Customer Reviews

World of Warcraft: Wrath of the Lich King Collector's Edition

5 star:		(41)
4 star:		(6)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

You can all see from the product details what comes in the box, so I won't rehash it all for you, but one thing not mentioned is that in the special pack of cards for the trading card game, I got one "loot" card with a scratch-off code you can use to get stuff in the game. That was pretty sweet. Also the pictures of the mouse pad do not do it justice. My wife told me if I get the dragon pet in game, that she gets the mouse pad. It's very high quality, and looks amazing, almost like they used holographic type paint for it.

The gameplay itself is great. I've been so busy playing my new Death Knight and leveling their trade skills, my own lvl 70's fishing, and cooking... and alchemy... getting achievement points that were released in v3.0.2 prior to the launch etc. I've only hit 72. I did however take the first day to just run around and look at everything. The world design is amazing. It's all themed around cold climate except the southern parts of the two starting areas, but, it's not like you're going to run around and look at the same thing from beginning to end, there is tons of zone variety. Crystalsong Forest is my favorite so far, I plan to spend a lot of time there for sure.

UK and the Nexus are the first two instances, they are solid. UK is like a cross between a really big Shadowfang Keep and Deadmines. Nexus is like... geeze... I dunno... a blue Underbog crossed with Tempest Keep. So they definitely made it a point to distinguish this content from old world just like they did with Outland in The Burning Crusade.

They added a bunch of new enemy and neutral NPC models to the game, which is nice. I was disappointed with the rehash and redesign of several old world mobs in TBC. Most of what I've seen in Wrath so far is all new, and that's definitely a welcome change.

*EDIT* The same can also be said for the quests. It's still mostly, gathering and mob farming, but there are a lot more, "go here, use this item to do x" quests as well as some completely new quests that center around a new vehicle engine. There's an alliance quest in Howling Fjord where you get in an airplane, actually pilot the plane around an open mine picking up bags of minerals with a grappling hook, then flying them back up to the top to drop them off. There's another in the Borean Tundra where you hide in a mine cart, wait to get carted behind enemy lines, get on their boat and use a huge cannon to fire into several enemy brigades. You actually get to aim the cannon and there are a couple different actions while in the cannon. This new system has thus far proven to be a welcome addition to the typical mmo game play. *END EDIT*

All in all I am very pleased with this collector's edition, and would recommend it to anyone with a few extra bucks to spend, that enjoys extra "real world" loot so to speak.

I have been playing WoW since it all began (was even in the beta). This review is not about the game itself, however. There are more than enough reviews about that. As far as that is concerned, I've played pretty much all of the major titles (LotRo, AoC, EQ, UO, AC, AC2, DAoC... etc.), and I keep coming back to Wow, still going strong for 4 years with 3 accounts for me and my sons.

So, what about the Collectors Edition? This is my first CE version of WoW, not having gathered up the previous versions. I can say that this was a very satisfactory purchase. The Art Book is great, with small color commentary as well as the beautiful artwork, about certain areas of the game. I only wish they would have been expanded more as it really does wet your appetite for the rich back story of Warcraft. As a result, I am now looking for even more literature on the story-line. It really does bring the world to life.

You also get the Audio CD Soundtrack, and it is excellent. All of the theme music you are familiar with is there, and I really enjoy playing them in the background some days when away from the game. Yes, I know: I am addicted, but I look at WoW as a hobby, and a really inexpensive and fun one at that. Some people fix up old cars, knit quilts, paint landscapes, watch TV ... I play WoW :)

You also receive a very colorful mouse pad that I am afraid to even use, because it looks so nice. I want to keep it in prestine condition, so I won't use it. I love it! You also will get an ingame pet, Frosty. It is a great edition to the game and sort of a bragging right to other players. I keep Frosty with me at all times.

The last item is the 'making of' DVD with interviews and other interesting bits of information about the game. It includes the awesome trailer, which is just visually stunning and beautiful. If you love the game as much as I do, you will be showing family and friends this trailer at every chance you get.

This is overall a GREAT collectors edition, with lots of stuff included for the fan and hobbyist of WoW. I am very, very pleased with the purchase.

Something of Collectors Editions you should know: they are truly COLLECTORS editions, worth every penny. This is why -- Back in 1996, I bought the 'Charter' edition of Ultima Online (UO). It came with a Pin, a cloth map, and nice packaging. I still have the map, but lost the pin when it fell off a backpack in college. I am SO UPSET I lost that little pin. Why? Try to find one ANYWHERE and you will see my pain. This charter set is now worth several hundred dollars to a Ultima collector. I LOVE the cloth map, even though I haven't played that game in years. It's nostaligia. Brings back soooo many memories of friends I never met in person, but are still dear to me. WoW is no different.

Someday I will move on from the game, but the friends I made, the fun I had... I want to keep that with me always, and the Collectors Edition is a keepsake that will help me remember people who I will never know in real-life, but had names like Youskajin, Stromblade, Nyota, Sef... and we fought epic battles together, had more than a few laughs, pretended we were great heroes every once in awhile. Oh, and the set will probably be worth a lot of money someday ;)

Death Knight story is great. Leads very well into why they can be Alliance or Horde and not their enemy as they were suppose to be. As for the rest... not spoiling it.

It's fun, but northrend quickly get's played out for me, and rolling a DK is fun, and it definetly helps break the cycle to play a new class, and a fun class at that, but EVERYBODY has a damn DK these days, i can't score a pug group without at least 2-3 damn dk's in it.... I did find that most of the instances in the expansion are a waste of time until u hit 80 and can do heroics, otherwise the xp and such for a instance is kind of on the low side. Also i would quickly run out of quests in a given zone and would have to hit the next zone, which might have been just a little high for it, so it made it kind of a struggle, but like blizzard always does, they will tweak and balance things out in the future, so all i have to do is hold tight and fight through my griefs for now.

The extra doodads that come with the Collector's Edition are nice, but a month from now, will you really still want that Frostwyrm in-game pet, or that mousepad? Will you actually read the strategy guide after day one? I flipped through the original and TBC guides that came with the World of Warcraft Battlechest, and they helped me learn the basics of the game, but there's nothing in there that benefits my everyday gameplay; the Internet offers more comprehensive information, more quickly, than the books.

If you want a few new toys and a stylish box, buy the Collector's Edition. If you just want to play the game, buy the regular edition. If you're new to World of Warcraft, don't bother with Wrath of the Lich King just yet. Get the Battlechest (includes the original game, The Burning Crusade expansion pack, and a month of game time, for a very reasonable price); before level 55, you won't see any benefit from this second expansion.

Also, if you do go for the Collector's Edition, don't buy from the resellers; you'll save a lot of money if you look around and find a retailer who still has one.

I have long been a fan of WoW, and, since launch, have gone through well over fifty different characters. With the latest addition to the series comes a the frozen realm of Northrend, where you can see plate and mail-armoured heroes alike get their tongues stuck to their face guards when they try and speak. In all seriousness though, the new look and feel of Northrend is suitably epic, and the storyline quests have kept their usual flair.

Other quests have been rehashed upon, but for every rehash you have two completely new quests that either give you a good twenty minutes of fun, or a good two hours worth of frustration. The new vehicle engine has been a long time in the works, and is surprisingly solid, if a little confusing at first.

As far as the new class goes, the Death Knights were obviously something Blizzard was so set on seeing happen that they failed to do proper play testing with them. In fact, over the seven or so patches to the game since release, Death Knights have been boosted and nerfed in equal parts. Now, as far as other classes are concerned, Blizzard has again either butchered them, made them much to powerful or weak, or left them be for the most part. I won't go into details, but suffice it to say anyone playing as a retribution paladin is in for an easy time, and anyone playing an enhancement shaman is in for a great disappointment.

My main gripe here, though, is the fact that instead of focusing on getting players ready for endgame content and leaving some measure of skill to be acquired there, Blizzard has turned Endgame into Sesame Street: Lich King Edition. It seems that instead of fostering an atmosphere where actual ability and skill is appreciated, it is now perfectly acceptable for a person to roll his face on his keyboard and still be a "valuable addition to the raid."

I hate to say it, but Blizzard has catered and sold out to the whining masses of pre-pubescent boys and girls who can't be bothered to learn how to raid. I have a firm suspicion that good ol' President Bush is hiding in the development team's office, because this is going to turn out just like the 'No Child Left Behind' program.

But hey, it only turns out like that in the expansion bit. If you like an easy game, play through. If you don't like trying to deal with all the drama 11-15 year old children bring to the table, play through with friends.

I would never have paid the xtra bucks for the collectors edition for myself, but my daughter (bless her soul) thought I'd like it for xmas. She was so right! The artbook in itself is worth the xtra cost, but then there's the 'Making of' dvd and the music cd and the cards, all totally cool. I fretted over which alt would get the limited edition pet, and was very surprised to find that each and every one of my alts received him! This was definitely worth thte price, and I'm glad my daughter thought so. My daughter is a pet freak, so as soon as she gets leveled to 55, she's getting the collector's edition from me (but she doesn't know that, so shhhhhhh don't tell her.)

This expansion is a must have for anyone who currently plays WoW. The new Death Knight class is a blast to play and the story-telling has been upped. A great expansion.

Awesome game!! A true expansion pack without the rehashed scenes and buildings. Everything is truly unique.

I purchased two copies of World of Warcraft, Lich King. I got the regular edition for my boyfriend and the collectors edition for myself. We are avid gamers, I especially liked the collectors edition. The case alone is beautifully detailed and opening it was a pleasure.