Midnight 12.X Patches & World Soul Saga Speculation Thread

[Khaza-R]

Love how most of the discourse around modern wow boils down to "x thing was better in the past but the current one is not that bad"

I think a lot of it has to do with the fact that the MMO genre is so stagnant.

Look at Blizzard's other games, which are in much more competitive markets and you can see Microsoft upped the budget on those. But WoW, and particularly Midnight, it feels complacent by comparison

[Nymrohd]

I think a lot of it has to do with the fact that the MMO genre is so stagnant.

Look at Blizzard's other games, which are in much more competitive markets and you can see Microsoft upped the budget on those. But WoW, and particularly Midnight, it feels complacent by comparison

I don't know, I think the decision to make Midnight a sideshow for Housing did not come from Microsoft, it came from Blizzard.

[Dvalin]

What!? The Harandar OST (general, the Cradle, the different worldtree roots) is fantastic. The Quel Danas OST is also amazing. Then there are the bangers of combat themes (L'Ura, Alleria, Amani, etc.). The Loa Temple music (each has its own theme) is also very, very good. The different Zul'Aman themes are also very fitting, as are the more mysterious tracks around Windrunner Village and the dystopian - more electric-sounding - ones for the Voidstorm/Locus Point. I'd say I'm only slightly disappointed with some of the general Eversong Woods motifs, which are a bit more fantastical and soothing, as it reflects the changes in the area instead of the post-Scourge tragedy of the Burning Crusade. But those are still okay, just less memorable.

A lot of these composers have been making WoW soundtracks for years now, some for more than a decade. Burges, Acree, Arkenstone...

[Limayria]

I don't know, I think the decision to make Midnight a sideshow for Housing did not come from Microsoft, it came from Blizzard.

Midnight also seems to be strongly commiting to updating ever green features, revamped transmog, expanding of delves to labyrinths, iteration on the raid pillar of the game etc not to mention the addon changes, the addition of in game boss mods, the class revamp for a post weak aura world


I know ppl meme on "this is just the start of the next 20 years of Warcraft" but it actually feels like if this time to me idk

Housing as a whole new parallel game mode basically esp with the kind of stuff they've teased leaning into play generated content eventually and stuff like the quest for engaging with housing giving crest is actually a perfect reward for that because in the seasons where it matters those crest are only a bonus unless you weren't gonna play much anyway bcuz normally you'd cap on crest for the week from capping vault ,(or very close to it)


EDIT:

I noticed doing my karesh world quest, while killing some wastelanders they would say "my life for -" and specifically be cut off every time, i wonder why

[THEORACLE64]

What!? The Harandar OST (general, the Cradle, the different worldtree roots) is fantastic. The Quel Danas OST is also amazing. Then there are the bangers of combat themes (L'Ura, Alleria, Amani, etc.). The Loa Temple music (each has its own theme) is also very, very good. The different Zul'Aman themes are also very fitting, as are the more mysterious tracks around Windrunner Village and the dystopian - more electric-sounding - ones for the Voidstorm/Locus Point. I'd say I'm only slightly disappointed with some of the general Eversong Woods motifs, which are a bit more fantastical and soothing, as it reflects the changes in the area instead of the post-Scourge tragedy of the Burning Crusade. But those are still okay, just less memorable.

A lot of these composers have been making WoW soundtracks for years now, some for more than a decade. Burges, Acree, Arkenstone...

People just like to moan and whine and bitch if something isn’t 100% their expectations unfortunately. But then again, they’re just the ones who are chronically online sad little 4chan dwellers with a miserable existence of a life and thus it’s easy to ignore them.

[Dvalin]

People just like to moan and whine and bitch if something isn’t 100% their expectations unfortunately. But then again, they’re just the ones who are chronically online sad little 4chan dwellers with a miserable existence of a life and thus it’s easy to ignore them.

Opinions are fine, but then they should come with legit examples and all that. Not this way.

[Local Ardenweald Faerie]

I agree with the Midnight soundtrack missing some of those iconic Blood Elven melodies and flourishes in a lot of places, but I really don't mind the more heroic/"wholesome" approach. The Blood Elves lost their Fel addiction at the end of TBC, I don't expect them to be edgelords anymore.

[Monkal]

What!? The Harandar OST (general, the Cradle, the different worldtree roots) is fantastic. The Quel Danas OST is also amazing. Then there are the bangers of combat themes (L'Ura, Alleria, Amani, etc.). The Loa Temple music (each has its own theme) is also very, very good. The different Zul'Aman themes are also very fitting, as are the more mysterious tracks around Windrunner Village and the dystopian - more electric-sounding - ones for the Voidstorm/Locus Point. I'd say I'm only slightly disappointed with some of the general Eversong Woods motifs, which are a bit more fantastical and soothing, as it reflects the changes in the area instead of the post-Scourge tragedy of the Burning Crusade. But those are still okay, just less memorable.

A lot of these composers have been making WoW soundtracks for years now, some for more than a decade. Burges, Acree, Arkenstone...

Bro everything new in WoW is bad and everything old is good, tis has always been the way. People now just throw "Disney" in the mix instead of "Star Wars" or "Kung fu Panda".

[Khaza-R]

Bro everything new in WoW is bad and everything old is good, tis has always been the way. People now just throw "Disney" in the mix instead of "Star Wars" or "Kung fu Panda".

Tbf, when people mention Disney they are typically talking about the tone of the game. Not the themes like your latter examples.

[Dvalin]

I agree with the Midnight soundtrack missing some of those iconic Blood Elven melodies and flourishes in a lot of places, but I really don't mind the more heroic/"wholesome" approach. The Blood Elves lost their Fel addiction at the end of TBC, I don't expect them to be edgelords anymore.

The Isle of Quel'Danas one has some throwbacks to the original Blood Elven themes, as do Windrunner village and the 'Silvermoon - Harp' and some of the 'Silvermoon - Horde' themes. I bet it's indeed because the zone changed (for the better, in-universe) that a lot of the melancholy is gone from most of the new Blood Elven themes.

[Lorca]

Bro everything new in WoW is bad and everything old is good, tis has always been the way. People now just throw "Disney" in the mix instead of "Star Wars" or "Kung fu Panda".

It seems I missed the moment WoW was like Star Wars?

[Nymrohd]

I don't think there is ever a reason to take out melancholy from elven lands. The mythology of elves, in Warcraft and almost everywhere else, is one of a great civilization diminished. Sure Quel'thalas is better now than it was during TBC but it is not at the level it was before the Third War and certainly far from Azshara's empire.

[milkmustache]

I don't think there is ever a reason to take out melancholy from elven lands. The mythology of elves, in Warcraft and almost everywhere else, is one of a great civilization diminished. Sure Quel'thalas is better now than it was during TBC but it is not at the level it was before the Third War and certainly far from Azshara's empire.

Eh, I dunno if I agree entirely.

I think the Elves are in a far better place than they were TBC era, but TBC era was the absolute low point. I don't love the new music, but it makes sense that this society is moving on and embracing a more positive approach about rebuilding the strength of their kingdom.

[Nymrohd]

Eh, I dunno if I agree entirely.

I think the Elves are in a far better place than they were TBC era, but TBC era was the absolute low point. I don't love the new music, but it makes sense that this society is moving on and embracing a more positive approach about rebuilding the strength of their kingdom.

See, if you don't take something away from them, Elves are just Humans but Better. They need to be at a relative low point to be interesting.

[milkmustache]

See, if you don't take something away from them, Elves are just Humans but Better. They need to be at a relative low point to be interesting.

Well, the Void Elves (and to an extent the remaining High Elves) have sort of cannibalized those aspects of the Blood Elves, so the faction divide creates a sort of rift there.

I see what you're saying, but I still think it'd have been a weird situation to return to Quel'thalas and have the elves still in a pit of sorrow after the rebirth of the Sunwell. Their society found hope and the story progressed alongside them. The same situation is bound to happen in Northrend as well, I'm sure.

[Cheezits]

The Belf culture revamp is one of the first times in a long while that players are "losing" something, so I get the anger. But I think most of the complaints are mostly just about the music, and even then mostly just the neutral SMC themes.

Ironically the old city is still there and has its old music, but the neutral tracks are just -that- different that they rub people the wrong way. That and casting the Zim VA guy as half of the elves which was not a good idea.

[Bozzoltank]

It seems I missed the moment WoW was like Star Wars?

Legion had quite a few of those; traveling to other planets on spaceships, and all.

Even though we already had that, in the Burning Crusade.

[Jaggler]

The Belf culture revamp is one of the first times in a long while that players are "losing" something, so I get the anger. But I think most of the complaints are mostly just about the music, and even then mostly just the neutral SMC themes.

Ironically the old city is still there and has its old music, but the neutral tracks are just -that- different that they rub people the wrong way. That and casting the Zim VA guy as half of the elves which was not a good idea.

While i am personally not a huge fan of some points of the Belves currently (like hunting down Fel trade and exiling the Void Elves), i think it's kind of a logical progression of the path they have been set upon in TBC.

I am hoping against hope that maybe we can return to a bit more ruthless Belves, like Astalor, with the successor to the Sunwell not being as potent. Blood Elves running around as headhunters collecting Anguish sounds fun ngl

[whoisqnx]

Anyone else still feeling like a kid at christmas with early access coming this week? Everytime there is an expansion launch I go back to being a kid and keep thinking about it, its crazy that this excitement is still there even after +15 years for me.

[Hearthfinder]

Anyone else still feeling like a kid at christmas with early access coming this week? Everytime there is an expansion launch I go back to being a kid and keep thinking about it, its crazy that this excitement is still there even after +15 years for me.

I've gone from being a teenager to a dad approaching 40 and it still never gets old. Never missed an expansion midnight launch yet.

Interestingly enough, back when WoD and Legion launched I started feeling like maybe I'd been playing WoW for too long and perhaps it was time to move on. Because in those days, the game was about a decade old, all my RL friends had quit since a while back, many of my favourite content creators at the time had stopped, and we'd started moving into content that felt a bit forced or rehashed with the return of Draenor.

What kept me going at the time was basically BlizzCon hype (still shared with friends since they still played other Blizzard games at the time), and the fact that Blizzard was on a roll with excellent games for a few years there, from D3: RoS to Hearthstone, HotS, Overwatch, and StarCraft 2: LotV. I loved all those games and felt invested in Blizzard overall as a result.

Lots of cross-game promotions happening as well, which helped.

Now, though, the game has been around for so long it's basically started feeling less like a game and more like a normal hobby. It's no longer "I play this really old game and should move on," but instead more like "I like books" or "I like movies".

The biggest crises in terms of my engagement with the game was probably during the 2020-2022 era, with all the senior staff quitting, Shadowlands, Overwatch 2, the sexual harassment scandal, etc. At that point I got rather close to jumping ship. But since Dragonflight, Blizzard had started to regain some of that momentum for sure.

Having Metzen back feels good as well. It's no longer just a product being kept alive by people who weren't involved in making it. It's one of the OGs charting the course again. Like Tolkien writing his own books instead of some Amazon screenwriter.