Summary
World of Warcraftrecently improved the viewing distance for classic continents across Azeroth. This change was implemented as a part ofWorld of Warcraft’s most recent content update, Patch 10.1.5.
Fractures in Time, also called Patch 10.1.5,recently arrived inWorld of Warcraft. This update added the Dawn of the Infinite megadungeon, an expansion to the Warlock class, and several quality-of-life updates.
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While not as immediately obvious as other features,World of Warcraftincreased the default viewing distance in classic continents like Kalimdor and the Eastern Kingdoms in this patch. The subtle shift increases the fidelity and rendering of distant objects and terrain, allowing players to see large landmarks from further away while at high vantage points.World of Warcraftshowcased the difference between the old and new draw distance on its official Twitter–and it even made a cheeky reference toone of Tobey Maguire’sSpider-Manmemesin the process.
In the past,World of Warcrafthas adjusted the viewing distance, also called draw distance, increasing or decreasing the default value to meet its needs. The Dragon Isles were specifically designed to have an incredible draw distance to show off the newDragonriding mechanic added inDragonflight, but old continents were not so lucky. With its most recent update, these older locations have been brought closer in line withDragonflight’s standard.
Most players appreciate the subtle changeWorld of Warcraftmade. Being able to see distant landmarks likeWorld of Warcraft’s World Treeor the sword of Sargeras in Silithus makes the world feel alive and awesome, giving players the chance to take in some truly captivating sights. It also makes navigating long distances easier and gives players more to go off of than drab, featureless fog while flying across the old continents.
However, other players pointed out that the increased draw distance inWorld of Warcrafthighlights one of the game’s biggest flaws. While the seamless rendering of these continents lets players fly across most zones without loading screens, it also makes the world unnecessarily small. Kalimdor and the Eastern Kingdoms are only about 10 miles long from north to south–a fraction of the nearly 5000-mile length of most real-life continents. If Kalimdor were the size of a real continent, rather than a small island, players couldn’t see nearly as far as they can in the game unless Azeroth was flat. In this case, however, most agree that the suspension of disbelief for the sake of visual clarity is better than the impossible realism of making a life-sized game world.
World of Warcraftis available now for PC.
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