Can the WoW userbase tolerate another expansion without new races or classes?

[kranur]

This question is simple: Shadowlands brought no new races or classes into WoW, do you think WoW players would be okay with yet another expansion with no new races or classes, or do you feel that Blizzard should really make an effort to bring either one of these (or both) into 10.0? If there is no new race or class in the next expansion, do you think it will have an effect on 10.0? Explain your answer.

Couldn't care less about a new class or race. I'd rather see the current classes improved and content that is more than circling around looking trying to tag a "rare" and leveling another system for 2 years.

[Lolites]

The problem is that new races and classes WERE given to people. My only requirement for playing Pandaren and Monk in MoP was purchasing the game.

thats one class for 3

for DK you had to have another class on lvl 55+
for DH you had to have another class on lvl 98+ (which actualy took probably less time than lvl 55+ during wrath)

now are those difficult criteria? no (neither were reps for allied races), but it wasnt just given to anyone who bought expansion, sure "old" players already had the criteria, fulfiled... just like players who actualy played the game already had the reputations for most of the allied races at the time they were added...

hell highmountain, void elfs, lightforged, nightborne were added at the end of expansion, anyone who played it was already not only exalted, probably already had few paragon chest done... kultiran and zandalari detto, they were added in 8.1.5, you already had the rep if you played the game...

so 6/10 of the allied races were "given" to people as much as 2/3 new classes...

[Thelxi]

The next expansion would be easier to sell with a new class/race, but I suspect that beyond initial box sales the cash flowing in will be the same one way or the other. Whales and ghouls don't need the incentive lol.

[MoanaLisa]

Does the WoW userbase sometimes act like spoiled babies? Yep.

There are too many classes already. I suppose they could continue to add races but they've found a good workaround for that as well.

[KOUNTERPARTS]

This point has been argued here before, but it is worth noting that generally a major marketed feature of a new expansion that is not a new race or new class better be pretty damn appealing.


That was the a hot topic here about Covenants and Torghast as major features to sell an expansion over, with many people feeling like they weren't comparable to the feature of a brand new class, or even new playable races.


Personally, if an expansion is announced and the various new features coming with the expansion are not new classes or new races to play as... I'm already halfway out the door as I was with BfA and Shadowlands. Granted, BfA marketed Allied Races from the beginning of it's announcement so that is something... but Covenants and Torghast (with what we know now of them) being the primary features of this expansion? I wish I could go back and tell myself 2 years ago to steer clear.


I still enjoy the game, though.

[Makabreska]

More races gated behind ridiculous rep and quest grinds.

That everyone already had by simply playing the game. And quests were a one time scenario. Bullshit arguments, as always.

[Voidism]

I'd rather have new specs for the classes that exist, and more customization options.

[ro9ue]

I don't think players can tolerate another bullshit end game progression system that won't mean anything outside of the current expansion.

With Legion we had no idea what they were going to do. Plenty of games have Alternate Advancement, Champion Points, Paragon points, etc where you have a tree or something to dump time spent at max level. Once it was revealed to us that we don't get to keep anything we acquired and the new expansion just set us to 0, a lot of us didn't even bother with BFA and the Heart of Azeroth, and then even less still bothered with Shadowlands.

They need to cap levels and announce an evergreen end game progression system, ideally that's account wide like D3 or ESO or I really don't see much of a reason to ever play World of Warcraft after doing the initial new expansion questing phase after release.

[Nero Duskwind]

This question is simple: Shadowlands brought no new races or classes into WoW, do you think WoW players would be okay with yet another expansion with no new races or classes, or do you feel that Blizzard should really make an effort to bring either one of these (or both) into 10.0? If there is no new race or class in the next expansion, do you think it will have an effect on 10.0? Explain your answer.

Circling back to your original question. The question shouldn't be "would WOW players be okay with another expansion that's absent a new race/class," but "given the Dev team's current track record, can you trust them to deliver on a new race/class?" Their current propensity for saddling players with borrowed power and unbalanced systems for months on end before even remotely beginning to listen to any semblance of feedback doesn't exactly inspire any confidence.

[MrLachyG]

I don't care about new races or classes to be honest. If they add them, great.

All I want from expansions is less forced time-gating. Let me grind reps, etc the old way.

I mean most reps, even in Vanilla, we’re locked behind dailies. But yeah I’d love to see a return to the tabard system in dungeons. Even with that simple change it would make things a lot better

[Teriz]

thats one class for 3

for DK you had to have another class on lvl 55+
for DH you had to have another class on lvl 98+ (which actualy took probably less time than lvl 55+ during wrath)

Yeah, and for veteran players they got DKs and DHs from the start. NO ONE had the BFA reps when the expansion started, so even max level players had to grind through tedious quests and other junk to get an expansion feature.

now are those difficult criteria? no (neither were reps for allied races), but it wasnt just given to anyone who bought expansion, sure "old" players already had the criteria, fulfiled... just like players who actualy played the game already had the reputations for most of the allied races at the time they were added..

It's not that they were difficult, they just took a lot of time that wasn't really necessary for an expansion feature. I still read posts where people say they never unlocked the allied races and they no longer care if they ever unlock them. That simply is not a good way to bring in a feature that the userbase is used to getting with purchase. I understand High Mountains, Dark Irons, Nightborne, Mecagnomes, Vulpera, etc. But Kul'tirans and Zandalarans also being put behind rep walls was simply ridiculous.

so 6/10 of the allied races were "given" to people as much as 2/3 new classes...

Again see above. I was a level 100 Druid when Legion dropped so I had instant access to Demon Hunters in Legion. I was a 110 Druid in BFA and I had to grind through tedious Kul'tiras quests (essentially EVERY QUEST on the continent) and dungeons just to get to play as a Kul'tiran (and I LOVED Kul'tiras). It's not the same situation, and it explains why BFA isn't regarded as highly as other expansions that offer new races/classes.

[Nero Duskwind]

Covenants and Torghast as major features to sell an expansion over, with many people feeling like they weren't comparable to the feature of a brand new class, or even new playable races.

Covenants, IMO, had the most potential to be a major feature but the inherent problem was that if the devs went even deeper into how consequential Covenant choices were to both players and their respective classes, it'd have been an exponentially bigger disaster than it already was at launch. It was a genuinely ambitious feature that was unfortunately doomed to be gutted from the get-go.

[Teriz]

Circling back to your original question. The question shouldn't be "would WOW players be okay with another expansion that's absent a new race/class," but "given the Dev team's current track record, can you trust them to deliver on a new race/class?" Their current propensity for saddling players with borrowed power and unbalanced systems for months on end before even remotely beginning to listen to any semblance of feedback doesn't exactly inspire any confidence.

Who knows. However, I would like to see them make the effort at the very least. If they bring in a new class/race and it is lackluster, at least they made an attempt to bring something new into the game.

New classes and races are imperative at bringing in new players (newblood are the lifeblood of any MMO and WoW is no exception), and at getting lapsed players to return.

I agree with this.

[Julian Rayne]

I'd rather get the remaining Heritage Armors actually.

[Val the Moofia Boss]

New classes and races are imperative at bringing in new players (newblood are the lifeblood of any MMO and WoW is no exception), and at getting lapsed players to return.

[kranur]

New classes and races are imperative at bringing in new players (newblood are the lifeblood of any MMO and WoW is no exception), and at getting lapsed players to return.

Makes no sense ... why would someone who hasn't played wow before care if there are new races and classes .. wouldn't everything be new to them?

[Ryzeth]

Yes. I don't care about new races/classes. I want the ones we currently have to be better balanced and worked/expanded upon instead.

That, and more things to do outside of Arena, Mythic+ and Raiding. Or better variation on them.

[Kralljin]

I mean most reps, even in Vanilla, we’re locked behind dailies.

Dailies didn't exist until TBC.

And even in TBC, it was still mixed.

[OrangeJuice]

This question is simple: Shadowlands brought no new races or classes into WoW, do you think WoW players would be okay with yet another expansion with no new races or classes, or do you feel that Blizzard should really make an effort to bring either one of these (or both) into 10.0? If there is no new race or class in the next expansion, do you think it will have an effect on 10.0? Explain your answer.

Adding more bloat to the game for the sake of adding shit is just stupid. If Blizz could make the classes they currently have, more fun to play and races either not matter at all or given more creativity, then there would be no need to add more. Yall are just bored because every class/spec plays exactly the same.

[StillMcfuu]

Speaking for myself... If Blizz doesn't at least massively overhaul the classes and game playstyle, I doubt I'll ever play again. A new class might bring me back for a bit to screw around, same for new races as long as they have great start experiences, but otherwise maybe a month sub most at this point.