Some Honest Thoughts About the State of Shadowlands

[@Xaryu]

"Blizzard solving issues players don't have". Spot on, thanks for sharing Zack

[@lonefish8128]

I guess they have to justify their own existence by making inflammatory systems to fix later on

[@coreyb9240]

he really hit the nail right on the head with that comment

[@dimkacracker]

blizzard is like democrats, create fake problems to use as a gateway towards extremes.

[@xxximyxxximerton1671]

@@dimkacracker Jesus Christ stop

[@ryanjamison5628]

@@xxximyxxximerton1671 lmao for real

[@zalkenth2190]

I wonder if a single Blizzard employee went through the Anima grind, upgrading their Sanctum to tier 3 and then getting just half of the consmetics. There is no way anyone did that and said. '' Yeah this is ok ''

[@Xenomorph1508]

It's supposed to take a while and will get nerved at the end of the expansion for sure

[@tylerblue9691]

I doubt they even got tier 2 dude Or even all tier 1s

[@lonefish8128]

Of course they don’t test their systems. They don’t create this game with love anymore. They just do lots of maths and ship it out, just like your assignments in college :P

[@sheesh3214]

Blizzard did not play shadowlands just like they did not play bfa when corruption was added. I guess they simulate bots kind of like raid bots and run random characters threw the new major expansions and patchs because I mean come on no corruption vendor for how long ???? ANIMA ???

[@POWerrrrlGrind]

And then started to play on alt and said" Cant wait to do it again"

[@Fugitive292]

90% of all famous KZbinrs would love to talk as fluently as you do with no cuts needed at the montage.

[@Hangman1]

He is famous You Tuber ( in WoW community ) just on Asmongold channel where he act as an idiot

[@Flowerz__]

@@Hangman1 him and asmongold look similar that’s all. Those are 2 different ppl lol...

[@Hangman1]

@@Flowerz__ sure dude

[@Zeovm]

@@Flowerz__ sigh..

[@BeowulfGaming]

thats because Zack is actually intelligent person despite his troll internet persona Asmongold, while 95% of youtubers and streamers are burnt out individuals reluctant to work or contribute to society with no soft or hardskills or education making money off reactions or copying others for as long as people donate and watch.

[@Cybertech134]

"Why do I have to do Torghast two times a week?" If Blizzard actually did their job correctly, it would be "Why would I do Torghast only twice a week?"

[@olavjensen1590]

I think you mean "Why am I not allowed to do Torghast more than twice every week?" ...maybe!

[@Cybertech134]

@@olavjensen1590 Well, if they were as competent as over 25 years of experience should yield, they wouldn't even consider putting a limit on it and make it the awesome rogue-lite that we knew it could have been from the first place

[@olavjensen1590]

@@Cybertech134 I totally agree ...I just suggested a rephrasing of your last quote, of how it should be ...as I found it weirdly phrased. (prob should have noted that :-D )

[@ninacuk6815]

Exactly.

[@yungthug2403]

Need to make the end game more casual friendly and the build up more harder, we get. Alias easy run to 60 and then players are slammed hard by pvp and pve end content grinding stuff that we need and not want, we need a cata pvp system, and high rated players to be rewarded with cosmetics, not better gear, if ur good you don’t need better gear, you need something rare to show off and flex on people , like t-mogs, mounts, titles I myself am a casual and I don’t enjoy arena at all and I can’t find a consistent group for RBGs so I can’t gear at all coz I need rating and it’s impossible with all the boosting for 1 and the fact I don’t enjoy it makes it incredibly hard, make pvp gear more powerful than pve make it so you don’t need anything to do with pve to perform good in pvp and give us the Cata pvp gearing system and fix world pvp too

[@Cootz51]

Trying to re-invent the wheel each expansion since Cata has been a huge problem for this game

[@pvillelde]

Agreed

[@robertflesch9356]

This

[@sumbody694]

Cataclysm is when a huge group of people me included had completed their WoW experience. We helped conquer and defend Azeroth , traveled to Draenor and defeated all the challenges out there, then we finally got to bring justice to the Lich king himself Arthas. That for me personally was the end of the road but I kept playing through to the end of Cata and honestly the game was just not fun anymore. It felt like they where not advancing the game in a way I liked and really when I found out they where making fucking pandas the playable race I said fuck it finally and didnt come back until classic wow. I had completed my journey from the original games my job was done. I defend Aeroth, Outlands, and Then Azerroth again and the ONLY other thing I would of liked to do lore wise was legion but at that point the game was so different I couldnt come back anymore.

[@Finish303]

So next time Asmon's stream will be without a roof. JK. I love Asmon's honesty and I fight this "It will be fixed in patch/expansion" excusers all the time. I'm so tired of peopel happy we get something back we had for a long time. I remember with x conduit "Oh that was a talent in Cata" or "My artifact weapon used to do this...". They take away then springle it back. New expac? They take it all away again. I never felt enjoyment in SL about conduits due to this. They should have kept artefacts and just make new weapons mogs only. They had a perfect system:( But nope like you said OP reinvent the wheel every expac instead.

[@Hinastorm86]

I'd argue that their lack of wheel re-inventing since legion is why the game feels so stale. Legion gave the game a big shot in the arm, and everything since then has felt lesser.

[@JessiBear]

Anyone remember when a WoW GM would literally show up in game to assist you within a few minutes of putting in a ticket? Now it's a week to get a ticket response and most times it's a Bot response that has nothing to do with the ticket 😣

[@ugladden]

Yup!

[@waitwhat851]

Yeah! My mission table has been broken since the first week of shadowlands and after 8 tickets I've given up...

[@katiemcanally9885]

Member when they had a customer service phone number publicly listed? Pepperidge farm members.

[@katiemcanally9885]

Omg remember when GM's actually assisted you even if it was not automatic, I'd say since Legion, that stopped any issue I had which isn't a lot but sometimes things happened, where not fixed or solved at all, the answer was, sorry we can't help with that, but hey thanks for reaching out and contacting us and throwing your money away.

[@doctorgears9358]

I don’t remember this ever happening, but nor have I waited a week to get a ticket response either.

[@flipboy420]

It’s not that Blizzard doesn’t understand the players, they simply don’t care. Throughout alpha, beta, and the life of an expansion we give feedback and relay to Blizzard how these systems and decisions make us feel and it goes ignored every time.

[@AlexanderMartinez-kd7cz]

They care, just just not about the players. It's all about that retention time.

[@MeldinX2]

@@AlexanderMartinez-kd7cz True but they don't realize that more and more people quit each expansion. And with time it's going to kill the game.

[@AlexanderMartinez-kd7cz]

@@MeldinX2 I suspect they're migrating their interest to the chinese breast of mobile games. They don't mind wow dying.

[@Nevrex]

Oh yes, it's something that repeats itself. Players give feedback throughout alpha and beta and nothing changes. At the end of the expansion they apologize for the bad communication and that they will try to listen to feedback more next time. It never happens.

[@Say_No_To_e-Girls]

@@MeldinX2 Players have been quitting each xpac but they also keep coming back like idiots after each new xpac. Wasnt Shadowlands one of the fastest selling games of all time? It's why I dont get made at developers and publishers anymore; at the end of the day gamers truly get the games they deserve when they keep coughing up the money to bad games.

[@Wuselol]

Blizzard nowadays is making a game that makes you feel like you have to play instead of a game that you want to play.

[@ratelabor94]

Pretty much. I didn't play the whole BfA because I felt that only reason for me to log in and play is to do couple of hours of my daily runs and that's it. It turned into a chore. I had not excitement or fun doing it. I play for fun, I play to get away from my daily routine, but WoW turned into a daily routine which is not what I want to while having fun. I tried again in Shadowlands. Levelling was great. Enjoyed a lot, but once i hit max... it was back to doing dailies. Daily covenant quests/missions, daily dungeons, world quests, torghast... and for what? Do it daily and it pays off in about a week or a month. It's called a job... I'm doing daily chores to get paid in shinies... Bloody horrible concept.

[@swevixeh]

@@ratelabor94 tbh, that's how I felt already during WotLK. If I'm going to do monotonous, time-consuming labor on a regular basis then I at least want to be paid for it in real life currency.

[@jakubpelikan2393]

Funny. Classic and TBC were way more restricting and less acessible than current moder game yet for some reason people are bored with less restrictive game.

[@BlueTulipe]

Exactly... feels more like a job.

[@Wuselol]

@@jakubpelikan2393 How so? Classic and TBC didn't tell you what to do in order to progress. You just did what you enjoyed. Progression was much more varied.

[@doctorgears9358]

When Yoshi P headed the FF14 Realm Reborn project, he had his devs sit down and play other mmos, WoW included. There’s so much you can glean from just playing your own game and your competitors’ games.

[@shinkamui]

that holds true to this day. Yoshi-p said in an interview just this month that he's still a wow fan and he holds respect for that game. And that they care a lot about raising devs skill levels in ff14 itself, and have they complete the content they are offering to players, from casual to endgame optimization

[@aseri93]

@@shinkamui The fan fest hit so hard

[@ashishshenoy3778]

this reminds me of how bioware forbade their devs from even mentioning destiny when working on anthem. Im sure they would have learned a thing or two about looter shooters if they sat down and played those more successful examples.

[@ChristopherFranko]

They did this with ffxi also. They played EQ and tahts why xi is so heavily influenced by eq. Same with why xiv is so influenced by wow.

[@MoldRoss]

@@ashishshenoy3778 p

[@Nightstalker314]

Them sticking to the conduit energy system is stubborness to the next level. They should really abandon these hills to die on.

[@pisssant]

developer ego, they cannot back off

[@GlorpShakey]

Shitty mobile game design in a Western MMORPG. Who would have thought of this genious idea!

[@MrArrahann]

Yeah and to think its just like the energy that most phone games have. Blizzard is basically trying to get us used to many weird, game holding systems expecting it to lengthen the experience/playtime (probably trying to cover lack of content) ironically making it worse. They dont care or are too scared/pussied out to make changes that are really needed. Many changes should be immediate but it takes them too long to change anything really. Its kinda embarrassing that the game you "need"(token exists i knw) to pay every month + full price expansion every ~2 years to play it to have such a disconnect with its community and their opinion.

[@kennethnoisewater4423]

Well, they'll tell you it's to prevent raiders from porting out of the raid every fight. So, why not just make them changeable on the fly, considering they're so milktoast. They'll tell you 'thematic design choices', these are gifted via a special soulbind process etc. etc. Zzz.

[@roetheboat1]

I would really recommend watching the "7 Deadly Sins of MMO Design" series by Josh Strife Hayes.

[@kittenxy8423]

When they start listening you know its to late.

[@VagrantButterfly]

^^

[@ijz9278]

Truee dood

[@TheMalitias]

The bigger a company grows the more "listening to the customer" becomes a last resort option. A company being big because of the good-will from past accomplishments and simply being the established brand is never on the table.

[@clazzo6231]

@@TheMalitias Always comes at a price in the end, huge initial profits for eventual demise, I wonder what it would be like if an MMO was entirely based on polls voted on by the player base and then the game devs went along with what was voted how could I describe it... Democracy Game Development would be truly cool to see and over the years seeing a game grow based on what people actually want will have immense hype

[@tpl6963]

Halo

[@Gre-unit]

"We know our communication is lacking and we agree that it should be better. We're going to focus on our communication next expansion."

[@B-...]

Truth is Blizzard never had to communicate, they basically crapped gold. But the old guard is gone and now it's new people who have taken the mantle from the Devs who wanted to make fun games. They have the same entitled attitude, but they haven't earned it. The Blizzard stamp of quality has been passed down to them and they're using it to do whatever trash they want and they think they don't need to listen to the players "because they're BLIZZARD". They aren't. They're weekend at Bernie'sing it's corpse.

[@zeng58]

didn't they say that the last time?

[@Krokodilius]

this is what happens when you fire half your staff every 3 years.

[@Krokodilius]

actually i'm not a greedy person at all. it's actually more of a flaw though because i've been poor my whole life.

[@internetperson6023]

And you keep the staff that doesn't play the game. What does Ion even do outside raid? He doesn't do M+. He doesn't PvP. Why is he in charge of everything when he barely logs in now? There's no passion, everything feels so mechanical and like it's done just to hit metrics. Meanwhile, Final Fantasy has Yoshi-P, who just oozes love for the game and genre as a whole. The guy's played multiple MMORPGs and has apologized for mistakes. It's nuts.

[@janterri3539]

@@stingcool9455 I don’t need or even want 100 million dollars I would strive for 5 million at the most. There’s no reason to fuck with the game they will still be successful without it.

[@CottidaeSEA]

The staff that they fire are generally not developers. That's where your argument falls apart. However, does it indicate an unhealthy company? Absolutely.

[@clazzo6231]

@@stingcool9455 yeah but that 100 million barley rewards the devs that do have passion and it goes into the mechanical top men that just inject dollar bills like it's heroin rather than tending to what the good and passionate players and game devs want

[@monoymono9]

I'm not sure if anyone gives you credit for being so well-spoken or having such great and constant examples or metaphors.

[@MatthewTheUntitled]

They do, I'm one of them and you can find many more

[@NostraDavid2]

Constantly! Well deserved, mind you.

[@TeddyTentacle]

Everybody does, all the time. When will the "Unpopular opinion, buuut" comment fad end? People are so brainless to like this every single time.

[@chandlerlewis3309]

A lot of people give him credit for this, and deservedly so! :)

[@Migler1]

He is incredibly well-spoken!

[@Zenith1987]

Thanks for this honest conversation. I, too, love WoW. I got started in late BfA and my husband has played on and off since Cataclysm. His sub ran out a few days ago, and tomorrow is my last day because of that exhaustion. SL has a lot of good stuff in it, but a lot more stuff that wears me out. I think the frustration shows in the player base as well. Running leveling dungeons has always been my way of connecting with other players, but so many players are just so impatient and want to get through as many dungeons as they can. I use to get frustrated with that, but maybe their hurrying is a subconscious reaction to having so much on one's plate in end game. I remember being super excited about reaching 60 in SL, getting to my covenant, and then being handed a dozen different things to do every damn day or every week and I basically walked away from my computer. Whatever the reason, dungeons have become unenjoyable, and that means I stop playing. Collecting transmogs isn't fun, either. Soooo yeah.

[@AlexanderCollas666]

Blizzard gives you 90% busy work, and 10% content.

[@adamtajhassam9188]

the very reason i kinda quit playing despite still paying 4 time, I'm tempted to take my CC off again :) :(

[@bailsack90]

@@adamtajhassam9188 do it. Don't waste your money. The more people that sub for no reason keeps them making this shite. If they mass lose players they'll panic. It's all about money

[@mscapeh4451]

Only been boring timegateing activitys after wod and thats not content thats timegateing

[@frelle6100]

No joke, I feel so much more free now that I've quit WoW. Reflecting back on it, my life was 40% WoW, from thoughts, plans and time. Wasn't good, and you know what? I don't even feel like my time spent was well spent at all.

[@Makgeulli]

@@frelle6100 I think playing games alot in the day is not good but I understand people that do it

[@Marsonis2ya]

Neighbors: Babe, that weirdo is in his treehouse talking to himself again

[@kalebbryce]

I laughed

[@azahel542]

"Eh? I thought he died"

[@Dabidabida]

Haha yeah. Little do they know hes a dollar millionaire.

[@mattpinap]

@@Dabidabida I've never once in my life ever heard someone call it a "dollar" millionaire

[@butterphli3z]

@@mattpinap yeah true wtf is a dollar millionaire LOL edit: i get it now. just never heard anyone use that term

[@sleshflex4170]

Blizzard " we want to give back class identity and not spec identity" also blizzard : " letz lock conduicts swaps and soul ashes to craft legendaries behind heavy time gated deliver"

[@xoloser3]

The worst part for me is that I don't see an end in sight. It seems interviews over the past few years have turned more and more into "players vs the devs" instead of a joint effort to create a good gaming experience. Feels like I'm dating someone who keeps relapsing, I want to help them understand so badly, but ultimately blizzard needs to help themselves first.

[@SamoIsKing]

Seems to me the devs are stubborn as fuck. When Alpha comes out its basically a “do these systems work” test. Doesnt matter if they work or not when the majority of testers are telling you they arent good, or fun. Then they just pay some lip service and launch them anyway.

[@spookishookem8313]

Couldn’t have said it any better. This is exactly how I feel about WoW. I still play, but my sub expires in September. If Shadowlands is still lackluster by then, I’ll probably be departing from the game.

[@belstar1128]

Blizzard has certain habits it can get rid of strange but true.

[@ZeroDayAnubis]

Sounds EXACTLY like Bungie vs. Destiny players as well :(

[@influentialdetour]

you know it’s a disappointed Asmon when he starts with “hey guys...” and not “sup bois??”

[@robertleblanc4099]

My thoughts exactly.

[@thirtysilver33]

That's his other personality. ;)

[@sakebombyum]

@@thirtysilver33 - Notice his eyebrows aren't getting a work out.

[@Grastiars1]

He normally opens up on this channel as hey guys.

[@thirtysilver33]

@@sakebombyum Lol, whoa!

[@Nilthur]

i quit wow, its a job now and not a hobby as its been for many years now, tired of being treated like a number

[@dsatt57]

Same here, first expansion I’ve ignored. My sub expired last month. It’s just not fun anymore. I’d play Classic if there were tag sharing.

[@Nilthur]

@@dsatt57 ya, even my cousin who has played basically everyday since vanilla quit playing and hasnt played for almost 2 months

[@madsoncaminha2517]

@@dsatt57 i had fun in classic but, here it's R$42 for month and it's not worthy in a 16 year game.

[@wm1573]

i think "quitting" is the wrong word everyone uses with wow. people take breaks. i've stopped playing many times for many months but I return when the burning out has worn off and I do enjoy it for a while again and then the cycle continues

[@Nilthur]

@@wm1573 in my case i full quit, even "got rid" of my account if u know what i mean, i used to just take breaks, but honestly wow feels more like a mobile game or a korean mmo now adays, its a grind fest and you never truly feel like you are at endgame because u always have to go back the next day and grind out stupid bullshit before u can play the game. I dont expect people to ever quit long term, wow will always have its white knights or the people who just pay to be abused, but i wish more people would open their eyes to blizzards scummy tactics

[@markj.a351]

Development options A: Invest resources into the game to create a good product that people want to play B: A new store mount every few months

[@zordiarkdarkeater8625]

ActivisionBlizz thinks A and B are the same thing....

[@sanyavlitvyak]

Don't forget locking people into a 6 month subscription with yet another mount.

[@Umur64]

B makes more money because you guys are stupid enough to pay for them. You get what you deserve.

[@TheOriginalJohnDoe]

You know it's serious when he's in the treehouse.

[@bioshockz]

true, the moment he's in the treehouse some real shit is coming

[@sparkles2678]

"I don't want to wait to enjoy the game, I want to enjoy it now!" That quote from asmon alone should be enough for blizzard to care about their communities enjoyment but sadly we aren't that lucky anymore... = (

[@brenny3244]

I feel so safe in this treehouse.

[@PresidentDumpTruck]

This treehouse makes me sad.

[@mildlydazed9608]

@@PresidentDumpTruck but why?

[@kronniichiwa9909]

Reminds me of Teldrassil, Nostalgic

[@omensoffate]

You aren’t in the tree house. You are sitting down staring at a screen.

[@Typerhaze]

I see stars reference? xD

[@myekyl7448]

Zack is the best commentator on all of twitch he just spoke his mind for 30min straight no cuts and no dead air. This is why I watch him

[@thatlonzoguy]

Yeah he is entertaining to watch as asmon, and also really insightful to watch as zack. Its cool to see someone on the platform that for the most part i agree with their views

[@Kronosbattlemaps]

Literal God.

[@mikkelrw]

"I would rather take a flightpath that takes me 5 min so i don't have to play the game, than run 30 seconds" 16:07 That hit where it hurt and made me depressed Sadge

[@femalesupremacistoverlord6800]

Remember when running around was magical and fun in and of itself? Feelsbadman

[@newjerseyjustin]

What the PVP community needs is a hub sort of like old dalaran sewers.. Where people can go to duel cross-faction and show off their skills in duels as well as meet new people to maybe queue with and do arenas or rbg's. Link duels to a currency for cosmetics etc. Think of it as the Dueling Guild but actually done right.

[@FreqstyleRedux]

Bruh, it's so crazy when you say this when Maldraxxus has a massive bloody arena in the middle of the zone that's only used for 1 lousy World Quest. Smh

[@poppy1x3]

I am impressed how this homeless man in the video has much better knowledge about the game than blizzard employees.

[@blakefleming8234]

Youd think they would hire people like him as development influencers, wows been diying for a while and its sad but the devs just dont listen

[@POWerrrrlGrind]

cos blizzard dont play the game anymore

[@theparadisesnare]

He's not homeless he has a treehouse :)

[@Krisso22]

turning players into payers killed the game

[@slim461]

The homeless man in the video comment 😆😂🤣

[@DustinZinn]

the feeling that I get from all of this is, this is an activision experiment, "how little can we give and players still stick around"

[@Ottobot2]

That is exactly what is happening. I think shadowlands was the last try for a lot of the older fans. I came back for 2 months cleared the heroic raid and quit because running weekly torghast and the time gated story quests were making me upset and felt like a job. I'm just waiting for Ashes of Creation or Riots mmo.

[@Bobobox95]

@@Ottobot2 You should look into Corepunk the customization is looking great!

[@pykamirulol]

@@Ottobot2 Don't hold out on Riot's MMO release. They're a dog shit company.

[@lightforged6017]

It's a real let down feeling. When you've invested so much into something for so long, just to watch it be destroyed from within. Over half the years of my life have been spent playing this game in some shape or form. Were there breaks? Of course, but WoW has been one of the most steady constants of my life. That is why I haven't stopped playing. It definitely hasn't been the quality of the game for the last several years. It's sad because I don't even enjoy the game to any close of a degree as I once did, but it's part of me. Sounds corny, but it's true. I think a lot of people feel the same. Shadowlands had so much hope and promise. The first 2-3 months were honestly the most fun I'd had since the peak days of Wrath and such. But that faded so quickly once you hit certain content walls and realize that the game was nowhere near complete & they made devoted fans pay full price for a 2 year BETA test. Sad. I don't know how much longer I can stick around.

[@a.p2464]

It is not a good time to be a WOW player. I already quit

[@eriuz]

feel the same im just trying to get cutting edge and stop playing, and ff14 looks kind of fun i'veen playing the free trial this week is kind if good

[@TheQuinn50]

Im glad I quit month one, I just saw through all of the pointless boring content. PVP was the only good content.

[@eriuz]

@@TheQuinn50 yeah and now they are going to make the pvp like in draenor

[@Teh_Duck]

When there was the Sloot interview with Ion I was super hyped for SL, but I have been kicked in the balls too many times from pre-orders so I waited. I lost hype for the expansion the more info came out, Torghast on the beta looked fun as shit and the 4 cinematics leading up to the release were cool but not enough. I want to sink time into 1 game and an MMO is the best way I can imagine doing so but WoW is the only IP I like in the game out atm. I never bought the expansion and canceled my sub a couple months before the launch and i'm glad I did. I hope the game gets better and if not maybe New World (kinda doubt) or AoC will be my poison but who the fuck knows.

[@Darkunknown--999]

this made me so sad, it perfectly describes how i'm feeling. only missing the part about all the friends i no longer see online..

[@nosferhatu]

Blizzard not playing their games is exactly like a chef not tasting it's own food , serving it to others and being offended when someone complains about the taste.

[@z3three]

like how in kitchen nightmare, gordon ramsay (we) say its shit and then we have the chef (blizz) having a fight that its good. in the end we are always right

[@freshfilmproducts]

Only that tasting food takes seconds, playing wow to the point to get a clear picture of the state of the game takes hundreds of hours per patch.

[@Hirotoro4692]

@@freshfilmproducts A good video game developer should play their own game, enough to get a clear picture.

[@PYAngel09]

Very good analogy. Spot on.

[@z3three]

@@Hirotoro4692 "A good developer" i mean yeah youre right but honestly this should be a standard at this point. How else could you understand what should be changed bout the game.

[@jamietavender9054]

"Making a game they want people to play rather than a game the people want to play". This is it

[@bird4958]

Regarding "players don't create alts to play world quests", that's obviously true, but the point I think he was trying to make is that some players just enjoy leveling. I have a bunch of characters that I am slowly leveling because I enjoy the different playstyles. However this brings up a different problem - I only really enjoy leveling, because I don't have anyone to play the game with. I can't do m+ with randoms because its just toxic af, and I can't get into random raids, or join random pvp groups. So I'm basically locked out of end game content because I have trouble finding people to play with, and I just level instead. So maybe on their end they see a lot of players level to max and then just stop, and think "oh they must only like the journey" when it's actually that the end game is broken, there are no systems in place to make it easy to meet people while leveling or otherwise, so many people just "give up" at max level. That's how I feel about it anyway.

[@jared8019]

I have been only leveling alts as of now, I haven’t even finished Shadowlands leveling because I won’t take part in another rat race grind with no true reward just to be reset next expansion. I enjoy leveling and questing in old content because it’s honestly just simpler and has soul plus u feel the power scale. I really feel that the new content lacks soul and I can’t put my finger on a specific point but there’s something there that just isn’t allowing me to enjoy the game. Probably the fact that all the cool content is locked behind massive chores like farming anima and dealing with Raider IO spergs foaming at the mouth. The game is just honestly not as engaging as it once was.

[@tommenno]

And even if it WAS true, that's no reason to have the option to speed things along for alts. Have a setting like warmode that treats the alt like it's a first-run character. If you want a fast alt leveling experience, toggle it the fuck off. How hard could that fucking be to code out?

[@GreymanSD]

One of the worst parts from my perspective is how many times they implement something poorly, where they have faced the exact same problem and implemented a superior solution in the past. Screwing up where you have already succeeded in the past confuses me.

[@chrisanderson7820]

This also blows my mind. Introduce Valor but you can't upgrade your current gear, only stuff farmed after Valor started. We just went through this EXACT pony ride with Corruptions. Our memories are short but not that short. We KNOW it's not a tech limitation, we KNOW you're just being dicks.

[@vayce2970]

It's on purpose lol. Anyone that played Legion and BFA should know that Shadowlands was going to be a rinse and repeat of the exact same thing just from watching the trailer.

[@Korinplaysgames]

The thing I've been loving about FFXIV is that old content is still relevant. Leveling up takes you through dungeons/trials/raids so nothing ever feels forgotten. Even at max level doing your daily roulette is pulled from everything you unlocked. In WoW once the xpac is over all the content is obsolete aside from transmog. You invest in these new systems for the entire expansion only for it to end and have a similar system take it's place. They need to expand on one system and grow it.

[@influentialdetour]

Yoshi-P >>> Ion

[@Ripcraze]

Don't forget some events they do that also takes advantage of old content to get rewards, which in turn helps new players get their content done faster as well, win win.

[@Korinplaysgames]

@@Ripcraze yea I gotta say, I hated FFXIV when it came out. I've been playing WoW since beta and nothing ever came close to it. However with the horrible BFA expansion and the lackluster Shadowlands expansion, I came back to FF. I must say it is the best MMO on the market.

[@akumabkk6137]

quit and cancelled my sub 2 months ago and won't come back. Blizzard want the most the money for least amount work done. The only thing getting a regular update is the cash shop.

[@icecream-soup]

Ding ding ding!

[@Puwui]

Same. I put in crazy time in vanilla, tbc, and wotlk before quitting. Came back for shadowlands and didn’t last 3 months before quitting for probably my final time. I don’t want to but it’s just trash to me at this point. That said vanilla and tbc gave me the best memories of any game ever :’)

[@Jones-ke6bt]

@@Puwui bc-cata, tried shadowlands. Was disgusted with time gating, all the currencies, convoluted systems, no idea what i should be doing, or what was worth my time. I thought oh, let me upgrade this anima thing, miserable experience. Took forever and didn't even notice any significant changes for the time I spent. There was both way to much to do, and nothing to do at the same time. Nightmare experience.

[@WillJL20]

Same

[@eodyn7]

@Jib bit Blizzard is to blame, not Activision.

[@Rygertyger]

"The illusion is broken" very true. You shake your head and realize the opportunity cost of your time is too high.

[@soaringturkeyvulture7506]

18:13 Ian said that the "azerite respec cost was too much" "I got really mad about that statement because... Ion is the GAME DIRECTOR" That got me good, and really highlighted the laughable situation blizzard has found themselves in.

[@Y.Moroboshi]

What bugs me about that is that he's either trying to voice a player complaint in a "hey, I'm one of you" type of way, or there's someone above Ion dictating things. Neither of which is a good look.

[@呼吸-e9b]

@@vikkran401 dum dum. ALL of their decisions are made from business standpoint

[@raijuko]

I think that, WOW used to be an IMMERSIVE experience. It used to look terrible, but still, you would become immersed for hours, not realizing 6 hours had passed when you glance at a clock. That feeling is gone now, due to the constant checking around for world quests, weekly quests, all these quests that are weekly or daily chores. That pulls you out of that sense of adventure. The true magic of WOW, has always been that feeling of wonder and adventure as you challenge yourself in new lands, to get class armor to brag about, or that rare hunter pet with a crazy ability, or maybe the journey you take for rare mats for blacksmithing a really good piece of gear (sulfuras for example). If blizzard would bring back that sense of challenge and adventure, making us, the player, decide how far into the world of Azeroth we wish to explore, to be success and geared, the game would see an explosion in returning players, as well as new, younger players that want that sense of wonder that they have yet to experience. Anyone else agree with me?

[@Newbtuber]

That is what an mmorpg is. What wow is now is just an abomination

[@raijuko]

@@Newbtuber they all are now. No mmo currently, holds any of the values I just listed. Well, I can think of one but nobody plays it. Champions Online, is probably the closest mmo to those standards right now, and it's dead. Its on steam, has a lot of active players, but gets no traction. You can let your imagination run rampant in that game, it's a true treasure to mmo gaming.

[@rosemorningstar5368]

@@raijuko GW2 is kiiiiinda like that with how there’s so much to do in one map to 100% all the objectives and things to collect in it that help progress your character’s ability to traverse the map, be more powerful on that continent, and progress the new trait line that released with the expansion the map came from. Example, the new expac came with new mounts that have different ways of traversing the map. Some areas you can only get to with a particular mount and you have to unlock the mount by doing the main story. To fully unlock the new “spec” or talent tree for your class, you have to gain skill points acquired by collecting them in that continent and leveling up. It’s by no means perfect. A lot could be better. But they do a good job of making the world feel interesting and immersive. Plus the dailies and weeklies are usually vague things you don’t have to go out of your way to do. They just happen because you’re playing the game. Like, “collect this type of crafting material in X map.” Or “Play 3 matches of rated PvP.” And the max amount of dailies and weeklies can be completed by mixing and matching the different areas of play. Like a couple from PvE and one from PvP or vice versa. I have various feelings about the game’s class balance, PvP, raid design, gameplay, etc, but when it comes to world immersion they do a good job.

[@malazan6004]

Yes wow is now a weird checklist I agree with you

[@malazan6004]

@@raijuko I actually think FFXIv is the closest to the OG mmorpg but I can see why many people are put off it

[@Cryxboy]

Blizzard is designing WoW with the goal of introducing a “Fear of Missing Out” feeling to players. They’re following in the footsteps of other major titles that have done similar things. They’re making it to where playing a set amount of time during a set time period is treated is an obligation rather than a decision. “If you don’t do these dailies/weeklies, you miss out”, “if you don’t mythic raid, you miss out”, “if you don’t play enough Torghast, you miss out”. They want to drive their players out of a sense of commitment to WoW rather than giving players a sense that Blizzard/WoW is committed to THEM.

[@Dunmerdog]

This is exactly right. You have summed up the exact reason I stopped playing in December of last year after SL launched. This attempt to induce a system of “you have to do this or you miss out” is so fucking bad it’s mind boggling that they think it will work in anything longer than the shortest of terms.

[@CarnageO31]

At this point I'm feeling pretty confident in not resubbing for either this or bcc.

[@garpten7772]

Yeah i lost all hype for tbc

[@mradzymrad615]

Why TBC ?

[@LoveAnimeLikeCrazy]

@@mradzymrad615 probably the deluxe version which gives you a warp stalker mount

[@candlesk5295]

same. After recent news, and the game itself over the past few years I have no desire to play shadowlands, or pay a $25 sub cost (canada) to play a BC with a cash shop.

[@GamingDualities]

If u are not subing for tbc u never really liked the wow anyway

[@GamingDemiurge]

"Blizzard is too big to succed" there is a lot of wisdom behind that sentence. I've seen this happen first hand.

[@AustriaProo]

That was the same problem in call of duty from 2013-2017 Most of the players hated the multiplayer system and they changed nothing. They thought it was a big success and everybody loved it but the only success was from year to year more money.

[@Abundy]

Suits only concern is money, the declining playerbase and declining faith in the game/company doesn't matter to them. I mean there's some merit to their stance when you have a lot of people that will only ever play WoW or are just plain addicted to it that will stay subscribed and buy stuff from the shop even while complaining about the game. Then they just have to scale back their investment (devteam size etc.) so they still turn a profit and everything is "well".

[@aaGit]

Not going to lie, that was a pretty impressive one take monologue.

[@tompowell592]

They are going for the mushroom strategy. 'Keep us in the dark and feed us shit'

[@mexcellent227]

kek good one

[@NikitaVoskobojevs]

Yeah right, playerbase wanted more endgame content Blizz invents m+, now you bitchin about m+, players wanted more customization for their characters, but now you bitchin about soulbinds or conduits whatever. In my opinion all those changes that they made that people didn't like were caused by players in the first place. And 1 more thing, as people hear more and more negative comments on particular WoW activity, they also tend to think negatively of it even though their initial perception might have been different. And I experienced that myself, when I first went to torghast(especially Twisted corridors) I thought it was fucking great and I only wished I could do that more like more layers harder and harder difficulty until I saw everyone complaining about it, same with visions and warfronts. The important part is: if a feature is good noone talks about it and if the feature is bad everyone is writing commnts on that, thats why WoW has an image of a failure right now.

[@TransCronus]

Top kek m8

[@yehorboiaryntsev7123]

@@NikitaVoskobojevs the case with blizzard content is that new expansions/patches are exciting only for a short amount of time after release, Torghast only seemed great until the moment you found out it lacks replayability and new mechanics.Torghast becomes a legitimate soul ash grindfest where you dump your time into grinding same stuff over and over without any new mechanics being added, the only difference between torghast layers and rooms(or whatever you call these locations where you farm soul ash) is their name and texture. M+ are also exciting to play until you find out affixes doesn't rly change much and the only difficulty in getting into M+ itself without r.io addons(an addon that pushes players to play for logs, not for fun).The only thing that keeps you going in M+ is the vault weekly and self-impovement for new players like me. However, I completely agree with your statement about people's perception of the game being corrupted by negative feedback, but at the same time I think players weren't the cause of the changes blizzard made, but being completely silent and not boycotting the game for these changes is the real reason for this in-game system still working and basically not moving the game anywhere.

[@stephen8342]

@@NikitaVoskobojevs 1. New difficulty is not more content, just more of the same content 2. No one bitched about mythic plus existing, they bitch about how slim the rewards are from what they were before 3. Conduits and covenants are not unique nor do they truly allow customization. There’s generally a limit of two viable options if you’re lucky

[@Serum526]

The thing that's frustrating is when you say "it makes it feel like our time is not being respected." Especially in regards to fixing flawed systems. Their time is allegedly too valuable to invest in making a good product. Yet we pay financially each month and pay with our time for them to get it right and sometimes that takes over a year.

[@lonefish8128]

They put 0.1% effort compared to the amount of money they charge for this game. We must all unsub from this scam of a game.

[@lucadesanctis563]

Yes, u pay like true addicts would do

[@aerisviel]

I never touched WOW, but I still listened all the way to the end (I played oldschool MMOs and I watch a variety of people just talking about their experiences), because this "just a guy who played WOW for 15 years" is so much more likeable than his Asmongold persona he puts up for the stream. I'd like to see more of this guy.

[@tomn8932]

7:30 Bobby Kotick's 30th private jet flying overhead.

[@vp7219]

This video kept me more engaged than shadowlands and bfa did combined

[@p.o.p5570]

sure buddy sure, i bet you also spent money on this video and replayed it more than you did with SL and BFA combined... loser

[@zamblaze]

when blizz is telling us what we want i just wanna be like "you think we do but we dont"

[@andrewbasore3560]

"We know we said you don't want it, but now we know that you do want it, so here's an official "classic" server so you can play with rose tinted goggles while we focus on the next expansion. PS thanks 4 ur sub"

[@belroththundra]

@@andrewbasore3560 You know what we would really like in classic servers? Real world money stores.

[@Finicky9]

There are two reasons people have become complacent they have no hope of changing the game, or they quit already.

[@fairyfire6481]

Yeah, asmon asks why people dont care? Thats because those who cared already gave up hope and quit and now its just people who are fine with anything as long as it feeds their addiction.

[@Memento__Mori]

Yeah I think the ones who had the most hope quit a long time ago.

[@omegaxtrigun]

@@fairyfire6481 " those who cared already gave up hope and quit" This. I know because that describes me. Anyone who really cared and objected has already quit. Everyone that's left either 1. Are okay with blizzard's bs and will defend it. 2. Are too attached to quit no matter how bad it gets. or 3. Only play because they have friends who play. The amount of playerbase WoW lost would have killed nearly any other game long ago. But WoW has had such a huge following that even after losing a large amount of it's players, it still has a large playerbase when compared to other games. Any other game with some thousands of players losing all but the last 5-10% of the most dedicated wouldn't be enough to keep it going. But going from 10+ million players to a few million is still a ton of players. Blizzard knows this, which is why they keep adding things that just drag on "player engagement" and things like the 6 month subs with a free mount. Because the only thing they care about is milking play time out of what player base they have left or trying to get more money up front.

[@bigsmokesorder]

Quit a month into shadowlands because it's just rinse repeating solo content

[@katiemcanally9885]

I cared and bitched about how things were going since wod, basically since Ion, only to be met with great resistance and blizz white knight's, and an attitude of how dare me for not kissing blizzs ass while they gutted the very game I loved and hate to see them ruin. You're right though I unsubbed in Jan went to ffxiv which at least they do actually listen, although not perfect, it owns on balance, and for the most part is great, except it still has some flaws. I will not come back till Ions gone and major changes take place. I figure if enough of us who can leave do leave, eventually money will talk and bullshit will walk. Maybe I'm wrong, but I can't in good faith pay for something that brings me great sadness to play now, or feels like a dev teams being passive aggressive to the point of abuse, just to look cool to the world first crowd. Over it.

[@ChairmanMeow1]

I think these types of videos are therapeutic for him. I know he doesnt speak for all of us but he speaks for a LOT of us... and Blizz could not care less. I fully expect them to start making WoW NFT's to sell and whatever else they can monetize. They dont care about the playerbase.

[@xxximyxxximerton1671]

@Jason Weaver capitalism killed wow smh

[@lizardqueen272]

@Jason Weaver You can have WoW without the dumb without needing to pay that much. To say so is farcical. Blizzard (and Activision in turn) make obscene money from the freemium-ification that WoW has undergone. I say this as a developer who understands how insanely large the profit margins can be with microtransaction and cosmetic content. It costs them pennies, if that to make most of these items, and they make hand over fist with the extended subscriptions, mount sales, WoW tokens, and the various assortment of payed services that cost them nothing to do on their end (server transfer and the like). They have more than enough money to put out content on a consistent schedule, but the issue therein is that they don't need to because they make such a ridiculous amount solely off of skins and mounts that take a small group of artists perhaps a week or two to make from modelling to animation, not to mention things like WoW tokens which cost them absolutely nothing. Meanwhile, I can expect a consistent update schedule from titles like FFXIV with very clear focus on what it is they're creating. Two new classes every expansion, new races, a gamut of raids and dungeons with content fed to you with each and every patch that comes out like clockwork, with impeccable balance across the board at all levels of play - and meanwhile WoW has difficulty managing to figure out whether or not to remove a timed energy system on yet another needless borrowed power mechanic that does little to actually contribute to the gameplay itself. Blizzard should either forego choice entirely, as it's never actually taken strong focus in the gameplay of WoW (at least in the manner in which they hope to incorporate it, which just leaves players frustrated that they have to decide between flavour or efficacy, and all else inbetween), or simply commit to having much more simple systems that don't follow convoluted upgrade paths and the core gameplay stays that. Core. Tier sets, trinkets, and some variation of minor talent tree progression that is linear and not choice based has and will continue to do wonders.

[@xxximyxxximerton1671]

@Jason Weaver i mean i was just kidding but capitalism is actually fucking us over, inb4 commy comments

[@jojorumbles8749]

The best phrase I've ever heard used to describe Blizzard: "You can't call it progress when you take two steps backwards and one step forward.

[@Xmanics]

That tree behind you is a metaphor for WoW. It's dead but hasn't yet fallen all the way.

[@WickedWisdom55]

You don't like WoW anymore. That doesn't mean it's dead. Shadowlands broke records for expansion launch sales. Yes, WoW sub numbers are back to normal now (like they go back after every expansion/ patch launch, which is completely normal, so don't try to "gotcha!" me there) but the community is still there, still playing the game, even if you and the other "WoW IS DEAD" people (that have been saying that since TBC) aren't playing.

[@bass-dc9175]

@@WickedWisdom55 "like they go back after every expansion/ patch launch, which is completely normal, so don't try to "gotcha!" me there" The thing about that is ... that it is not. WoW Vanilla: Release sales are high and the sub count continued to grow. TBC: Release sales where even higher and the sub count continued to grow. WotlK: Release sales where the highest they have ever been and the sub count stayed level. The thing here is: The start of an expansion allways meant an increase in player count. The difference is: Back then, the players STAYED. Because not only was the content enjoyable, it wasn't time gated. It had things for everyone. Content was just flat out fun. Simple. Not as overdesigned as other MMOs. So people spread the word and convinced others to play aswell. Why doesn't that work now? Because Now: Fun comes with a timegate. Gone are the fun factions with unique rewards (Cata) and the player count takes a dip. Likely the casual gamers. Gone is the adherence to old wow lore (Cata + Mop) and so the player count takes another dip. Likely those who enjoyed just casually playing for the journey. Then the Overhyped WoD comes out. But just weeks after release the overdesigned "You are only allowed to have X amount of fun a day" gameplay and automatisation of player interaction takes a chunk of players out. Legion brought alot of people back, but the AP system yet again timegated an infinite grind. So people left. I do not even have to mention the endless "System X + Y + Z and grind and daylies and ..." of BFA. The problem is that blizzard in an attempt to fit certain content to everyone (Hence 4 raid dificulties for the same raid) neglected the more casually enjoyable aspects. The question here is simple. How did old WoW manage to keep its players? Well there was: No "X Artifact / Azerite power for the next upgrade" No "X amount of PvP Currency a day as a maximum" No "X amount of daylies are worth it" No Infinite grinds. No "One size fits all" content ideology. Small guilds had 10 man dungeons in TBC and Classic which where specifically designed for 10 men. Not a 25 man or 20 man dungeon that has a downgraded boss. Casual players had various reputations, crafting, casual pvp and actual long-term goals. Not just a castrated version of a raid. Semi Casuals had fun daylies that gave specific rewards. Heroics, that where challenging but not 10/15/20+ M+key challanging. And these again had some unique things about them (like hidden bosses). Bigger guilds went into the raids. They did not do the same content as the others "butt hardar!!!". Everyone had content that was made for them. Not harder/easier versions of other content. Still they interacted with each other. There was overlap. People had goals to reach for. People wanted to experience the raids for themselves. So they invested time. Got better. And then did it. It was an actual acchievement. Now: People can get the tourist mode "LFR" and see the Raid. Why do it harder? It is the same raid + a few mechanics. THAT is why. The answer is as simple as it is brilliant: Create a shitload of DIFFERENT content and simply letting your players PLAY.

[@WickedWisdom55]

@@bass-dc9175 Dude, I'm not going to read any of that lmfao. Anyone who sees that rambling wall of text is only going to be able to conclude that you might care a BIT too much about the topic at hand. It's just a video game, relax.

[@bass-dc9175]

@@WickedWisdom55 Then I give you a short version: Older expos not only had an increase in player count at the start but where also able to hold them. Because there was content for everyone, without everything being an overdesigned timegated "One size fits all" mess, that most people got sick of after realising that "improving and doing more content" means doing the same content "butt hurdur!". There.

[@bass-dc9175]

@@WickedWisdom55 As for "caring too much". I tend to explain myself in detail, no matter the topic. I apologize for caring about a hobby.

[@marvin8267]

It’s always rare to see you voice your opinion like this, and it’s always a pleasure to literally hear someone say everything that I’m thinking when it comes to the state of the game. Thank you, Asmon.

[@markk9095]

18:33 "Not too big to fail, but too big to succeed" - That is SOOOO true and applicable in almost every large corporate company. It's ridiculous...

[@IRLlosersQ]

Fuck... You made me realize what I was missing with old PvP. I miss hanging out in front of org, doing wpvp with the boys after Wintergrasp or Tol'Barad, or being that red guy in Timeless Isle. It's all gone now.

[@thenerdbeast7375]

I feel this video was good for him. No twitch, no chat, no spotlight, no stage, just the honest thoughts of a true fan.

[@jonathansoko1085]

I understand that the twitch streams fund the show and script.... but i hate what live chats do to the guy. Hes so likeable, and inciteful even though i disagree with most of his beliefs, but thats just find we arent supposed to all agree. But when hes just by himself talking, hes so damn likeable and its nice not having the chat spamming memes in all caps for 4 hours or saying same shirt or something.

[@TeaMMatE11]

@@jonathansoko1085 I mean his chat is kinda the worst which is why I don't watch him live and catch his vids.

[@eohgee-1269]

Weirdo

[@riotangel4701]

"You know you've attained perfection not when you have nothing to add, but when you have nothing to remove."

[@DarinRWagner]

I hate it when Ion calls your character a "build out." It's not a "build out." That's developer talk. What players do is CREATE CHARACTERS.

[@katiemcanally9885]

He's a drone with no real idea on what fun even is.

[@jetillian]

It doesn't help when most developers are all on COD:Warzone development, and also there is a unified way to talk about game mechanics throughout the company.

[@ninacuk6815]

My grandma used to hide toys from us kids and then gave them back after few months. We were so happy. ...till we figured out xD

[@blaket1841]

Airplane + Dog + Mockingbird: "Peace and quiet were never an option."

[@doomwolf7963]

That bird never shut up 😂

[@WhatIfTheories]

Everyone at Activison Blizzard should have to watch this and take notes.

[@ShadowedEyedClan]

Sadly they might have and wont take notes as they hate criticism

[@mmoarchives2542]

blizzard: hey activision, can we do these ideas? activision: are you questioning the chinese government? you're fired china: good activision, you're a good pet

[@Pandalius]

If I had to guess, the course of development is being guided by what maximizes time spent in game while cutting as much development time as possible. I mean, take a look at the zones and grind: they're all the same with different themes. Not to mention, hardly varied, like the Maw. Yet, somehow take eons to properly grind out until the end of the patch when no one is left. It's purposeful.

[@lonefish8128]

Reminds me of my own half-assed assignments back in college lol. There is no heart and soul left.

[@erwinmulder1338]

My main reason to quit the live game is that they have broken the main aspect of an MMO: The current game is no longer an open world game where YOU get to decide where you want to go and what you want to do. Instead they have a linear treadmill to keep you busy. (Edit: This has been going on since Cataclysm.)

[@KORNEWARRIOR]

That's a very good point

[@depthshade837]

so ARPG?

[@muffaloswolja8654]

Gaming standards across the board have been lowered. We applaud devs for shipping a game that isn’t half broken or paywalled up the ass. I used to imagine how far gaming would get 15 years ago. If anything it’s straight up regressing. We should just expect better if not more from this industry.

[@vennin7781]

I started playing in BC and basically only played pvp with my friends as a healer. It really sucks that people really dont get that experience anymore.

[@B-...]

I remember getting my first complete set of Corruption... 2 weeks before the pvp season ended. I never had as much fun as I did when I was on an even playing field with everyone else. But I felt insane bitterness not only thinking back to how long it took to get there, but how fun it would have been to have it all season. And just like that, it was ripped away with SL.

[@lawlestest]

same shit with mythic+... Spent tons of hours grinding out the keys to get geared, when you're finally up to par with everyone else and geared up, new season drops and the base itemlevels change, and all the stuff you just grinded out is useless.

[@sebastianpokutta8777]

13:40 hits hard. i remember blizz having such a nice customer service, hotline etc. Back then u got a reply in 2minutes, nowadays i wait 3 days for smthing very small

[@alaszrar6202]

No wonder why

[@elitefew8537]

To think We used to actually see gms ingame, now we don’t even see other players. Game plays like a throttled rpg now

[@brapbraprcksn]

You used to get an in game whisper from a GM who would RP while they helped you :(

[@tomasz4360]

0:07:19 That plane Was Blizzard, trying to shut down Zac for spitting the truth

[@heywatchyourmouth3048]

I completely agree and think a huge problem with MMO's or really any Online Multiplayer game, in general, is that the developers are usually listening to the wrong people. Let's say you create a hardcore MMO that really takes time to level, get gear, etc., and you have 1 Million Active players. So you start looking at player feedback and 900,000 people are not giving feedback because they're loving the game and think it's fantastic so most of those people are not gonna waste their time with giving feedback because what's the point. Then you have 100,000 people complaining and saying the game is too difficult, it takes too long to level, it's way too hard to get certain gear. You would probably think to yourself omg wow so many people hate the fact that it's too hard so we have to make huge drastic changes. So you listen to the 100,000 people complaining which is a lot but it's only 10% of your audience. So you pull up your diaper and start making these changes working months/years implementing them. Then you make the big announcement hey we listened to player feedback and were gonna make the game way easier not realizing you're now catering to such a small piece of your audience. Then you have 900,000 people malding... for good reason saying "What are you doing" "We Do Not Want This". Now I'm sure this is not every circumstance but how else can you explain these huge developers making these dumb changes. Another thing I really don't understand with these developers is who they decide to cater to. They always want to cater to the "New Players" who are gonna play the game for 3 months then never play again instead of the people who are gonna be playing their game for the next 15 years.

[@wltschmrz4402]

So... maybe players should give proper feedback instead of keeping it silent, then malding when something changes xD

[@heywatchyourmouth3048]

@@wltschmrz4402 Why do you need to give feedback on something you're enjoying. I would love to live in a perfect world also where every player gives their feedback but it will never happen bud

[@Amabar]

@@wltschmrz4402 Why give feedback when Blizzard doesn't listen. I've complained about borrowed power systems repeatedly, many people have. Yet, for the last few expansions we get a overly complex temporary system and a watered down story, no tier sets, rehashed armour designs. It's not that the player base isn't giving good feedback, it's that making changes requires more effort than Blizzard is willing to put in the game. Profits are up, yet we get less content at a slower pace.

[@wltschmrz4402]

@@heywatchyourmouth3048 Maybe to let them know that you enjoy this thing, so They know which direction They should head

[@enthomorf]

Yeah. But the problem with the game now is totally the opposite: Looks like Blizzard are only listening a little group of players. The hardcore ones. They doesnt represent the majority of the players. But looks like Blizzard is only focus on the hardcore content, on hardcore players that wanna do mythic+. And a majority of the players got screwed because of that. It is annoying and fucking the game.

[@BatteryExhausted]

It’s 3.37 a.m. in the UK so instead of sleeping I’m keeping up with the thoughts of the real Z on the WoW scene because I don’t even need to play WoW for it to screw up my life.

[@bigsmokesorder]

I quit a month into shadowlands and I was the biggest ambassador for the game to my social group. It's been 4 months and no new content, my friends went solo mode on the content, and raid logging feels like a shitty job where you don't get paid. Love the game, hate the fucking company.

[@NighDarke]

All of my friends quit the game. They won't be back. They're actually having fun playing other games as am I. WoW has been moving in the wrong direction for a while now and it was clear from Ion's interview that they're plain clueless.

[@tommenno]

I know it gets shit on a lot with Zack, but XIV has all the things I wanted out of wow. And honestly, I still love wow. But I'm not slogging 8-10 months of ass grind when I can wait for the catch up mechanics when they fix everything, and do it all in two weeks. I'd rather save the 120$+ dollars and spend it on other stuff. Right now, all my fun with wow is watching streams lose their shit over how bad it's gotten(Even BELL is at the end of his rope!) and waiting to see the ass pull for Bitch Queen.

[@wm1573]

@@tommenno what are these final fantasy ambassadors in wow video comment sections? It is not a good alternative since it's a disgusting weeb game with disgusting visuals, no thanks

[@markjefferies2544]

@@wm1573 I almost think it’s a marketing strategy at this point. It’s all over the place and it’s hot garbage. It’s not even on GW2s level.

[@Cruciatum]

@@wm1573 because it's actually a good game and it's frustrating to see every design decision wow players say they want being done and done well in xiv but Zack and people like you won't even try it because there's a race with cat ears in it.

[@wm1573]

@@Cruciatum it's a trash game and no one plays it for that reason

[@Tentacl]

22:15 "a bit of a nerd reference" Zack, AKA Asmongold, during a 30 mins talk about a WoW expansion state

[@Tonyklick]

How do you prep for these videos? I'm impressed by how you can speak for almost 30 minutes about topics that flow into each other so fluently and how you keep your opinions on them on track and don't stray away. It all seem organic too, so I don't believe there is a script

[@mpa3588]

He's talking about something he's passionate and knowledgeable about. Probably has something to do with it.

[@NostraDavid2]

He's been doing it like this for YEARS, so he's had a bit of practice 😂.

[@malazan6004]

Asmon is smarter and more well spoken than most people realise.

[@Tonyklick]

@@malazan6004 for sure

[@ninacuk6815]

I think he's a natural. All he maybe needs are some basic points of what he wants to say.

[@influentialdetour]

not to be an FFXIV Andy, (i play both WoW and FF) but I’ve heard all FF staff are required to have an active account in the game, and all testing is done by staff themselves rather than players doing beta testing

[@animecrystal9]

Yes but they are bug testing and so fourth too get ready on release but its ok

[@fgregerfeaxcwfeffece]

The best thing about renown is that the catch up is pretty much exactly what i wanted last addon. If you are behind there are lots of options to get it. Through callings alone you can realistically get 1 additional renown per week from pretty much whatever content you happen to play.

[@vincentr90]

i miss rare spawns being rare spawns in BC finding one met something now they are just something you kill on cycles

[@Zamix69]

"BLIZZARD IS NOT FIXING THESE PROBLEMS IN A TIMELY MANNER THAT MAKES PLAYERS FEEL LIKE THEIR TIME IS BEING RESPECTED" (also $15 a month!!) great line asmongold. very true big agree

[@kit6863]

Try being an Aussie! We pay so much more per month!

[@zeroxthree568]

When your dog started barking I freaked out like HOW DID MY DOG GET OUTSIDE OH FUCK!! then on my way out the door I seen her laying in the living room... TRIPPED ME OUT HAHAHA

[@PILAVGAMES]

I agreed with few things, mostly disagree! Either way, from your point of view as a transmog collector maybe this all makes sense. I think raiding is really, really fun and class design with covenant abilities are good enough for me. PvP is also decent , but season is too long so no matter how good PvP is it gets boring after 2000 games :)

[@angelomata1114]

POGGERS

[@sanbbans]

second

[@KRISZxMETIN]

Very nice comment from a very active youtuber!

[@merlin7654]

Pilav your boosted noob go away

[@paly3773]

Pilav...my spirit animal

[@Lion-tq7ob]

I was definitely one of the one month and quit players for Shadowlands, and you hit on so many points. Arbitrary gates in broken systems, and from that, the sensation that I was wasting my time.

[@Dontknowme81]

How do you know, if you only played a month, give some value to your input.

[@Lion-tq7ob]

@@Dontknowme81 Because we've seen the same song and dance before, as Zack said. And honestly, this time around, I'm just not interested in engaging with it, let alone paying money for it. Funny enough, I've also been playing a lot more Path of Exile.

[@Dontknowme81]

@@Lion-tq7ob Iv seen a few people playing it back when I was installing cable, I should check it out.

[@wumboweinie1428]

I use to play WoW not to the religious levels that some did and it did get exhausting I found it to be more like a second job then a game to enjoy. I've been playing FFXIV for awhile now and I enjoy every second of it no matter what I'm doing.

[@ronuss]

i quit wow when i realized that wow got in the way of looking at other windows i had open lol. when zack said he gets bored after 15min and watches youtube, yeh i know that feeling to well. comes a time where you realize there are just better things to do with ur time. I 2 hope wow gets better, but it needs huge changes at a core lvl to get better

[@HorizonXD]

You're pretty 🤭

[@eohgee-1269]

@@HorizonXD weirdo

[@alaszrar6202]

@@HorizonXD what are you even trying to do?

[@Evokai6419]

The reason people might not speak out could be two things, 1. Blizzard doesn't think it's an issue even though it is. or 2. They choose to only listen to certain feed back and everything else is sent away.

[@James-gx9gn]

The only way to get them to do that might be to hurt them in the pocket. Pain gets our attention, a lack of money gets stakeholders attention

[@doublephisted8631]

You have hope for this game and I wish I still did. Once I realized that these aren't mistakes they are making and instead intentional choices to farm subscription money I walked away and haven't looked back. If you think that every single choice that they make isnt backed by a monetization analytic you are still buying into their scam.

[@Zedman3333]

Havent played wow in ages, but still watching regular wow uploads and STILL watchn ya boi Asmongold. Same shit still happening after ALL these years, taking stuff away and then implementing it back like "you ask for this"

[@Jaejgaren]

This channel is by far the best stuff you do. I haven't played retail since wotlk and I still watched this video.

[@killocker]

I just really hope the new MMO's that are coming are good enough to punish Blizzard a bit for all the bad decisions, it would be good for the game, and it would be good for the genre, competition builds a good path for games to improve

[@gorg9928]

The problem is everyone copy wow and if they dont copy it then is a mess like Blackdesert online That interface was horrible.

[@ashash8026]

The influx of new players from WoW to FF14 recently . Blizzard is getting punished already cuz the players leaving ,so Blizzard is losing money from low subs . FF14 has like over 20 times the playerbase than WoW (classic and retail) atm ,it is crowded here at lower Limsa -_- for a while now.

[@MegaBladewing]

Realizing and seeing that the devs of ff14 are listening to the community and checking the official forums from time to time

[@CoachOlsson]

@@ashash8026 as long as the whales and morons keep lapping up MTX, theyll keep killing the game because thats where they're making the real money.

[@SeeIn2D]

Would be awesome but strong doubt. Blizzard is too good at marketing and too good at making a product that at base has mass appeal. Anyone trying to encroach on the space they’ve clearly monopolized for years; regardless of how good a new game might be, is gonna be muscled out but Blizzard’s marketing machine. It scares companies off from even trying. The couple exceptions of games that actually can compete in a similar space, are developed by other massive companies (ie FFXIV)

[@henriquecardoso45]

I liked how it ended: "I made this video because I thought it was important, Peace"

[@SirPunch2Face]

I think he said "I'm going to farm anima for 15 minutes and then go watch a KZbin video because I'll get bored, peace"

[@ZeusKnocksYouOut]

In regards to the wasted systems. Order halls are a great part of the game for reusable and NEW content. I'd love to see them have players of the same class go through specialized 3 or 5 man instances related to their class, with special enemies and mechanics for their class and specs that they need to work together to complete. Imagine rogues working together to infiltrate some area using all their CCs and shadowy bullshit cooldowns to be all sneaky and slicy (I hate rogues but it would be cool and makes a good example).

[@paulovictors.7471]

Man I literally can't play anything else. I'm such a WoW fan that I hope everything gets solved so we can have a good game.

[@SirPunch2Face]

Unfortunately, there are enough people like you that it will never change. Until people can grow some balls and cut the cord, Blizzard has zero reason to change anything for the better. Why spend the effort to fix something if there are hundreds of thousands or even millions of people like you who will just keep playing it anyway and paying for the opportunity? You're going to be waiting for a very long time for any problems to get solved.

[@Kmaitland89]

@@SirPunch2Face Unfortunately there are people like you, who no matter what happens will complain. Until people grow some balls and call these ass hats out, so they don't keep complaining, blizzard will keep trying to appease these idiots with no success. Why listen to people like you who claim the sky is falling every other day, when you probably don't play the game anyway?

[@SirPunch2Face]

@@Kmaitland89 I didn't say the sky is falling. You are right that I don't play the game anymore, though. I said that people with the attitude of "well if I just wait, maybe it will get better" are the precise reason why it won't get better, because those people keep paying for the game regardless of what Blizzard does, so Blizzard has zero reason to do anything different. I don't complain about what Blizzard does to their game. Why do I not? Because I quit playing their garbage games, and them losing my $15/month along with any other potential transactions is louder than some random comment on an Asmongold video talking about the issues the game has. Until more people learn that the only thing Blizzard really listens to is their shareholders (aka money), the game will keep going downhill just like it's done for the last 10 years.

[@Hardivh]

My condolences

[@dilbopillobobip7528]

@@SirPunch2Face Don't listen to them man. Most of these retards have been cycling through the same complaint process for 10+ years. "wow, new expansions, looks really cool!" "Wow, the expansion came out, its really fun!" "Damn, the systems are becoming not fun :C Blizz is dumb" the audience of this game are seismically retarded consumers.

[@MethszHD]

I've been saying this for so long now but it's like Blizzard is releasing their first MMO with every expansion.

[@mrsdjwildcat]

The most perfect in-game item that explains the game in a nutshell? 🥕on a stick.

[@PeRSCiTio]

That place has surprisingly pleasant acoustics

[@SaintEaon]

I don't even play WoW, I just for whatever reason am interested in Asmongold's thoughts on it.

[@X_Ov3R-_-Ki11]

Me neither. Have never even touched the game lol.

[@dontheboi9601]

dont do it ever

[@Yattayatta]

Some excellent observations here, the best one in the entire video is "Blizzard often not knowing what players need, instead giving them what they want". I'll be the first to admit that I might not be the average player, but I like myself a nice grind, if I find something cool that takes me a while to gather resources for, I enjoy that, except in wow, because in wow there is always a nerf around the corner. Like anima, I don't mind anima being scarce, it's not something we need, so why haven't I grinded any anima at all? Because I've been dead sure since 9.0 came out that they would nerf anima costs, and buff gains, most likely several times over, and I was correct, renown 58 buffs your anima gain, getting your buildings to rank 3 buffs it again. So if you just don't do anything anima related you can do it in maybe 20% of the time in 9.2, then why do it now? There are several systems like this being gradually nerfed. And noone will think you look cool because you have the first 5000 anima mount or whatever, just it took you longer to get that than it will take 9.2 players to get pretty much everything anima has to offer. I understand that gear needs catchup, but cosmetic grinds do not, it undermines the entire grind. About conduit power, I do agree with you, but I can see what they wanted to do, I think they wanted to make you "A venthyr warrior" "A bastion Paladin" etc, giving you a choice that you made once and set you apart from all other players, problem is, leveling is so easy, and the choice is not permanent, so any time balance shifts you shift with it. I'm not a venthyr warrior, I'm a warrior with the strongest covenant for 2s PvP. This is another reason I don't farm Anima, what if I need to go Kyrian in 9,1? Bye bye anima. In my opinion, Anima could have been made more exciting and fun 3 different ways, 1. Finish the system before releasing it, no huge nerfs to costs or buffs to anima systems after it's live. 2. Don't make me lose all my anima when I'm forced to switch covenants. 3. Look back at one of few things that was more fun in BfA, 9.3 had a mix of some dalies, some world quests and some small puzzles, all WAY better designed than the SHITTY worldquests in shadowlands.

[@djb1021993]

TRUUUUUE, SO TRUUUE DUDE! In all seriousness, I don't even have the energy to complain anymore...It t feels like this conversation has been going on for 5 years straight.

[@Veritanky]

ye4ah, about them ignoring players....rmemeber how warlocks were giving feedback in beta and gott totally ignored....how there was no pvp catergory at all till almost just before release....its been like that for years

[@Faude18]

@@Veritanky because they are focused on the release of the next half finished expansion