[1.Local]: Distracted by puppies

Playing WoW with your teen
Some teenagers wouldn't dream of playing a video game like WoW with their parents. Others enjoy being able to share an enjoyable pastime. And some players discover that what they consider to be an appropriate level of familial togetherness changes as they get older.

Marita: When I was a teenager (now 24), I too thought the line was too thin and preferred to have my parents away from my internet time. (No porn sessions or anything like that in my leisure time, just having fun.) But it turned out bad. Why? Because now they don't understand, want or respect anything I like/do that they don't know something about.

In this guide, it is a game the parent plays, but what about an activity the parent knows nothing about? Should they forbid it and then ask? Or ask and then forbid? Neither.

Looking back, it would have been better to have them there with me, not always but on a regular basis. Because now they would understand me better, judge me less, and be better parents, because they would have learned to be better parents, and to understand the world as it is today, and to respect me more in this context.

Maybe in Europe it's different (I'm from South America), yes, but they have more lonely people, thousands of lonely elders, people dying alone and found months later. I don't think that kind of detachment is good. I don't think legal soft porn is good either!

Too much freedom gives nice opportunities to grow up, yes, but is that really the best? At 15 I would have said "yes." Now I know the gap is too big. And I regret it.

What a wistful reminiscence from a grown gamer. My own family plays some half dozen or more games separately, together, in all different combinations -- teenagers included (or not included, as the particular case may be.) What about you? Do you play WoW with your family?

Why we hate DPS meters
In world of Dungeon Finder PUGs with overgeared groupmates, when is enough DPS "enough"?

Sehvekah: Maybe I'm just weird, but I *like* topping the meters by (sometimes well) more than 1k DPS with everyone else doing 1.5k-2k. Yes, it's an ego thing, but not like your knee-jerk reaction would indicate. See, when I'm in a group where *everyone* (including the tank and "healer") is doing 2.5k-5k+, I get my emblems, it's quick, sometimes I get an achievement -- but I never feel like I really *did* anything. Sure, nobody died, but even with emblems or the odd bit of loot from the IC five-mans, I walk away wondering what the point was.

When I'm blowing up the meters with a group of more-or-less fresh 80s, though, it really feels like I'm *doing* something. I know I'm helping the tank hold aggro via glyphed TotT+FoK combo. I'm keeping the healer in mana by making things die faster before they cause too many problems. I'm helping the other DPSs by making their run that extra bit faster. Everyone (is) getting their emblems and sometimes upgrades from drops, there's the odd achievement, and damn it, the slower run makes it feel more like *something actually happened* beyond my getting two EoF for T10 and a few EoTs closer to kitting my 'lock out in heirlooms.

And that's without mentioning the fact that these groups often have actual *conversations* and sometimes the awe of those new to the game, experiencing these "tired old dungeons" for the first time. Hell, it even gives me time to slow down a bit and actually *look* at the places I've been running though. So many times I've run Old Kingdom without paying attention to anything more than the loot pinatas scattered throughout, and that was really stupid on my part. A lot of these places are really awesome and deserve to be savored, rather than rushed through.

So to all the newbs, thank you. You're making my playtime that much more fun, so I'll do my part to help you get the loot you need in return. To those who think recount/DPS means everything, go eat s*$@.

Where do you stand on DPS thresholds? Do you believe that too much DPS is never enough?

Blizzard says no to skipping to the last boss
Blizzard quite clearly believes that players should not be skipping through heroic instance bosses to get to the last boss ... But do the players?

Qot: I'm wondering if there might be a role division on this topic. If you're DPS, you spent 15 minutes in the queue. Spending 10 extra minutes clearing trash and doing the optional bosses isn't awful and bumps up your badges/hour. If you're tank/heals, you spent a minute or less in the queue. In the 10 extra minutes on optionals, you could've finished this dungeon, gotten your two completion badges and be half way through a Nex or DTK random.

Gamer am I: It's sad that heroics have become so easy that people feel entitled to skip to the last boss. I think that's one of the new emblem system's failures: giving people raid-quality gear without giving them the content to use it in. As such, they get bored with heroics but don't run anything other than them, so they just want to get them over with quickly.

Docp: I think the problem is, is that people are being forced to do something they don't like in order to achieve in another aspect of the game. I think giving Frost as an incentive was a mistake; it should have just been two extra Triumphs and left at that. This way, you'd only have people who actually want to run heroics going. I'd rather have longer queues than be forced to team with grumpy people who really don't want to be there.

uncaringbear: @Docp I think you have a legitimate point there. The original idea of rewarding Frost emblems in heroics was to give incentive to high-end players to participate in heroics and help newer/less-geared players progress through heroics and build up their emblems. Instead, what has happened is that heroics have now become a farming ground for the high-end players who have no desire at all to run them, except to get the two Frost emblems. Many players who genuinely need to run the heroics end up being abused and criticized by the raiders for wearing level-appropriate gear and making honest mistakes.

When you force people to play a part of the game that they don't want to play, this is bound to happen. And yes, these raiders can opt to not run heroics -- but for them, that is not a choice they would ever make for fear of falling behind in progression.

Here is a suggestion: Remove the Frost emblems from the random heroics. This will ensure that the people who run the heroics are the ones who really need to run them. As an alternative, make a series of daily quests that need to be completed that will reward a total of two Frost emblems. One of the quests can be a group quest. The people who want the Frost emblems can get it on their own time without making others miserable.

Are you a speed-runner, or do you like to savor your heroics? Do you think removing Frost emblems from the daily heroic would help alleviate the teeth-grinding, "let's get this over with" attitude of some players?

New musical theme inspires fans
Readers have been captivated by "Invincible," the sweeping new musical piece released by Blizzard recalling the leitmotif of the Wrath of the Lich King trailer.

Kael: Oh man. I really didn't expect it, and this never happens, but that was actually very moving. I got choked up listening to that. It's incredible; I can't wait to listen to it again. That song is the pinnacle of video game music in my book. Wow. Simply astonishing.

Frank: /agreed! I was surprised to find myself getting choked up, too, which is even more amazing because I have (of course) NO clue what they are singing or the context for the music. A piece of music worth an epic event, for sure. Behold the power of music! Hats off to all responsible for this one.

Killchrono: Leitmotifs are my favourite musical convention, especially when used in media like games, movies or shows. You know a song has great power when it becomes synonymous with a character, an emotion or even an entire franchise. Think Darth Vader with the "Imperial March," or the main Star Wars theme.

I got shivers hearing the "Arthas, My Son" leitmotif in this song. It convinces me that this'll be the song that plays during the epic finish, perhaps when Arthas takes his dying breath. It's so sad and moving that it's making me wonder whether Arthas feels the last tinge of humanity in his heart as he dies. Regardless, this song would be an amazing piece to see off one of Warcraft's most influential characters.

Brett: There were excerpts of this in the 3.3 trailer, when the ghosts appear around Arthas while Terenas is talking to him. Such a heartbreaking and evocative piece of music.

Naraxis: Wow, just wow. I have never heard anything that beautiful in my whole life, was absolutely amazing. Before, my motivation for getting to the Lich King to kill him was so I could hack off a piece of his throne for Shadowmourne, but now my motivation for getting to him is to hear that song.

At our house, game soundtracks (including WoW) are a regular part of the mix of our daily music. While my son sometimes queues up a more pumping rhythm when he PvPs, we otherwise all seem to prefer keeping our game sounds on so we can soak up the atmospherics. (Except for Molten Core, back in the day. I think I would have had a seizure listening to that for very long. /twitch) Do you ever listen to the WoW soundtrack or music outside of the game? Do you keep the sound on while you play?

How many WoW players does it take to change a lightbulb?
Last week's bizarre e-mail of the week kicked off a whole new meme: how many X does it take to change a light bulb?

Clydtsdk-Rivendare: How many Soviet Russians does it take to change a lightbulb? Doesn't matter, the lightbulbs change them.

How many Titans does it take to change a light bulb? Two: one to change it and one to clear out an Old God infestation a few thousand years later.

How many WoW players does it take to change a light bulb? 1,002: one to actually change it, and one to berate the first thousand others for not having the 5k GearScore necessary to change his light bulb.

How many Kael'thas jokes does it take to change a light bulb? It depends if the burnt-out bulb was merely a setback or a stepping stone to a much greater plan.

How many raiders does it take to change a light bulb? Three: one huntard to shoot (and thus break) the old bulb, one to replace it, and one to ninja all the epics found on the broken bulb's corpse.

How many Gnomes does it take to change a light bulb? Ten: Nine to stand on each other's shoulders and one to replace it.

How many light bulb jokes does it take to change a light bulb? *asplodes*

Hey, Clydtsdk-Rivendare -- get back here and sweep up these broken pieces, eh?