Somehow it makes sense that when Blizzard releases a trailer for a new World of Warcraft expansion with massive orc cannons mounted on the back of a giant cyclops , people get a little excited. But maintaining enthusiasm for the nine-year-old game might also mean getting new content out at a quicker pace—even as often as once a year—according to new comments by WoW lead systems designer Greg Street.
"We find that expansions are what bring players back to World of Warcraft," Street tells Digital Spy . "Really good patches will keep them, but they aren't as good at bringing players back to the game.
"We really want to get to a cadence where we can release expansions more quickly," he says. "Once a year I think would be a good rate. I think the best thing we can do for new players is to keep coming out with regular content updates."
Let's face it: WoW remains immensely popular , and it's not exactly fighting for its life here. But with the continual churn of new MMOs, many of which are free-to-play, it's clear that Blizzard wants to keeps its position as the planetary leader for just a bit longer.
Thanks, IGN .
