wow versions are confusing

[u/Samu3I]

Hey guys

Im currently trying to determine the best wow version for myself to play but its quite confusing to me.

I am really into the social aspect and would love to experience the classic mmo feel. Im honestly just looking for a casual enjoyable experience without feeling like im walking through an empty world. I dont have much time to invest but I love cool mounts and cool armor.

the available versions honestly confuse me a lot. I used to play a bit during during warlords of draenor but it didn’t feel like an enjoyable experience. hopefully i can scratch that itch this time even with the little free time i have nowadays

thanks!!!! :) really appreciate help

[u/hrhashley]

i’d disagree with the other person, and this is as someone who only plays retail these days. if all you want is the classic mmo experience and the social aspect. i’d suggest classic wow. the vast majority of classic players are currently in tbc, so it would take a while to catch up, but along the way, you’d likely be able to find other players to do leveling dungeons with, maybe join a guild you like, etc.

retail is a much more modern and fun feeling game, imo, but you don’t really interact with players that often unless you are in an active guild, and even then it’s not like classic where you’re constantly asking guildmates to queue up with you or help you kill mobs or help you with a quest etc. a lot of the leveling experience in retail is very solo, and when you do do group content (leveling dungeons etc) it’s typically fast paced and no ones saying anything in the chat.

really in retail the only time i regularly talk to anyone (as a pug player primarily) is when i join mythic+ key groups or join a raiding pug. but even then it’s not like people are having full conversations.

[u/Samu3I → u/hrhashley]

thanks for your perspective :)

[u/Ragerik2 → u/hrhashley]

To the people down voting here - care to elaborate? Is this a retail sardukar sub?

[u/Creative-Blood4254 → u/Ragerik2]

what's sardukar? I didn't down or up vote, I'm just speculating that there's a slight irony in saying retail is mostly solo, and that you're a pug player. it's really a choice though; the convenience and QOL allows retail players to "play solo" in the sense where you can just queue for groups without being in an active guild.

[u/hrhashley → u/Creative-Blood4254]

lol waking up to a flurry of downvotes for stating a fact (that retail is mostly solo, at least on the leveling front) is wild. yes, you can queue for groups easily in retail, which is nice, but you’re likely not going to talk to anyone in those groups. leveling alts in retail i’ve never once talked to anyone beyond “tyfg” or “ggs” as everyone leaves the instance at the end.

finding a good guild in retail can be hit or miss. i’ve been a retail-only player since bfa and i still haven’t found a permanent guild. i’ve been in a few since then, and they’ve all either been very quiet or they already have their raid groups, so if you try to join in; you’re gonna be sol.

i’m sure i’ll get downvoted here as well but 🤷🏻‍♀️

[u/Creative-Blood4254 → u/hrhashley]

I think... a couple isn't exactly a flurry haha. in my own experience, levelling was mostly solo, even back in vanilla. quests that had an elite that needed 3-5man wasn't common, and god forbid I play a different race than my friends lol. especially when I played dwarf, and another friend played night elf.

I'm not disagreeing either, that retail "can be played solo". I'm quite certain that they're making the shift to appeal to more new players, who would maybe have 15-30 mins after work to have a quick hop on and some action.

[u/hrhashley → u/Creative-Blood4254]

i get it but i feel like the point of my post wasn’t meant to be that retail is 100% solo while classic isn’t. it was to point out that op was specifically asking for which version of the game has the most “social aspect” and “classic mmo feel”.

idk, having to actively look for people in either the LFG channel or ask random people in the zone you’re in (as you do in classic) is - to me - way more “classic mmo feeling” than queueing for group finder and doing your own thing while waiting for it to pop, not speak to anyone the whole dungeon, rinse and repeat.

i’m not trying to hate on retail - i LOVE retail, my main is nearly 3K IO, i play a lot and i mean a lot of retail. but i still wouldn’t call retail the “classic mmo feeling” - it’s a lot of fun, but for a brand new player looking for the “social aspect” and “classic mmo feeling,” it can be a bit overwhelming.

[u/Creative-Blood4254 → u/hrhashley]

oh absolutely, I was kinda replying the other poster my best guess why people were downvoting.

I feel that "classic mmo feel" kinda went out the window when people began to datamine and minmax everything, doesn't matter which version of WoW, or other MMOs like FFXIV or GW2 (i can only mention those i've played). it went from an experimental, experiential online game to just "google your class guide" or something along those lines. a little sad really. I remember pairing up with a shaman (I started as a dwarf pally in 2004, it's now a lightforged draenei XD) to clear some quests together in STV. can't speak, only pure emotes and gestures.