The New York Times logs back in to World of Warcraft

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Filed under: World of Warcraft, Fantasy, Culture

The online gaming industry -- actually, the world -- has been changed by World of Warcraft. The game has become a cultural phenomenon played by 11 million people, so it's gotten quite a bit of mainstream media attention -- that is to say, it's not just a geek thing.

The New York Times has often dedicated a word or two to MMOs like WoW and EVE Online, but it seems that NY Times writer Seth Schiesel was away from the former nearly a year. Like just about everyone else, though, he's been lured back into the world of Azeroth by the recently released Wrath of the Lich King expansion. He wrote a touching piece about the all his feelings when he returned, nothing the expansion's relatively casual design and describing the experience of connecting with old friends after a year of change. He went into it with trepidation, but it ended up being a homecoming.

But perhaps we can read something else into his return. You might look at it as a sign that the appeal for these games will never fade. Everyone can get hooked on the social experience World of Warcraft and games like it provide, and Wrath's success might be evidence that this young form of entertainment has its best years ahead of it.The New York Times logs back in to World of Warcraft originally appeared on Massively on Sat, 06 Dec 2008 11:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.



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