Choose My Adventure: An interview with Wizard101's Kevin Battleblood
Ah, Wizard101. I've had so much fun with the game over these last few weeks. Despite my having some distracting real-life issues pop up, I found the game was a steady source of entertainment. The further you get into it, the more you understand how the game became successful. It's not just a "kid's game" for sure -- calling it that is almost an insult. Think about it for a moment, anyway: What separates a "kid's game" from a "regular" (adult? grown-up?) game? After all, there are 12-year-olds raiding in World of Warcraft probably as you read this, so perhaps it is the cartoony look of a game like Wizard101 that qualifies it only for juveniles?
Don't let the look fool you. There is a great game there with a massive, passionate and lively community. The gameplay itself is top-notch and beautifully simple. Like many MMOs, it is easy to learn and hard to master. The level of challenge all depends on the passion of the player. I found myself just poking around and decorating my house a lot of the time; meanwhile, players like Kevin Battleblood spent theirs forming groups of digital amateur scientists to study PvP, pets and spell issues.
In fact, Kevin's work in the community has impressed me so much that I decided to get his advice before jumping into PvP myself. You voted on it, and I will get to it, but since this is my last Choose My Adventure, I will have to do it off the clock. Luckily, Kevin is one of the top-notch players in Wizard101 -- so let's skip past the cut and see what he has to say to a noob like yours truly!
Massively: How long have you been playing Wizard101?
Kevin Battleblood: I have been playing ever since December 2009, so it's just a little over a year since my eyes caught the Wizard101 banner when I was googling "card battle MMO."
What draws you to PvP?
Quite honestly, I used to despise the PvP aspect of MMOs, mainly because most ranking systems are generally skewed to represent players whose internet connectivity is up-to-date, and they leave no room for record improvement until said players upgrade their technology. Despite having a decent connection myself, I find that PvP in Wizard101 draws me in, not only due to the freedom of having 30 seconds to make a move but because there is an underlying truth that the ranking of an opponent is not -- and should not --be a deterrent for participating in this activity. Every match is a significant learning experience in this game; winning is not a symbol of superiority, and losing is not a symbol of failing. Once in a while even Privates can teach Warlords something new.
How is PvP challenging in Wizard101?
The Arena can be considered an "extreme mode" for this MMO. In PvE, monsters will seldom shield or heal, and they practically lack any cohesion and comprehension for survival. In PvP, however, you are facing against another cognitive being -- someone who can memorize and reason -- who will understand how to utilize his defense and recovery spells. Players will find it is much harder to just trap-and-blade and win a match with a guaranteed one-hit-kill like a farming group handling bosses. Instead, it'll be a journey on a massive mental flowchart, in both the offensive and defensive styles.
What are some of the main issues with PvP? If you could fix one or two major things, what would they be?
Because of the wide demographic that includes a generally younger playerbase, the maturity level may be lacking in the sense of sportsmanship and universal etiquette. Sometimes players forget that younger gamers share this game with them, so they mistakenly take offensive remarks to heart, as if the violators were their equals or greater. I would fix the interface settings to allow a filter that blocks chat from anyone who isn't on your friends list. As for the technical issues: I would like to fix the matchmaking system (to ensure Legendary wizards who partner up with a Novice are not matched against, for instance, two Journeymen wizards) and Earthquake (to ensure Stun Shields are not removed, as was promised to us in one or two updates in the past). There is actually a universal request on one of the Feedback Fridays where many players, including me, have suggested modifying the turn-based system to allow two Draw Card phases -- one for each team -- so as to offset the infamous first-turn advantage issue.
 |
What would you say to a player who has never tried PvP in Wizard101? Why should anyone try it?
Despite the horror stories and social issues, I'd encourage that player to give the Arena a shot. It really is quite an insightful learning experience. As you practice playing against a human mind, you become a much sharper strategist, especially after falling into the habit of thinking four to five steps ahead. This leads to virtually zero defeats in PvE, and you or your group will be a stranger to struggling in duels. A personal example is the use of a PvP tactic (in this case, cast any shields we have onto the Life player) to complete the Warehouse dungeon on the very first night of its release on the Test Realm. By applying a strategy that has kept human players alive against other human players in the Arena for hours, we triumphed over the nastiest of cheating bosses without guidance or advice. You can open up a variety of personal accomplishments.
Can you give some good advice to new PvPers? Have any tricks up your sleeve?
If you want to take PvP seriously, start as early as level 20 and save up some training points so you may learn Reshuffle, Life Dispel, and Tower Shield. Reshuffle ensures that you do not lose a match by default -- this card returns your discarded or successfully casted spells back into your draw pile, allowing you a better chance at victory in the long run. Put two of those in your deck so one reshuffle restores the other! Life Dispel will generally help curb the average time spent within a duel, since low-level players cannot damage each other as efficiently as they can heal it all off. You can find those two spells from Mildred Farseer in Colossus Blvd, toward the left of Mindy Pixiecrown.
|
Tower Shield from the Ice School is arguably the best active protection you will have against Balance-school damage. By starting early, you will be able to quickly grasp the strengths and weaknesses of your personal playstyle, your deck, and your school. As you learn new spells, be sure to revisit the Arena for some double-digit matches to get an idea of how well your cards are synchronized against another wizard. And last but not least, searching for guides on fansites and YouTube and politely asking duelists for advice and guidance are some great ways to improve. Good luck to anyone who is just starting to pursue PvP as a new hobby in Wizard101!
Many thanks to Kevin for taking the time to sit in on this interview. He wanted to be sure to shout-out to the Petnome Team, Twizards, Bloggers, and Ravenwood Radio staff. It's safe to say that the knowledge he possesses about the game is pretty massive. It also goes to show that the game is not just a simple card-battle game, and it can be as complex as you want it to be.
I had a blast in the game over the last few weeks, but I can promise that this is not the last time I will play it. I have a house to decorate, PvP to get better at and some gardening to do. In the meantime, enjoy the Spiral! And thanks to all for participating in the votes! Be sure to join MJ Guthrie as she takes over the column next week with a brand-new game of your choosing. Treat her as well as you did me or I'll sick my Dandelion on you!
Beau Hindman is your puppet. Make him dance, if you'd like. Over the next several weeks, he will be your guide through whatever game you choose, through whatever activity you command him to participate in. Follow him on Twitter or Raptr to see when he might be playing, then go in game to shoot bullets at his feet!
