In World of Warcraft, the tauren are a great idea. They are cow people, and cow people are a very good addition to the usual fantasy races of humans, orcs, elves, and dwarves. The tauren live on the plains of Mulgore, a zone not entirely unlike the American prairie, and anyone who has quested through Mulgore knows that the land is full of small animals beloved by all who see them crawling around in the grass and dirt.
One of those animals is the prairie dog. The prairie dog is a cute little rodent that burrows around the plains of North America, and it is important to the ecosystems out there because so many different species eat it. Farmers do not care for them much, but farmers are not the ones writing this.
The Prairie Dog In Real Life
The prairie dog is beloved by all who see it crawling around in the grass and dirt. It is a funny little creature, and people who like seeing funny little creatures are glad to have it around. Look at it!
The Prairie Dog In Warcraft
The prairie dog in World of Warcraft is a very different sort. It is by far the ugliest creature in all of Azeroth, and perhaps one of the ugliest little beings I have ever seen in a video game. Take a look:
- Its head is pointy like that.
- Its eyes are empty.
- It is very small and scurries everywhere quite fast.
- Targeting it gives a close-up of its face that is even worse.
The full model is not much better. You can see it over at Wowhead, and it is all weird and hunched over. It is an absolute monstrosity of a critter. How did this happen?
The Model That Was Replaced
Blizzard eventually replaced the model with one that actually looks like a cute prairie dog. That is what exists in the retail version of the game. People were happy, but there are still many fans of the old, polygonal prairie dog.
Finding The Old Model Again
An older version of World of Warcraft still carries the old model. You can go to Thunder Bluff, sneak around the Hunter’s Rise entrance, and a nice lady named Halpa will sell you a pet prairie dog just like this for 50 silver that you can bust out at any time and enjoy.
Why The Writer Loves It
I love it. The old prairie dog is a god-awful polygonal horror, and it is a reminder of the game’s history and the strange choices that made it what it is.
The Future Of The Prairie Dog
The prairie dog thrives in the vast plains of North America, and it thrives in the polygonal plains of Mulgore. It will be there forever, because it is based on the original version of World of Warcraft, when prairie dogs were just…like this.
Final Word
Three cheers for the humble prairie dog! We love you forever, ugly prairie dog.
Source material: “In Praise Of World Of Warcraft’s God-Awful Polygonal Prairie Dog,” Kotaku.
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