Blizzard is giving us better patches then they ever did but also less each expansion

[Gimlix]

I believe that Dragonflight is one of the biggest improvements the game is facing since a long time and actually are fixing and adding more things to the game that is actualy needed to improve the game and players wanted instead of adding alot of nonsense, i am glad this is the quality we are facing at last and the game needs to remain in a healthy state.

But i am also noticing the amount of less and less we are given, for example season 4 once again gives us no new raid and most likely no new zone, it's just a recolored S1/2/3 and that's it.

This gives the players less transmog to farm, less mounts to farm, no new area, raid to explore and enjoy.

I still believe the game is in a healthier state as it has been for last 2-3 expansions but i do believe we are getting less and less bit by bit.

Wish we returned to a state where at launch we would be given 2-3 raids and over the course of the expansion be given atleast 2 more. and each patch giving us new dungeons as well.

[MrLachyG]

you are right, we haven't gotten as many raids as normal but this is also looking like it might be the shortest expansion cycle in a long, long time. and the in between patches have had plenty of things to do, they're caught up (or will be soon) on all the heritage armor with the exception of the Pandaren. This expansion feels very much like a steadying of the ship that is WoW, hopefully it continues but with 4 raids instead of 3.

[Woggmer]

Wish we returned to a state where at launch we would be given 2-3 raids and over the course of the expansion be given atleast 2 more. and each patch giving us new dungeons as well.

I don't know if that'll ever happen considering that MoP creates a new issue of which raid offers the best gear? So, you have this problem where all the raids don't offer any new trinkets until the next tier (aka Throne of Thunder) and the trinkets that you do find are all trash mob drops or they sell them in the vendors.

Then it goes like this: Mogu'shan Vaults > Heart of Fear = Terrace of Endless Springs > Throne of Thunder > Siege of Orgrimmar.
In that first tier, majority of the loot drops are the same except for the weapon, necklace, and ring drops.. but if you specific tier sets, you'd have to purchase them through the Justice/Valor vendors.

So you get this issue where suddenly Mogu'shan Vaults becomes obsolete after a certain ilvl then you have to pick and choose between Heart of Fear or Terrace of Endless Springs depending on the weapon/ring/necklace you need, or if you needed a specific drop for the legendary cloak quest.

I know people want to see more raids on launch, but it'll be difficult to balance them out if one raid offers much better gear than the other.... and I know it is a progression thing, but Blizzard moved away from that model to focus on higher difficulty with the inclusion of Mythic Raiding. (The only exception being Crucible of the Storms which...honestly came out of nowhere in middle of the season)

[Luthorite]

Wouldn't mind less content if they weren't charging more for it.

[Arcinatoss]

fewer raids/dungeons more boring outdoor content that's just the same one from the launch patch just with another coat of paint, very cool.

[Luthorite]

fewer raids/dungeons more boring outdoor content that's just the same one from the launch patch just with another coat of paint, very cool.

The outdoor contest is the worst. There's literally no difference between Rifts, Superblooms and Dreamsurge. It's wait out a timer/fill a bar then kill boss.

[FelPlague]

fewer raids/dungeons more boring outdoor content that's just the same one from the launch patch just with another coat of paint, very cool.

Fun fact
Mop = 0 dungeons added post launch
Wod = 0 dungeons added post launch
Legion = 2 dungeons and 1 mega dungeon post launch
BFA = 1 mega dungeon
shadowlands = 1 mega dungeon
dragonflight = 1 mega dungeon and 3 overhauled dungeons from the past. (so far, may be more in future)

so not exactly less dungeons, tbc wrath and cata were the peak for new dungeons but they were back in the days of "oh hey lets have like.. 3 dungeons that really could have just been 1 large dungeon, but split it up into 3 of the same tileset"

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The outdoor contest is the worst. There's literally no difference between Rifts, Superblooms and Dreamsurge. It's wait out a timer/fill a bar then kill boss.

that is all content in wow though, wait out a time, fill a bar, kill mobs.
Idk what else there is to do in combat that does not entail one of those.
Got any ideas?

[Lolites]

The outdoor contest is the worst. There's literally no difference between Rifts, Superblooms and Dreamsurge. It's wait out a timer/fill a bar then kill boss.

arent all dungeons (or raids) the same when you strip it down to "basics"?
you get in, kill some mobs, kill some bosses, get some loot, leave? and at this basic level only difference between dungeon and raid is just number of players inside...
so saying "its all the same" is just stupid, bcs basicaly ALL of wow is "the same" at core...

like its fine if you dont like outdoor content, but you should realise YOU DONT MATTER THAT MUCH, if that content is not for you, ok, dont do it, same for people who dont like raids, or m+, or pvp... not all content have to be for everyone, or for you for that matter...

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Wish we returned to a state where at launch we would be given 2-3 raids and over the course of the expansion be given atleast 2 more. and each patch giving us new dungeons as well.

when was the last time we got 2-3 raids at start? wod (kinda)? bcs that expansion went soo well, right?
also, i dont think there was a single expansion that gave us new dungeon every patch... actualy, i would say having more than one per expansion post launch new is above average (not to mention 1 megadung is as good as 2 dung)

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This gives the players less transmog to farm, less mounts to farm, no new area, raid to explore and enjoy.

well, literaly just raid is true, since outdoor content gave us also transmog/mounts etc...
and are you REALLY gonna pretend we didnt get more new zones (size if not number) than any other expansion post release?!

[Aucald]

The outdoor contest is the worst. There's literally no difference between Rifts, Superblooms and Dreamsurge. It's wait out a timer/fill a bar then kill boss.

I'd actually disagree pretty heavily here. Comparing the three types of outdoor timed events, the Time Rifts are the most fun, in my view. They're variable, chock full of intriguing lore tidbits concerning said alternate timelines, and offer a panoply of interesting and unique rewards. You can tell a lot of thought went into the design and execution of the Rifts and their rewards. Dreamsurges and Superblooms, by contrast, feel a lot more shallow and are, in my view, objectively less rewarding than the previous Time Rights. Dreamsurges probably win the booby prize for the worst of these types of events, having only a single xmog set per class and a few weapons as rewards, most of which are already duplicated by other sources, and a handful of pets. Superblooms at least have some respectable rewards, although these are gated badly and, compared to Time Rifts, similarly shallow and non-varied.

It is nice to have something to do outside of dungeons and raidings from an end-game perspective, and I think the Dragonflight outdoor content represents a good alternative and complement to running old content for mount/xmog collecting. Hopefully, this is something they iterate on in TWW, having more events that are well thought-out and implemented as Time Rifts were.

[MrLachyG]

Wish we returned to a state where at launch we would be given 2-3 raids and over the course of the expansion be given atleast 2 more. and each patch giving us new dungeons as well.

The only time we had 2-3 raids at launch were BC and MoP I think? Maybe Cata? Either way those raids were small, some only had 1-2 bosses. Sure, more overall bosses in the opening act but I prefer quality over quantity.

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I'd actually disagree pretty heavily here. Comparing the three types of outdoor timed events, the Time Rifts are the most fun, in my view. They're variable, chock full of intriguing lore tidbits concerning said alternate timelines, and offer a panoply of interesting and unique rewards. You can tell a lot of thought went into the design and execution of the Rifts and their rewards. Dreamsurges and Superblooms, by contrast, feel a lot more shallow and are, in my view, objectively less rewarding than the previous Time Rights. Dreamsurges probably win the booby prize for the worst of these types of events, having only a single xmog set per class and a few weapons as rewards, most of which are already duplicated by other sources, and a handful of pets. Superblooms at least have some respectable rewards, although these are gated badly and, compared to Time Rifts, similarly shallow and non-varied.

It is nice to have something to do outside of dungeons and raidings from an end-game perspective, and I think the Dragonflight outdoor content represents a good alternative and complement to running old content for mount/xmog collecting. Hopefully, this is something they iterate on in TWW, having more events that are well thought-out and implemented as Time Rifts were.

Dreamsurges are unique though in that they have zone wide buffs. Want extra gold? Just wait for the gold buff. Extra rep and xp? Same thing. So it can be a fill the bar and kill the boss thing but at the same time it doesn’t have to be. You could completely ignore the bar & boss and just do world quests to get the 100 thingies

[Lolites]

The only time we had 2-3 raids at launch were BC and MoP I think? Maybe Cata? Either way those raids were small, some only had 1-2 bosses. Sure, more overall bosses in the opening act but I prefer quality over quantity.

technicaly wrath had 4 but vault/sanctum/eye were single boss each and nax was not new, so basicaly open world in DF had more new raid encounters than whole of wrath at release...

[Aucald]

Dreamsurges are unique though in that they have zone wide buffs. Want extra gold? Just wait for the gold buff. Extra rep and xp? Same thing. So it can be a fill the bar and kill the boss thing but at the same time it doesn’t have to be. You could completely ignore the bar & boss and just do world quests to get the 100 thingies

I've never found the zone-wide buffs to be of great consequence, nor do they distinguish themselves in the same way the variety and lore of Time Rifts do. This is just my personal/subjective view of the events, as well; so if some aspect of either Dreamsurges or Superblooms calls out to you then that's all to the good, subjectively speaking. The overarching point is that the events themselves are indeed quite different, both in terms of composition and overall quality, beyond just "filling a bar and killing a boss." Dreamsurges don't even really have a boss to kill, technically speaking, as the ones spawned from the random portals aren't any different from the normal zone rares empowered by the surge itself.

[Just Passing through]

Wouldn't mind less content if they weren't charging more for it.

In what way are they charging more? Maybe it is the area I live in, but I have been paying about approx 11 Euro per month on my sub.

Unless you mean the increased preice on x-pacs?

[Spikeychris]

In what way are they charging more? Maybe it is the area I live in, but I have been paying about approx 11 Euro per month on my sub.

Unless you mean the increased preice on x-pacs?

don't try and apply logic to Luthorite posts it's a road to madness

[Grof]

Wouldn't mind less content if they weren't charging more for it.

again you poor cheap bastard complain about game...shoooo!!!

[Biglog]

There was a big change a few years back in the corporate world to "agile" project management and development. The TLDR of agile is a different approach of delivering in smaller chunks rather than a big delivery all at once. Applying that to wow, the old-school approach was a big expansion like wotlk. Large, a longer time to build with no content in-between, etc. The benefit of agile being that it enables Blizzard to be more nimble and avoids spending a large amount of time and effort on a new feature that players maybe end up not liking anyway (archaeology comes to mind). And we get content more frequently, albeit in smaller bits. Then if a new feature is popular and works well, hit the accelerator and expand on it.

[Relapses]

There was a big change a few years back in the corporate world to "agile" project management and development. The TLDR of agile is a different approach of delivering in smaller chunks rather than a big delivery all at once. Applying that to wow, the old-school approach was a big expansion like wotlk. Large, a longer time to build with no content in-between, etc. The benefit of agile being that it enables Blizzard to be more nimble and avoids spending a large amount of time and effort on a new feature that players maybe end up not liking anyway (archaeology comes to mind). And we get content more frequently, albeit in smaller bits. Then if a new feature is popular and works well, hit the accelerator and expand on it.

I usually hate these kind of analogies but this is pretty accurate. The fact that they're concurrently developing the next three expansions kind of drives home the fact that they intend there to pretty much always be some kind of patch on the horizon with content droughts being extremely short to non-existent. This, of course, means that we get a larger content drought heading into TWW with Dragonflight but that's a small price to pay if it means that we're getting more content, faster than ever before for the next 4-6 years (relatively speaking).

[MrLachyG]

I usually hate these kind of analogies but this is pretty accurate. The fact that they're concurrently developing the next three expansions kind of drives home the fact that they intend there to pretty much always be some kind of patch on the horizon with content droughts being extremely short to non-existent. This, of course, means that we get a larger content drought heading into TWW with Dragonflight but that's a small price to pay if it means that we're getting more content, faster than ever before for the next 4-6 years (relatively speaking).

That’s the thing though, we’re not having a long content drought from DF to TWW. 10.2 dropped Nov 7, TWW is set for a summer release. That’s 9-10 months, in terms of end of expansion content droughts that’s short. Then you have to consider all the minor patch content in between, the Fated raids which aren’t new content but still different

[Relapses]

That’s the thing though, we’re not having a long content drought from DF to TWW. 10.2 dropped Nov 7, TWW is set for a summer release. That’s 9-10 months, in terms of end of expansion content droughts that’s short. Then you have to consider all the minor patch content in between, the Fated raids which aren’t new content but still different

I'd love to see a TWW summer release but I'm cautious that'll happen given we're not even in Alpha right now. I'm predicting October/November.

[Ereb]

I'd love to see a TWW summer release but I'm cautious that'll happen given we're not even in Alpha right now. I'm predicting October/November.

Stop thinking like this is 2010 still. Their own timeline says it will be an Aug/Sept release (due to positioning) and alpha/beta do not run in the same cycles (time length or otherwise) like they used to. It will release late August remember this post.

EDIT: Even the timeline itself says the alpha isnt supposed to be released yet so whats the problem lol