This blog is part of the series I started writing because I wanted to participate in the 10 Years: 10 Questions project. I was unable to complete all ten questions by the deadline. When I started, I realized that there was a good chance that I would be unable to finish everything in time. I got seven done! The remaining questions are being answered for my own amusement.
Question 8: Admit it – Do you read quest text or not?
I freely admit that I do read the quest text. The main reason I read it is to figure out what the quest requires. There have been times when I just didn’t feel like doing what the quest involved at that moment, so I didn’t take the quest. I actually find it fun to read the quest text because it can sometimes include things that give some characterization to the non-player character (NPC) who offered me the quest.
The screenshot at the top of this blog provides a good example of what I mean. There’s my Orc Mage, Nazuga, who is receiving a quest from an Orc named Thonk (who is an NPC). This screenshot is from the beginning of the series of quests that Thonk can offer to Horde players.
In short, you use his spyglass to see four NPC’s who are stranded in an area that has become flooded. Each one of them gives you another quest to complete. Eventually, you return to Thonk to complete the quest chain.
So, Nazuga used Thonk’s spyglass to view the NPCs he has been asked to help. The game could have sent Nazuga on his way. Instead, this is the quest text that pops up after you are finished using Thonk’s spyglass:
All this time, Thonk has been having trouble locating the stranded Orcs (and one troll) because he was using his spyglass incorrectly. This quest has text that paints quite the picture of Thonk’s intellectual limitations. He says: I see… so the trick is that you need to put the LITTLE end of the spyglass up to your eye. I’ll remember that piece of information.
The player learns that Thonk is not the brightest crayon in the box, so to speak. This was an especially fun revelation because I was using Nazuga for a TrialMan Challenge, which I was blogging about in a story telling type of way. If I didn’t read the quest text, I would have missed out on something fun to add to my story about Nazuga’s adventure.
There are two other reasons why I read the quest text. One reason is that in World of Warcraft (WoW) as in real life, I have a tendency to get completely and utterly lost. I end up referring to the quest text, and re-reading it, several times as I try to figure out where I’m supposed to be at.
This leads me to the other reason why I read quest text. I am easily distracted and may very well wander off and do something else instead of completing a quest. Eventually, I remember that I picked up a quest. So, I re-read the quest text to help me remember what that quest wanted me to do and where it was supposed to be done. Overall, I probably read the quest text more than anyone else would ever have a desire to.