Post-Mortems

An index of all of the post-mortems breaking down the lesson I’ve learn from major visible work I did back on my World of Warcraft, League of Legends, Ori and The Will of The Wisps and other other unannounced projects (post-release).

You can get notified here, when I release the next post mortem.

World of Warcraft:

1. Attumen The Huntsman: The Dangers of Neglecting Research in Game Design

Game: World of Warcraft: The Burning Crusade
Game Element: Attumen the Huntsman,  the first boss in Karazhan Raid
Discipline: Content Design

2. Nazan & Vazruden: The Story of The Boss Who Stole The Show in Hellfire Ramparts

Game: World of Warcraft: The Burning Crusade
Game Element: Nazan & Vazruden, Final boss of Hellfire Ramparts
Discipline: Content Design

3. The Underbog: Technical Limitations and Design Reflections on My First Solo Dungeon

Game: World of Warcraft: The Burning Crusade
Game Element: The Underbog, a 5-man Dungeon
Discipline: Content Design

3.1. Hungarfen: My Journey to Mastering Complexity and Gradual Tension

Game: World of Warcraft: The Burning Crusade
Game Element: Hungarfen, Dungeon Boss
Discipline: Content Design

3.2. Ghaz’an & Swamplord Musel’ik: Adding Clarity to My Game Design Toolbox

Game: World of Warcraft: The Burning Crusade
Game Elements: Ghaz’an, the second boss of The Underbog, Swamplord Musel’ik, the third boss of The Underbog
Discipline: Content Design

3.3. The Black Stalker: Fun for Designers Doesn’t Guarantee Fun for Players

Game: World of Warcraft: The Burning Crusade
Game Element: The Black Stalker, the final boss of The Underbog
Discipline: Content Design

4. The Big Bad Wolf: Embracing Simplicity in Designing Boss Fights

Game: World of Warcraft: The Burning Crusade
Game Element: The Big Bad Wolf, raid boss in Karazhan
Discipline: Content Design

5. Nightbane: The Dynamics of Collaboration & Designing for External Stakeholders

Game: World of Warcraft: The Burning Crusade
Game Element: Nightbane, the final boss in Return to Karazhan
Discipline: Content Design

5.1. Nightbane: Overcoming Unforeseen Technical Challenges

Game: World of Warcraft: The Burning Crusade
Game Element: Nightbane, the final boss in Return to Karazhan
Discipline: Content Design

5.2. Nightbane: When Design Assumptions Collide with Actual Gameplay

Game: World of Warcraft: The Burning Crusade
Game Element: Nightbane, the final boss in Return to Karazhan
Discipline: Content Design

6. Shade of Aran: Unveiling the Ingredients of a Well-Crafted Boss Encounter

Game: World of Warcraft: The Burning Crusade
Game Element: Shades of Aran, a boss in Karazhan
Discipline: Content Design

6.1. Finding the Golden Nuggets: How to Prioritize Design Ideas for Shades of Aran

Game: World of Warcraft: The Burning Crusade
Game Element: Shades of Aran, a boss in Karazhan
Discipline: Content Design

6.2. Shade of Aran: The Power of Playtesting for Iterative Game Design

Game: World of Warcraft: The Burning Crusade
Game Element: Shades of Aran, a boss in Karazhan
Discipline: Content Design

7. The Clash of Novelty and Game Difficult

Game: World of Warcraft: The Burning Crusade
Game Element: Netherspite, a boss in Karazhan
Discipline: Content Design

 8. Investing in Novelty: Taking Risks for Extraordinary Rewards and Unique Player Experiences

Game: World of Warcraft: The Burning Crusade
Game Element: The Chess Event, a special quest in Karazan
Discipline: Content Design

9. Leveling Up Together: The Synergy of Structure and Mentorship in Game Content Creation

Game: World of Warcraft: The Burning Crusade
Game Element: Outdoor Spawning
Discipline: Content Design

10. Finding Harmony: Balancing Fantasy and Gameplay Mechanics for a Memorable Experience

Game: World of Warcraft: The Burning Crusade
Game Element: The Ring of Blood, 5-man quest chain
Discipline: Content Design

11. Connecting With Your Class: Class Quests and the Art of Personalized Gameplay

Game: World of Warcraft: The Burning Crusade
Game Element: Anzu, heroic only dungeon boss in Sethekk Halls
Discipline: Content Design

31. First WoW Class Overhaul: Redefining the Warlock Class in World of Warcraft

Game: World of Warcraft: Mists of Pandaria
Game Element: Warlock Class Overhaul
Discipline: Class Design

31.1. Forging a Legacy: The Impact of a Novel Resource System in the Gaming World

Game: World of Warcraft: Mists of Pandaria
Game Element: Warlock Class Overhaul
Discipline: Class Design

32. Back to the Roots: How Unnecessary Skills Hindered the Warlock Class

Game: World of Warcraft: Classic
Game Element: Warlock Class Overhaul
Discipline: Class Design

32.1. The Core Fantasy: What Went Wrong in Warlock Talent Trees Along the Way 

Game: World of Warcraft: Classic
Game Element: Warlock Class Overhaul
Discipline: Class Design

32.2. From Temporary Relief to Long-Term Burden: The Story of Warlocks and Band-Aid Fixes

Game: World of Warcraft: Classic
Game Element: Warlock Class Overaul – Spells
Discipline: Class Design

32.3. Balancing Act: The Relationship Between Streamlining and Gameplay Balance

Game: World of Warcraft: The Burning Crusade
Game Element: Warlock Class Overhaul – Spells
Discipline: Class Design

32.4. The Art of Trade-offs: Managing Limited Design Space in Game Development

Game: World of Warcraft: Wrath of the Lich King
Game Element: Warlock Class Overhaul – Spells & Core Fantasy
Discipline: Class Design

Remaining unfinished Post-Mortems

12. Helping Out – High Astromancer Solarian

13. Fly Away, Little Birds – Akil’zon

14. The Illidari Council

15. Death Knights, Talents and Timing

16. Northrend – World Events

17. Wintergrasp – Aka, Where Not to Stick It

18. The Amphitheatre of Anguish

19. Northrend Battleground – What was it called again?

20. Vehicle Technology – Unifying Fractured Ideas

21. Flame Leviathan & The Gauntlet

22. XT-002 Deconstructor

23. Lord Marrowgar

24. The Crucible of Carnage

25. Tricks, Traps and Tape – Icecrown Dungeons

25.1. Pit of Saron – Forgemaster Garfrost

25.2. The Icicle Gauntlet

26. Murozond – End Time

27. Mage Legendary Quest – Return to the Nexus

28. Lord Rhyolith

29. Morchok

30. Hagara the Stormbinder

33. Priming Pet Battles

7 Responses

  1. Looking forward to Rhyolith (my most hated heroic boss of all time) and of course the warlock overhaul! Hope you find the time to continue these.

  2. The more I think about it, the more I realize that the Warlock overhaul was the epitome of pure class design in WoW. Three completely differentiated specs that fit a theme, each with a distinct playstyle, novel raid utility, and a bad ass questline. It’s a shame they won’t do the same for the other pures. Excited to read more about it. Also, Murozond would’ve been an amazing raid boss.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *