One of the more interesting pieces of news that came from Blizzcon was the instant boost to 90 that will come with the expansion pack. It caused quite a kerfuffle on Twitter as the announcements were coming thru.
Later as more details came to light it seems that Blizzard has decided that playing with ones friends is an important part of the game, and will be giving everyone the option to have a character that can begin the new content right away.
I know there are those that will say its a horrible idea, but it is a brilliant move in my opinion.
Ever since the scroll of resurrection offered a boost to 80 and server transfer as part of coming back, I have been hoping we would see something like this.
I only have one beef with it really, and that is that the plan is to only grant one.
If the object is to play with ones friends then I think it would have been more logical to have one per faction, that way someone returning to the game doesn’t have to decide which group of friends to play with, assuming they know folks on both factions.
What I think we may see in the future, and what I think will cause quite a ruckus if announced, will be the ability to buy a boost to the previous expansions level cap. I figure buy patch 6.2 we will see that in the store right along side server transfers and faction changes, and likely for about the same price. I’m guessing $25.
I’d pay it in a heartbeat.
If we are looking at about 5-6 days played to reach the previous cap that’s a few cents an hour to skip the grind that I have already done before. Well worth it, so I can spend less time grinding and more time playing with my friends.
Just my two copper.
Filed under: World of Warcraft |
Dechion's Place 
I’d definately love to be able to boost my alts. I love putting toons on realms where I have friends with the intention of getting to max level so we can play but often the levelling stops me in my tracks and those alts don’t get finished.
Thats a big reason I have dozens of level 20-30 alts scattered all over the place.
I think there will be something added as well but I have no idea what it is. I don’t think they’ll sell 1-90s for $25 (or $50 or $100, although if they do, I hope it’s more expensive than $25). I’ve thought about level packs (10 levels for $10) or by expansion ($20 to instant-level through an expansion level range) but I don’t think that’s likely either. I’ve proposed a stacking 10% XP boost for each toon you have at max level but while I think that would have been interesting in MoP release terms, it’s much less so in a world offering an instant 90.
I suspect that whatever they come up with won’t be in the store at all, it’ll be more like a RAF “gifted levels” mechanic where you get some sort of credit for toons you’ve leveled yourself that can be applied toward new or other toons.
Or something.
I really have no idea, I just know (and I’m sure Blizzard knows) that whatever they do come out with is going to be significantly more contentious than a single instant 90. I don’t envy them on this one even though whatever they come up with will be a significant benefit to a lot of players…
It will definately be there. Whether its in the store or not is another thing entirely.
They already stated at one of the Blizzcon panels that each copy of WoD would come with a single use code that would enable the boost.
Even on launch day, a person could simply buy several copies (at $40 each if previous pricing holds) and use that code.
If the code is tied to that particular disk, then activate the disk (maybe having to pay another $10-20 for the previous content as a battle chest), then drop $25 on a transfer.
Bottom line, for a max of $85 it could be done simply by using what Blizzard is already providing.
Since that’s the case, I figure they will simply put it in the store, probably in either 6.1 or 6.2, to use it as another money stream.
It’ll actually be $125 with your math (they’d have to buy MoP as well) but that’s a minor nitpick, you’re generally right if you make the assumption that system-wise, nothing else will change. I’m not sure why that’s a reasonable assumption to make, though.
Imagine that they put in a minor limitation that’ll impact almost nobody… the instant 90 toon can’t be transferred between accounts, it’s locked to the account it’s created on. I’m sure that’s easily within the limits of their tech. 99% of the player base wouldn’t even notice that limitation but it would absolutely prevent what you’re talking about from happening. So, that opens up other options for the store along the lines of the ones I mentioned or probably others as well.
Selling instant 90s would certainly be straightforward and easy (if controversial as hell) but it just doesn’t strike me as being in line with how Blizzard typically operates or is operating now. They offer significant boosts as perks, not as saleable items. I’m still surprised by the instant 90 but as a one-off it makes more sense than as a recurring offering since it’s being specifically targeted as a way for a new player to get a max-level toon in a hurry – I’m almost thinking they’d be better off ONLY giving the free 90 to new accounts except that would cause them more grief than it would solve. So, that could be why everyone will be getting one but doesn’t necessarily mean that they’ll be selling additional ones after the fact. Doesn’t exclude it either.
So, I’m expecting more of a toe dip, some sort of acknowledgment that there are ways to make the leveling process better/easier/faster at a cost but without removing it entirely. Or offer improvements but don’t sell them in the store, as a subscription game they’ve never seemed to go money-grabby, wouldn’t surprise me if they don’t in this case either. Ultimately, as long as there’s some way for me to skip 80-90 in the future somehow (or speed it up enough to be trivial) I’ll be happy.