The War Within 11.X Patches & World Soul Saga Speculation Thread

[Azalar]

Probably that and just culture in general right now having gone insane post Covid and in a world where everything has the potential to go viral and turn you into an overnight influencer. Well all mellow out again eventually but it's still a thing.

Tying it to a consequence of covid is a take I hadn't heard and it's actually lit.

[Cheezits]

You're putting in a lot of your own personal bias into this (this thread is a pretty big echo chamber wrt world revamp, most people outside simply do not care one way or the other). SL was not a popular expansion and combined with the lawsuit a lot of people just stopped playing. Blizzard has to rebuild trust, and DF has been a good step in that direction. Player retention throughout the expansion has been very good, which suggests the changes they've made have been popular.

2022: *decent expansion with good retention but smaller playerbase*
2023: "Blizzard just needs to earn trust" <--- YOU ARE HERE
2024: *decent expansion 2 with good retention but even smaller playerbase*
2025: "Blizzard just needs to earn trust"
2026: *decent expansion 3 with good retention but even smaller playerbase*
2027: "Blizzard just needs to earn trust"

And so on. If Blizzard doesn't bother to do a big expansion, the game will eventually just end.

[Raetary]

I'm taking the 3rd off, how can we watch live again? Through YouTube or did the mount package have a virtual ticket

They are streaming on Youtube and Twitch, whole thing is free.

[micwini]

I'm taking the 3rd off, how can we watch live again? Through YouTube or did the mount package have a virtual ticket

Youtube or twitch. For freeeeeee

[allegrian]

More specifically, it's this art piece of an Alliance gryphon rider chased by an orc chimera rider from 2019




Edit: Ah, someone beat me to it

Yes yes, I know, but chosing that specifically seems like a hint.

[Azalar]

2022: *decent expansion with good retention but smaller playerbase*
2023: "Blizzard just needs to earn trust" <--- YOU ARE HERE
2024: *decent expansion 2 with good retention but even smaller playerbase*
2025: "Blizzard just needs to earn trust"
2026: *decent expansion 3 with good retention but even smaller playerbase*
2027: "Blizzard just needs to earn trust"

And so on. If Blizzard doesn't bother to do a big expansion, the game will eventually just end.

Just give us Nexus and Teriz's expansion.

Nvm just being silly.

[Well Done Steak]

Tying it to a consequence of covid is a take I hadn't heard and it's actually lit.

Yeah COVID fucked the worldwide mindset more than harambe's death did.

[PotHockets]

Raiding was never the focal point of WoW. It was always about the RP experience & w/ Metzen at the helm again I could absolutely see the direction spinning this way. People want more RPG elements back in their MMORPG, not just an endless dungeon/raid grind

Very valid point and even in DF we see Blizzard acknowledging this and moving back towards much heavier RPG elements with the talent trees coming back, the profession rework leaning into being the crafter you want to be, the much slower choose your own pace of DF questing and open world, etc.

People want to be a character that exists in a world not a player chasing constant upgrades for the most part. Obviously everyone is different and I know I go through some ungabungabignumber phases but I think for the most part people that are still into MMOs now that the genre is nothing special are specifically looking for that experience of getting to be a character in a world.

[Ersula]

You're putting in a lot of your own personal bias into this (this thread is a pretty big echo chamber wrt world revamp, most people outside simply do not care one way or the other). SL was not a popular expansion and combined with the lawsuit a lot of people just stopped playing. Blizzard has to rebuild trust, and DF has been a good step in that direction. Player retention throughout the expansion has been very good, which suggests the changes they've made have been popular.

You can't just say any dissenting stance is an echo chamber: A subsequent product selling poorly after the previous product was widely panned is just common sense. That reflects on Shadowlands, not Dragonflight. I'm sure the next expansion will sell better than Dragonflight because Dragonflight was a quality expansion.

Raiding was never the focal point of WoW.

Yes it is. The WoW Game Director & President of Blizzard were literally professional WoW raiders.

[ZyntosAran]

Yes yes, I know, but chosing that specifically seems like a hint.

does not have to be a hint.
Could also be "This is our promotional goto for World of Warcraft as a whole, because Classic is also covered in this Schedule"

[Raetary]

I know, but they chose that specifically.

Yes, because its their go-to keyart for wow and wow classic.

[PotHockets]

2022: *decent expansion with good retention but smaller playerbase*
2023: "Blizzard just needs to earn trust" <--- YOU ARE HERE
2024: *decent expansion 2 with good retention but even smaller playerbase*
2025: "Blizzard just needs to earn trust"
2026: *decent expansion 3 with good retention but even smaller playerbase*
2027: "Blizzard just needs to earn trust"

And so on. If Blizzard doesn't bother to do a big expansion, the game will eventually just end.

Yeah everything ends that's not some crazy revelation. Also it's insane that anyone thinks that WoW is going to just end at any point in the future when EQ just got it's what like 30th or something expansion? FFXI is still going and even gets new battle content somewhat frequently.

Point is even when they eventually scale down expansions it's never going to actually stop.

[allegrian]

Yes, because its their go-to keyart for wow and wow classic.

And their key art for hardcore is also a dwarf. They really like dwarves lately

[Worldshaper]

Keep in mind, the schedule only lists start times. It's possible the opening ceremony is shorter, leaving a little pause of half an hour or so before the next event.

Also interesting to see a few developers taking up some of the streamer schedule slots. Maybe that's a basic and more relaxed form of "dev panels"?

That said, I reeeeally think it's a massive blunder if they haven't got any traditional panels planned. People loved that stuff. Seeing the voice actors, seeing developers create maps and mounts and stuff, and seeing them talk about music, art, and systems.

BlizzCon shouldn't just be silly fun and hype news. It should be a look into the development process, and a chance to celebrate the people who make what we love.

[ZyntosAran]

And their key art for hardcore is also a dwarf. They really like dwarves lately

why would they use a key art for hardcore classic to hint at a coming wow retail expansion?

[Bsirk]

They are streaming on Youtube and Twitch, whole thing is free.

However, you can buy the virtual ticket for mounts and pets I believe.

[Raetary]

However, you can buy the virtual ticket for mounts and pets I believe.

There is no virtual ticket, it's just a digital goody bag this time around.

[Leowyld]

Yeah everything ends that's not some crazy revelation. Also it's insane that anyone thinks that WoW is going to just end at any point in the future when EQ just got it's what like 30th or something expansion? FFXI is still going and even gets new battle content somewhat frequently.

This. And EQ1's absolute peak numbers are probably comparable to the lowest sub numbers for WoW. If EQ1 is still putting out content, WoW isn't going anywhere, for a long, long time - as evidenced by the fact that WoW has been "dying" since Cataclysm and is still here.

[Demonly]

Yes it is. The WoW Game Director & President of Blizzard were literally professional WoW raiders.

Hotpocket's response imo is a good response to this.

Very valid point and even in DF we see Blizzard acknowledging this and moving back towards much heavier RPG elements with the talent trees coming back, the profession rework leaning into being the crafter you want to be, the much slower choose your own pace of DF questing and open world, etc.

People want to be a character that exists in a world not a player chasing constant upgrades for the most part. Obviously everyone is different and I know I go through some ungabungabignumber phases but I think for the most part people that are still into MMOs now that the genre is nothing special are specifically looking for that experience of getting to be a character in a world.

[Reive]

idk but i have the feeling blizzard is slowly shitfting focus from retail to classic, which would make sense because retail's reputation is not great.