Level Squish will NOT solve the problems of leveling. Think of it-- one of the huge problems with leveling is how disjointed it is… the storyline makes no sense, and you have all these specific systems from each expansion that are littered throughout the experience. What a terrible introduction to the game for new people.
Instead they should work on a couple of new player scenarios that are self contained stories that introduce basic game concepts. Kind of like an easier, longer version of the mage tower challenges. They could be faction and role specific and then end with an easy 5 player boss fight where people could apply all the tools they have learned. After they would “graduate” to the base level for the current expansion.
So, you would only ever need to level through the current expansion content, keeping things fresh, current, and lowering the barrier of entry for new players, while also making sure new players have an introduction into the basic game mechanics.
Old content would still be there, level synced to 10/15 levels below current expansion starting level-- still much easier but not so easy that’s it’s not engaging. New players could go back and see what they’ve missed without feeling super OP or like the content is completely irrelevant.
This way they wouldn’t have to do a ton of work to re-balance the entire game and leveling process only to do it again in a few years like they will with a level squish/ stat squish.
I agree that a level squish is not going to solve any of the issues with keeping the game content viable. I do think it interesting to have an in-game tutorial, as it were, for starting new players and teaching them the basics.
I think, if Blizz wants to keep the game content viable for all players, having a transition quest between expansions might be a way to go. They can keep the systems that were developed for each of the expansions viable and turn them on/off with transition quests as they enter/leave a given expansion. So, for instance, if you are leveling through the classic levels of the game, you would get a transition quest that will open up Burning Crusade for players. Once they have reached a certain level within BC, then they will get a transition quest unlocked that will introduce them to WotLK and turn off BC systems. It will help to build a story for the game and keep all content viable. If someone wants to just jump into the newest content, that is what the level boost is for and I think a good tutorial on how the class/spec operates when doing the level boosting would be the way to go.
The problem is ppl do not see that for NEW players, people that NEVER played the game before, 120 levels alone, learning about the game, with almost zero skills (that god blizzard admited that mistake) is a pain in the *ss to play
That is, of course, your opinion, just like it is a viable opinion that a level squish will do nothing except to drive away the veteran players that have been paying for subs for 15 years now. A level squish is not “needed”, but being able to have the content, past and present, viable is.
After having to train several new players in legion at just heroic raid level, they need to level up first, I honestly think boosts are such a disservice. A couple of scenarios isn’t introduction enough either. The amount of things that are “common knowledge” that you gain over time leveling in which you take for granted is amazing when you work with people from day 1 on a boosted character and see the questions and gameplay they produce.
Please, NO level squish! It’s not the player’s fault if they made the level’s too high but now WE pay for it. Seems the reason behind is they feel it’s too daunting for new players to get to 120, but the new covenant system in Shadowlands? That’s pretty involved, and will NOT bring in new players… Blizz, please do NOT do the level squish, I have played for MANY years & this may be the 1st time I may just stop
Numbers too high, did the players do that? No, Blizz did. Stats too high, THEY say, levels too high, THEY say. The game is 15 years old. I play Classic when I want a level 60 cap, not current WoW. After 11 years of playing very often, I created an account for the forums to voice my protest for the level squish, please, just no.
Questing is just lame and the less I have to do, the better. EVE straight out the gate telling you to go grind would be fine if it had a clear path to power like leveling, and not slow as hell EverQuest style grind leveling.
Yes they did. The fools, they kept a game going for 15 years giving players new levels to achieve each expansion. How dare they!
Even if they had done something back in time to reduce the number of levels, it still would eventually have caught up with them. As it is, you can level to 60 in Classic. 60. In one expansion. Did they sit back then and think gosh, we should have made it 30? I doubt it because the game was new and they wanted to give players a great experience. But when you consider that half of the current level numbers was achieved in ONE expansion, its easy to see how this level creep has occurred.
It was bound to happen, and its happening now. I just don’t get why a number of players are so incensed by it. And I’ve been playing 10 years. People need to get a sense of proportion - there are far more annoying things going on in the game than a renumbering in my possibly not very humble opinion…
I know that the only content that really did matter happens mainly at end-game. It know it was like this in TBC, Wrath, Cata, MoP, WoD, Leg and now in BfA. I think it was also the same in Classic as well, someone just might have to confirm for me.
Level squish sucks. World scaling sucks. It just gets worse and worse. Give me a call in a decade when there’s a solo offline version of WoW. I’m done with this crap.
I agree 100%
Just wait when day 1 of shadowlands, people happily playing a game they paid for, who haven’t been reading about an Xpack they haven’t paid for, log in and find their level 60 is now level 25 and their level 120 is now level 50, and content they were working toward soloing is now impossible without a raid nobody is going to form.
The protests and unsubs will be many. I’m not going to resub. I just rejoined a month ago after a year off. Blizzard/Activision never learn. It’s always the same old thing with them.
