So, who's guilty?

Is it Blizzard? Is it the „industry“? Is it Wolfshead? Is it Tobold, Gevlon or Bush?
No. Nobody is guilty. We all just act according to our interests; well, Blizzards competitors are not, but they aren't guilty, either.

Now, who is responsible?
We all are. We all are responsible for following our interests or not following them. This discussion is pointless.

So, what is it really about?
Differences, different opinions, different interests.

I started playing WoW at release and it was the most perfect virtual world I knew at that time. Which isn't really a surprise, since it was the only one I knew.

I killed, explored, achieved and eventually socialized. I was at home in two worlds. I had beaten WoW in that summer some years ago although Blizzard never intended me to beat it. I ventured forth.

I began to discuss WoW on a more basic level. Game design. I have always been interested in what makes things tick. That's why I started to study financial mathematics, economics and eventually physics. But it seems that what really moves the world is not physics at all. It is politics. I should have known.

For some life is about love, for others it is about god and for many it is about forging their very own prison. For some it is about achievement. I guess I am still exploring; searching for truth and revelation.

For me a MMO should be a virtual world. But for many it should not. For many it shall be a distraction. WoW has become a distraction.

I love stories. Most people do. No, not that kind of story. I like good stories: Stories that could have happened. Stories that play within shades of grey. Stories of tragic heroes and fallen angles. Stories of loving demons and crying giants.
WoW lore has all that.
WoW has none of it.

Sometimes things just happen. There is nobody to blame and too many people responsible. My story of WoW is actually a good story. It could have happened; it actually did. For WoW is a fallen angel for me, while for most it is just a distraction. I guess that makes my efforts those of a tragic hero or a loving, selfish, demon. That distinction has always been a matter of perspective. I cry for what could have been. I cry for what was never achieved.

But nothing is lost forever and my battles continue.

Maybe I will eventually believe what wiser men have already written:

Good ideas will always get a second chance to enter the paradigm, it's just that "wait a quarter of your life for it to happen" thing that's a little depressing.