Ask anyone to name an MMO, and there’s a good chanceWorld of Warcraftwill be the first example that comes to mind. The quintessential game of the genre,World of Warcrafthas been an MMO mainstay for more than a decade now. Unfortunately, it’s also seen a bit of decline as of late, in part due to content and story decisions, and in part due toActivision Blizzard’s ongoing controversies.
Whileit isn’t exactly a great time to be aWorld of Warcraftfan, there’s a light at the end of the tunnel. Microsoft is purchasing Activision Blizzard, and that includesWorld of Warcraftalong with it. While it hasn’t been confirmed yet, there’s a good chance thatWorld of Warcraftcould come to Xbox Game Pass given how Microsoft usually handles first-party games.
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How World of Warcraft Benefits From Xbox Game Pass
For many,World of Warcraft’s monthly subscription feeis the hang-up from trying it in the first place, as there are plenty of other premium free-to-play options on the market. Just look at MMOs likeStar Wars: The Old RepublicandThe Elder Scrolls Online,which both receive content updates to this day despite making their monthly subscriptions optional. Removing that barrier would bring more players toWorld of Warcraft,and as many avid fans know, it’s difficult to getWoW’sclaws unhooked once they’ve dug themselves in.
How Xbox Game Pass Benefits From World of Warcraft
How Xbox Can Help Shape World of Warcraft’s Future
Of course, there are fans that are worried about how Microsoft and Xbox might mess withWorld of Warcraft.What’s important to note, however, is that things are currently trending in a direction that fans seem to abhor, with criticisms of howWorld of Warcraftis being handled flooding the internet. It seems unlikely that Microsoft will make the situation even worse.
Microsoft has a solid track record of giving its studios creative autonomy, and while many of the visionaries behindWorld of Warcraftare no longer at the studio, a hands-off approach that putsWorld of Warcraftdirectly into the hands of Blizzard developers might put the narrative and gameplay changes right back on track.
For now, the best route for fans to follow is that of cautious optimism. Microsoft’s Activision Blizzard acquisition won’t close until next year, and then there will likely still be a transitionary period for the studio. If history repeats itself,Activision Blizzard’s games, includingWorld of Warcraft,will be added to Xbox Game Pass shortly after the deal is done. A player spike is all but guaranteed, but deeper changes may take some time yet.
World of Warcraftis available now for PC.
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