Activision Blizzard stirred quite a bit of controversy a few weeks ago when it announced the price for the digital editions of World of Warcraft: Burning Crusade Classic. Though the optional Dark Portal Pass and Digital Deluxe Edition will cost $39.99 and $69.99 respectively, the $35 character cloning service drew the most criticism from the World of Warcraft community. After a few days of intense community blowback, Blizzard relented and lowered the service's price to $15.
Blizzard's willingness to listen to feedback set a few fans at ease, but the incident serves as yet another example of the company's aggressive pricing strategy. This is hardly the first time that Blizzard has proposed an exorbitant price within one of its games, only to walk it back later following negative reactions. While it should be noted that the cloning service for Burning Crusade Classic is optional, the pricing controversy comes at a time when gamers are becoming increasingly uncomfortable with the way Blizzard monetizes its games. Considering the frequency of these controversies in recent years, it seems unlikely that the pattern will end anytime soon.
Hearthstone's Rewards Track
One of the most recent examples of fan outrage came late last year, when Blizzard announced a new rewards track for Hearthstone. Fans were promised that the new system would ultimately reward them with more cards and gold than the old one, but in practice the rewards were underwhelming and came too sporadically. Hearthstone is already far more expensive than competing free-to-play CCG's like Gwent and Legends of Runeterra, and the community had been voicing its frustration for years. The removal of the original rewards system was the final straw, causing the Hearthstone community to erupt in outrage that lasted for weeks.
Blizzard eventually walked back some of the changes, but for many Hearthstone players the damage had already been done for a significant portion of the community. Blizzard has since introduced a few changes to the game that have made it more welcoming to new players, such as the free Core Set that includes quite a few powerful Hearthstone cards. However, persistent issues such as the inefficient crafting system and an overpriced premium Battle Pass continue to frustrate fans.
The Disastrous Launch of Warcraft 3: Reforged
The botched release of Warcraft 3: Reforged is one of the lowest points in Blizzard's history, earning the game one of the worst Metacritic user scores of all time. The remake suffered from a number of issues at launch, including gameplay bugs, balance issues, lack of online play, and graphics that failed to live up to what had been advertised. Warcraft 3: Reforged not only failed to improve upon Warcraft 3, but made the original game impossible to play in its previous state.
Fans of the original were understandably upset, as the version of the game released at launch was far from complete. Blizzard apologized to fans "who didn't have the experience [they] wanted" and offered refunds, but still hasn't added a few features that had been promised. The game's deceptive marketing and controversial release left many Warcraft 3 fans feeling as though they had been taken advantage of. The unsatisfying follow-through in the year since has done little to heal their trust in Blizzard.
BlizzConline's Celebration Collection
Blizzard celebrated its 30th anniversary this year with a virtual iteration of BlizzCon. Though online access to the event was free, Blizzard also offered three tiers of packages containing digital goods. These goods included exclusive cosmetics and resources for each of Blizzard's games, allowing players to commemorate the event for years to come. The packages were quite pricey, however, with the most expensive set going for $59.99.
While there were quite a few goodies included with the packages, Blizzard fans were only able to enjoy their full value if they played all of Blizzard's games. Players hoping to obtain an exclusive World of Warcraft mount also had to pay for Hearthstone cards and Overwatch skins, even if they had no use for them. The packages were a nod to the digital goods that typically accompany a ticket to BlizzCon, but on their own they felt like a clunky way to monetize the event.
Asmongold's Critique of World of Warcraft
Popular WoW streamer Asmongold tweeted a scathing critique of the MMO following the announcement of Burning Crusade Classic's pricing. There are many salient points in his response, but one of his main arguments is against the plethora of progression systems that artificially lengthen playtime. Asmongold sets his sights on Conduit Energy and Soul Ash as the two most recent examples of such progression systems, but points out that these patterns have been present for years. He also calls out how long it takes for obvious quality of life changes to be implemented, accusing Blizzard of using them to draw players back to the game late in an expansion.
The critique comes at a time when cynicism is rampant in the World of Warcraft community. Classic players are frustrated by the price of cosmetics and services for Burning Crusade, and Shadowlands players are losing their patience waiting for the Chains of Domination patch. The dearth of content and increase in price are causing many to question their relationship to the game, as well as Blizzard's business practices.
Asmongold ends his post by reiterating his love for World of Warcraft, but also calls on Blizzard to stop making design decisions based on player metrics and profit margins. Unfortunately, there's little evidence that the company intends to change.
Each time Blizzard apologizes for a misstep, it thanks the community for providing feedback and promises to do better moving forward. But these controversies continue to arise, all stemming from the same complaint. Blizzard fans feel as though their enjoyment is expendable, causing many to lose faith in the company's integrity. Though the trade-off brought in record profits for Blizzard in 2020, the business strategy won't sustain itself forever. Blizzard will eventually need to put its fans first, or else risk losing the community it's worked so hard to create.
World of Warcraft Classic is available now on PC, with the Burning Crusade Classic expansion launching on June 1.