Living

<< Previous   of   Next >> (click to enlarge) World of Warcraft   ADVERTISEMENT   CONTACT THE HERALD Melanie Munk, Features Editor munk@heraldnet.com   Published: Monday, July 28, 2008 Big Game Hunter: World of Warcraft Like, WoW: Like 90 percent of the rest of the Free World, I play "World of Warcraft." And like that 90 percent of the world, when it comes to playing WoW you find that playing the game is half quest-grind while the other half is basically a part-time job grinding dailies, doing heroics to farm badges, or running the same raids every Tuesday night in the vain hope that an epic will drop for you but will inevitably be picked up by a Night Elf Hunter named Roflpewpewpew. So when Blizzard announced that WoW's next expansion, "Wrath of the Lich King," would feature an achievement system much like the vaunted trophy system for Xbox 360 players, a light sheen of sweat developed on my forehead at the thought of free loot and the undisguised envy of my fellow gamers. Or maybe not. Players will be able to gain achievements via several modes of play; questing, professions, world exploration, reputation, PvP, dungeons and raiding, events, and the whimsical "general" category where you get achievements for such things as getting a shave and a haircut in game. Now if only they would reward personal hygiene for WoW players in real life. The interesting thing is that by gathering these achievements you are given a virtual cornucopia of items and gear: tabards, vanity pets and titles. Huzzah, I suppose, but a rather weak and unintelligible huzzah. While I am interested in how this will play out in the expansion, I don't think it will be anything more than garnish, a sprig of virtual parsley next to the bloated, fattening bacon burger that is WoW. Sure it looks good, but are you really going to eat it? Justin Arnold, Big Game Hunter jarnold@heraldnet.com

1. 'I blew her away,' girl's father told police 2. Tribal leaders accused of smoke-shop tax scam 3. Woman struck by car along Lynnwood street 4. Prosecutor says death was caused by paranoia 5. 5 vehicle pile-up on I-5 snarls traffic 6. For old ferries, it's the end of the line 7. Boeing cuts defense 800 jobs, sees pending delivery backlog peaking 8. Silvertips show Portland no mercy 9. Jackson ponders: What if? 10. Everett to reach out to Silver Lake area 2 - Top 10 Stories Most Talked about 3 - Top 10 Stories Most Emailed

• Edmonds' Pink House staying put • King's wins first state volleyball title • RV in plain sight? City says 'That's illegal' • Timberwolves take Class 4A title • Mavs can't hang on against Capital • TV success shares life as artist, geek • Education at Fircrest Rehabilitation Center in question • Edmonds police pulled over murder victim, suspect • T-birds, Scots break school records at state • Building energy independence from the ground up