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All of the latest Mists of Pandaria newsBreakfast Topic: Do you play other games besides WoW?
by Brandon Cox 
Mar 7th 2011 at 8:00AM
2011 looks to be a great year for gamers. The return of Duke Nukem. Portal 2. BioWare's trifecta of Dragon Age 2, Mass Effect 3 and The Old Republic. A new Final Fantasy. A new Legend of Zelda (and a remake of the greatest game ever made, Ocarina of Time -- flame on, but you know it's true). The return of Kid Icarus. The already-released Dead Space 2. There is no shortage of great stuff to play. And all the while, sitting smugly on my desktop and the desktop of 12 million others worldwide, is that little golden "W."
When the Steam holiday sales rolled around, I found myself drowning in a sea of backlogged games. The past five years that I've played WoW, I have seen very little of games outside of it. So when I should get sucked into Mass Effect, I realized there was a massive (no pun intended) collection of great games out there I had missed! I must play them all. The challenge then was playing these other games and still playing WoW -- a balancing act I have yet to master.
With the smorgasbord of excellence awaiting gamers in 2011, how will you find yourself sneaking time outside of Azeroth? Will you succumb to the deluge of games and break away from Azeroth entirely for a time, or will you find ways to incorporate WoW and other games into your gaming schedule?
Filed under: Breakfast Topics, Guest Posts
Reader Comments (Page 4 of 9)
AudreyR Mar 7th 2011 5:14PM
That grin when the last pig just will not die. WHY WON'T YOU JUST DIE?!
Junionn Mar 7th 2011 8:33AM
WoW is definitely my #1 but recently i've been playing Halo Reach, NHL 11 and Sim City 4 (yeah, thats right).
jimbob Mar 7th 2011 8:34AM
I bought 5 games in a sale about 3 weeks ago, Bioshock, Bioshock 2, Mass Effect, Dead Space and Diablo.
I've actually installed only 3 thus far and managed to play about 1hr into Bioshock, 10 mins in Diablo and the same in Mass Effect... Wow is just too much of a time hog!
Drakkenfyre Mar 7th 2011 4:01PM
Diablo, or Diablo 2?
If Diablo, if you ever want to play the game straight, never go on Battle.net. The multiplayer is so ridiculously hacked, you will start a game, and a guy will enter who is unkillable, can teleport directly to your location, and kill you in one hit.
That, and quests are undoable in multiplayer.
Tim Mar 7th 2011 8:36AM
Played WoW for quite a few years now. Kinda getting bored with it. Like changes but maybe too many??
Anyway, when KOTOR comes around, might just be the nail in the coffin for me. But between church activities, shows on TV I love to watch, and just starting to learn guitar, WoW has even taken a back seat. Still love it, but with all relationships, sometimes, you just grow apart.
tik Mar 7th 2011 8:47AM
Sims!
Nawaf Mar 7th 2011 8:47AM
I'm a PS3 gamer. I play stuff like Assassin's Creed, Uncharted, Red Dead Redemption, Metal Gear Solid, Bioshock, Call of Duty, Killzone, FIFA or PES, LittleBigPlanet, Infamous, etc.
Tenko Mar 7th 2011 1:35PM
PS3 Gamer here too and I've hardly played WoW since Mass Effect 2 came out.
Now that's what I call an RPG :)
Ice Mar 7th 2011 8:53AM
I do indeed. I think thats why I'm bit more critic about some things about state WoW (which I think its only good thing) but lets not get into that now.
Playing really hard singleplayer games makes me better in WoW too.
You have to agree that if you start playing games like ninja gaiden (nes) at very young age it does have some effect to you if you keep doing that and eventually be good at it.
Also being more adult your other "hardcore" gaming experiences will be more direct. You are fast from moving out of fire and to react to things and can think more of the mechanics and how they work. I think everyone should play other games from time to time. WoW is rather simple game it can sometimes make you bit numb on the gaming side of things, I played wrath for very long time without other games and went to play some simple game one day and it was so embarassing that I died so many times to simple things on easy.
If it was up to me I would ask in our guild applications what other games people play or have played in the past. Theres huge difference on player who only has played WoW as their "first game" compared to someone who has grown with NES games like ninja gaiden or other legendary "difficult games".
It also would give me the impression do they have "gamer spirit" on them. Would they give up easily, would they be ready to be better as gamers not only as characters?
I'm not saying people who only play wow give up easily but you can get the spirit to show more with people who have played lots of games in the past. Also if you have any proof you have beaten some really hard games in reacting part like some good hack and slash game on hard difficulty I know that guy wont be the first one to die standing in fire.
Text of wall? Ehem. Gentlemen, ladies. I'll get back playing Bayonetta on hard.
Murphy Mar 7th 2011 9:55AM
Absolutely marvelous insight on gaming in general, and one of the major flaws in the current WoW population/game.
coville Mar 7th 2011 8:58AM
Yesterday I got my copy of Pokemon White, that will take time away from WoW. I also play the TCG for Pokemon and only have 2 weeks before the state championship, hoping to win a trip to Nationals in Indy.
Greyhame Mar 7th 2011 8:55AM
I play other games sometimes. Depends on how I feel at the time if I want to get in and play WoW or not. Currently playing Dawn of War 2: Retribution. Waiting for Mass Effect 3 and Deus Ex: Human Revolution to come out. I'll probably also get more next time Steam has a sale depending on what it is.
Aticus Mar 7th 2011 8:56AM
Black Ops. Enough said.
Freedom Mar 7th 2011 8:58AM
I'm looking forward to Sims Medieval.
thegatherer Mar 7th 2011 8:58AM
I am soooo tempted to ditch WOW after my current guild essentially dissolved (this is after a few other current guild dissolutions--oh woe is me!). But I just keep coming back to play my hunter and army of alts.
I desperately want to try out magica, and I tried Rift during the Beta. I like it, but it seemed to miss the mark somehow. I do not know what it is, it might just be me playing a new game for the first time and not knowing all the mechanics/shinies of the UI and such.
Other than that, when my computer is otherwise occupied (i.e. doing geospatial analyses), I will be playing an old throwback, Okami. Oh, and I cannot wait for Skyward Sword to come out. (BTW, Twilight Princes is better.)
Hal Mar 7th 2011 9:01AM
Eh, my video game playlist has been diminished lately, mostly because my PC can't handle most of the new games and my Wii . . . well, there haven't been any compelling releases lately (YMMV).
How about non-video games? I'm set to start a Dresden Files RPG campaign for my gaming group this week. I'm nervous about running a new system, but I feel like the story for the campaign has enough potential for greatness that I'm definitely excited.
Tim Mar 7th 2011 9:02AM
Since my career life is a lot more busy that usual this year and WOW being a time hog I have suspended my account. I am not sure when or if I am going to return.
I have noticed a lot of new games out there. I wouldn't mind finding a game as challenging as WOW but without the massive grind it has become in CATA.
Wiebelhausgmailcom Mar 7th 2011 9:04AM
I Haven't played wow in a month or more , been playing rift. Honestly after 6 years of being on the paladin roller coaster , I'm enjoying the rift paladin much more.
*If they ever truly fixed the paladin and left him alone , I might re-sub.
Cyrus Mar 7th 2011 9:06AM
On my phone I play a couple Bejeweled-like games when I have time to kill and I'm away from home, but as for games I devote any planning or effort to, it's only WoW. I spend a couple months playing Starcraft II, and I had fun with the single-player campaign and multiple modes and all that, but as for multiplayer I didn't even use up my unranked ladder matches before returning to WoW.
In fact, I can only think of two non-Blizzard computer or console games that I've spent any money on at all in the past 10 years, and neither drew me in anywhere near as much. I don't know why - I have other hobbies as well, I don't think of myself as a Blizzard fanboy if such a thing even exists, I've never been to Blizzcon - but for some reason I spend lots of time playing computer games, and it's just Blizzard's computer games. I guess I'm their target audience.
BlackTiger™ Mar 7th 2011 9:09AM
Rest in pieces!... Oh, yeah!