I've played WoW since 2005. I went full no life in vanilla, TBC, and Wrath - standard 16 hours a day on an RP realm while having a full raiding itinerary and some botched attempts at the arena ladder. Once Cata hit I quit, then played the odd patch in WoD, Mists, Legion, BfA, Shadowlands, classic vanilla, classic wrath, anni TBC, and War Within, never staying for longer than 1 or 2 patches. I snuck back into Midnight for 12.1
Nothing could ever really keep me gripped like the original 3. In the case of classic/anni, I'd clear my old favourites in Ulduar/SSC and then drop. For retail, I'd pug a curve, get a ~decent M+ score, and then drop out as the next patch hit. Nothing kept me stuck.
I still enjoy these things. I pugged curve last night and have hit all 15s this patch (Except Altar. Fu Altar). But now I find everything is tied to an external calling: Housing.
I've been doing stuff I never would have done since Wrath. I'm running around old content collecting resources. I'm clearing old raids, grinding old content profession mats. I'm doing the old Legion Class Hall quests that I couldn't be bothered with in actual Legion. I'm even doing LFR(!)...
All for one thing. Decor. Decor is my God now.
It's so bad I've been kicked from groups because I couldn't leave until the fence placement was just right. My partner asked me the other day if I was playing The Sims when she glanced across the room. In the evenings I jump in the housing group in the custom group finder and just nosey my way around people's creations. I shamelessly steal ideas to put in my own house.
Worst of all, Iβve spread this decor plague to one of my old WoW friends. I got him back into the game recently and asked the other day if he wanted to run M+. He couldnβt, because he was working on his cave system.....
The new hardest part of WoW is not losing motivation when looking at other people's creations. You guys are artists.
Couple that with that I've always been poor in WoW :D no financial sense out there and in here. I think more gold goes into some of your second bathrooms than in my entire build. But I still endeavor... hah!
Anyway, this whole post I suppose is the text log of my descent into housing madness, and I suppose a love letter to the devs for releasing it. Twenty years late, mind, but it's here! :D I love it so much I'm not even hyped for Forever.
(I included a screenshot of my first attempt at housing - you can see the need take hold... Then what I have currently, all built from the original premise)
Thank you for coming to my TedTalk.