First! Why I kicked WoW in the nards and waved "Bye, suckafish!"

So to start my blog, I thought I would post something fairly serious, something that must be said, something that is ultimately true, but hard to accept. In the end though, it is something that is remarkably enjoyable at the same time.

I apologize in advance if I offend anyone during this mini-rant.

Ok, on with the show.

I am never playing World of Warcraft again.

There. I said it.

There are numerous reasons as to why, and I feel it necessary to list them here, if anything, to display the severity of the situation, and to see if those who fell/are falling under the same circumstances can help themselves before it is too late.

As many of you know, BigRedKitty (AKA Daniel Powell) quit the game back in March because he didn't realize how harmful the game was to his family and his social life. He divorced from his wife recently, and only now does he realize how precious every moment of life is for him and his son.

His abandonment of the game got me thinking about my life, about how much time I have essentially wasted playing a game, destroying my social life, eating away at any sense of normalcy, even sacrificing sleep when I could to get in my homework and WoW at the same time, gaining weight because I wanted to get home from work/school to check into the game..

It also doesn't help that I tend to have a slightly addictive personality, but still, it has become painfully clear it was time to leave.

It wasn't until after I quit the game, talked to old friends I haven't talked to in years, gone out more and visited friends and the occasional bar again, reading a whole lot more, and slowly working on my novel, that I wished I had quit sooner.

Don't get me wrong: I have met some really cool people, and people that I have every intention of keeping in contact with for as long as I can.

But WoW is not a replacement for my social life. WoW is not a replacement for all of my entertainment during downtime. Using it as such only eroded the basic foundations of social interaction, and stymied my creativity.

WoW should not engulf your life. It's a game. Nothing more, nothing less.

So I'm done. ::Uninstall WoW, delete all addons::

As for the less obtrusive reasons for my leaving the game for good.. well.. it's boring now, especially after all these years. Their basic formula for creating the game and keeping it going hasn't changed at all. Their quests, the dungeon system, the daily quest system.. it all leads to the same bloody thing over and over again.

They need to scrap their entire system, because Star Wars: The Old Republic looms in the distance.

Anyways... to those who are still playing: I hope you continue to have lots of fun, and enjoy the game for what it is.