Addon Spotlight: Achievements

I have to say; at first I was not a fan of the new Achievement system. Feathers in my cap didn't intersest me on Xbox Live, and even Warhammer Online's achievement system didn't do much for me during my short stint as a Marauder. I don't think I could attribute my newfound obsession to any genius on the part of Blizzard, but I do have to admit that I've fallen for achievements in World of Warcraft. Perhaps it has something to do with the massive amount of time played, or a sense of having been there and done that. Naturally this led me to start mixing my passion for achievements with my passion for addons. This week, we're going to take a look at a few addons specifically built to enhance or simply the new system.

Let's start with one bearing a name alluding to one of my favorite movies. Urban Achiever replaces the default Achievement UI. It adds a search feature, making it easy to find an achievement amongst the many available. It also replaces the tracking feature, while even automatically tracking time achievements when they begin. Players can track up to five achievements at a time. In the end, this one is really a matter of preference.

Next up is OverAchiever, which adds an impressive array of features to the Achievements system. Given the amount, let's look at a just a few:

• Search Achievements by name via a slash command


• Ctrl+Click on an achievement link to open the Achievement, again to track it


• Tracking frame is moveable


• Adds a tooltip with your progress on the tracking frame


• Certain creatures / items have additional tooltip information if they pertain to an achievement

Damn Achievements simply cleans up the default Achievement UI. There is no configuration for this one, just plug-and-play. The author states that this one simply cleans up a lot of useless space, and makes the whole system more "awesome".

Improved Achievements takes what Damn Achievements does and adds a search feature and some enhanced tooltips.

HideAchievements hides the popup frame when you complete an Achievement, sending it to the chat frame instead. However, if you're using SCT, the message will appear as scrolling combat text.

AchievementSnap will take a screenshot each time you complete an Achievement. I've never personally been one to record moments in my World of Warcraft career with screenshots, but if you're into the scrap-booking thing; knock yourself out with this one! Achievement SS does the same thing, but merits a shout based on the fact that the author seems to enjoy cookies. (Read the description over at WoWInterface.com)

AchievementFilter, our last addon for today, simply hides achievement notification in the chat and guild channels. This one is for all of you who could care less about other players' achievements. If you are, good for you, the world needs more brooding gamers.

That's it folks, a quick look at some Achievement-related addons. Now, go forth and achieve stuff, you've got some time before the new Arena season to rack up some Achievement points. Dismissed!