"I can't wait to go SHOPPING in the new zones" is what some devs said.

[epigramx]

I don't think they understand why the game had like 20 million users around WotLK if they say things like that. Graphics of that game in 2004 and beyond were merely a downgrade from several 3D games of that era; very few even cared about things like collecting pets and those were mainly minority interests; the main bulk of the interest for the game is that it was the first time most gamers had a massive social platform with other gamers (which is hard to be a monopoly nowadays) and the massive worlds but those don't necessarily have to be impeccable in quality but mainly to exist and RPG gameplay systems just being good (or rather better than others) because back in the day most MMORPG options were very complex for kids and WoW was the first to combine those massive worlds with massive communication and simpler RPG systems.

[Lady Atia]

Well I surely care for collecting pets (and other stuff) and I'm also looking forward to go shopping in the new zones! Dragonflight looks awesome and if you don't like it, that's ok, maybe WoW is no longer the game for you.

[fazaim]

Lighten up. This outlook of yours won't keep you happy for long.

[Al Gorefiend]

Is your opinion so much greater than the opinions of others, that your POV requires two threads to be created by yourself and are too good for the 100 other created topics?

[Daronokk]

Are they even devs? Seems to me like most only sat there because they're women, gay or transgender.

[Khaza-R]

Okay? They are interested in some subset activity in a new zone. That doesn't mean its the only thing they are interested in.

Also these comments are largely written by marketing teams to highlight new features and POI. I am not sure how much you should take any of the dev comments at face value.

[Inoculate]

Are they even devs? Seems to me like most only sat there because they're women, gay or transgender.

Get ober yourself. Everyone there was a part of making WoW. Them using more than just guy rockstar devs is to show they are changing their inner political landscape. If those people scare you, maybe find anew game.

[Aucald]

People play WoW for a lot of different reasons and enjoy different activities in the game than other people. That's actually one of the nice things about WoW that's actually led to its historic lifespan as a game - there's pretty much something for everyone, from hardcore competition in the form of M+ and Mythic raiding to casual RP-type experiences of just taking in the zones and being in the game world.

If they prefer to RP shop in a fantasy world then more power to them - that's how they enjoy the game.

[Ilir]

Get ober yourself. Everyone there was a part of making WoW. Them using more than just guy rockstar devs is to show they are changing their inner political landscape. If those people scare you, maybe find anew game.

The one who talked about the new talent tree is actually a game designer in WoW for several years now.

People are just hating on them because it's "so cool to be an asshole".

[Lady Atia]

People play WoW for a lot of different reasons and enjoy different activities in the game than other people. That's actually one of the nice things about WoW that's actually led to its historic lifespan as a game - there's pretty much something for everyone, from hardcore competition in the form of M+ and Mythic raiding to casual RP-type experiences of just taking in the zones and being in the game world.

If they prefer to RP shop in a fantasy world then more power to them - that's how they enjoy the game.

So true. Also her comment kinda reminds me how I felt playing Pokemon Sword and beeing super happy each time I could go shopping for new outfits in a new city - that's something WoW is missing since most vendors just have boring unusable inventory so maybe that's something they're improving with Dragonflight!

[epigramx]

It's irrelevant if you claim "I like pets" etc. I'm telling that was definitely not what collected like 20 million active subs back in the late TBC/early WotLK era.

It's mainly that it was the first time that those people found a social platform on the internet but now there many more gaming options for that; what's more important is that back then there were not even that many non-gaming options(!); trade chat was literally the only social platform for many of those gamers (and if you don't know the history to understand it: back then facebook and twitter and instagram did not exist and whatever existed that was similar was still at its birthbangs).

[Flatspriest]

I don't think they understand why the game had like 20 million users around WotLK if they say things like that. Graphics of that game in 2004 and beyond were merely a downgrade from several 3D games of that era; very few even cared about things like collecting pets and those were mainly minority interests; the main bulk of the interest for the game is that it was the first time most gamers had a massive social platform with other gamers (which is hard to be a monopoly nowadays) and the massive worlds but those don't necessarily have to be impeccable in quality but mainly to exist and RPG gameplay systems just being good (or rather better than others) because back in the day most MMORPG options were very complex for kids and WoW was the first to combine those massive worlds with massive communication and simpler RPG systems.

How many players did WoW have at its peak?
At its peak in October 2010 the game had 12 million subscribers. As of November 2014 the game has over 10 million active subscribers. On January 28, 2014, Blizzard announced that 100 million accounts have been created for the game.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World_of_Warcraft

Where is the 20 million people you are talking about when there was barely 12 million?

[Utrrabbit]

Are they even devs? Seems to me like most only sat there because they're women, gay or transgender.

Tells us you're mysognist and transphobic without telling us you're mysognist and transphobic.

[epigramx]

How many players did WoW have at its peak?
At its peak in October 2010 the game had 12 million subscribers. As of November 2014 the game has over 10 million active subscribers. On January 28, 2014, Blizzard announced that 100 million accounts have been created for the game.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World_of_Warcraft

Where is the 20 million people you are talking about when there was barely 12 million?

The exact number is irrelevant/off topic, because it's multiple times lower now anyway so 20 or 10: it matters little if now it's at least 10X lower.

By the way: if you care about the exact number: the 2nd half of 2010 is unlikely the peak; it might be the first half of 2009 (with like ~15mil?)

[Lorgar Aurelian]

I loved collecting pets and mounts back in wrath if it wasn’t for things like the nether drakes or travellers mammoth I likely wouldn’t have kept playing and when I ran out of things like that in cata was the first time I subbed.

Well I’ve pulled way back on collecting as things aren’t as shiny and new as back in wrath or don’t fit my taste putting things for people to collect in game is still a great idea and something tons of players love.

[Jester Joe]

It's irrelevant if you claim "I like pets" etc. I'm telling that was definitely not what collected like 20 million active subs back in the late TBC/early WotLK era.

You're right. But on the same hand, there is nothing you can point to as to why WoW managed the success it did. There is no single contributing factor. It could be pets to one person, it could be raiding to another. You don't get such a huge sub number like they have in the past by appealing to a single group. So you're also kinda wrong, but trying to claim that there is a single reason why.

Oh, and also it's really silly to make a thread over a single quote of a single dev out of context and then go "SEE THE DEV TEAM DOESN'T GET IT".

[Lorgar Aurelian]

The exact number is irrelevant/off topic, because it's multiple times lower now anyway so 20 or 10: it matters little if now it's at least 10X lower.

By the way: if you care about the exact number: the 2nd half of 2010 is unlikely the peak; it might be the first half of 2009 (with like ~15mil?)
https://i.imgur.com/c5LUyx7.png

They put out an official sub chart you can still find online don’t relay on something as useless as google trends.

[epigramx]

You're right. But on the same hand, there is nothing you can point to as to why WoW managed the success it did. There is no single contributing factor. It could be pets to one person, it could be raiding to another. You don't get such a huge sub number like they have in the past by appealing to a single group. So you're also kinda wrong, but trying to claim that there is a single reason why.

Oh, and also it's really silly to make a thread over a single quote of a single dev out of context and then go "SEE THE DEV TEAM DOESN'T GET IT".

For me it's relatively clear. The internet (population) was generally ready for social media platforms but they simply did not exist yet(!); there were the birthbangs of it like the first blogs ("home pages" back then mostly) and some social platforms that don't exist anymore but nothing like today; most games didn't even have multiplayer online!

WoW was literally not just a game to a lot of players; it was literally a virtual world; it was in a sense both what WoW is now and something like being on Instagram or VR chat at the same time etc.

- - - Updated - - -

They put out an official sub chart you can still find online don’t relay on something as useless as google trends.

Why do you unquestionably trust a company which technically only exists to generate profit? I'm telling you they might have had MORE subs before late-2010 than they claim(!).

Why you may ask (why wouldn't they say 2009 had even more); because simply they might have wanted to promote their 2010+ presence; WotLK was released in 2008 and whoever was subbed around Ulduar knows that's the actual peak.

[bullseyed]

How many players did WoW have at its peak?
At its peak in October 2010 the game had 12 million subscribers. As of November 2014 the game has over 10 million active subscribers. On January 28, 2014, Blizzard announced that 100 million accounts have been created for the game.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World_of_Warcraft

Where is the 20 million people you are talking about when there was barely 12 million?

Difficult concept to understand, apparently, but 12M concurrent subscribers would be expected to cover more than 20M people. One person is subbed one month, cancels the next, another guy subs for that month = 1 concurrent sub, 2 people.

Why do people do that? Dunno. But they do.

[boyzma]

The actual question here is....who gives a shit what or when the highest numbers were? Are you really that attention seeking that you need to do this?