Random, unsorted and unstructured train of thought following hitting level 58:
I didn't realise you needed Cataclysm to fly around the Old World. That was my goal before my free month ended. I mean, it's understandable given the Cata zones, but I wish I'd bothered to check earlier.
Sithilus has left a really bad taste in my mouth, which is a shame because I was really enjoying everything that came before it. As it stands now, it might be my last experience with this game for a little bit. I'm glad I was able to have so much fun soloing it. The string of zones from the Undead starting area through the the Blasted Lands had its ups and downs, but in all it was very, very enjoyable. This has been my first MMO, so the whole thing was a bit of a learning experience.
My favourite zone would have to be the Badlands, when all is said and done, and my least favourite, my trip to Kalimdor (spelling may be wrong) and the ensuing Sithilus not withstanding, was probably the Swamp of Sorrows. Cool area, but soloing it got kind of frustrating when they threw you in the Temple in the middle of the lake of tears for a while.
In all I can't help but feel someone stole 35-40 hours out of the last month of my life, because looking back on the game, it really was one giant, manipulative treadmill in terms of difficulty and quest design (as a casual quester, at least), but that feeling of discovery it gave me as I slowly uncovered new zones or new quest chains, or, gasp, finally flew to the southern continent of the Eastern Kingdoms, was so special, I don't think a game has ever done that to me before.
I don't know how much more the same "kill X" or "collect X" style quests that await me in the expansion zones will actually be able to grab me, because with the forward momentum and sense of discovery killed by my ability to run across half a continent on the other side of the world, effectively lifting the veil and showing me where the magician keeps the bunny before he pulls it out the hat, I'm not sure how much there is left for me here, short of me joining a guild or something.
A lot of what I feel Blizzard did so damn well in the 'new' Old World, having never experienced the 'Old' Old World, was funnel me across the world in a way that managed to both introduce new things but also cleverly not show me other new things until much later. For instance, there was a while where, in my ignorance, I had no idea how each zone was filled with specifically leveled enemies and quests. I mean, had I thought about it it would have been the only logical explanation, but I never did, so that sense of wonder as I moved into new zones was really hitting me with full-force. I had no idea what was over the mountain range in the distance, hell, I had no idea that most zones were surrounded by a similar mountain ranges to wall off every area. All I had was a map, some zone names, and a quest chain leading me across the map slowly, and boy was it an experience.
I wonder, now, whether the Outlands and Northrend (and the new Cata zones, I suppose) will be able to recapture any of that. Because now that I've read up a bit on the game and have a fairly good idea of what to expect, I have a hard time believing they'll be able to. I could probably be sold on it, if someone would like to try. I feel like buying the expansions, which I would probably do in a three-pack to save money, would almost be signing the contract to invest myself a layer deeper in the game, which may end up being more rewarding, but may also affect the breadth of other games I play this year.
But yeah. I guess I'm left, having not touched any of the PvP, instances or raids (the latter two might be the same thing, for all I know), with a real appreciation for the sheer scale of a production like this. I have a new-found respect for what Blizzard and other MMO developers have to put up with, but at the same time there are still some very deliberate design decisions even in the new quest chains that make me feel very uncomfortable. Decisions made to keep you in areas for longer, spend more months playing. Kill 10 of these enemies instead of five that give you extra experience, now do it again. It just feels very... well, it's good business, but it feels sort of unethical.
tl;dr I really liked exploring the world. Don't know whether I'll continue with the expansions.
That was long and rambly and I probably repeated myself. I'm not proof-reading it, sorry.