At the very outset of World of Warcraft’s Midnight expansion, we are summoned by an actual prayer to aid in repelling recurring big bad Xal’atath’s invasion of the elven kingdom of Quel’Thalas. And while I’m all for starting out in medias res, this feels like a particularly hamfisted and contextless way to begin a story. It’s almost disorienting at first, and I imagine even more so if you haven’t watched the five or six pre-expansion cinematics Blizzard has released at this point. Thankfully, from that point onward, the 10 hours or so I’ve spent with Midnight so far have otherwise been delightful.

Riding into the reimagined elven capital of Silvermoon is one of those WoW moments I’m not going to forget for a long time. Its gleaming ivory spires towered above me as an excellent new musical theme that references multiple previous ones filled me with awe. The layout does feel a bit alienating sometimes while on the ground since it’s clearly built for flying mounts, and I think there’s a bit too much open space. But the level of detail is maybe the highest we’ve ever seen for an in-game city in WoW ever, with evocative interiors that interconnect in unexpected ways and invite exploration. My framerate has been less than stellar, though.

Expanding legacy areas like Murder Row into extensive subzones with a lot going on helps the city come alive. And I spent more than half my playtime so far without ever venturing outside the walls, excitedly completing every side quest. It’s no secret that I’m a big “Thalassaboo,” having been a fan of the elves of Quel’Thalas since Warcraft 2. And even the smaller, optional adventures in Silvermoon excellently immerse you in the decadence, pridefulness, and political maneuvering that characterize the city. As an Alliance player, I was also impressed with how much of it we get to explore – only about a quarter of it is off-limits to us.

Beyond the shining capital, Eversong Woods has also been reimagined gorgeously. It was already one of my favorite zones in the entire history of WoW, and to see it get such a glow-up, finally healed from the scars of Arthas’ invasion all those years ago, is fantastic. The brewing story about the dangers of fanaticism hasn’t completely gripped me yet. But Xal’atath’s Voidstorm being held back by essentially a giant drain plug that won’t last forever adds an ominous urgency to all of it. And I feel like I have a little bit more context now for who Xal is as a villain, thematically, though most of that comes from those out-of-game cutscenes I mentioned.

I played several different classes to level 80 in the pre-patch event, which included most of the class changes for Midnight, focusing on my trusty Marksmanship Hunter main and the new Devourer Demon Hunter that unlocks with the expansion. I’m not ready to pass judgement on any spec until I see how they play at max level in difficult content. But as far as Marksmanship goes, I mostly agree with the changes so far thematically. Aimed Shot should be a big nuke that takes a long time to cast. But with the removal of talents like Streamline, the damage needs to feel a lot chunkier than it currently does to earn that fantasy. Our final apex talent, which will give it a 100% critical chance at level 90, could be the answer. We’ll see.

As far as Devourer, I’m not sold on it quite yet. I like the other Demon Hunter specs quite a bit, but the flavor of Devourer is a bit more caster-coded than the melee monsters Demon Hunters have always been in the lore. Baseline abilities like Consume don’t feel kinetic enough to me. They don’t feel… Demon Hunter-y, if that makes sense. And it could just be an animation thing. I kind of wish Reap was our main button instead. But the mobility is there, and the mid-range DPS playstyle is interesting. Again, I’ll report back on how it feels at max level.

Since player housing, probably the biggest new feature of Midnight, launched way back in December, I’ve put well over 100 hours into it already. And while the decor I’ve seen after 10 hours with the expansion proper makes me think Blizzard was really holding out on us with the initial offerings, it’s already become one of my main motivations to log in. The tools are very powerful when you learn how to use them, and I’m astounded and inspired to see what some people have done with them.

At the same time, housing definitely shows that it’s a first try in some places. The hotkeys to switch between editing your house and normal gameplay are kind of clunky and add too many steps to certain tasks. There are some common sense features missing, like being able to copy and paste a decoration or furniture item if I have another one in my storage. And it’s neat that dyes can be made by other players, but currently I get frustrated previewing different colors on a piece, then having to make a shopping list and go all the way back to town to visit the auction house and buy the paints I want. I’d like for that process to be faster and have fewer steps.

While the Early Access period for Midnight is well underway as I’m writing this, Blizzard is also withholding quite a lot of key features for the start of the first proper season this time around. Not just raids and Mythic+, but even Heroic dungeons and Bountiful Delves are going to be gated off until March 17. That’s a long time! It gives us plenty of space to level and see the pre-raid 12.0 story at our own pace, but if gear progression is your main thing and you’re not currently subscribed, you could definitely hold off a couple more weeks because you’re not going to have much to do.

I’ll be updating this review as I make my way through the story and try out a few different specs at max level, with a final score to come some time after Season 1 launches so I can get an idea for how the endgame feels this time around.

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Charizard – love it or hate it, there’s no denying that this Pokémon is an icon in its own right. It may be #0006 in the Pokédex, but it’s #1 in the hearts of Trainers across the globe. Since taking place front-and-center on Pokémon Red’s cover art 30 years ago, this Fire-type is iconic in its own right.

Since its debut in the Base Set of the Pokémon Trading Card Game, back in 1996, Charizard has been printed on a whopping 50 unique cards. But which is the most iconic? Let’s settle it, once and for all.

10. Charizard VMAX (Champion’s Path 074/073)

I almost feel sorry for Browt and Gecqua. How is an angry little leafy bird and a damp blue gecko meant to compete with the face card that Pombon showed off in the reveal trailer for Pokémon Winds and Waves? A tiny, smiley Pomeranian with eyes that could melt hearts as quickly as the fire he, in all likelihood, breathes, I fear that I already know I would die for him.

The thing is, when it comes to starter Pokémon, I’m not even traditionally a fire-type guy. I still insist to this day that there’s no cooler Pokémon than the hydro-pumping, water cannon-strapped Blastoise, so, naturally, my choice in that original generation was always going to be Squirtle. I’m not going to sit here making Brock’s Gym and Mt Moon harder for myself than it needs to be. That penchant for water transferred straight into Gold and Silver, with Totodile more often than not being my first Pokémon of choice. Just look at his little fanged face. Adorable.

And so, I would switch between elemental types for the next couple of decades, picking tactically, and thinking about what would make my onward journey the most fun and frictionless. I’m normally one to utilise an analytical approach to these things and not rush into a quick decision. So, when today’s Pokémon 30th anniversary stream ended with Gen 10’s reveal trailer, and inside of it hid our first peek at Winds and Waves starters, it was frankly embarrassing how quickly I decided that Pombon would be sitting snuggly in my very first Poké Ball. I’m not saying it’s as easy to give me an adorable little smile to get me on side, but in this case, the Pomeranian only went and did it.

Of course, we don’t yet know what any of these three starters will evolve into — I think it’s safe to assume larger birds, dogs, and geckos — but already I don’t even care. Sure, we’ve had our fair share of fire dogs over the years in Pokémon, perhaps most notably Cinnabar Island natives Growlithe and Arcanine, but Pombon is a fierce new breed, and one I will likely arm with quick attack, bite, and ember until he’s a big enough boy to incinerate any flammable fool stupid enough to stand in his way. Yes, even your tiny little Browt, if you, for some reason, decide that he’s the one for you in 2027.

The official Pokémon website describes Browt as a “lively but clumsy Bean Chick Pokémon”. Why would you want to hang out with a clutz? Gecqua is listed as an “intelligent Water Gecko Pokémon”. Brains are overrated; manners are everything. That’s why I’ll be making the actual smart decision and going with Pombon, the “friendly Puppy Pokémon”.

Stick with me, boy, I’ll keep you safe. Fire, come walkies with me.

Simon Cardy is a Senior Editor at IGN who can mainly be found skulking around open world games, indulging in Korean cinema, or despairing at the state of Tottenham Hotspur and the New York Jets. Follow him on Bluesky at @cardy.bsky.social.