No way it will go to 5.8. I could see a 5.5, with the last patch starting the story for the next xpac, with maybe a random boss like the last one they threw in at the end of WOTLK that dropped OP trinkets just to keep players alittle busy.
And patches are coming at about half the speed they used to. They have stated time and again that they will be going to a quicker release schedule (18 months is their stated target number). The current speed of patch releases prove that is the schedule they are on. Ergo, since our estimates are based on real world available data as well statements by Blizzard developers, it has the weight of a educated guess. Your 'theory' based on PVP armor is far lest realistic. 8 patches? Really? World of Warcraft would not survive that long without new content, the last 6 months subscriber losses would pale into the mass exodus of players that would occur of another 15 months of Mists of Pandaria, especially with projects like The Elder Scrolls Online in the works and the decline of the MMO genre in general.
Starcraft I released in March. Starcraft II released in July. Heart of the Swarm released in March. Warcraft III: Reign of Chaos and The Frozen Throne both released in July. Diablo III released in May. Blizzard does have a history of releasing games in the spring and summer.
I don't buy that, nobody cares about patches without raid content. I'd say very few would be satisfied by a 5.3 style patch. Something doesn't add up here and I've said it in other threads. Either we're looking at a year or more of 5.4 raiding or we're getting more raid tiers in mop. It's very strange that we have no information at all about the next expansion yet.
Again, they have stated time and again, they will be getting expansions out faster. They have NEVER had a patch release schedule like they do now. Why is it so hard for people to comprehend that. You cant use the past to predict the current trend when the current trend defies every other convention for patch and expansion release they have had previously.
I expect the PTR for 5.4 will take longer than the 5.2 PTR, because not only is there an entire new tier to test, there is also virtual realms and flex mode raiding. 5.2 was on the PTR for nearly 3 months, so I don't think a ~4 month PTR for 5.4 would be that unreasonable, pushing it to some time in October. I can't see the new expansion going live in less than 6 months after it is announced at Blizzcon. However, if you look at a time table like this.
Mid-October - 5.4
Early-February - 5.5 (lead in patch, possibly a RS type raid)
Late-April - 6.0 (new class mechanics, etc)
Mid-June - New expansion
A time table like that would be close to in line with their release schedule to date and shouldn't leave content too stale for too long.
"Pandarian Gladiator" doesn't have a ring to it, end of story. /thread
A raid tier has never lasted longer than a year. And Blizzard has made it very clear that Siege is the last tier of the expansion. What doesn't add up is why so many need to find theories when the facts are in front of their face.
It's not strange at all that we have no new info on the new expansion, the Blizzcon before the next expansion is almost 5 months away.
---------- Post added 2013-06-17 at 09:34 PM ----------
This. And for those who pay attention.