Fan sentiment toward Blizzard's massively multiplayer RPG World of Warcraft is reaching a boiling point. Compounding controversies are leading to widespread community reflection on what World of Warcraft offers players and whether it's worth continuing to support. A post on Reddit breaking down World of Warcraft's subscription-based model is the latest viral example, with over 15,000 Redditors upvoting the post for asking, "What exactly is it [t]hat we're paying monthly for at this point?"
The Reddit post in question was shared by Redditor Last_Judicator, who certainly has some judgment to share. Their claim is that Blizzard is taking a monthly subscription from World of Warcraft players and aren't providing enough content to justify it, saying that the game can go "sometimes over a year" without an update. Further, they point to Blizzard's choice to release big content updates in the form of expansions for an additional cost of $40 or more. Lastly, they mention that Blizzard has also implemented a cash shop akin to what free-to-play games have, despite how much players pay.
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These initial thoughts were enough to get the post upvoted, but also stirred some contentious responses. As such, Last_Judicator edited their post to expound on their point further. They explain their feeling of frustration after purchasing the recent World of Warcraft Shadowlands expansion and realizing they'd have to pay a subscription fee on top of it, as if it were a rental of the content they'd already purchased separately.
Last_Judicator also makes a general comparison to other games not just in the MMO market but in the live service genre that don't have the same subscription model as World of Warcraft. They explain that they can log in whenever there's new content or when they feel like playing at their own pace and schedule. In other words, they believe World of Warcraft should be held to a higher standard given the current level of competition in the market.
As it's the internet, many of the top comments in the Reddit thread are cynical. They don't make excuses for Blizzard, but they note that the current monetization for World of Warcraft exists because people will pay for it. Others mock Blizzard, sarcastically mentioning the game's reputation for customer support, esports prize pools, and server infrastructure are keeping players around. In other words, few are offering up ideas on how World of Warcraft could improve, as opposed to sharing their frustration with the game's status quo.
The current frustration with World of Warcraft is certainly part of a larger conversation going on about the MMO. Blizzard is currently caught up in accusations of a toxic and discriminatory workplace, Twitch streamers have caused an exodus of players to Final Fantasy 14, and World of Warcraft's recent content updates have been poorly received. But if there's one truth, it's that World of Warcraft has remained the most popular MMO in the world for well over a decade. That may not change for some time.
World of Warcraft is available now on PC.
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