- The last Race to World First was one of the most exciting, yet challenging competitive WoW events
- Many teams sent their players home for much-needed rest
- Echo's CEOs Rogerbrown and Scripe comment on the RWF and propose ways it could be rebalanced.
World of Warcraft’s latest Race to World First has shown that the events have gotten way too grindy and mentally and physically challenging, and future races need to change.
The RWF Was Tiring but Entertaining
World of Warcraft’s Sepulcher of the First Ones Race to World First has been difficult for many and this has been shown in player burnout. It turns out that constantly raiding the same 13 bosses for almost 20 days is mentally draining. The whole event, albeit one of the most competitive in a long time, has been draining on players. This has shown that perhaps Blizzard should adjust the way Races play out to avoid completely burning out their pros.
But still, the Sepulcher of the First Ones etched itself into history as one of WoW’s most exciting tournaments ever, with many viewers logging on to see how teams are doing every night. Many didn't even care who would win but wanted to see how powerful the bosses were. Anduin and the Jailer seem to have been the ones that caused players the most trouble, which kept viewers at the edge of their seats.
This race was a breath of fresh air, parching fans’ thirst for new gameplay, following Blizzard’s seeming lack of content the past half-year or so.
The Bad Sides of Such a Long Event
Not everything is rosy, however, as even veteran players can suffer from burnout. Grinding the same bosses for 18 days straight would take a toll on even professionals, and this event has shown that. Team Liquid’s star player Maximum (Max) said he is proud of how his team played up until day 8-9, but their sleep and mental state took quite a beating. “Certainly something to look to improve if Blizzard is going to do this again,” he said in regards to the length and severity of the event. Team Liquid eventually sent their players home for much-needed rest.
Echo’s co-CEOs Rogerbrown and Scripe echoed this feeling in their post-RWF conference, saying they did not expect such a long event. “If you know it’s going to take this long, you prepare accordingly,” said Rogerbrown,” but if you tell everyone ‘worst case it’s going to be 14/15 days, I’ll be back for sure by March 25’ – it’s a bit rough.”
He said that the RWF was enjoyable, but took way too long. “You’re getting calls and you’re like ‘I don’t know when this is going to be over.’ When we all go back there’s probably going to be a lot of stuff to take care of,” Rogerbrown said.
Scripe reiterated his co-CEO’s words, saying that such events should not take more than 10-12 days. “18 days, I mean, come on dude – pretty ridiculous,” he said.
Roger and Scripe suggested that bosses could be balanced by Blizzard splitting raids into smaller chunks. This could make future RWFs more manageable, as well as mitigate the content drought. Another way of rebalancing the event is to have just five or six bosses, each getting more powerful as players progress. This would pose players a good challenge without forcing them to dedicate literal weeks of their time to raiding.
It is hoped that future WoW expansions will breathe more life into the game, as well as change the overwhelmingly grindy parts of the Race to World First.
