Intro and Gameplay
Does a game like World of Warcraft really need an intro? Unless you've been living under a rock for the last 12 (!) years, more than likely, you've heard stories of love, hate, obsession, divorce, or even hardcore addiction. Clear back in the Winter of 2004. I remember sinking into the comfy embrace of a whole new online world with hundreds of quests, dungeons to run, but more importantly, a social interaction and level of polish completely unmatched. I won't go into my several bouts of love and hate for WoW but I will say this, I was extremely hesitant to dive into Legion after Warlords left me a bit cold.
Whether or not you have played every expansion faithfully or thinking of diving into the game after a long break, now is the time to dive in. World of Warcraft: Legion is definitely the fine wine of gaming and especially, the MMO world. While other try and mostly fail, rise and quickly or slowly fall, the incredible WoW team at Blizzard keep churning out amazing amounts of quality content that get better with age and Legion is probably one of the best expansions, ever.
Now, I won't go into minute details but a few highlights are the new Artifact Weapons and Class Halls that you build, grow, upgrade and spend your days and (long) nights pursuing. The system works extremely well and the campaigns are awesome except for the filler Class Hall quests that sometimes last for a full day. Also, the sheer amount of activities to level up is just stunning. Dungeons (Normal, Heroic, and Mythic), PvP, questing and the story line are absolutely top notch. Getting to level 110 was sheer enjoyment and never felt like a grind.
On the flip side, the gear game is quite frankly a mess. Everything in Legion is ilvl based and while some World Quests drop 835+ gear, Looking for Raid gear is only 825. Either way, there is a huge array of gear level drops and I could never find any rhyme or reason to it. Also, trying to get into Mythic dungeons was full of bitter people advertising "850+ gear or higher!!" gates that totally kill that feeling of community and progress. Either way, getting new gear is fun just expect to jump through a lot of hoops.
Graphics and Sound
If you can't tell by our 4K screenshots, this game is absolutely gorgeous. It's stunning to me that all these years later, the graphics, while not perfect, continue to improve with every expansion and Legion is by far the most gorgeous of the bunch. When first flying to Azsuna, I took dozens of screenshots in a beautiful rainstorm. Honestly, I took hundreds of screenshots in my time with Legion and besides a few random areas, the sights of Legion are a sheer delight to behold.
Sound is a huge part of gaming for me and Blizzard continues it's incredible track record of audio design and soundtrack selection. While not besting my fave soundtrack, WOTLK, Legion is truly a delight and the random tunes that popped up throughout the game ranged from hauntingly beautiful to heart pounding and exciting. Blizzard has some of the best sound in gaming today and I loved every minute of it here. Now, Blizzard, just get a new voice actor for God King Skovald :)
Fun and Conclusion
Well, I never thought I'd be saying this but World of Warcraft: Legion embodies everything there is to love about gaming. The polish and amount of content is monumental, even for Blizzard's standards. Also, with World Quests and the way the game is designed, it's a much more fun and social experience, discovering treasure and hunting down elite baddies with friends of random strangers. I never thought I'd fall in love again with WoW but it's hard not to when it's just so darn good!
Are you a newcomer? Disgruntled veteran? Doesn't matter, despite a few gear issues that I have with the game, it's still worth your precious gaming dollar and worth the price of admission and then some. Whether you are a casual player or hardcore raider, there is something for everyone in the wide, wide World of Warcraft.
