Warcraft Designers Reflect on Mists of Pandaria

Blizzard's initial announcement that it would be removing the cap on dailies for Mists of Pandaria was generally met with applause from World of Warcraft players. Even my fiancé welcomed the change, for he was always one to spend a relaxing evening doing dailies - and still is. But it would seem lead designer Tom Chilton now regrets the decision.

“We shot ourselves in the foot when we removed the limit on the daily quests that you could do,” explained Chilton to PCGamersN. “So there was a pressure to maximize everything… and that really leads [players] to burn out.” 

Game Mechanics: Questing

Here at ZAM we like to dissect games, bolting them down to the operating table and pulling them apart to examine what makes them tick. It’s not enough to know that a particular MMO is good or bad. We want to understand why.

But to know the beast, you have to understand the anatomy of the beast, which is why we’ve launched this regular column. In Game Mechanics, we’ll be examining a component of MMO gaming, looking at how it works in detail and the purpose it serves within the overall game. We’ll share our gripes and loves about how it’s been used in a mixture of MMOs, asking if it’s become a mainstay of our beloved genre, or if it leads us to an evolutionary dead end.

With that in mind, it’s time to pull on our lab coats and don those rubber gloves. Goggles are optional.