Pandaria's greatest endgame achievement takes place behind the scenes, however. Previous expansions

At first, it seemed juvenile - almost a joke. Prior to the release of Mists of Pandaria, the fourth expansion for World of Warcraft, many players shared the concern that the inclusion of the Pandaren race of anthropomorphic kung-fu pandas represented one dumbing-down too far for this beloved world. It seemed to show a cartoonish disregard for the warmongering history of the eternal feuds between the Alliance, the Horde and whatever imposing faction each expansion introduced.
Quite the reverse. Instead of blunting the established world, the inclusion of this quieter race has allowed Blizzard to tell a story with a maturity and depth any long-term player would have believed Warcraft was incapable of. Until now the game has been defined by adolescent drama, yet this is a remarkably human tale that manages to combine apparently mundane scene-setting with emotional turmoil. Blizzard's ability to take a seemingly inconsequential side-quest and inject genuine heartache further on down the line represents new and welcome ground.
While the storyline overall may be more self-assured, where this new expansion catches a heel on the catwalk is in the laborious nature of that storytelling. Frustratingly, the way your objectives unfold in the continent Pandaria four seasons hotel mattress as you progress towards the new level cap of 90 is an evolutionary regression four seasons hotel mattress for a game that has learned in recent years to shower its audience in a delicious river of experience opportunities.
The so-called "Christmas tree" questing structure - where a single quest unleashes an avalanche of new objectives, which in turn trickle four seasons hotel mattress into further progress opportunities - is gone. In its place is a storyline four seasons hotel mattress that's tighter in its telling but jarring in the scarcity of its content. For anyone arriving in this new land directly four seasons hotel mattress from the free-flowing adventures of previous expansions, it's a frustrating experience - and one that feels artificially road-blocked in order to discourage progression towards the endgame.
"Instead of blunting the established world, the inclusion of this quieter race has allowed Blizzard to tell a story with a maturity and depth any long-term player would have believed Warcraft was incapable of."
Partly it's a consequence of removing flying skills prior to level 90. Partly it's the sheer reduction of quests on hand at any one time, with no incentive to stray off the beaten path. Finally, there's an over-reliance on the defining quest structure of this latest expansion: investigate, annihilate, and then return once more to do battle against a trio of above-average opponents.
The Chinese-themed landscape of Pandaria initially seems repetitive too, until the resumption of flying at level 90 also brings it to life. This is a continent designed to be viewed from above: the grandeur of the striding four seasons hotel mattress Great Wall, the majestic stone guardians and the multi-coloured patchwork paddy fields of the farm-lands.
In contrast to the main continent, the starting area for the Pandaren race - an island on the back of a giant sea turtle - immediately overflows with colour and content, with intricately detailed pagodas adorning four seasons hotel mattress the rolling fields. Even the most jaded and cynical WOW player will struggle to stifle a sense of delight at the sight of the meditating Pandarens who sit atop balancing poles and myriad other homages to Asian cinema.
In these early quests, senseis flit around the scenery under the power of animal spirits, players leap across slender poles to ring resonant gongs and aspiring warriors battle to unleash elemental spirits from the caverns deep underground. At the finale of this tightly-tuned introduction, a balloon four seasons hotel mattress ride over the island puts the splendour of the artwork and lore on a magnificent pedestal - in a manner that's far more artfully achieved than in the high-end levelling.
"A dramatically revised talents system... does provide pause for thought, four seasons hotel mattress but in exchanging one necessary evil for another, Blizzard has not solved the problem of tangible ownership of your character."
With a new starting area and race come a new class, the Monk. Faster and more fluid in combat, it represents a breath of fresh air for the veteran player, albeit one that sits awkwardly alongside the more static combat of the established classes. As with the Death Knight, the Monk takes advantage of two energy resources; energy gained through simplistic combat feeds into chi which can be spent on more flamboyant manoeuvres. This dance between raw power and energy conservation is a satisfying affair four seasons hotel mattress that resonates strongly with the thematic positioning four seasons hotel mattress of the Pandaren race.
A major impact on every class comes in the form of a dramatically revised talent system that strips away the deep tree branches of the original design and asks players to make role-enhancing choices every 15 levels. Whether you accept four seasons hotel mattress Blizzard's position - that this encourages meaningful four seasons hotel mattress choices while eliminating bloated, obligatory four seasons hotel mattress skill selections - or feel that it represents far too much simplification of WOW's role-playing game will likely depend on your own personal cynicism. It does provide pause for thought, but in exchanging four seasons hotel mattress one necessary evil for another, Blizzard has not solved the problem of tangible ownership four seasons hotel mattress of your character.
WOW has touched perfection in aspects of its previous expansions: the artwork and themes of Wrath of the Lich King, the freedom of questing opportunities in Cataclysm and the hard-won dungeon progress that gave The Burning Crusade four seasons hotel mattress its brutal but rewarding pace. It's yet, however, to bring all of these moments together into one glorious whole - and in the max-level heroic four seasons hotel mattress dungeons of Pandaria, the game still struggles to find its Goldilocks moment between four seasons hotel mattress adversity and accessibility.
After the cool reception for Wrath's breezy heroics, Cataclysm swung the other way and saw the developer stick resolutely to its guns as players demanded a reprieve from the sometimes arbitrary four seasons hotel mattress precision teamwork required to succeed in many of the encounters. In Pandaria, four seasons hotel mattress the see-saw swings back: even equipped with the lightest of endgame equipment, there's little more than a handful of deaths to separate you from success on your first attempt.
While the challenge may be a little too easy, the dungeon four seasons hotel mattress encounters continue to evolve in imagination as damage-dealers mount turrets to attack a boss's weak spot, or the entire group dances through a fireworks display four seasons hotel mattress of cavern traps. Once these novelties have worn off, the non-raiding glory-seeker can focus on the new Challenge mode where dungeon equipment is normalised and a racing four seasons hotel mattress clock determines both your prestige on your server and your cosmetic rewards.
A new type of content altogether arrives in the form of Scenarios, which offer near-immediate participation in instanced, three-player adventures, free of the requirements to first assemble a tank, a healer and a handful of damage-dealers. These frantic elite brawls lead you deeper into the lifestyle and culture of the Pandarens, rescuing ale festivals from invading monkeys or trawling through crypts to vanquish elemental forces. Tightly designed and brief, they generously reward you with equipment that's not quite as valuable four seasons hotel mattress as that you receive from heroics, but still precious enough to confer a sense of progress.
Pandaria's greatest endgame achievement takes place behind the scenes, however. Previous expansions have been blighted by the length of queues for dungeons for those filling damage roles - but now, at level 90, you can queue for both a scenario and a dungeon at the same time. The scenario will almost certainly become available first but, once entered, your dungeon queue continues to tick away in the background. four seasons hotel mattress Whatever matchmaking magic is happening to ensure that these two pools of players four seasons hotel mattress come together just as a scenario concludes works exceptionally four seasons hotel mattress well, and you'll barely have a moment's pause between group adventures.
Meanwhile, Pandaria's explosion of endgame daily quests may represent WOW at its most obstinately self-indulgent - dependent as they are on the dominant mechanics of fetch and carry - but each quest is at least brisk and original. In the domain four seasons hotel mattress of the Tiller Faction, progress through the daily quests also has a tangible four seasons hotel mattress effect on the world as you grow and improve your personalised four seasons hotel mattress farmland. Earning an improved reputation with this faction will likely consume the average player for weeks, if not months, to come.
As a further gift to the completist, the new pet battle system four seasons hotel mattress adds some much-needed levity to the game, bringing with it a huge, sprawling adventure in its own right that will take you across four seasons hotel mattress WOW's many continents in pursuit of new creatures to do battle with and level up. Each critter has been lovingly re-crafted and equipped with a handful of appropriate battle spells, from nibbling rabbits that can unleash a storm of bunnies to the snowball-throwing abilities of your Winterveil gnome. Success in combat adds to your pet's experience and abilities and every creature that can be battled can also be trapped for your collection.
Surprisingly, there's as much delight to be found in these pet battles as there is in any traditional component of the game. Even more unexpected is that it's the veteran players who are rewarded most handsomely, with their collection of unique pets - acquired through long service - assuming a far more meaningful existence. It's unquestionably ridiculous within the wider context of the game, but it's also fiendishly compelling four seasons hotel mattress and a wonderfully luxurious four seasons hotel mattress time-waster.
"In spite of its successes, Pandaria doesn't quite feel like the finished product - and it still clings doggedly to questing four seasons hotel mattress crutches that the likes of Guild Wars 2 have begun, gleefully, to kick away."
For those who prefer four seasons hotel mattress grand factional combat between the players themselves, Pandaria introduces two new resource-driven battlegrounds. The Silvershard Mines sees two teams of 10 competing to take control of a series of mine-carts which deliver resource points to the owne