It was really obvious how bad Warlords of Draenor was going to be when the expansion shifted its player centers. There were two cities that were clearly meant to be the hubs for the expansion in the starting zones of the expansion, each of which had a unique character in being unsullied and vintage Draenei and Orc (well, Ogre) structures. But then the hub was shuffled unceremoniously to the game’s open PvP island to help drive that fight, a sort of limp compromise that succeeded not at all in encouraging that content but did wind up shunting players away from factional locales and interesting scenery in favor of a non-central outpost.
Of course, some World of Warcraft players probably not only don’t care but don’t see why anyone would care. It doesn’t matter, right? It’s just a place for you to stand while you access the bank, it’s a functional location and nothing more. Which brings to mind the inherently interesting interplay about the value of player hubs. For some players, these are social spaces where several different playstyles can collide, a place to congregate and interact between adventures. For others, they are functionally just waystations between what you’re doing now and what you ultimately want to get done. So what do you think? How important do you think player hubs are in MMOs?
Every morning, the Massively Overpowered writers team up with mascot Mo to ask MMORPG players pointed questions about the massively multiplayer online roleplaying genre. Grab a mug of your preferred beverage and take a stab at answering the question posed in today’s Daily Grind!
