Will World of Warcraft ever return to its former glory?

World of Warcraft, together with the Warcraft franchise, is a timeless classic and an MMORPG gem that laid the foundations of MMORPG and defined the genre for future generations. Since WoW has been topping the charts from the moment it saw the light of day on Nov. 24, 2004, it has had one of the largest communities in gaming history, peaking at more than 100 million registered accounts. Sadly, WoW’s community has slowly turned its back on Blizzard Entertainment and bravely ventured into other unknown lands mainly because of unrealized promises, drastic gameplay changes, and lack of content.

Although WoW has seen a gradual decline in the player base over the years, the dedicated WoW developers, who want to see WoW return to its previous glory, have spared no effort as they continue developing the game. Today, WoW once again sits on the verge of seeing a similar glory as in the good old days of the Burning Crusade and the Wrath of the Lich King. Thanks to the promising expansion of Dragonflight, which will reportedly launch late in 2022 and the rerelease of the Wrath of the Lich King scheduled for Sept. 26, WoW’s comeback has never been more possible. 

Why has WoW lost players?

It’s no secret that WoW has lost its steam over the years and gradually fallen down to a small, yet incredibly loyal player base that will stop at nothing to enjoy and defend their favorite game. But what exactly led WoW from being one of the most played games of all time to a negligible MMORPG only relevant during expansion releases and tournaments?

Believe it or not, WoW’s downfall began with Wrath of the Lich King. Wrath of the Lich King, widely recognized as the peak of WoW design, brought about refined gameplay welcoming to both casual and hardcore players, fully-fledged lore, and fleshed-out classes on Nov. 13, 2008. Since the developers went the extra mile by designing the masterpiece of Wrath of the Lich King, which was a worthy successor to the Warcraft franchise, repeating a similar success proved to be virtually impossible. The next expansions, Cataclysm, Mists of Pandaria, and Warlords of Draenor, were the final nails in WoW’s coffin because they overhauled core game systems like talents, specializations, professions, and beloved old-world zones. 

Only further building on top of these publicly disliked features and developing the new world with no regard to the old lore, the last three expansions, Legion, Battle for Azeroth, and the Shadowlands, saw seasonal success with no signs of improvement. 

Besides, the finest Blizzard developers, who worked on the original WoW, have parted ways with the company. Unsurprisingly, this reflected upon the game’s philosophy, leaving it with no definitive anchor. 

Will Dragonflight and Wrath of the Lich King return WoW to its glory days? 

The upcoming WoW’s expansion, Dragonflight, shows promise with no borrowed power in sight, profession and talent trees revamp, and the new class-race combo, Dracthyr. Since Blizzard is finally going back to its roots and listening to the community’s feedback, Dragonflight has the potential to come up to the player base’s expectations and even dazzle us.

On the other hand, Wrath of the Lich King Classic is a safe bet that will definitely reignite the love for WoW in many. Since Wrath of the Lich King Classic is a 14-year-old game that’s already been figured out, Blizzard is spicing it up with numerous changes to keep the content relevant, immersive, and with a fresh kick.

Even though the complete list of changes will release at the launch of Wrath of the Lich King Classic, Blizzard has already shared some of the most consequential changes with the community. On top of Blizzard removing the dungeon finder tool entirely, players will be able to boost characters to level 70 and have a more meaningful gear progression over the course of the expansion. 

So, will WoW once again see glory days thanks to Dragonflight and Wrath of the Lich King Classic?

Although both releases look promising, with a heavy heart, we have to say it’s highly unlikely that WoW will once again see such glory days. But if these expansions can live up to the player’s expectations, WoW’s future may be bright.