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Blizzard details Mists of Pandaria's plot
by Steve Watts, Apr 02, 2012 12:30pm PDTWorld of Warcraft's Mists of Pandaria expansion is deceptively dark. Beyond the adorable panda bears with martial arts skills, it's a story of bringing war to an otherwise peaceful utopia. Blizzard VP of Creative Development Chris Metzen has shared some thoughts on the expansion's tone and plot.
"The big hook to Pandaria is that as we roll up on the beach, all the hate and violence we bring as Alliance and Horde really kind of begins to make the Sha bubble up," Metzen told PC Gamer. "And the Sha is something that's been contained for ten thousand years. It has been a very serene place, and of course our shenanigans break it, heavily." he says in contrast to Lich King feeling tragic and Cataclysm's bleakness, Pandaria has a "lighter tone."
And caught in the middle of the war, the Pandaren as a race serve as a more passive middle. "The pandaren just help facilitate that contrast and that soul-searching," he said. "Because Pandaren don't get super hot, they don't get super cold. They'll fight and they'll fight well, they'll fight to win. But it takes a lot to make them angry. I don’t imagine they fight in a state of anger; they fight in a state of need, thoughtfully, and with gusto. But rarely out of anger. It's been an interesting culture to write."
At the same time, don't expect the Pandaren pacifism to rub off on the other races. Metzen calls the racial hatred that underpins the series "cyclic," and suggests that even with short breaks the series will always come back to that. Which makes sense, considering Blizzard already has more expansions in the works.
The beta test is ongoing. If you didn't get in, you can live vicariously through our preview.
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Blizzard VP of Creative Development Chris Metzen talks about the plot driving Mists of Pandaria, and how the new race's pacifism plays off of the violence from the others.
Blizzard VP of Creative Development Chris Metzen talks about the plot driving Mists of Pandaria, and how the new race's pacifism plays off of the violence from the others. : Shacknews
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The more I read about this the more I think:
Original article: Ok, I 'll buy the CE and try it out
2nd article: Meh... dunno, Pet / Pokemon combat?
3rd article: Man, I'm really enjoying other single player and multiplayer games, and Diablo 3 will be out soon (relative term right? I mean even if it were released in December it's soon when compared to how long it's been in development).
4th + article - bring it on, help convince me to not spend my money on this.
Don't get me wrong, had a great time in the past, but the time sink aspects became less fun. I prefer my "baby" games that don't require a monthly fee, and where I can put it on easy and enjoy the story (again, a "baby" since your hardcore gamer only cares about story in their porno, games are 100% about mechanics and arguments about TIME VS SKILL versus just having a good damn time).
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