Connect with us

World

Celebrating 20 years of dungeons, raids and community in World of Warcraft

Published

7 hours ago

on

Celebrating 20 years of dungeons, raids and community in World of Warcraft

More than 254 million humans have visited the world of Azeroth since November 1994 when it was first established in the real time strategy (RTS) game Warcraft. Though Warcraft was a genre pioneer in its own right, World of Warcraft – its massive multiplayer online (MMO) counterpart – has become a cultural mainstay.

Released Nov. 23, 2004, World of Warcraft built upon the narrative foundation that Warcraft had honed over a decade, but shifted the focus from strategically controlling armies and managing resources to creating a character that fights in the battle themselves.

World of Warcraft emphasized collaborating, or competing, with other players’ characters to make progress in the game. The innovation led to World of Warcraft becoming more than just a fun game to play. It grew into a social experience that has stayed online since it was first released.

Timeline of Warcraft and World of Warcraft releases

Besides sparking countless marriages and lifelong friendships among its players, World of Warcraft has its own movie, a roster of call-outs from other media and a star-studded player base. Its 2006 South Park episode “Make Love, Not Warcraft” even won an Emmy.

“The Remarkable Life of Ibelin,” a Netflix documentary released last month, highlights the in-person and in-game life of Mats Steen. The Norwegian player, diagnosed with Duchenne muscular dystrophy, logged more than 15,000 hours in the game before dying at age 25.

“The documentary gives us a moment to pause and reflect on how meaningful this game has been to millions,” said Holly Longdale, executive producer for World of Warcraft. “It’s been a really incredible moment for us to reflect and recognize that sometimes our game is more than a game.”

What makes World of Warcraft so popular?

“I think one of the true testaments to the longevity of World of Warcraft is the people and how they embrace the world, the characters they want to be and live how they want to live,” said Longdale.

“Of all the games I’ve played, WoW was the best community,” said David Pulver, 41, who first immersed himself in the Warcraft universe around 1997 and played steadily for over a decade. “WoW was unique in the world of MMOs because it was a huge game with a huge community before microtransactions existed.”

Microtransactions, or in-game purchases, are prevalent now, especially with mobile app games. Back in the early 2000s, players would buy World of Warcraft once and then pay a monthly subscription to play. An in-game store was added to the game in 2013.

Interacting with the community is essential in World of Warcraft because progressing requires collaboration. Players need other players to carry out raids or complete dungeons, and they can find other players through the in-game server chat. In the days before social media, World of Warcraft was one of the first ways people made friends on the internet.

“I will never not be able to play WoW, it’s a part of who I am,” said Pulver’s sister Rosie Peidl, 31, who’s continued to play World of Warcraft since 2004.

Both siblings recounted how many real-life friends they made from the game and how the communities came together to support each other in the game. Just like Steen’s – or Ibelin’s – guild came together to hold a vigil when he died in the documentary, Pulver and Peidl both said they attended vigils to honor the memory of players who’d passed.

“When the hurricanes hit, I saw WoW players supporting Western North Carolina victims,” Peidl said. She also mentioned how Blizzard – World of Warcraft’s parent company – created special charity items in the game for purchase, like Shadow the Fox who supported disaster relief efforts.

How is Blizzard celebrating the anniversary?

Before 2024, Blizzard released nine expansions to the original World of Warcraft. To celebrate the 20th anniversary of the game, they’re releasing three consecutive expansions for the game under the WorldSoul Saga umbrella. The first of these, The War Within, was released in August.

“I want to have the feeling of pulling all of the toys out of the toy box,” said Chris Metzen on the “WoWCast” podcast, one of the original creators of the Warcraft universe. “I want the anniversary to feel like it’s capturing this kind of mix of all of the core flavors and ultimately proofing out that there has been this storyline all the way through.”

Blizzard is also bringing back some of its most iconic armor sets for players to earn like the Tier 2 Paladin’s Judgment Armor set pictured below.

Dates for the next two installments of the WorldSoul Saga have not been announced, but Longdale said that players will be seeing anniversary events all the way through January.

Related Topics:
Continue Reading