Hi guys, I spent 5 years conceiving and designing the World of Warcraft game plan. Through various means, this detailed plan was sent to veteran planners in the gaming industry, game strategists, regional OW esports operations directors, well-known gaming media outlets, and Accenture for valuable advice, some of whom felt that the plan had some value, but was risky and uncertain.
I was a little disappointed…
Then, I tried to contact the head of World of Warcraft on X-Twitter, but I didn’t get a reply.
I don’t know what to do… However, I don’t want to give up because World of Warcraft has changed my life and made me grow, and I want to do something, which is one of the motivations for me to keep working hard for the past 5 years.
I asked myself：which is more expensive, developing a new game or implementing this plan? Which has a higher success rate？
So, here I am. Now, I’m putting this plan here, and I’m asking you to see if it makes business sense and if it can be successful.
This plan was originally based on the classic version, but was later missed because it was not approached by the official responsible person, and then changed in Wrath of the Lich King.When this version ends in China, it will be officially launched.
The programme has two parts：
NO1: Optimize some gameplay details, focus on promoting the reform of the equipment system - while deepening the immersion of MMORPG games, reduce the repetition of dungeon gameplay, and on the basis of retaining the core gameplay of PVE, narrow the negative experience brought by the equipment gap between new and old players, and better adapt to the habits of current players.
Focus the player’s gaming experience on in-depth exploration and item collection, reduce the difficulty for new players to join, and increase the motivation to attract potential new players to try.
(The idea of equipment system reform came from Diablo, and after repeated attempts, a complete set of equipment system design was formed).
Unlike the design of all MMORPG equip systems.
Effectively solve the negative impact of DKP and GKP rules in-game PVE gameplay.
There is a small part that is designed with the same idea as the new version, and the other parts are in a sense the opposite.
Try to create a differentiated gaming experience and increase the enjoyment of the game.
Please see the details:
1）Use the most popular weapon in World of Warcraft history, the Frost Mourning Development Event: Players can earn and use this weapon. Show its power in different ways. For example: the impact of character relationships, hostile relationships, strength, deterrence, negative influences, etc. Allowing players to see and feel power is power. I wanted to try to make it the most powerful weapon in the history of the game. Every boy wants to have it. It’s a very special experience to show the charm of MMORPG games in this way.
Don’t worry, it won’t upset the balance of the game.（This is also a new attempt）
Um… Designed a hidden easter egg, I guess you’ll love.
As the first person to get their hands on this weapon, Blizzard will conduct an exclusive interview with him/her, asking him/her to show off all the effects of this artifact.
2） Main City Boss Defense: All players involved in protection and attack should be rewarded with honor, and the race where the boss dies will have a debuff added that cannot be eliminated for a certain period of time (e.g. X days) during the boss’s death.Sadness: Reduces your movement speed by 50% due to excessive sadness, (Hidden Effect: Clears when you enter combat, causing you to go berserk, increasing movement, attack, and cast speed by 20% for 10 seconds.)
The skill trigger period is X minutes.
This debuff is automatically removed when entering the battlefield.
The boss refresh period is set to X days.
Doing so not only increases Guardian engagement, but also prevents excessive penalties for defense failures, inhibits player interest in the game, and increases immersion in the game.
3) Team dungeons such as Vault of Archavon and Karazhan have been simplified in difficulty to enhance the experience for casual players.
The idea is from version 11.0 (digging into the underground fortress mode), I’m a casual gamer, and I love this mode.
Here’s how to do it: add another game mechanic, as it’s more cumbersome to explain, so I won’t go into details here.
Elevate your players’ gaming experience at the lowest cost.
4) The duration of the physical, magical, poison, and curse debuffs inflicted by hostile mob abilities has been extended to 0.5H, 1H, 2H, and 1D to increase the immersion of the game and facilitate social interaction between players. I’ve seen voices on a lot of social platforms about players’ need for social, and I’m one of them, trying to add a different experience from other MMORPGs.
5）Adding new character models is important to attract new players.
Cross-server battlefields and cross-faction teaming.
Added restrictions to flying mounts.
6）On top of that, the Gear Transmog, Pet, and Mount system features are shared with the new Warband features, making it convenient for players and activating the desire of new players to explore new versions.
There are many contents in the reform of the equipment system, and it is impossible to explain them in detail, so I hope to communicate face-to-face.
Because it involves game settings, mechanics, numerical programming, economic systems, etc, although it may seem complicated, it is not, I once tried the simulator for experimentation.I think it’s a better game experience than the heirloom gear system.
At present, the theoretical design has been completed, and more discussion and practice are needed.
To sum it up in one sentence, it is：Establish a single absolute advantage for all ordinary players, so that the gap between ordinary players and high-end players from absolute to relative, both sides have their own advantages，may be able to promote the improvement of PVP in the wild, and now young players are more concerned about the fairness and justice of game competition, if everyone agrees with this design, this can be used as the focus of future publicity.
All of these optimizations are just the basics, and if you had done this at the beginning of CLASSIC, you could have obtained better data, but these changes are of limited use now.
So, I made a second plan.
NO2: I call it a civilian e-sports event planning case.
Under the influence of changes in the global objective environment, we try to carry out e-sports events that are unique to MMORPG games.
The main goal: to attract young players and cultivate the gaming habits of the user group.
After many improvements, the two schemes have become very compatible.
Crises are also opportunities for change.
Difficulties mastered are opportunities won.
An old game that wants to win over young players quickly – to win by surprise (use fantastic tactics and strategies to win)is the simplest and most effective method. I think creating unique MMORPG esports events can have that effect.
Under the influence of the continuous sluggish economic environment, the main attention of some people has shifted from hobbies to survival pressure, which provides favorable objective conditions for the holding of MMORPG e-sports events.
Creating an esports event that is fun, exciting, and makes it easier for players to schedule their game time is a great opportunity and worth trying.
I believe that MMORPG esports events should follow the following three principles in order to be self-contained.
1、The event mode is a survival mode with adventure as the main gameplay and competitive confrontation as the secondary factor, which can attract a wider range of ordinary players of different ages and game talents to participate and win the championship. This is different from the current model of mainstream competitive esports events.
2、MMORPG events, from participation to finals, no matter how many people participate in the event, can be played online anywhere, and because of the reform of the tournament system, any cheating will be minimized to ensure the fairness and impartiality of the event.
3、The prize money for the winner of the tournament is fixed at the middle level; Maximize the number of players who receive the championship prize and increase the enthusiasm of players to participate in the event, so as to maximize the number of players participating in the event.
I have developed a preliminary event plan for reference.
If all goes well, it may attract more than ten million new players to the game, perhaps more than that.
I would like to reiterate that the main purpose of esports events is to promote and maximize the attraction of new players to join, and it is a game activity plan, not a rigorous and reasonable esports event plan.
Of course, I hope that it can provide reference value for the development of global esports events，If, it can.
It can be tested in East Asia and then implemented globally when the conditions are ripe.
Finally, it is advisable to conduct a questionnaire within Blizzard gamers first.
emm…I’m sorry that my English is poor and need to use Microsoft Translator.
Thank you for your time.
Everyone is welcome to email me to discuss: fromdotatowow@qq.com
Reference:
Youth jobless rate falls to 15-year low, says UN labour agency.2024/08/1153056
2024 China Consumer Trends Survey: Prudent Expectations, Still Potential – McKinsey Greater China
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