An innate sense of guilty invigoration occurs when rules are broken. World of Warcraft wasn’t strict when it came to environmental rules, players could explore wherever they wanted to, if the location was not intended for their stay, the enemies would kill you until you left. Exceptions to the promise of immediate death were available though, Shattrath being one of them.
Shattrath, located in Terokkar Forest, part of The Burning Crusade expansion’s newly introduced area The Outlands, was forbidden to underdeveloped players. It was a place for the refined tastes of the healthiest of adventurers, drunk off of defeating monsters and saving the world. They could rest, chat with their friends, or boast the accomplishments they wore with pride. It was no place for sub-level cap characters like me.
That is unless I did the unexpected and cheated the system. You see, I was a smart thinker. The Mage class had the ability to teleport anyone to a major city, one like Shattrath. Calling a bored Mage over by bribing him with a few gold pieces was easy enough. In seconds, I arrived. No one could stop me from snapping a few photos for proof. I was outside of the law.
Of course, the adrenaline I felt wasn’t really for good reason. Many others of similar level range did the same, especially after hearing the wonderful tales of tranquility and peace exercised at Shattrath. But in the moment, I was more powerful than the game I was playing, I had outsmarted Blizzard themselves.
The introduction to WoW’s psuedo-linearity became apparent. Despite having a rigid leveling progression, WoW provided the option to veer off the path and discover on your own. With the use of the game’s own systems you could break the predetermined path, a prospect that brought an increased definition to its open world. I wasn’t high off of what I thought was rebellious nature, I was sinking the needle of addiction deeper.
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