"Eight years ago, WoW launched without any weather at all," writes WoW Archivist's Scott Andrews. "The game had a day/night cycle, but no other changing conditions. Hillsbrad was always sunny, with no rain to dampen the constant Southshore/Tarren Mill PvP battles. It never snowed in Winterspring, despite the heavy snowfall in evidence."

It took five years for Blizzard to add weather to the game. Even then, the overall effect was decidedly underwhelming. Weather effects did not impact gameplay. It wasn't until Mists of Pandaria that players found themselves flying into thunderstorms or plodding through a misty drizzle with any regularity, not until Mists that they discovered pets that spawn only during certain weather conditions.

Do you enjoy the bracing effects of racing beneath a sudden squall as you make your way to your quest turn-in, or is local weather in a zone more of a nuisance? Do you long for even more dramatic storms, perhaps even effects that bear an impact on your gameplay?

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Filed under: Analysis / Opinion