Discussion

Some gamers are used to a regular flood around their favorite franchises.

People have had far too few opportunities to get together for conventions and conferences over the past two years.

In the latest talent tree preview for the next World of Warcraft expansion Dragonflight, Shadow Priests got a pleasant surprise: At the bottom of their talent tree was the option to cast your lot with one of the four Old Gods.

It's been almost two months since I asked whether you go back to farm old content in World of Warcraft or other games, and I've spent a lot of time during those intervening weeks looking for mounts.

Would you play a Diablo-themed RTS, with big armies of demons attacking various settlements around the globe and hero units like Nephalem, Angels, Demons, and so on?

Seriously what is it about this decade old ARPG that has me blasting my way to Paragon 700 on a character I rolled in Season 26 this week?

Shadowlands Season 4 is starting in just over a month, and there are some interesting "experiments" the World of Warcraft development team is planning with it whose influence will inevitably come into play for Dragonflight.

Since the very first release of World of Warcraft you've been able to acquire the game in a special Collector's Edition box, and for every expansion since -- as well as on the 15th Anniversary -- players can add a box of physical goodies to their shelf. Dragonflight, of course, continues this tradition with the standard art book and mousepad, as well as the more recent common inclusion of pins (which seems to be the go-to replacement for the late, lamented expansion soundtrack CD).

Look, I love World of Warcraft, and I've been playing it for years.

I love Diablo 3's Seasons, and I'm enjoying Season 26 right now.