Diablo was designed as a series of clicks and rewards. When you clicked on an item in your inventory, a pleasant sound chimed. When you killed Diablo, you got a better series of sounds and more things to click in your inventory.
WoW is so successful because it provides such a compelling alternative to reality. In reality, there is risk, there is emotion, there is change. In WoW, you just have a steady stream of clicks, a steady stream of rewards, and a steady group of pseudo-friends (pseudo because they only exist as long as you play WoW and they won't help you move) that don't judge you. In some ways, it is better than reality. If nothing else, it is much easier. The only way to get better is to play more, and the more you play, the more fun you have.
If it were just escapism, any MMO could claim that. But none do. Not anywhere close to what Warcraft has achieved.
I think it's the magic combination of elements that has given WoW the megacrown. And you've listed several. If you've played Wow, you get it, but you don't exactly know why.
Their attention to creating what they consider the 'perfect' game on a platform they create is mind blowing. They have had Starcraft 2 what any other company would consider 'finished' for probably 2 years. But they run massive beta tests, continually tweak and perfect the game.
It shows in every one of their products - look at the Starcraft/Warcraft/Diablo series - not a single flop or poor game.
I bet you right now that Starcraft 2 becomes even more popular than the original - and the original is still played in large numbers ten years later!
Unlike the outside world WoW lets you create YOU as you imagine it in your wildest dreams. A 360 degree control that cannot be found anywhere in real life. The game is fair, you are who you want to be as long as you put the necessary effort into it.
I can guarantee you that a lot of players would respond to their screen name if you called them out in the street. You think they escape their bills and work and family by playing, but it is the opposite. They escape their WoW life by doing mundane things.
Okay, the fact that I got down voted for a completely on topic comment is what I'm talking about when I say people downvote just to disagree without commenting themselves. Matt makes no comment on the gameplay factor of WoW and I think for what it's worth, it's a great technical achievement when you look at the amount of math and raw computations required for items, enchantments, leveling, etc. I know this community isn't built around gaming or about gaming, but I thought it was certainly worth pointing out at least in SOME degree that WoW's success could have something to do with the gameplay, or at least since he decided to talk about the social aspect of the game, mention how many people came to WoW after the success of WC3.
Let me see if I understand what you are saying: You assume the author does not have a life, and your response is to laugh so hard you fall off your chair?
That is not a very nice sentiment, and if I am correct in understanding your point of view, it is especially unkind to attempt to publicly shame him for what you perceive to be an unacceptable lifestyle.
I sincerely hope that the choices you make about relating to people in "real life" are much more pleasant than the choice you made here.
Its a lot more complicated than that. Read the article. Also a lot of people play Wow and it makes a lot of money so its worth understanding it even if you don't agree with it.
Diablo was designed as a series of clicks and rewards. When you clicked on an item in your inventory, a pleasant sound chimed. When you killed Diablo, you got a better series of sounds and more things to click in your inventory.
WoW is so successful because it provides such a compelling alternative to reality. In reality, there is risk, there is emotion, there is change. In WoW, you just have a steady stream of clicks, a steady stream of rewards, and a steady group of pseudo-friends (pseudo because they only exist as long as you play WoW and they won't help you move) that don't judge you. In some ways, it is better than reality. If nothing else, it is much easier. The only way to get better is to play more, and the more you play, the more fun you have.