Should Blizzard Skip 9.3?

[Soon-TM]

I can't believe that 10.0 isn't already in development.

It should be, in principle - but it is probably suffering from at least the same delay that 9.1 (and 9.0, while we're at it) had.

[Porimlys]

i hope not, id like to explore the shadowlands world/story more, i think its really neat. worst thing this expansion has done is have slow releases tbh

[Spiffums]

Blizzard doesn't have a choice. They HAVE to skip because at the glacial rate it takes for them to push out content, if they do a 9.3 then FFXIV will release their 7.0 expansion before WoW 10.0 even comes out. Furthermore, FFXIV releases a patch once every 3.5 months, whereas WoW struggles to put out a content light patch once every 7 months (and it's riddled with bugs), and has a 9+ month delay between the last patch of an expansion and the launch of the next expansion. So while WoW is in its doldrums, FFXIV will just keep running laps around Blizzard, drawing more attention and attracting more players from WoW.

Why would Blizzard care what the flavor of the month game does? FOTM players are going to bounce around games anyways. They always come back play the patch and then leave.

[Nyel]

Why would Blizzard care what the flavor of the month game does? FOTM players are going to bounce around games anyways. They always come back play the patch and then leave.

Flavor of the month game? Final Fantasy XIV is the biggest MMORPG in the world at the moment and an expansion is launching soon which will further boost it.

[Paperfox]

Why would Blizzard care what the flavor of the month game does? FOTM players are going to bounce around games anyways. They always come back play the patch and then leave.

WoW has been King of the Hill for a while which has its benefits. Nobody cares if you are one of the best players in an obscure game, whereas AofC, world first of WoW does have some value to those who chase that. It is better to be a medium size fish in a very large pond, than to be a big fish in a very small pond.

[Jastall]

Since we're fast approaching October with not even 9.1.5 released, yes they should IMO. And I suspect they will. 9.2 will release next year bar a small miracle, and Blizzconline will want to be focused on the next expansion. With Blizzard's cadence since COVID there's no room then for 9.3 unless the next xpack is delayed to like mid 2023 or something which I very strongly doubt will happen. At most we'll get a 9.2.5 small patch to tie up story loose ends and set up 10.0 after the Jailer gets dunked in 9.2, with the next expansion coming likely late 2022, perhaps early 2023 if things go wrong.

[Talrath]

What's left to be done in SL after we stop the Jailer in 9.2? (I assume we stop him then because, well, "We have to stop him or all of existence is DOOMED!") is the cliffhanger we'll be spending 6 months or more on.)

And all things considered, i'd rather they move on from this dumpster-fire of an expansion rather than stretch it out some more because "we want all the crap our money paid for, dammit!"

I truly get it that you want to get away from the horrible expansion, but we cant reward them for making a pile of shit expansion and move on like nothing happend. Imagine that the next expansion also becomes a pile of shit and will move again to a new expansion after .2 patch. Im just worried cuz blizzard has been dishing out expansions that werent done but after legion it just went too far, cant trust them to make an expansion without big problems.

[Reclaimer]

Flavor of the month game? Final Fantasy XIV is the biggest MMORPG in the world at the moment and an expansion is launching soon which will further boost it.

That's laughable and 100% not true.

[Darkeon]

In before that was the entire plan already.

[Lahis]

I can't believe that 10.0 isn't already in development.

10.0 has been in planning stages even before 9.0 Alpha, but the realities of WoW development means that majority of the work can only happen when majority of the team can transition to it, which is after last patch of Shadowlands is ready.

[Dracullus]

That's laughable and 100% not true.

We don't know WoW subs right now - OH GAME IS DYING IT HAS LIKE 500K SUBS.

We don't know FF14 subs right now - Final Fantasy XIV is the biggest MMORPG in the world at the moment.

What do you not understand?

[mysticx]

I truly get it that you want to get away from the horrible expansion, but we cant reward them for making a pile of shit expansion and move on like nothing happend. Imagine that the next expansion also becomes a pile of shit and will move again to a new expansion after .2 patch. Im just worried cuz blizzard has been dishing out expansions that werent done but after legion it just went too far, cant trust them to make an expansion without big problems.

I'd rather have full-length expansions too, but what's left?

Next raid we *have* to stop the Jailer, everybody's nattering on about how he almost has... whatever it is he needs to... do whatever it is he wants to do, so in the next raid we either defeat him, or he goes full "Dr. Claw", and runs off while ranting something about getting us next time, and we get another Jailer-themed raid to actually defeat him, from those two options, i prefer just defeating him in 9.2, TBH.

So 9.3 will be pretty unimportant for the lore, unless we get some sudden lead-in to whatever the next expansion will be about, but a whole raid as lead-in would be a bit much, and a filler raid in an expansion's final patch is pretty meh, as well.

Let's be fair: There is no good way out of this mess, so best to just move on, because Shadowlands isn't likely to become fun if it lasts longer.

[Boddhi]

I am fine with either a 9.3 or an earlier 10.0.

For me honestly every xpac feels kind of the same. Can't say i prefer Shadowlands story/lore/graphics/dungeons/raids/daily activities/carrots on sticks over over the BFA/MOP/WOD ones or the other way round. Or it least not remarkable. BFA systems sucked though and i was desparetely longing for BFA to end (Too bad because the i loved the zones, music and story).

I truly like the covenant system, not the system itself (it's pick your favorite buffs and extra buttons ultimately), but that my covenant of choice offers 2 abilities that really work out well with my playstyle and combat feels great (i exclusively play one class/spec). The gameplay being enjoyable motivates me to minmax my char and be more active in guild activities. I might even regularly Mythic raid this time, just because by being that activel, geared and "systemed" i can pull the numbers which i just could not in BFA.

[Nyel]

That's laughable and 100% not true.

What do you think is the biggest MMORPG right now? Retail WoW? lol

- - - Updated - - -

In before that was the entire plan already.

That's what I've been saying for half a year now. It seems like nobody is considering that option, but maybe Blizzard never planned to have a 9.3 and always wanted to end Shadowlands with 9.2(.5), because they knew about all the delays and they couldn't get back on schedule?

[huth]

I'd rather have full-length expansions too, but what's left?

Next raid we *have* to stop the Jailer, everybody's nattering on about how he almost has...

No, we don't. We didn't win in SoD (in fact, the whole raid was a complete bust with Zovaal not even being inconvenienced), there's no guarantee we will win the next time... or possibly won't even face him directly in 9.2.

[mysticx]

No, we don't. We didn't win in SoD (in fact, the whole raid was a complete bust with Zovaal not even being inconvenienced), there's no guarantee we will win the next time... or possibly won't even face him directly in 9.2.

Ok, then we'll be spending the entire expansion playing "Where in the shadowlands is Jailer Sandiego?", chasing after him but always just too late to stop him, a sort of reverse Wrath, that won't go over well, either.

And we kind of do have to stop him quickly, he's off to the sepulcher of knowledge, has all the infi- i mean, covenant McGuffins (We made replacement ones in quite a hurry too, weird for something that would have made a nice storyline in 9.2 if it wasn't about stopping the Jailer), so he's about to blow up all of existence, that is the sort of thing we kind of have to prevent.

It's not just me wanting this mess to end, Blizz seem to be rushing towards it, too. We have replacement McGuffins, the Primus is back, Tyrande has been sedated again, not many non-jailer loose ends left, really. There's Denathrius and the dreadlords (Sounds like a heavy metal band), but it's 50/50 odds if they'll be bosses in the next raid, or lead-in for the next expansion (Since they have been retconned into the omnipresent manipulators orchestrating everything that ever happened)

[Teriz]

I'm pretty much done with this expansion. Wasn't hugely into it to begin with, but the reveal in 9.1 that Sylvanas somehow didn't realize that the Jailer was a bad guy kind of killed all interest I had in this expansion. I'm tired of Sylvanas, and I'm tired of this effort to retcon WotLK (aka the best expansion).

Bring on 10.0!

[mysticx]

I'm pretty much done with this expansion. Wasn't hugely into it to begin with, but the reveal in 9.1 that Sylvanas somehow didn't realize that the Jailer was a bad guy kind of killed all interest I had in this expansion. I'm tired of Sylvanas, and I'm tired of this effort to retcon WotLK (aka the best expansion).

Bring on 10.0!

True, Sylvanas realizing after years of doing his busywork that she was *serving* the jailer, and of all things *that* being what into her to thinking about what she has been doing all that time was a moment of narrative stupidity that eclipsed even "Draenor is FREE!"

Although retconning almost all of Azeroth history into the Jailer playing 4D chess against himself comes pretty close, too.

[huth]

Ok, then we'll be spending the entire expansion playing "Where in the shadowlands is Jailer Sandiego?", chasing after him but always just too late to stop him, a sort of reverse Wrath, that won't go over well, either.

And we kind of do have to stop him quickly, he's off to the sepulcher of knowledge

As you say yourself, we know where he is. What we don't have is a way to get there or a way to actually do anything about the situation. Remember, the final fight of SoD is him simply standing there doing his thing while we can't even hurt him. Simply running after him now wouldn't accomplish anything. Who knows, we might not even get to defeat him in SL.

We have replacements for the four covenant sigils, but not for the Arbiter core.

[Hablion]

there is no 9.3 KEKW how do they skip it? 9.2 in feb > blizzcon > beta > 10.0 in fall

I do not think at this point what they have done is beyond the basic storyboard let alone Releasable information/demo/Beta for Blizzconline. Even if they did it would be another rushed mistake like Shadowlands and WoD and with the work environment over at ATB I doubt the mandatory crunch times over the mistakes of the company would go down well. Earliest it could be is mid 2023 if they did not want a shadowlands 2.0.