Readers who have been following the progress of the World of Warcraft know that the response to the game has been extraordinary. Many of the guilds in the game are already treating the title like a full-blown product - even to the point of getting upset on message boards when game systems get shuffled around, items get nerfed, removed altogether or (as in the last patch), when everyones quest flags are reset. Itd be hard to find fault with the games latest 190MB patch, though, as it improves the games look quite a bit and adds three new elements to the game that were badly needed.

The biggest change, of course, is the addition of the long awaited "Talent" system. Gamers who are familiar with branching talent tree Blizzard used in the Diablo games will be immediately familiar with the system in place here. Players get one talent point every time they level up, and each of these points can be invested in an ability that will enhance one of your existing powers or skills. Warriors, for example, can get enhancements to their Battle Shout or Rend combat moves, or they can specialize in a particular kind of weapon or combat style. Mages can enhance their mana regeneration or gain spell-like abilities like Ice Barrier that can absorb damage for up to one minute. Unfortunately, the system is only in place for Mages and Warriors with this patch, which will doubtlessly unbalance PvP combat for a while. Still its a nice addition to the game and helps make each level advance rewarding - something that was rather off-putting when players got no new powers at certain levels.