Because it isn’t a goof troop of stupid main character heroes. It is a huge world with all sorts of interlocking stories your own character discovers and plays a small but important role in. Like not even kidding, no champion crap. You just an adventurer, half the npcs are like “who are you? yeah uh, get to work bro we need help out here” and through helping them you uncover all these little details about their past and their relationships and what has gone on in the world. So many little npcs and stories that you track down throughout. The zones are all beautiful and not half destroyed. The zones which are more “Damaged” are damaged from events prior to what you have seen, and don’t look goofy as all hell (like that big swirling crap in STV). The fact that there isn’t much of the huge goofy interconnecting cinematic driven narrative makes it more addictive and fun to play through.
I also don’t have to feel like I am complicit in genocide as a Horde toon. 
35 Likes
Classic set up a story with everything open ended.
Thats what Blizzard does best. Its when they try to expand that is where they fail spectacularly.
7 Likes
Classic has a better story because its not in your face telling you what you’re supposed to like or care about. If you want more, there’s avenues to pursue it.
Sometimes less is better.
31 Likes
I always find it a little cringe when they refer to my character as hero and champion… im kinda just like, im only playin a game guys, really not doin anything that special, lol.
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YOU’RE only playing a game. Your character is saving the world.
They’re talking to your character, not you.
16 Likes
I know, but still even in that aspect its like if the player character is so heroic, you’d think they would at least use your name and not a generic term, either way I still find it a lil cringe.
I know its probably a coding issue (trust me I know its not easy), but if they could get it to say the character name it would be sooo much easier.
1 Like
I mean, most of the text does use your name. It’s just the voice clips that refer to you in generic terms, for obvious reasons.
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Yea, im really refering to the cut scenes. The text is fine, but anyway back on topic.
From a lore standpoint it makes sense our characters are well known, and champions, heros, etc we’ve taken part in helping defeat some real big baddies over the years.
But I somehow wish they could be a little less ‘in your face about it’ so to speak, and somehow leave things a little more open ended like someobe said before me, its almost like they try to cover every little detail when they dont need to.
Dunno, guess Im a fan of the just kinda a random adventurer type.
1 Like
I would say it’s better than BfA, but it’s not really good by any objective standard. This is especially true for the Horde.
-A lot of plotlines wind up dropped or unresolved. The stuff with Neeru Fireblade, Thrall, and the Shadow Council, for example, never really goes anywhere. (Neeru dies in MoP when Garrosh clears out the Cleft of Shadow).
-The Horde in particular never had any real direction in Vanilla, and most of its involvements with late game content was pretty forced. So many things occurred in Blackrock Mountain (Dark Iron Dwarves; MC; the Dark Horde in BRS; Nefarian; etc), but none of it was ever really connected back to what the Horde was trying to accomplish in Kalimdor. You could also say that the Forsaken were very oddly disconnected from the Plaguelands, despite their proximity to it.
-The Tauren and Darkspear trolls never really had any narrative direction to begin with. Their whole thing was basically help the orcs because honor or something.
I’m not defending BfA’s story, but I also think it’s a stretch to say that Vanilla’s Horde “story” is amazing.
37 Likes
The Room has a better story than BFA, the bar is so low.
“EVERYBODY BETRAY ME, I’M FED UP WITH THIS WORLD OF WARCRAFT!”
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I think BfA and Classic are at a similar point; they don’t know what to do with their story characters.
edit: actually that would seem unfair but this writing seems to lack… something.
that is because the world is the main protagonist, and how you explore it.
but what are you going to do when you finish with every single zone?
play another game, i guess.
i forgot what it was like not to be the bad guy
i mean i played classic back in the day so i remember it, but i forgot what it felt like. my character has been a hypocritical murdering mess so long i forgot what normal was.
- the kultirans are encroaching in durotar
- northwatch hold has humans causing problems with trade to ratchet
quests with actual problems that need solving instead of lol kill em all for the horde 1234124124 dead elves
11 Likes
The story itself seems the same. BfA is just set forward in time after many events took place.
I suppose you mean the manner in which the story is expressed/delivered?
I had more fun in BC than Vanilla. To each their own.
Now you can knowingly lay the ground work for what you would deem “genocide”!
2 Likes
Same. I absolutely hate what they did to Illidan and Kael’thas, but exploring Outland was fun.
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Classic barely had a story at all.
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BFA combines the magic of stupid writing with stupid game systems, so it’s easy for any good game to be better in every way.
Want characters to repeatedly make insane choices that are against their own interests? BFA is for you!
Want to see a battle of Mary Sues in which none of them ever die because they all have infinite plot armor? BFA is for you!
Want enemies to level and gear up with you so you never get stronger? BFA is for you!
Want a rehash of last expansion’s game systems like artifact levels and followers, but 10x lazier and half-baked? BFA is for you!
9 Likes
Classic is great story. No Blood Elves on the Horde. Just the way it should be. And no Sylvanas fan cultdom. Horde actually feel like the underdogs in Classic and not the mass marketed Elf faction they are in Retail.
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Classic used the story as part of the setting so that players could build their own narratives. NPCs are in the background, as they should be. The game is about the story you make with your friends.
BfA reverses that dynamic. The NPCs are the point, not the players. We are just there to be cameras.
Classic had active story. BfA has passive. It’s night and day.
15 Likes
It’s a different writing style, though there’s certainly more of grounded aspect to it. They had years to write all the quests so there’s certainly a level of immersion. I would not go so far as to call it a better story, however, at least not in terms of the leveling experience. Blizzard has been improving every expansion when it comes to quest level writing and the writing of the leveling experience, it’s just been at the meta narrative level that they fumble.
The writing for the leveling zones in Zandalar and Kul Tiras has been some of the best they’ve ever done, as has the overall launch arc for the two new continents.
I do like the actual morally grey aspects in Classic writing, however. Magni implied to be lining his own pockets with gems and precious metals meant for the war effort, having to collect black dragon scales because the blacksmith in Goldshire got the one in Lakeshire on the hook for ‘loaning’ him fifty horseshoes. I’d completely forgotten that Ironforge had its own rogue group called The Hidden Circle, as well. Other posters are right, the world is the main character, and it reflects more RPG elements.
6 Likes