Today in WoW: Monday, Oct. 17, 2011 -- Cataclysm is absolutely not the last expansion
by Adam Holisky 
Oct 17th 2011 at 11:59PM
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Blue posts
Zarhym -- Cataclysm is not the last expansion
Quote:
Tier 13 must be the last tier in Cataclysm, but is it over for the game? Is Cataclysm are the final expansion of the game, or are you still making the next expansion with new classes and races, and expand the level cap to 90 or something?
If the Cataclysm is the final expansion of the game, then are you going to start a new World of Warcraft game called "World of Warcraft 2", or are you done yet?
Tier 13 must be the last tier in Cataclysm, but is it over for the game? Is Cataclysm are the final expansion of the game, or are you still making the next expansion with new classes and races, and expand the level cap to 90 or something?
If the Cataclysm is the final expansion of the game, then are you going to start a new World of Warcraft game called "World of Warcraft 2", or are you done yet?
Cataclysm is absolutely not the last expansion. We have plenty of vigor left in us yet. :)
PTR Testing Schedule - Oct. 17 and 18
Today and tomorrow we're going to try and test the remaining bosses in Dragon Soul on 10 player difficulty.
Oct 17
14:30 PDT - Warlord Zon'ozz (10 Player)
16:30 PDT - Hagara (10 Player)
Oct 18
10:15 PDT – Ultraxion (10 Player)
11:45 PDT – Warmaster Blackhorn (10 Player)
14:30 PDT – Spine of Deathwing (10 Player)
16:30 PDT – Madness of Deathwing (10 Player)
There will be additional testing scheduled in the upcoming weeks including 25 player and Heroic difficulties, both in the morning and afternoon. There will not be any testing during Blizzcon.
As always, the scheduling for PTR testing will be VERY fluid. Tests can be announced, canceled, or rescheduled at a moment's notice depending on build and server status, outstanding bugs, etc. I will try to give as much advance notice about tests, but that is not always possible. Also note that these encounters are all works in progress.
Oct 17
14:30 PDT - Warlord Zon'ozz (10 Player)
16:30 PDT - Hagara (10 Player)
Oct 18
10:15 PDT – Ultraxion (10 Player)
11:45 PDT – Warmaster Blackhorn (10 Player)
14:30 PDT – Spine of Deathwing (10 Player)
16:30 PDT – Madness of Deathwing (10 Player)
There will be additional testing scheduled in the upcoming weeks including 25 player and Heroic difficulties, both in the morning and afternoon. There will not be any testing during Blizzcon.
As always, the scheduling for PTR testing will be VERY fluid. Tests can be announced, canceled, or rescheduled at a moment's notice depending on build and server status, outstanding bugs, etc. I will try to give as much advance notice about tests, but that is not always possible. Also note that these encounters are all works in progress.
WoW news from other sites
- MMO-Champion Atramedes Solo Kill, Epic Gem Patterns, TCG Art, MMO Report
- Wowhead News Orange: A Guide to all Legendary Weapons
- New Hallow's End content for 2011
- Blood Pact: The new destruction in patch 4.3
- Spiritual Guidance: Minor glyphs for discipline and holy priests, plus some pre-BlizzCon silliness
- Weekly Podcast Roundup: Oct. 10-16, 2011
- Gold Capped: The epic gem market in patch 4.3
- WoW Insider Live Stream: Well of Eternity
- Drama Mamas: WoW vs. relationship
- Patch 4.3 PTR: Raid testing schedule for Oct. 17-18
- Officers' Quarters: Mailbox roundup 4 -- raid leaders
- Two Bosses Enter: Vanessa VanCleef vs. Zanzil
- The Daily Quest: Well that was incredibly helpful
- Submit your UI to Reader UI of the Week
- WoW Moviewatch: Should I re-sub to WoW?
- The Queue: And Your World Will Burn
- Around Azeroth: Warchief at the gates
- WoW Insider is looking for a PVP columnist
- Breakfast Topic: Who'd be next to die in WoW Faction Leader Survivor?
- Skyrim: I fought the dragon and the dragon (mostly) won
- Dante reawakens next year in Devil May Cry HD Collection
- Prince of Persia leaps to Commodore 64
- Turbine addresses LotRO forum security concerns
Today in WoW brings you the preceding days's WoW and gaming news. Also of community interest: our podcast listing, staff blog and Twitter listings and WoW websites and blogs (all part of our Guide to WoW Resources). Find out what's going on in the WoW player community every week in The Classifieds.
Filed under: Today in WoW
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 3)
Philster043 Oct 18th 2011 12:27AM
Never thought Cataclysm was the final expansion! There still seems to be a lot of untapped potential in the current game, at least from my own perspective.
Roguebert@Ulduar Oct 18th 2011 4:11AM
"The Simpsons Spin-Off Showcase", anyone?
Daedalus Oct 18th 2011 7:53AM
That's something that's continued to amaze me; that people think Blizzard has a certain number of expansions planned, and then they plan to end it. Cat is the last expansion. The next one is the last expansion. The game will stop when the level cap gets to 100.
Folks: it's an MMO. As long as people are still willing to pay for it, Blizzard will keep cranking out expansions.
Jyotai Oct 18th 2011 3:30PM
While I don't think we're anywhere near the end of expan$ion$, we're getting closer and closer to the viable level cap, close to as many classes as the game can handle, and close to the limit on race choices for a 2-faction model.
The game could use perhaps 1 more healer choice - that takes the discipline and holy-paladin themes of healing by DPSing and ramps them up full like the 'dark dark emptah' of City of Heroes, or a 'pet healer' like the ritualist of Guild Wars (arguable this is the shaman already - if not i theme then in execution. Guild Wars ritualist pets claim to be pets, but work like shaman totems).
There's no real niche left in DPS. You've got agile melee, tin-can melee, magical melee. You've got archer ranged, magical ranged. zookeeper, and summoner.
Tank already has religious fanatic, tin-can, furry, and magical.
Anymore themes on tanks and DPS will look like rehashes of the existing.
Levels - only so far you can go before the hurdle for new players looks unviable -despite- speeding it up. WoW would have been better off following the Guild Wars / City of Heroes models: Never raise the cap, just add more content and more slots for alts.
- We're only so far from 'Everquest territory', where the number of levels seems to have jumped a shark. Its a fine line that you unfortunately cannot see until you're over it. I'd wager next X-pac will hit it, but not cross it. The one after will cross it.
Races... we're going to be stretching concept pretty thin here.
Everyone wants Pandas, but lore wise they've not even been around as NPCs since Warcraft III due, as rumor claims, to a foolish idea of trying to appease Red China's censors which change their minds at the drop of a bribe...
What else is there? Dryads, Murlocs, Naga, Dragonkin, Moonkin, Gnolls, Ogre, Centaur - none of these are really good ideas... The lore stretching to get one in will make the next look even more stretched.
WoW is starting to box itself in - future X-pacs are going to need to go in very different directions to seem fresh. Directions other than just levels, races, and classes...
ElrithCC Oct 18th 2011 12:33AM
I've got my fingers crossed for some demon hunter content to be announced at Blizzcon of some sort, All the new quests in Cata and the new Illidan model has me slightly more biased than usual. A boy can dream.
Bellajtok Oct 18th 2011 12:58AM
I'll admit, the stuff we've been seeing Illidan do in the new dungeons has me a little less skeptical than usual. I'm just not sure how they would intend to differentiate Demon Hunters from Rogues, or normal Hunters, for that matter.
And while WoW does have some out-of-the-ordinary class names (see Death Knight) most class names are ones that are popular in RPGs. (see Mage, Rogue, Warrior, etc.) Along those lines, Monk seems more likely.
ElrithCC Oct 18th 2011 2:49AM
Once upon a time in WC3 Deathknights had only a few iconic abilites, most of which were already being used in Wow by other classes. Blizzard's solution? They created an entirely new mechanic based on runes and then gave them tons of new abilities and talent trees that were never a part of the hero class originally. And demon hunters have nothing similar with hunters at all other than a name. They are a melee class with DOT auras and mana sucking appetites.
My point is, Blizzard can create all sorts of things to make them different, as long as they keep the iconic look and feel of the hero class.
But really, I am not even talking about a new hero class, I'd be happy with the Dark Embrace in Darkshore becoming a new faction, with some cool elven glaives to be transmogged.
Bellajtok Oct 18th 2011 12:47AM
HOLY MOLEY! There are going to be more expansions? Whodathunk.
razion Oct 18th 2011 12:49AM
How... 'last expansion' what is this I don't even... Sometimes I have trouble understanding how people come to the conclusions that they come to. A lot of trouble. This will keep me up late tonight, I'm sure of it. Where was he coming from? Was he referring to the declining subscriber numbers, the release of a new game, the introduction of something controversial to the game that would lead it imploding upon it self or what I just don't...
This leaves us with much more questions than answers, I'm afraid. But, then again, what doesn't?
Adam Holisky Oct 18th 2011 12:52AM
I would hope it would be a "duh" type question -- but it's asked pretty often here and on the official forums, so I'm not terribly surprised Zarhym answered it (and answered it this week).
Bellajtok Oct 18th 2011 1:01AM
Honestly, I think the OP was just trying to start a "WoW is dying" thread. Zarhym saw it and shut it down.
kaminari Oct 18th 2011 1:03AM
@ razion I doubt that was the op conclusion, it looks more like he was phishing for info on the next expansion.
Noyou Oct 18th 2011 12:49AM
I don't blame the person for asking the question, but do you really think a blue poster, even GC, would say, "Oh, yeah. Cataclysm is the last expansion." ? I think that kind of thing would be delivered at Blizzcon. Hopefully not this Blizzcon. As much as a success as WoW is, there will be a point of diminishing returns. Just like eating those big macs, pizzas, or whatever you like. Eventually, you get full, tastes change, or find something else to dine on.
Bellajtok Oct 18th 2011 1:00AM
Honestly, I think he was hoping to start a thread about how WoW is dying, and Zarhym saw him do it and shut him down right away.
Bellajtok Oct 18th 2011 1:03AM
Comment system, I am going to rip out your code.
thawedtheorc Oct 18th 2011 6:57AM
Did you know that one day the sun will go out? I am going to jump on them NASA sites and start a 'World is coming to an end" thread.
Randomize Oct 18th 2011 1:14AM
Yes, because a company that has 11 million subscribers paying $15/month for a game would simply stop producing content for that game and subsequently lose hundreds of millions a month in revenue. Why do people even say this garbage? It's like saying that, because hamburger sales at McDonald's fell 5% in the last quarter, they're going to go vegan-only. It's asinine.
Literaltruth Oct 18th 2011 1:19AM
I'm imagining Blizzcon now...Chris Metzen gets up on stage in the opening ceremony and says:
"Yeah guys, umm...we've spent the last six months doing nothing but trying to think of ideas for the next WoW expansion...and all we could come up with was Pandas. So, yeah, rather than subject you to that we've decided just to call it quits. Quite frankly we can't be bothered with it any more anyway...the forums have been depressing us for years, the whining just gets us down and, really, you've killed most of the cool villains by this point anyway. So...yeah...we're all going for a holiday. See ya."
mem0ryburn Oct 18th 2011 1:32AM
I JUST found out about the new WoW action figure line coming out in two days. THERE'S GONNA BE A MOONKIN.
You guys should totally cover news on that front. Or point me towards somewhere that does. :)
Lissanna Oct 18th 2011 10:13AM
http://www.dccomics.com/dcunlimited/wow/?dcd=16766
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