World of Warcraft European Open Public Beta

[Sui]

World of Warcraft - one of the best single player games ever made

And you don't need to save / quit your game to access the multiplayer

 

[StardogChampion]

Although technically they would be in a raid party, which is a group of 2 or more parties. So it's not a raid but a raid party.

Yeah, it was just a raid party. Well, I didn't know the difference .

 

[IchI]

Hmmmm, I have got like 50% way through download and now I am like... wtf.... you said this was an open beta but now people are saying the creating acount part is over? is this true? so technially I can't play it when I have finished downloading?

 

[Burn]

Hmmmm, I have got like 50% way through download and now I am like... wtf.... you said this was an open beta but now people are saying the creating acount part is over? is this true? so technially I can't play it when I have finished downloading?

Technially, Yes.

 

[IchI]

hmmmm, well that blows goats. I supose its my own fault for not actually reading the website. I went to the sign up page as well but thought I might as well do it when I have nearly finished downloading.

Is there anyone who isn't using there eu open beta acount that I can use just to try it out until I buy it in 1 weeks time Friday the 11th (release date)

 

[Kirkburn]

You'll be lucky ... at least if you dl the client you won't have to install it come release!

 

[IchI]

You'll be lucky ... at least if you dl the client you won't have to install it come release!

true, but its not like installing it would take long.

 

[Kirkburn]

With WoW any time at all is too long

 

[Warbie]

Does WoW get any more story focussed as you level up?

I'm also hoping for some long term quests - i'd be nice to have a few main goals, rather than just loads of tiny missions that don't really seem related.

 

[Burn]

true, but its not like installing it would take long.

Haha... you've never installed WoW before have you?

 

[Sui]

Does WoW get any more story focussed as you level up?

You make the story.

Someday there will be a raid that may cost the lives of hundreds of players... but it will result in victory for one side. Imagine if in a year or so the Horde plan an attack on Stormwind... due to their huge numbers and high levels, they breeze through the guards and set up a camp in the trade district. They set up patrols everywhere Players can enter Stormwind, and send out parties to kill all of the NPCs. Somewhere to the east, in Goldshire, the battered and bruised Alliance plan to re-take the city...

It's only a matter of time before battles of this scale errupt, and Blizzard already plan to sculpt battles like this artificially. Check here and you'll see what I mean.

 

[Kirkburn]

Haha... you've never installed WoW before have you?

In that case, do you recommend downloading the client early? I'm on broadband, and just wondering if it'll help ....

 

[Burn]

In that case, do you recommend downloading the client early? I'm on broadband, and just wondering if it'll help ....

Takes a good 20+ mins to install, then 10 mins or so too patch, roughly.

 

[Sui]

In that case, do you recommend downloading the client early? I'm on broadband, and just wondering if it'll help ....

Blizzard downloader goes at 0 - 10 kb/s whatever connection you have. My freind got a higher DL speed than me and he's on 56K...

So yes, start early.

 

[IchI]

Hmmmm, my downloader goes at 120KBs Down and 20KBs Up (I set a upload restriction)

Just get net limiter and limit it to a close figure to your max count so you don't overwelm your download speed.

 

[Warbie]

You make the story.

Someday there will be a raid that may cost the lives of hundreds of players... but it will result in victory for one side. Imagine if in a year or so the Horde plan an attack on Stormwind... due to their huge numbers and high levels, they breeze through the guards and set up a camp in the trade district. They set up patrols everywhere Players can enter Stormwind, and send out parties to kill all of the NPCs. Somewhere to the east, in Goldshire, the battered and bruised Alliance plan to re-take the city...

It's only a matter of time before battles of this scale errupt, and Blizzard already plan to sculpt battles like this artificially. Check here and you'll see what I mean.

That sounds a little better

(btw - is your avatar an evil Totoro??)

 

[Sui]

http://www.halflife2.net/forums/showthread.php?t=70255&page=1&highlight=making+friends

 

[Septih]

You make the story.

Someday there will be a raid that may cost the lives of hundreds of players... but it will result in victory for one side. Imagine if in a year or so the Horde plan an attack on Stormwind... due to their huge numbers and high levels, they breeze through the guards and set up a camp in the trade district. They set up patrols everywhere Players can enter Stormwind, and send out parties to kill all of the NPCs. Somewhere to the east, in Goldshire, the battered and bruised Alliance plan to re-take the city...

It's only a matter of time before battles of this scale errupt, and Blizzard already plan to sculpt battles like this artificially. Check here and you'll see what I mean.

considering that stormwind is alliance territory it would allow all the high level alliance to walk in and surround the horde players before turning pvp on, the horde would get swamped. of course in battlegrounds that wouldn't happen

 

[Warbie]

I've read about Battlegrounds - and am interested.

But what's the point? Is it just for getting experience? Why will these factions be fighting over these areas?

This is what bugs me about WoW in general - everything action you make seems soley to gain experience and level up. A little more incentive would be nice.

Teaming up with friends and battling it out is fun, but to be fair - Phantasy Star online did it better. Of course, WoW is much larger, and offers more choice, but the basics seem the same (and a little inferior)

Still - it's a pretty neat game, hopefully battlegrounds will really make it.

 

[Kirkburn]

Blizzard downloader goes at 0 - 10 kb/s whatever connection you have. My freind got a higher DL speed than me and he's on 56K...

So yes, start early.

Any early start it is ... getting about 20 kb/s at the mo. Seems reasonable since I'm behind 1 firewalls and 2 routers
Est time to arrival, 40 hrs. Hopefully shall all be done before I get the game next friday (c'mon amazon, change your delivery dates!)

 

[IchI]

Any early start it is ... getting about 20 kb/s at the mo. Seems reasonable since I'm behind 1 firewalls and 2 routers
Est time to arrival, 40 hrs. Hopefully shall all be done before I get the game next friday (c'mon amazon, change your delivery dates!)

Mine finishes in 20minutes.

 

[Septih]

I've read about Battlegrounds - and am interested.

But what's the point? Is it just for getting experience? Why will these factions be fighting over these areas?

because it's a war

to the humans the orcs have invaded their land, and the dwarves and gnomes are on their side. The night elves want to protect their land from the horde and so have allied with the humans, etc

the orcs want to fight for two reasons.. 1) the humans are being right tossers and are attacking them in their new home 2) they were born to fight

the undead want to purge the land, the taurens owe something to the orcs and the trolls were allied with the orcs since warcraft II

my history is a bit phasy as i've only gotten to the orc (main)campaign in warcraft 3

 

[IchI]

because it's a war

to the humans the orcs have invaded their land, and the dwarves and gnomes are on their side. The night elves want to protect their land from the horde and so have allied with the humans, etc

the orcs want to fight for two reasons.. 1) the humans are being right tossers and are attacking them in their new home 2) they were born to fight

the undead want to purge the land, the taurens owe something to the orcs and the trolls were allied with the orcs since warcraft II

my history is a bit phasy as i've only gotten to the orc (main)campaign in warcraft 3

Basiclly they hate each other and its kewl to kill the people you hate BURN! PURGE! DESTROY!

 

[Sui]

I've read about Battlegrounds - and am interested.

But what's the point? Is it just for getting experience? Why will these factions be fighting over these areas?

This is what bugs me about WoW in general - everything action you make seems soley to gain experience and level up. A little more incentive would be nice.

Teaming up with friends and battling it out is fun, but to be fair - Phantasy Star online did it better. Of course, WoW is much larger, and offers more choice, but the basics seem the same (and a little inferior)

Still - it's a pretty neat game, hopefully battlegrounds will really make it.

Don't think of it as gaining EXP- think about it as helping your faction. By murdering wolves and brining their fresh, dripping heads to a farmer you have just saved his cattle from being extinct by a ferocious beast- and in the meantime you may have learnt a slightly stronger way of gouging your dagger into an enemy, or have gained slightly quicker reactions against a pouncing foe.

During your adventures you can only admire those experienced warroirs who are as quick as the wind and as tough as a boulder- but yet your ever growing asperation is to be like them. And when you finally pledge your allegiance to your faction and stand alongside such worthy allys, you will be able to use your strength to defend the Alliance against it's enemies, capture the lands that are breached by the enemy and wade into far off, exotic lands. But until then, you should sharpen your blade and continue to help those in need.

 

[Sulkdodds]

I like how neither side are actually evil. Okay, maybe the undead.

At the end of the beta I'm gonna spend a gold coin on cheese, a gold coin on booze, and then use the rest to pay to as many women as possible to strip while I take screens.

My character is female. Thus I feel I must take a stand. you sexist pig!

Can you play the full game with the beta version if you have a full game account?

 

[Sui]

I like how neither side are actually evil. Okay, maybe the undead.

The undead (or "forsaken" as they call themselves) are devious, backstabbing, treacherous and untrustworthy, but they're not necessarily evil. They broke away from the cold-hearted scourge and are now simply trying to have their own place in the world. Of course if you try and oppose them they'll slice your head off and stick it on a spike for the flies to feast on, but that just means they do things a little differently

Can you play the full game with the beta version if you have a full game account?

Probably, but you'll have to download a patch. You'll have to buy a retail copy to get an account, so you'll have to walk to town to buy it anyway, you lazy bastard. Oh wait, you're buying ot from gameplay aren't you? pfft...

 

[Kirkburn]

Mine finishes in 20minutes.

Showoff. And I'm on 1.5Mb ...

 

[Shadow-warrior]

So when you finally get to level 60 do you become a knight who gets to go on epic missions raiding opposing cities with an army of allies or do they just send you to kill level 60 wolves??? zzzzzz

I can't fault the world Blizz have created, its totally incredible, problem is it just doesn't feel as though theres any reason to be playing it online with other people.

Sure theres the odd clan here and there but 99% of the people I see are running about by themselves doing their own thing which kind of defeats the object of a multiplayer game.

Theres so many missed opportunities by Blizz to make the world feel like a living world instead of fedex quest 1 to 2000

I've never played an MMORPG before so maybe I was expecting too much instead of quest, level up, buy, sell, more quests etc etc etc

Its still very good but the opportunity of a living evolving world IMO has been missed.

 

[Sui]

So when you finally get to level 60 do you become a knight who gets to go on epic missions raiding opposing cities with an army of allies or do they just send you to kill level 60 wolves??? zzzzzz

I can't fault the world Blizz have created, its totally incredible, problem is it just doesn't feel as though theres any reason to be playing it online with other people.

Sure theres the odd clan here and there but 99% of the people I see are running about by themselves doing their own thing which kind of defeats the object of a multiplayer game.

Theres so many missed opportunities by Blizz to make the world feel like a living world instead of fedex quest 1 to 2000

I've never played an MMORPG before so maybe I was expecting too much instead of quest, level up, buy, sell, more quests etc etc etc

Its still very good but the opportunity of a living evolving world IMO has been missed.

Stardog... they've created this, you're just playing it the wrong way. Blizzard intend you to join up and tackle monsters, to thrive in the economy and aspire to be great champions- and this WILL HAPPEN, it's just your playing with a bunch of ignorant newbies who haven't got their footing yet. Mind you, as they settle into their characters, the veil of ignorance will be lifted and the world will be living and breathing like you desire. The first 20 levels are the slowest... but once you get into the contested areas you suddenly realise what all the comotion over this game is about.

 

[Shadow-warrior]

Yes I'm hoping its just early days and once people have to pay to play (instead of the free beta) it will turn into an interesting community.

 

[Sui]

Yes I'm hoping its just early days and once people have to pay to play (instead of the free beta) it will turn into an interesting community.

Exactly. When I was first playing the open beta (my 4th WOW beta ) The only people allowed in were those who had pre-ordered, and everyone was really helpful, most people had played before and it was very fun. Then the "2nd phase" was introduced, and loads of newbies swarmed the servers and started asking stupid questions etc... Not that that's bad, I did exactly the same when i was new to the game, it's just not very immersing or enjoyable when people are screaming "omg wtf how do i loot" over general chat.

 

[Bad^Hat]

Stardog... they've created this, you're just playing it the wrong way. Blizzard intend you to join up and tackle monsters, to thrive in the economy and aspire to be great champions- and this WILL HAPPEN, it's just your playing with a bunch of ignorant newbies who haven't got their footing yet. Mind you, as they settle into their characters, the veil of ignorance will be lifted and the world will be living and breathing like you desire. The first 20 levels are the slowest... but once you get into the contested areas you suddenly realise what all the comotion over this game is about.

Okay, now I'm excited. I'm only lvl 13 and I've been partying with people a fair bit, and I'm extremely addicted. Pretty fun to see how my pally skills match up with the other classes, although in this area there seem to be a monopoly on pallies :|

Also, I'm in a guild, but I never do anything with them... I don't even remember the name

Edit - Playing the retail, I can vouch for the fact that everyone is very friendly, and there is a sheer minimum of newbies. Well, the bad kind anyway. It's very helpful to people who are new, ie - beyond the help system and the extensive (a huge understatement at just over 200 pages long) manual, all questions posted in the general channel are answered within seconds, often by multiple players

Just passing through towns, I've often come out with several enchantments from random well wishers for no particular reason. The atmosphere is really cool, the majority of people I've run into are out to have fun above all else, and the general attitude amongst allies is 'do unto others as you would have them do to you'. But as soon as it comes to the opposing forces... expect no mercy

 

[Shadow-warrior]

Does the regular retail come with a printed manual? I've been getting really pooed off by useless pdf files lately.

 

[Kirkburn]

So, err, that downloader likes the steal all your bandwidth doesn't it Wondered why my net browsing was soo slow. Damn peer-to-peer transfer! It's a good idea, except when it uses almost all of your upload bandwidth, and only 20% of your download bandwidth ....
Wonderfully tho, am getting the same dl speed with it turned off!

 

[CTTcrew_MrBlue]

Okay, now I'm excited. I'm only lvl 13 and I've been partying with people a fair bit, and I'm extremely addicted. Pretty fun to see how my pally skills match up with the other classes, although in this area there seem to be a monopoly on pallies :|

Also, I'm in a guild, but I never do anything with them... I don't even remember the name

Edit - Playing the retail, I can vouch for the fact that everyone is very friendly, and there is a sheer minimum of newbies. Well, the bad kind anyway. It's very helpful to people who are new, ie - beyond the help system and the extensive (a huge understatement at just over 200 pages long) manual, all questions posted in the general channel are answered within seconds, often by multiple players

Just passing through towns, I've often come out with several enchantments from random well wishers for no particular reason. The atmosphere is really cool, the majority of people I've run into are out to have fun above all else, and the general attitude amongst allies is 'do unto others as you would have them do to you'. But as soon as it comes to the opposing forces... expect no mercy

Are there a huge amount of pallys about? I got a pally to level 20 int he beta and I really want to make another one when the game is out but not if there are hundreds already...

 

[Shadow-warrior]

I'm really doubting the servers Blizz have are capable of holding under the strain.

I was just in beta server 7, there were about 300 people all heading to attack the crossroads all the way from Menethil Harbour.
I was a lvl 2 naked human who'd run all the way from NorthShire to get there! lol but anyway, during the way there was massive server lag, my ping was about 100ish but it was taking 4/5 seconds for messages to appear. Then just as most of us get to the crossroads the ping shoots to 1500+ms and about a minute later the server crashes dead.

Plus now even the official forums are down again, which seems to happen everyday.

I think alot of people are going to be dissapointed at paying for this mess. If thats the beta just imagine how much trouble letting more people in is going to cause.

 

[Sui]

I'm really doubting the servers Blizz have are capable of holding under the strain.

I was just in beta server 7, there were about 300 people all heading to attack the crossroads all the way from Menethil Harbour.
I was a lvl 2 naked human who'd run all the way from NorthShire to get there! lol but anyway, during the way there was massive server lag, my ping was about 100ish but it was taking 4/5 seconds for messages to appear. Then just as most of us get to the crossroads the ping shoots to 1500+ms and about a minute later the server crashes dead.

Plus now even the official forums are down again, which seems to happen everyday.

I think alot of people are going to be dissapointed at paying for this mess. If thats the beta just imagine how much trouble letting more people in is going to cause.

There are many reasons why this will change in retail:

• The betas are simply to test the servers, this is the final tweaking stage for Blizzard before retail, and they're trying to see what would happen to the servers in a worst case scenario- which is why so many people were allowed into the beta.

• You're playing on PVP server 7, which was almost full during the first stage. When the second stage opened and everyone was allowed in, everyone wanted to be with their freinds who had pre-ordered, so naturally the largest servers will get even larger.

• Because Blizzard are in the final tweaking stages of the servers, they are still testing out various methods of running them. This is naturally going to cause lag, and has resulted in various server shutdowns. This is very unlikely to happen in retail however, as the servers will not be put under so much stress.

• The forums are probally down because so many people are posting on them. Imagine if halflife2.net, instead of filling up with memebrs very gradually, had suddenly been opened to thousands of people. Most likely it would have died.

 

[seinfeldrules]

God this is pissing me off. I buy WoW today, but find that I either need a CC or Game Card to activate the one free month. The store I went to didnt have the Game Cards in stock. What a retarded system.

 

[Shadow-warrior]

There are many reasons why this will change in retail:

• The betas are simply to test the servers, this is the final tweaking stage for Blizzard before retail, and they're trying to see what would happen to the servers in a worst case scenario- which is why so many people were allowed into the beta.

• You're playing on PVP server 7, which was almost full during the first stage. When the second stage opened and everyone was allowed in, everyone wanted to be with their freinds who had pre-ordered, so naturally the largest servers will get even larger.

• Because Blizzard are in the final tweaking stages of the servers, they are still testing out various methods of running them. This is naturally going to cause lag, and has resulted in various server shutdowns. This is very unlikely to happen in retail however, as the servers will not be put under so much stress.

• The forums are probally down because so many people are posting on them. Imagine if halflife2.net, instead of filling up with memebrs very gradually, had suddenly been opened to thousands of people. Most likely it would have died.

I would have thought so but if you read the American forums theres ALOT of people who are still having trouble with the servers crashing, down time and lag. Doesn't look promising.

 

[mattgirv]

God this is pissing me off. I buy WoW today, but find that I either need a CC or Game Card to activate the one free month. The store I went to didnt have the Game Cards in stock. What a retarded system.

It isn't really retarded. It is pretty fool proof actually, well almost anyway.

You basically read the box, and it tells you, that either a credit card or a gamecard is required even for the free 30 days or whatever it is.

Then, using your power of thought, you work out that if you don't have a credit card, you should buy a gamecard, and if there are no gamecards in stock, either buy the game and wait, or don't, and in all circumstances, don't make a whiney post on a forum about how stupid the system is when it works fine for thousands of people.