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The QueueNov 1, 2017 12:00 pm CT

The Queue: A very merry unhalloween to you (to you)

/hums

A very merry unbirthday to me.
To who?
To me.
Oh you!
A very merry unbirthday to you.

Right. Where were we? Oh, yes, the Queue.


TKC ASKED:

Q4tQ: how do I go about watching Blizzcon with my virtual ticket?

If there was an email about it then I deleted it long ago?

Just head over to the Virtual Ticket page and click Watch Now in the upper right. If you want to watch on your TV, you can screen share from your PC to most streaming media players, including Roku, Apple TV, and Chromecast. (If you want to pick up something last minute, Chromecast is the budget option.)


PAWKWARD ASKED:

Q4TQ: so, is the Virtual Ticket worth it? I’m not exactly rolling in cash, but I’d love to follow along on Fri/Sat. Will anything (contests, for example) be streamed ‘free’ (YouTube, Facebook, whatever), or will all the goodies be behind the paywall?

I think I know the answer, but hope is eternal.

{PB}That depends on you. I think there are a few kinds of people who will really enjoy having a virtual ticket, especially this year since it’s expanded to cover every stage at the convention center. The virtual ticket is great if you absolutely have to hear every bit of news immediately (and you’ll be home to see everything immediately). News will get reported by the blogs (including us) and posted by Blizzard fairly quickly, but it’s different watching it yourself. You’ll catch details that didn’t make the news summaries and funny moments that just don’t work in plain text.

The voice actor panels in particular are highly entertaining and utterly impossible to explain in words. They’re full of actors doing voices and making jokes. I bet the Overwatch voice actors’ panel on Saturday is going to be a riot. And that’s the kind of thing you won’t see without the virtual ticket.

And then there’s the in-game goodies. If you’re interested in them, a virtual ticket is currently the only way to get them.

Without the virtual ticket, you can still watch the opening ceremony and all of the esports events, but the other panels are locked off. If you’re cool reading the news after the fact, then you’ll be fine.


CYPHER ASKED:

QftQ: Once the new expansion launches, like WoD Garrisons, do you intend to continue using the Legion App/Mission Table for your main and/or alts from Legion time? Or move on and move forward?

For my part, no. I don’t have a lot of patience for repetitive tasks like missions — whether in the garrison or the class hall — and mostly gave up on them by the end of Warlords and even now, in Legion (except when I need something). And while I know a lot of people made a killing doing gold missions in Warlords, they nerfed the rewards towards the end of the expansion, which didn’t make it particularly rewarding to do after Legion launched.

So… enjoy missions while you can, because it seems likely that the rewards aren’t going to be worth it at some point. Plus there’s sure to be a new timesink. I can’t wait!


TAUREN IT UP ASKED:

Q4tQ: Reflecting back on Legion’s hype and announcements and previews, a recurring theme that really stood out to me was the emphasis on class fantasy and making our characters and even our decisions of specialization within class feel like choices that matter. “Class fantasy” was brought up many times, and I’m curious: do you think it would be a good idea of the next expansion doubles down and continues the trend established in Legion, or do you think that storytelling was a “Legion thing” and we should expect another shake-up in terms of how we see our characters grow?

I have to say that I’ve really enjoyed the class narratives and think they’re some of the strongest storytelling Blizzard has done in World of Warcraft to date. But the class fantasy angle doesn’t work without the class order hall, and I have my doubts it will follow us into the next expansion. After all, we came together to fight the Legion, but when the threat is dealt with, we may go our own ways again.

That seems the way of expansions: at the end of them, we move on. New game structures, new stories, new struggles. However, they usually do take lessons learned from the previous expansion as they move into the next one. Class fantasy or no, I hope Blizzard keeps up with these strong stories that make it feel like you have an impact on the game world.


ROSSI ASKED:

Has WoW hit the point where new classes just dilute the gameplay experience?

I think unless Blizzard takes some very new angles we are hitting a saturation point… or are maybe already there. Even the addition of the Demon Hunter class felt like it cannibalized from the Warlock class.

We have 12 classes and 36 specs. Giving that many specs a unique identity is tough. So where does Blizzard go from here? What classes could fit the game lore and not cannibalize from the rest? Some of the team had interesting predictions for BlizzCon: Ted talked about a Tinker class (which could be super fun, though it might cannibalize on the Engineering profession) and Scott talked about new specs for existing classes (like a tank spec for Shaman and a ranged spec for Paladins). Whatever Blizzard does, they need to think outside the box — way outside the box — to keep it interesting. After Demon Hunters, I don’t feel like Blizzard is necessarily thinking that way. Sure, they’re a great fit for the story and they’re fun to play, but their addition felt like it actively took things away from other classes.

I guess that’s a really roundabout way of saying “maybe.” I hope Blizzard proves me wrong and comes up with some cool new class designs, but I’m not convinced it’s going to happen.


GENDOU ASKED:

Q4Q: Do you think that Hunter Quivers, Paladin Librams, and Rogue Vials are gathering dust in the Dance Studio and Tattoo Parlor?

They’ve all been stashed away in the dustiest corner of the darkest basement. It’s a very big basement.

And that’s all for today, dear Queuevians. Check back tomorrow for another edition of the Queue from Anne… and then it’s BlizzCon time! Woohoo!

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