What's the point of LFR these days?

[Extremity]

Edit: This is not meant to be "qq" or anti-LFR. I've got no problems with it, I'm certainly not complaining, I'm just genuinely curious.

With Normal mode being completely cross-server compatible, along with how easy it is to use the current iteration of the group finder tool, does LFR really fill a necessary role in the game these days? In terms of being a no effort way to click a button and join a raid, the group finder pretty much fills that slot on its own; on both fronts you have to select the raid you want to run, and in group finder you can even have a bit of control over what groups you want to join. Unless the content is extremely dated there's usually not trouble finding a group, and when it comes to Normal mode people generally aren't terribly elitist in terms of item level requirements (although I'm aware it does happen).

I get that LFR is still the sort of "click and forget" thing that people want, a zero-effort way to queue up without making the slightest selection, but outside of "it's easier to get in" is there really any game-wide benefit to it at this point? Do we really need to spend extra development time tuning every single encounter for that additional difficulty level? Because that's all LFR is at this point; an easier difficulty. The method of queuing for it seems irrelevant now with the ease of the LFG tool.

So, while not saying there are no pros/cons to LFR vs the LFG tool, can we really still argue that it's something the game needs? It feels like we still have it simply because it's already there; why remove something that's been there for ages any people are used to? What if some players only use LFR and won't know what to do without it? Even considering that, there could always be some LFG tool improvements helping guide players towards the raid of their choice. So, again, are there enough pros to LFR to make it worthwhile at a time where finding a Normal-mode run is just as easy and, frankly, usually faster? Are we keeping it around simply for nostalgia's sake, or are there players that are genuinely incapable of completing Normal-mode that would be flat-out unable to see raid content if this lower difficulty tier were removed?

[Inci]

So my niece and nephew can complete current content.

[vipers]

its easy to get in and no hassle need to link achievements or item levels to anyone

[Usernameforforums]

You can obtain legendaries in lfr. Also story for the plebs, i mean the casualist of casuals.

[A Chozo]

LFR iteration is easier than the group finder tool, at least for me. And is quickier. Easiest and quickier is still the Raid Night that my guild does, but that is for guildies.

And if there are more players like me... LFR shall prevail!
Alas, we need to know Normal Mode participation rating, and compare it to LFR to know if it is useful.

IMO, I actually see some overlapping between Heroic and Normal.

And, I believe the majority of players that use have different reasons than mine.

[FelPlague]

i use it for a quick easy "kill X boss for this quest" for the bi-weekly cache
gives heroic peice for me

[shonist]

i will not read anything, i will just answer your tittle.

Point of LFR These days:

1. Discover that Raiding exist.

end.

source: Myself, i joined wow in pandaria in the official game, iv played BC before (15Years old).

Until i pressed the button "I" on my keyboard, i never known that the game has dungeons and raids. After that, i became a raider in every game, i almost download every game that has raids and dungeons. im heading to do mythic with my guild right now.

Before trying to do LFR SoO. i had no idea that this fun content existed. Not everyone knows about forums and patch notes.

I wont do lfr never in my life, even if it drops 100k gold per run. its stupid, but hey, i dont have to do it, i have more difficultys to challenge myself.
and now,

without knowing that RAIDS were a thing, do you think that i will be doing PugS?????? normal or heroic?? wtf? i was just reading ppl in the chat saying "LFM SoO flex" and i was like "WTF ARE THIS PPL TALKING ABOUT?"

get rekt. chao

[Super Kami Dende]

The same point LFR has always had. Low difficulty Queue-able Raids to allow people that play alone to see the story of the raid without the requirement of building a group themselves.

[Luko]

You press a button and it puts you in a raid group to kill raid bosses and see the raid. That's all you have to do.

Surely you can see how that's appealing to most of wow's playerbase.

[Patrick Star]

For people who are unable to complete current content on the easiest difficulty provided, it gives them a step down so they at least see the zones and bosses and get to press some buttons for a sense of satisfaction that they do not deserve.

[Luko]

For people who are unable to complete current content on the easiest difficulty provided, it gives them a step down so they at least see the zones and bosses and get to press some buttons for a sense of satisfaction that they do not deserve.

It's a videogame.

[Abysmo3420]

To afk on my toons to complete class hall quests because I am too impatient to wait till raid nights.

[Low Hanging Fruit]

Sad thing is I was doing LFR with my little nephew and got a titanforged item better than I have gotten raiding in mythic. GG with RNG

[Deleted]

So my niece and nephew can complete current content.

This, lol .

[Brocksley]

I like to see the story, because I've been playing Warcraft for about 17 years, but I don't really like raiding as much as I like PvP and questing. LFR lets me see the story progress.

[Thage]

LFR exists because participation rates still trend far higher (up to 30% in some tiers, historically) than Normal. There's a lot to be said for its appeal because you can queue in and won't be turned down so long as you meet the item level requirement. And that accessibility and low barrier to entry means it will remain a strong contender versus the other difficulties, because if you haven't noticed this game's community has something of a reputation for being snobby toward low-skilled or new players, deserved or not.

[RoKPaNda]

They'll remove LFR and make normal queuable eventually. It'll suck for the first two weeks or so and then it will be fine. LFR is for normal people who would never shackle themselves to an abusive raiding guild or jump through hoops for a player controlled pug.

[Hctaz]

It's a videogame.

Go give your grandmother a copy of Skyrim and see if she finishes the story.

LFR is grandma mode. Grandma doesn't normally get to see all of these things because grandma can't finish the game. The game has no exclusivity locked behind skill anymore, though I hope that changes when the solo skill based weapon appearances come out.

LFR can be pretty bad for the game since it offers the easiest possible way to see all of the content and, as such, will cause some players to think they've experienced everything so stepping into a harder version of the same thing is completely unnecessary.

[Demonidze]

its same point as it was all the time since it was introduced! to give a chance to extremely casual players to see the content/story. also some free gearing up loot if you lvling an alt..

[Shammyrock]

Tbh I haven't bothered beyond profession quests.