After shipping players off to a new continent and even an entirely different planet over the last couple of years, Blizzard has gone full steam ahead with the World of Warcraft: Cataclysm expansion, which brings the world's most popular massively multiplayer online role-playing game back to its roots. And then it takes those roots, grinds them up, and serves players an entirely fresh experience in the world of Azeroth. Join GameSpy columnist and WoW-head Leif Johnson as he travels through this whole new world (of Warcraft), exploring new zones, beating new dungeons, and enjoying what may turn out to be the happy medium to unite diehards and casual gamers alike.
It's Easy Being Green
Barreling down a dimly lit highway along the polluted water front, you flip on your hot rod's radio, accidentally mowing down a pedestrian as the music changes. In the back seat, your three cronies burst out in laughter. All around you, the seedy metropolis spreads into the distance, whispering of illicit riches lurking in every corner... but if you fail to learn to play its game of vice and greed, the city may spit you out into the rampant filth of the slums. That's not Nico Bellic behind the wheel, and this isn't Liberty City. This is World of Warcraft: Cataclysm, and the driver is the newly promoted goblin boss at the Kajaro Trading Company, headquartered in the goblin capital of Kezan. In short, it's you.
Needless to say, World of Warcraft has never seen anything quite like this. Even the Alliance's epic new worgen starting quest line is still firmly rooted in high fantasy, despite the worgen capital city's heavy Victorian trappings -- and previous goblin cities (like Booty Bay and Gadgetzan) are comparatively sparing with their gadgetry and urban grime. The closest counterpart would likely be Gnomeregan, the irradiated and abandoned capital of the Alliance's gnomes, but even it seems more like a gigantic factory than a modern industrial city. Kezan, the goblin starting metropolis, is a rusty urban metaphor for greed and merciless business tactics that bring to mind the seediest areas of Detroit -- and longtime fans of the game will recognize it as triumphantly and unabashedly goblin.
Oh, and it's funny as hell, too. Your experience starts at the Kajaro Trading Company, where you've just been promoted to a major administrative position. Everyone around you is rooting for you to take over the position of Trade Prince from the despicable Gallywix, who rules Kezan with an iron fist and a pack of loyal, stupid goons. But first things first: You need to whip things into shape down at the company's kaja'mite mine, one of the sole sources of the mineral that gives goblins their intelligence in the form of Kaja'Cola ("It gives you IDEAS!"). Along the way, you deliver an exploding package to your slacker foreman. You pass the mage and warlock trainers, who are fiercely dueling each other on crates in the company courtyard. You zap lazy troll slaves who scream things like "Don't tase me, mon!" And you slay a few awesome-looking tunnel worms in one of only three quests in this zone where you'll actually use your class abilities.
By now, you're level 2, and the unexpected happens: You get a car. Not just any car, mind you, but a souped up goblin pimp-mobile with a raccoon-tail pennant, a skull-shaped grill (with goggles!), and a rumbling engine that could pass for a small atom bomb. Previous World of Warcraft starting zones have always required you to run the Chicago marathon 20 times over before you get a mount, and here you get a vehicle that almost always lets you complete quests without even getting out. It's a perk of your new position that takes any possible drudgery out of questing for these first few levels, and you take the time to pick up your three buds throughout the city, who all hop in the backseat and laugh as you cruise the streets.
And just in case all this newfound popularity wasn't enough, the coach of the local footbomb team (goblins love bombs) wants you to rush to Kajaro Field to help Kezan win the big game versus the Steamwheedle Sharks. The game is fought with giant shredders, however -- and the only one left needs repairing. You repair it, you face off against eight other shredders using rigged footbombs... and to end the game with a bang, you kick the footbomb all the way through the two smokestacks high above and over to Mount Kajaro. At this point, you're pretty much on top of the world.
And then the world comes crashing down. Following your kick, Deathwing the Destroyer -- the corrupted dragon who serves as Cataclysm's main antagonist -- appears overhead, and the entire city erupts into screams.
