After enduring a slow and painful decline in their user base for the past few years, Blizzard recently announced they have once again exceeded ten million gamers since the release of the fifth WoW expansion, World of Warcraft: Warlords of Draenor. Within the first 24 hours of the expansion’s release, Blizzard sold 3.3 million copies.
This is good news for Blizzard, who experienced a string of set-backs in the first couple of days of the expansion pack’s release. A series of unexpected DDOS attacks and the large influx of new and returning heroes trying to log in to the game made it nearly impossible for many gamers to play.
Warlords of Draenor delves deep into the lore of Azeroth and brings back some much beloved characters and gameplay dating back to before the now classic Warcraft MMO. One particularly enjoyable aspect of the expansion pack includes the building of a garrison, which seems to be enticing many users to return. There is also no doubt that the offer of a free level 90 hero upgrade is shaping up to be an attractive feature that is helping boost the subscriber base.
It has been more than twenty years since the first Warcraft game, Warcraft: Orcs and Humans, was released. All over the world the lore of Warcraft is beloved by fans, many who have experienced multiple games, read nearly twenty books, and have been patiently waiting for a movie that is currently in the works. For these fans, World of Warcraft has a special place in their hearts. WoW is a place of inclusion, fantasy, friendship, and conflict. Many players of the game have met their spouses online or made friendships they would otherwise never have had the opportunity to make.
To keep the WoW community thriving, Blizzard has to keep feeding fans a steady diet of updates and expansion packs. For many, the previous decline of the subscriber base was a tell tale sign of the coming end of Warcraft. Fortunately, Blizzard has stemmed the tide with the Warlords of Draenor, an expansion pack that has kept the heart and soul of this epic series alive with great story-telling and a meticulous attention to design and gameplay.
