World Of Warcraft

What is World of Warcraft?

Once mere tools of fun and frolic for kids online, internet games have developed into major industries where people from all age groups and social strata are hooked to the internet to play their favorite games. There are a number of online virtual reality and role-playing games on the internet, which have captured the imagination of gamers all over the world.

World Of Warcraft is one such game which has attracted the fancy of innumerable gamers all around the world. It's a pay-to-play massively multiplayer online role-playing game (MMORPG), introduced as Blizzard Entertainment's fourth offering in the fantasy Warcraft Universe. Since its released in November 2004, the World of Warcraft (WoW) game has attracted many users from all across the world and has become the world's largest MMORPG in terms of monthly subscribers. As of January 2007, total number of WoW players was estimated at 8.5 million users all over the world.

As in most MMORPGs, WoW players assume an identity and an avatar which represents them in the game world. Players explore the virtual world, fight monsters, perform quests, or join others to form raiding parties that do battle with enemy factions. Some portions of the game can be enjoyed by solo players, while others are designed to encourage the formation of guilds which can work together for hours, days or weeks to succeed with a raid. Success in the game is rewarded with virtual possessions, gold, experience points and skill levels.

Who Plays World Of Warcraft?

The simple answer: all types of people. Many people incorrectly assume that online gaming is something that appeals only to teenage boys, but only 25 percent of MMORPG players are teenagers. According to some demographic surveys of WoW Players, the average player age is 28. Not too surprisingly, 84 percent of players are male and 16 percent are female. But female players tend to be older, with an average age of 32.

On average, both males and females spend 2-3 hours per day playing WoW, but some people report playing for 8, 10 or 12 hours at a time. Perhaps that explains why only 50 percent of MMORPG players work full-time jobs.

The Daedalus Project catalogs Nick Yee's eight years of research into online games, and the people that play them. He discusses the psychology of online gaming, the motivations of players involved, how relationships are formed among players, game addiction, and even making a living by playing MMORPGs. He offers 25 brief profiles of online gamers, which include:

• Claire, a 35-year-old PC technician from Idaho, was unable to work for 15 years due to lupus, and online games offered her a chance to socialize.
• Peter, a 54-year-old auto mechanic in Devon (UK), says his interest in online gaming was a natural progression from playing the Dungeons & Dragons board game, popular in the 1980s.
• Diane, a 33-year-old professional and mother from New Jersey, got into online gaming after a conversation with a fellow Lord of the Rings fan at a laundromat.
• Dan, a 25-year-old mortgage broker in California, plays because killing dragons isn’t something he can do in real life.

World Of Warcraft has a thriving community of players, and some of them have formed close ties with each other. WoW observes events in real world, such as New Year's Eve, and allows the players to meet (virtually) and celebrate these events in the game's world of Azeroth. Interest in the game has increased by leaps and bounds over the years and has surpassed the expectations of even its creators. The game has many international subscribers and is a massive hit in Asia, Australia, Canada, and Europe. One of the major reasons for the game's phenomenal success is its simplicity. Many online games have a steep learning curve, but since World Of Warcraft offers simple user interfaces, both novices and experts can play this game and enjoy it equally.

World Of Warcraft Add-ons

The popularity of the World Of Warcraft has given rise to a legion of external websites which supply add-ons, interface modifications (mods), downloads and cheating tips for the game. Some of these tools enhance the gaming experience, while others are designed to give players an advantage by automating repetitive operations, making certain tasks easier, or adding functionality that is not part of the WoW interface.

Here are some sites you can explore if you're intested in addons, mods, downloads or cheats for World of Warcraft:

• Wow Mods - http://wow-en.curse-gaming.com/downloads/addons and http://worldofwarcraft.filefront.com
• WoW Addons - http://wowui.incgamers.com
• Wow Downloads - http://www.3dgamers.com/games/worldofwarcraft/downloads
• WoW Cheats - http://www.taultunleashed.com/

Do you play World of Warcraft? How much time do you spend in the game? Share your tips with others by adding a comment to this article.