World of Warcraft: Dragonflight Releases This Year - Pre-Orders Now Available

[james2400]

This is just for pre order box sales nothing more nothing less.

[Rucati]

Um, did you just forget about them reworking the entire talent system or ...? Rushing that out without extensive testing is going to not be great for a core system of the game.

Uhh you do realize all the talents are things that already exist, right? It's probably the easiest thing they could add, the only thing that really needs to be tested is making sure you have enough points to make a playable build, which can basically already be tested just by knowing what the talent options look like.

[micwini]

Of course they have started testing, ages ago...

I mean public testing. I feel 6 months of players testing > providing feedback > iterating > new feedback > etc. is just too short for something as central to the game as talents for example.

[Venziir]

It's basically july, which means they have 5 months to alpha and beta test and release it. Ouch.
Only way it's not gonna be hella rushed, if it they've spend the last 5+ months working on it, instead of SL - which I suppose makes sense.

[Nivena]

"Too soon Executus, too soon." I am wondering if they are refusing to learn from their past mistakes. Don't rush this once again!

[schwarzkopf]

I mean public testing.

Ah, well public testing isn't as much required when there isn't a lot of new 'tech' in the game - as is the case with Dragonflight.

[Iain]

I think they have one big advantage for Dragonflight, no complex intertwined borrowed powers (artefact, legos, covenants etc etc) to attempt to implement.

For the most part - they are just implementing a system which is currently working in classic - classic talents, and new content.

In theory it should be the least complicated expansion in years.

And no Torghast which I imagine to be a massive resource sink as well. And we probably shouldn't underestimate the headache that the Maw posed to the developers.

[Lolites]

That's beautiful but Blizzard can't afford to fail on this one. For once, Blizzard aren't the top dog anymore and people are (still) leaving the game.

people were leaving the game since vanila, and saying blizz "cant afford to fail this time" since about cata, with "Game is dying and *current expansion* is worst thing ever since TBC...

[Rageonit]

Unless season 4 gets announced that it will start before end July, then no chance of Dragonflight being ready this year, however it is important to note that they only developing 4 new dungeons compared to 8 at the start of most expansions. The other 4 will be from previous expansions. So in some ways less initial content but they are redoing the UI and a new class.

That's false, there will be 8 new dungeons at the start of the expansion - but only 4 of them will be in the Season 1 m+ rotation.

[Pendragon]

And suddenly all the doomsayers and experts come out of the woodwork.

[Resheph]

And suddenly all the doomsayers and experts come out of the woodwork.

Suddenly? Have you read the MMO forums before? I am surprised there's even one or two sensible replies here....

[chiddie]

6 months from now means that it’s basically done and almost no changes will be made.

Let’s hope classes and specs will be balanced enough.

[Lolites]

More I think about it, no way Dragonflight comes out this year.

Heck to come out in December, and no beta yet, that'd only be like 5 months of beta testing before release. Which as far as I know has never happened, typically 6 to 8 months is the norm for beta, which puts the release more like Feb to April.

actualy, beta was 3-5 months afaik, with BFA and SL actualy being on the longer side and tbc/wrath on shorter...

[Feanoro]

And suddenly all the doomsayers and experts come out of the woodwork.

And so do the Blizzard Defense Force, telling us absolutely nothing is wrong and WoW is doing better than ever.

After two straight failed expansions, of course they want another Legion (which only seemed good compared to WoD). It's already astonishing that their management tolerated those failures and didn't set a new direction and/or change up staff. That doesn't take expertise, that's not being blindly ignorant of how businesses work.

Release in six months absolutely means DF is either rushed or SL was more or less abandoned WoD style to focus on DF. This is common sense with precedent. Again, no expertise needed, just basic observational skills and logic.

[loras]

people were leaving the game since vanila, and saying blizz "cant afford to fail this time" since about cata, with "Game is dying and *current expansion* is worst thing ever since TBC...

While very true it has to be noted that sooner or later they are going to be inevitably correct. All things die, the question is just "When?".

But yeah i do agree with your sentiment at present, even if thete are indeed reasons to worry given BfA and SL.

[chiddie]

While very true it has to be noted that sooner or later they are going to be inevitably correct. All things die, the question is just "When?".

But yeah i do agree with your sentiment at present, even if thete are indeed reasons to worry given BfA and SL.

It’s more “spare time dies” and mmorpg are games that require a lot of dedication to be competitive.

New gens are not interested in mmorpgs like they were 20 years ago. Gameplay is too slow and it does not rewards short sessions.

[loras]

It’s more “spare time dies” and mmorpg are games that require a lot of dedication to be competitive.

New gens are not interested in mmorpgs like they were 20 years ago. Gameplay is too slow and it does not rewards short sessions.

Also a factor, true, but not a permanent one.
In that sense Covid was a blessing, made people think about wtf they were doing with their life, what their hard work was actually worth (which was close to nothing in a nonmonetary sense, as per the lockdowns, and which is barely anything in the monetary sense as well, as per the inflation).

So yeah, that's either going to break something for the better or for the worse, but it's going to change. ^^

[Soimu]

Way, way too many idiots in this thread screaming about rushed, as though they ONLY started working on it the second the announced it.

The idiots are the ones that never learn from past mistakes as in trusting Blizzard.

[micwini]

Ah, well public testing isn't as much required when there isn't a lot of new 'tech' in the game - as is the case with Dragonflight.

Not much about tech, more about getting feedback and making changes. But I guess its gonna be another expac where feedback is ignored during beta and only fixed during 10.3

[chiddie]

Also a factor, true, but not a permanent one.
In that sense Covid was a blessing, made people think about wtf they were doing with their life, what their hard work was actually worth (which was close to nothing in a nonmonetary sense, as per the lockdowns, and which is barely anything in the monetary sense as well, as per the inflation).

So yeah, that's either going to break something for the better or for the worse, but it's going to change. ^^

Was just to say that people that started playing in the range 15-25 are now 35-45 and their spare time has drastically decreased. They know, because they played when they could spend 4+ hours a day every day in game, that they will never keep up anymore and quit.

On the other hand, new gens are used to fast and furious games and don’t like having to be engaged in long sessions forever so they don’t sub. My son is 16, I tried many times to make him try WoW out, but it never hooked him. Also none of his friends are into any mmorpg.

Pandemic “helped” somehow but as soon as cycle of life comes back to its “normal” routine, people - again - just unsub.