I was only able to spend a few minutes in the Alpha on the Horde side before the servers came down but here are my first impressions.
My armor seems to be missing a chest guard…
I created a rogue (of course) and my very first thought looking at my character screen was, what the heck is up with that outfit! It might be attractive on a human model but it really feels like there is something missing in the “don’t stab me in the heart” department. And that hat; it really gives a very top-heavy Predator look. Daggers look really cool though – love the claw embellishment.
Well here it is, my first view of Draenor. Two things struck me immediately: first, how beautiful it is, how crisp and clean the graphics are, and second, the planets/moons. Yeah, it’s different, but I feel like I’ve been here before. It’s a really nice way to show us that we are somewhere new and yet familiar.
Outland that was…
Well if I’m going to get anything done here I will need to set up bars and keybinds and look, new keybinds interface! I really like it. I love being able to select my category rather than doing the endless scroll thing.
Adorable!
Keybinds set, I talk to Farseer Drek’Thar and we are off. The beauty of Frostfire Ridge is striking. It really reminds me more of the Storm Peaks than of Bladespire which is no dout intentional. It’s a cold, lonely savage place, but absolutely gorgeous. Look at this little guy, so pretty:
One of the most obvious additions is outline mode. I’m not sure what I think of it yet. It certainly makes your target really obvious but it’s a little jarring and it sometimes makes the characters seem to float. It certainly detracts from immersion. I’m not sold on it but I’ll play with it for a bit to see what I think. This is a feature that can be toggled off, which is awesome.
Floaty outlined Thrall talks to a chicken
I fight a few Frostfire Gronnlings and a rare named Gruuk. As an Assassination Rogue I absolutely carved though them. It’s nice not being pushed right out of the gate but it really felt very easy. I’m still level 90 so I have no Perks yet and my rotation is not significantly different. It feels very responsive and despite the teeny tiny numbers I’m throwing out I don’t feel at all underpowered or sluggish. The stats squish will be a very good thing, I think.
Gruuk with an outline. And that planet again. Stunning!
So far I’m very pleased with what I’m seeing. The effort that is going into this expansion is obvious. From visuals to interactivity to storytelling, Warlords of Draenor promises to be awesome!
