learned from the whole TBC experience as a content expansion and the constant outcry to poor ol' Azeroth with it's bland textures, environments, and unfinished plots (gosh there are some great plots that just stopped all of a sudden that I'd love to see finished), leaving Azeroth alone to stagnate while Northrend and Outlands stand out as the "real" content seems like a really bad idea! At some point, the modern innovation and evolution that the game experiences needs to trickle down to the original content. Don't you want your noobs in the game to see what you're really able to demonstrate as a developer? It can't always be about the endgame.
IMO, it's just a matter of time before it will be important for them to modernize the original content. I'm reminded of when Everquest got the Shadows of Luclin expansion pack, and how they modernized the graphics engine along with some other really nice enhancements. It was probably one of the more welcome changes that game needed at the time, and helped bring more people back into the game.
Seems like a worthwhile investment for Blizzard. I just hope it's sooner than later!
Mullinator Jun 2nd 2008 3:26PM
I was giving the problems you stated a lot of thought a few days ago. Old world content that grows stagnant with quest lines that simply end. I came to the conclusion that one of the ways Blizzard could solve most of these problems would be to have a future expansion pack where no new lands or continents are added. Instead the story is progressed into the future and the old world receives a graphical upgrade.
Players who create a brand new character start off in like they all do today and the only difference they see is the graphical upgrade. Those at level 80 or whatever however exist in an Azeroth a few years in the future where old world zones are revamped with new high level quests and mobs. The Gnomes have finally retaken their old capital could be one of the lore progressions.
If anyone wants to go back to the old world they go through the caverns of time.
Heilig Jun 2nd 2008 5:07PM
Wow. Just wow. I was all set to come to Blizzard's defense with an explanation of how no matter how much content you add in the middle, people eventually pass through it, while the 70's are stuck at 70 no matter what they do, so you are obligated to prioritize new content that can't be progressed beyond simply by grinding boars if that's what you choose to do.
Then I read this post. And it is simply brilliant. It would require a massive hardware upgrade, but having an "old Azeroth" and "Present-day Azeroth" is the best Idea aI've heard in ages. It makes all the old dungeons heroics for all intents and purposes, and provides a real reason to go back and visit the old world again, which even the most jaded 70 has to admit is a very cool place, if only there was a reason to be there. It would allow for all the unused instances to be updated and used, like Grim Batol, Uldum, Timbermaw hold, Hyjal, etc.
Excellent idea, mate. Too bad they'll never do it, but great idea nonetheless.
Matt Jun 2nd 2008 7:04PM
I think we're talking about different definitions of "mid-level" content in some of these discussions.
With Patch 2.3, we were specifically talking about things geared toward making leveling faster and - for people with many toons - less repetitive. If you're grinding out your eighth 70, the reduced XP and new hub are excellent.
But I sense that a lot of these comments come from people who aren't looking to level their umpteenth character... they're looking for more new, solo content for their non-raiding 70s.
That *is* WotLK. Ten glorious levels through multiple zones, with new quest chains, new cities, etc.
If you're a true casual player, I can't see the appeal of new hub in Darkshire or a new level 50 zone in Kalimdor. If you're primarily solo, as I was for the first year I played, one of the driving reasons to roll an alt (and get stuck in the same mid-level content) is the lack of solo options at 70.
I realize that calling the 70-to-80 progression "midlevel" is oxymoronic, but it's sort of accurate if you consider hitting the level cap just a beginning (as most raiders do).
So when we talk about midlevel content, we have to differentiate between the content that appeals to a solo player looking for new things to do and the content that appeals to hard-core players looking for faster ways to the cap.
TheWired Jun 2nd 2008 3:21PM
I wouldn't mind new mid-level content because what Blizz did in Dustwallow was completely on the right track. I would love them to mix it up and maybe throw in a new instance instead. Something with tiers resembling the newer BC content or fighting a popular character in lore on a weaker level.
I get tired of running Gnomer, RFK, SM, etc over and over again. I know the 30-40 level are packed with instances, but they could offer some kind of variation and with tiers make it accessible between 20-50 depending on how it is designed.
h8rain Jun 2nd 2008 3:24PM
"I'm still convinced that we need Heroic versions of classic instances like Deadmines and Wailing Caverns"
I would love to do some of the older instances in heroic 70 mode. Not Wailing Caverns, but Deadmines, Stockades, and others would be really cool.
Wulf Jun 2nd 2008 3:36PM
I agree that there should be at least some effort put into making the alt grind more exciting and interesting for people. It doesn't have to be loads, most people have high level characters and the endgame is a massive part of WoW. However, it makes sense to keep all levels of the game interesting. I dont want Azeroth to become like the starting continents of Everquest did, with huge empty zones where you were lucky to see another player at all, because everyone was over in Kunark, Velious or on Luclin. This is presumably something Blizzard recognises too, for instance their decision to keep Auction Houses out of Outland so that people had to return to their native cities.
This can be done in a number of ways. I think heroic or new expanded versions of low level dungeons would be awesome. Another way is to continue to revamp or open up new zones occsionally as was done with Dustwallow Marsh. I'd love to see Gilneas opened up to become a 30-40 zone, or perhaps for a new series of questlines introduced to the Barrens that detail the environmental changes that should be happening there as a result of the actions of your first toon.
It doesn't have to be much, as the majority of players are (I believe) are involed in the endgame. But some additions and reworking would certainly go a long way!
Bromnir Jun 2nd 2008 4:25PM
Total side topic, but that just proced a question in my head.
Heroic means "upgrade the dungeon to be top-level difficulty" right now... but what happens in WotLK when the top level goes up 10 levels? Will the current heroics stay the same, tuned for 70s, or will they suddenly be tuned for 80s?
Just to tie this back into the question at hand - if heroics are, like the instances they modify, tuned to a specific, static level, then we have to ask what level the heroic Deadmines should be tuned to. To 70? Then we'll complain at 80 that we have no reason to run either version of Deadmines because they're both too easy...
rick gregory Jun 2nd 2008 3:33PM
/yawn.... here's the thing. There will ALWAYS be calls for midlevel content. But none of the arguments really hold up - dailies are like a chore... but doing the same quests you've done on 4 other alts is fresh? Of course it isn't. So people want new quests.
Mull is right (above)... and so it Tim. But, ultimately, you can't balance a multiplayer game around soloers. I'm NOT saying 'go play something else' but people who like to solo most or all of the time are DELIBERATELY choosing to not take advantage of a huge part of the game. When I levelled my 2nd 70 I did it with a group of friends... we ran most of the instances, quested solo, grouped up here and there for quests... it was MUCH more fun than levelling solo even though much of the content was the same. It was playing with friends that made it that way.
If you insist on treating WOW as a solo game I think you'll always be pining after new content because, no matter how much Blizz adds, you'll do it... and then it won't be new.
Finally, a note to the OP - it's offline right now, but if i remember warcraftrealms' stats correctly, the VAST majority of the playerbase is at 70. I'm not at all sure that there's really a large group of players sitting at 30-50.
Sean Riley Jun 2nd 2008 3:39PM
I wish that were an option. I've tried to find groups to run the instances, I seriously want to, but it's like pulling teeth on my server.
Sirg Jun 2nd 2008 3:45PM
Most players have a level 70 or a higher than 60 char. But they also have alts, and some are playing alts often. The requested content is meant for these type of players.
Adding more stories (not just dumb quests like kill 15 belfs and demons) with new quests or continuing old ones can't hurt. WoW started to look like a game focused on raiding tbh, like an item finding game. You got gear you are an acomplished player. If you don't, you are a noob. I want more options, and ways to develop my char, like even though I don't have great gear, I could be some special craftsman, that has better cooldowns on stuff, or can craft things with less mats.
Aigarius Jun 2nd 2008 6:29PM
The parrent does not talk about PUGing, Ross. The idea is to get a bunch of friends (like real-life friends, or guildies or something) and decide to level a set of alts together instancing whenever all or most of you are online. This would work especially well with a bunch of friends that know each other in real life so that work schedules are synchronised and you know when to expect each other online and ready to play.
recrudesce Jun 2nd 2008 3:36PM
sorry, i disagree with the arguement.
if you play Halo 3 on easy and complete it, do you complain because the game is the same on Medium, Hard or Legendary ? no, you play the same levels again, and do the same moves.
why should this be any different from an MMO ? providing more end game experiences is preferable in my eyes, cos there are more likely more people raiding than rolling full time alts.
jbodar Jun 2nd 2008 3:54PM
I agree to a point, but in your scenario, the difficulty level changes, so the experience changes. I guess that applies if your alt is a naked warrior, but usually the leveling is the same or easier. That's why people roll those "gimmick" alts.
jbodar Jun 2nd 2008 3:58PM
Also, isn't your analogy in support of heroic versions of old world instances? Same content, just harder.
Vince Jun 2nd 2008 3:41PM
My biggest complaint about midgame is the world is devoid of players. I'm working on my first character, and most of the zones and towns are completely empty. Getting into a party/raid for RFD, DM, ZF, BRS, Scholo? No chance. That's content I'll never see.
The more levels there are and the more zones they put in, the more spread out the players become, and the less interaction they can achieve. This is a multi-player game, after all.
Blizzard should take their already existing instance content, and make "heroic" versions for maximum level players.