If you're curious about WoW's active subs...

[dwarven]

You can use Google trends to see interest in the game over time instead. Currently, WoW and Overwatch are almost neck and neck for Blizzard's most popular game, with WoW having a slight lead.

https://trends.google.com/trends/exp...=%2Fm%2F021dvx

[Kyanion]

That proves not a damn thing. This is also NOT a metric to try and guess the subs of WoW. Give it up.

[The7]

That reminds me... where the "Wow is dead" crowd go?

[Firatha]

This data has nothing to do with subs nor can it help you or anyone else guess sub numbers.

[Lorgar Aurelian]

that doesn't reflect subs at all though.

[Queen of Hamsters]

The most recent claim of any sort that we have, is a blue professing to the game having "millions of players".

In other words, we have no subs, trends on Google/Twitch or Youtube or whatever says nothing at all. How can we gauge the health of the game?
Well, is the game still running with future content planned and added and no announcement as to the end of the game? There you go.

[ablib]

If subs actually matched Overwatch's popularity, or even came close to or surpass the 12.5 million high at the start of Cataclysm, you betcha Blizzard would let us know.

So until that happens, just assume subs have never recovered.

[Kaleredar]

That reminds me... where the "Wow is dead" crowd go?

They're all tearing eachother apart in the "classic WoW" thread, I believe.

[MrExcelion]

I end up using google for wow much more than I do for overwatch, since it pulls up a wowhead search as the first result usually, or whatever news post I'm looking for

[djcoin]

Wow is dead guys, give it up already.

[Queen of Hamsters]

If subs actually matched Overwatch's popularity, or even came close to or surpass the 12.5 million high at the start of Cataclysm, you betcha Blizzard would let us know.

So until that happens, just assume subs have never recovered.

More like "If you have an inherent need to believe that the game never recovered despite simple things such as a new expansion's release and constant content updates, make up your own metrics and assumptions!".

They made a commitment to stop reporting sub numbers, they use other (real) metrics now to share the health/projected health of their game to shareholders. Players having access to sub numbers only resulted in a shitfest every quarter, even before WoD.

Also: They didn't cut down the team's size after WoD. Seen in how we had more content in 1 year of Legion than 2 years of other expansions.

[God Save The King]

Basically what @SensationalBanana said. Blizzard stopped reporting subs likely because people had a negative reaction, and the community was really toxic about it.

As long as WoW is still running and having new & interesting content, I think it's doing fine. While not the most popular of content, Legion was probably one of the richest expansions to date in terms of quantity. BFA seems to also have a large amount of content. You'll know it's doing bad when the content volume drops for a long period of time, or when there are no more job postings, but plenty of those "I'm leaving" blue posts.

[Vonazak]

Wow is dead guys, give it up already.

Yet you are here.

[dwarven]

That proves not a damn thing. This is also NOT a metric to try and guess the subs of WoW. Give it up.

Can you do 3rd grade math? It won't tell you the number of subs, but it can give you a broad overview of the health of the game.

[Kyanion]

Can you do 3rd grade math? It won't tell you the number of subs, but it can give you a broad overview of the health of the game.

So you devolve to petty insults now? /yawn

And no, it does not give a 'broad overview' either. You are just trying to use something you saw on google to fit a bullshit narrative. It does not work.

[Laqweeta]

If subs actually matched Overwatch's popularity, or even came close to or surpass the 12.5 million high at the start of Cataclysm, you betcha Blizzard would let us know.

So until that happens, just assume subs have never recovered.

So much this and I'll take the report for spam.

[McNeil]

I am actually a bit curious but this is a terrible metric to go by. I'll just make a fair assumption that the game has around 3.5-4 million subs at this point.

[FelPlague]

You can use Google trends to see interest in the game over time instead. Currently, WoW and Overwatch are almost neck and neck for Blizzard's most popular game, with WoW having a slight lead.

https://trends.google.com/trends/exp...=%2Fm%2F021dvx

I love how you include only "World of warcraft" when people search up "wow bfa" "Wowhead" "World of warcraft battle for azeroth" one SINGLE search peraminter is not enough to gain anything off of.

- - - Updated - - -

If subs actually matched Overwatch's popularity, or even came close to or surpass the 12.5 million high at the start of Cataclysm, you betcha Blizzard would let us know.

So until that happens, just assume subs have never recovered.

no one is ever suspecting it to hit 12.5 mil again...

[Kyanion]

I love how you include only "World of warcraft" when people search up "wow bfa" "Wowhead" "World of warcraft battle for azeroth" one SINGLE search peraminter is not enough to gain anything off of.

Nah man, it gives a 'broad overview'

Hell you'd think people never used bookmarks and don't just directly go to wowhead or mmo-c.

[Eleccybubb]

Yeah this thread totally doesn't have a narrative or anything....

Not gonna lie though I do love that since TBC people have been in denial with the "game is dying" or "search trends are down= dead game" nonsense.

I mean seriously after 12 years of being proven wrong how can you still sit there with all honesty and say the game is dead/dying? I mean it's 12 years against your word.