Over the past seventeen years, many MMORPGs have attempted to dethroneWorld of Warcraft. New IPs and established franchises alike have all dipped their toes into the MMORPG pool, but few have lasted and none have had as big an impact asWorld of Warcraft. With another new MMORPG on the horizon from Amazon Games calledNew World, it’s worth exploring just how and why Blizzard’s smash-hit has stayed on top for so long.
It seems unlikely that another game in theMMO genrewould be able to come out of obscurity likeWorld of Warcraftand be instantly successful. This is down to a couple of large factors thatWoWhad at launch. Firstly, when it was released on the 10th anniversary of theWarcraftfranchise in 2004, there was not a lot of competition in the MMORPG field. Secondly, the title had something for everyone, and was a complete package with near limitless content - a rarity in the current gaming industry. These factors allowedWorld of Warcraftto establish a gaming zeitgeist in a way that would be arguably unheard of untilFortnitetook over the battle royale genre in 2017.
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World of Warcraft Was First
It’s difficult to imagine Blizzard beforeWorld of Warcraft, but prior to the successful launch of its first MMORPG the company mainly developed real-time strategy games likeStarcraftand the originalWarcraftgames. While there were a small handful of MMORPGs beforeWorld of Warcraft, and some likeEverQuestwere successful, it’s undeniable thatWoWshaped the genre into what it is today.WoWcreated a sense of community and conflict throughthe Alliance and Hordedivisions. It had such an impact on popular culture that even people who don’t play video games would be able to nameWorld of Warcraft.
In the decades since Blizzard’s first games, the company has become known for supporting its titles for years after the initial release.World of Warcrafthas received eight major expansion packs. This unceasing support means that players can always just jump back where they left off. No matter how long it has been since the last play session, players know that there will still be others roaming around Azeroth. It’s such a long-established title that it’s difficult to imagine a brand-new game even trying to take its place.
World of Warcraft Has Something For Everyone
After the release and success ofWorld of Warcraft, other MMORPGs attempted to find a niche. Be it an involved storyline, unique factions, or different gameplay styles, countlessMMOs tried to separate themselves fromWoWthrough unique takes on the MMORPG genre. However, the thing most of these titles forget is ease of access.World of Warcraftwas just as appealing and easy to get sucked into for hardcore gaming veterans as it was for people who had never touched a video game. There was plenty of story and endgame content for those who wanted it, as well as lots of pretty scenery and places to explore. InWoW, there’s always something to do, and the player rarely feels forced to do something they don’t want.
Finally,World of Warcraftlaunched in a complete, albeit messy, state. Blizzard was not prepared for the massive influx of player interest inWorld of Warcraft,and the initial release was buggy and plagued with connectivity issues. Theselaunch issuesare something that many other games, not just MMORPGs, go through now. However, once those issues got ironed out,WoWreached super-stardom in the games industry and hasn’t been toppled. Many ofWoW’sMMORPG competitors launch an incomplete game and add content afterward, which risks players getting bored of waiting.
All these factors combined make it highly unlikely that the MMORPG genre will see another entry on the same level asWorld of Warcraft. Likeother genre-defining titlessuch asFortniteandMinecraft, there are always many others that attempt to capture the same magic as the originals but hardly ever reach the same heights. WhileWorld of Warcraftcertainly isn’t as popular as it once was, it is still undeniably one of the most played MMOs in the world, and will likely continue to be in the near future.
