World of Warcraftis one of the largest, longest-running MMORPGs on the market. Since its release in November 2004, it has consistently been called the king of the MMORPG genre. However, with 18 years on the market,World of Warcrafthas experienced as many highs points as it has low. Luckily, after several years of being at one of its lowest points,World of Warcraftis finally bouncing back after the success ofDragonflight.
Every game will have its critics, andWorld of Warcraftis no exception. WhileCataclysm, Mists of Pandaria,andWarlords of Draenorhave all been the subject of scrutiny in the past,World of Warcraft’stwo expansions beforeDragonflight–Battle for AzerothandShadowlands– were two of its weakest eras. To understandwhatWorld of Warcraftis doing right withDragonflight, players must first understand where Blizzard went wrong.
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How World of Warcraft Lost its Good Faith
For many,Battle for Azerothsignaled a distinct downturn in the quality ofWorld of Warcraft. While Kul Tiras, Zandalar, and the new Allied Races generally left a good impression, the positives were outweighed by numerous negatives. The story of the new zones was marred by a forced conflict between the Alliance and Horde, poor characterization of fan favorites like Sylvanas, and Azerite – the frustrating gear treadmill that amplified the worst parts of Artifact Power fromLegion. Additionally, some baffling story decisions, such as handling theOld God N’zoth in a singleWorld of Warcraftpatch, were not received well by players.
Shadowlandsonly made things worse forWorld of Warcraft. It left Azeroth behind in favor of a mysterious, unknown realm largely separate fromWorld of Warcraft. The high-concept cosmic plot only saw reprieve with the few recognizable characters in the expansion, but unfortunately, their story revolved largely around Sylvanas’ partnership withthe Jailer,Shadowlands' disappointing antagonist and final boss. Between this and frustrating endgame mechanics like Anima and Covenant Renown, many players lost faith inWorld of Warcraft.
Dragonflight is Winning Back the Community
WhenWorld of WarcraftannouncedDragonflight, many were understandably skeptical about whether it would be any good. Though Blizzard had promised it was learning from its mistakes, and had madepositive changes toWorld of WarcraftinShadowlandsPatch 9.2.5, players were slow to trust Blizzard.Dragonflightwent live in late November 2022 to overall positive reviews. By all rights, it seemed likeWorld of Warcrafthad taken its lessons to heart. While far from perfect,Dragonflighthas improved upon many of the systems players disliked from the past.
The Renown system fromShadowlandspersists, but players can gainreputation with all four factions inDragonflightsimultaneously. Instead of expansion-specific mechanics like Covenants and Anima,Dragonflightfocuses on evergreen systems, like Talent Trees, the overhaul of the Professions system, and hopefully the incredible Dragonriding flight system. The lore ofDragonflighthas done a lot for the expansion as well. Instead of traveling to mysterious realms short on familiar characters, players are exploring storied islands hinted at inWorld of Warcraftsince it first launched.Dragonflighthas tons of new story, lore, and characters, but all of it is built upon existing knowledge.
Dragonflight’s world buildingcontinues to improve uponWorld of Warcraft’sformula. For the most part, the expansion avoids falling into harmful tropes, like creating blanket “evil races”, while it showcases a roster of diverse characters with a variety of appearances, identities, and disabilities. While these improvements are not entirely consistent across the Dragon Isles, it has created an expansion that is charming, diverse, and engaging overall.
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World of Warcraft Needs to Keep Up the Momentum
However,World of Warcrafthas a tendency to swing between good and bad ideas. It broke bad habits fromCataclysmandWarlords of DraenorinLegion, only to form new ones inBattle for AzerothandShadowlands.As long as it can avoid relapsing into old patterns afterDragonflight, and keep itself humble in the face of fan expectations and desires,World of Warcraftmight truly be entering a new era.
Luckily,World of Warcraftseems to be in a great place right now. Blizzard has recently acquired new studios like Proletariat, the Microsoft buyout appears to be moving along, and Blizzard legendChris Metzen recently announced his return toWarcraftafter his retirement duringLegion. The long-running MMO is slowly making up for its mistakes, but it still has a long way to go. That said, ifWorld of Warcraftcan keep up this momentum, some players may even nameDragonflightas their favorite expansion.
