Chances are they would, if introduced, be a hero class similar to DKs. I bet they would start out at the cap from 2 expansions prior and level to cap of the previous expansion so they would be ready to start in the new expansion starting areas. I think and I believe Blizzard thinks they made a mistake having DKs go back to OL before hitting NR.
However, GC already put the nail in the coffin of DHs with is tweet a while back.
---------- Post added 2013-02-17 at 04:37 PM ----------
Pure assumption by players. Watch the making of MoP. They wanted Pandarens in WoW when it launched. They would have been Horde with Chen's ties to the horde. They tried to bring them into TBC as Alliance to counter the BEs but they made no sense with the story. There were never hinted at as only being non canon material.
---------- Post added 2013-02-17 at 04:46 PM ----------
Well you are citing your opinion as fact. Blizzard has stated many time that Pandaren are the most requested race by players on forum surveys, at Blizzcons, and whatnot. When they introduced Chen in TFT they also created considerable lore for the PnP game that rivals the Human and Orc lore in the game. As I said earlier they wanted Pnadaren at launch of WoW, were ready to add them in with TBC. Blizzard controls the lore and can make Quillboars the most important race in the history of the universe if they chose. They decided to make Pandaren and Pandaria important lore wise. It is not up to you or me and any one of us that plays to determine if they are important or not. Blizzard said they are so they are. That is how it works. The writers make stuff up and it is so.
Except when it didn't and MoP did just fine.
Predictably, it's going to be TBC part 2.
I can guarantee you 100% that 100 will be the lvl cap. The game is already 8 years old, and it takes at least 2-3 years for it to get lvl 100. Who the hell would play a game based on the same engine for over 10 years??? All the graphics and system will be seriously outdated.
The Warcraft universe will continue for sure. maybe WoW 2 will come out serveral years after new engined Warcraft 4. But it is pointless to continue current wow after lvl 100, with how fast the player base decreases and how old the game gets.
Lol.
Everquest still makes expansions and it`s older than wow, they`re on their 19th expansion so far.
As long as WoW is profitable, it will continue to make money. Peoples fetish with the number 100 will not stop that. Even if in the next 4 years if WoW lost 75% of its playerbase, it would still make money for the company. There is absolutely no reason the company would turn off their cash cow.
You know MoP brought back suscribers right? Cataclysm is where it went down, Pandas brought it back up instead of losing more people.
As long as people like what they are playing, engine means nothing, let alone graphics! (as these can be improved while keeping the same engine)
Small example of a completely unrelated franchise: Did you know there's a huge fan-base of the original Tomb Raider games (1996-2000) who still play and build levels using that old game engine? It surely serves as an example that no matter how old an engine gets, it's the feelings and immersion people get from the game make them want to play above all else.
Further info: www.trle.net
after pandas...probably ponies meet sponge bob
I wonder why people automatically associate Pandaren with kiddy stuff. Their lore is pretty hardcore.
I hope it will be as creative or more as MoP, just not the same gigantic timesink. The game has just been out too long to justify colossal timesinks in my opinion. I am beyond sick of dailies and the timesink barrier for alt ilvls.
Water would be cool.
I can guarantee you 100% that you are wrong. If when we reach level 100 Blizzard still have a few million subs they won't say "well, we had a good run guys, we've made enough money and don't want anymore, cya!", they will keep making expansions until it's no longer profitable. Lore and everything like that is irrelevant as long as profits are there, they are a business that wants to make money after all. As someone said, look at Everquest.
They don't need to make new expansion to make money. Even without new expansion, there will still be loyal fans that would play this game for years. And Blizzard will still profit.
Starcraft was release in 1997, Brood war was released in 1998. And people has been playing this games over 10 years. Starcraft 2 wasn't released until 2011. Did you see blizzard make expansions between those 10 years??? Making stuffs just for making stuff, without new inspiration and purpose is just so pointless. ruining blizzard rep instead of profiting
Just because they can continue producing more expansions does not mean they have to increase the level cap past 100. Look at Everquest, since thats being thrown around here, ten of their expansions saw no level cap increase whatsoever, sometimes back-to-back.
Why would you say "Cya" when you can still make money? Stopping making new expansions =/= shutting down the servers. They can still keep the game running severals years for the most profit, before it is totally outdated and overwhelmed by other games.
lvl 100 is still at least 2-3 years to go, then some loyal fans may keep still playing it for 2-3 years after that. And if you think the current wow can stay in popular status longer than that (5-6 years), then you are dreaming.
Last edited by ashblond; 2013-02-18 at 01:36 AM.
Starcraft 2: Wings of Liberty was launched on July 27, 2010. Not 2011. Just wanted to correct that part.
As far as people continuing to play Starcraft even though there was nothing new for over a decade, the RTS genre is an entirely different beast. Starcraft continued to be played heavily thanks to being turned into an e-sport largely by Korean players. RTS games are not like MMORPGs in which you are constantly striving to progress a character and even be told an evolving story depending on the type of MMORPG it is. Without being given new heights on a consistent basis you're left with nothing to look forward to. No new progression. This is also a different period of time. There are a lot more options now then ever before for players who are tired of a game. I can almost guarantee you that if WoW stopped putting out expansions its playerbase would plummet. You would still have people around, definitely, but it would be nothing like what it is now. Blizzard will continue to put out expansions because it actually IS necessary for them to do so if they wish to keep raking in the cash on a game they already know is a success. The game is very old by MMO standards so it wouldn't stand where its at for long if nothing new was around the corner.
WoW is definitely a juggernaut of an MMO but its an aging one that is going to need constant attention to stay running unless Blizzard wants to see the bulk of its playerbase migrate to the newer models like Guild Wars 2 and The Elder Scrolls Online, assuming it's the great MMO people are expecting. Of course, I could be ENTIRELY WRONG and sit amazed as WoW continues to have millions upon millions of players even after nothing new has come out for five to ten years.