Wrath of the Lich Ding

With each new World of Warcraft expansion comes a bump in the level cap, which inevitably leads to a bunch of lunatics racing to see who can hit the new cap first. Well, 27 hours after the launch of World of Warcraft: Wrath of the Lich King in Europe, a French player named Nymh has the honor (?) of being the first player to hit level 80. MMO-Champion has an interview with the dude, explaining how he got to level 80 with such speed, a process I'm sure was just as thrilling to do as it is to read about.

I realize that it'll take most people a bit longer to hit 80, and that Nymh has only seen a sliver of the content Wrath of the Lich King has to offer, but I'm boggled by this mindset of racing to the end of a game that you intend to keep playing in perpetuity. It's like waiting two years for a delicious, tender, perfectly marbled steak, and then throwing it in a blender since chewing takes too much time. Isn't that something you'd want to savor? Also, ew?

Then again, I've never been able to wrap my head around the appeal of endgame content in an MMO, which I think is largely because of my professional appreciation of the closure provided by a single-player narrative. I liken endgame play to a strip club: no matter how much time and money you sink into it, you're just going to end up going home alone, frustrated, and penniless.