Blizzard’s biggest critic explains what WoW is doing so well after 16 years

The Twitch streamer Asmongold has hardly missed an opportunity in the last few months to criticize Blizzard and the MMORPG WoW. But now he says what still speaks for the online role-playing game and what makes it so “unironically” good today. WoW has a basic quality that is particularly noticeable in the combat system.

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• Twitch streamer Asmongold has made a name for itself through World of Warcraft as the biggest MMORPG streamer on Twitch. He was known for his devotion to WoW for a long time, but this love got some cracks in 2021. He even moved away from WoW in the summer of 2021 and played Final Fantasy XIV and other MMORPGs extensively. In the course of his change, WoW was replaced as the largest MMORPG on Twitch after many years.
• In the past few months, Asmongold has been criticizing WoW’s development without ceasing. Above all, he had the Blizzard studio in the constant focus of his criticism. He said Blizzard has lost its way, acting on the grounds of political correctness and making the game worse and worse. In the last few months, Asmongold’s criticism reflected the frustration of many longtime WoW fans about the current state of their favorite game.
• But now Asmongold praises WoW and Blizzard again. He points out that despite all the criticism, the game still has fantastic core gameplay. That is the Blizzard quality that many envied the studio for.

“Unironic Blizzard quality”

Asmongold praises WoW: The Streamer said:

“Games live and die with their core gameplay, what the game feels like on a basic basis. Is it fun to play the game? It’s all about this question: is it responsive? This is a huge thing. The fact that Black Desert Online still exists is a good example of this.

Also World of Warcraft – I mean everyone makes fun of WoW – for legitimate reasons, but combat in WoW is super-responsive. It’s really, really good. Even if you go back and play WoW Classic, the fight is really good. It’s so sleek. It’s the unironic Blizzard quality that a lot of people wish they had. “

Asmongold

Is that really WoW’s secret? It’s a big factor, at least. This “core gameplay loop” of a game, as it really feels, is also mentioned again and again as an explanation for the fact that games that are clearly the most successful of their genre still work after many years:

• At Destiny, for example, people talked about the “core gameplay loop”, which consists of shooting – taking cover – throwing grenades – shooting. Back then it was said that if you can get 30 seconds of good gameplay, you can string them together and develop a good game.
• Even the core gameplay of League of Legends seems to work extremely well even after decades and people don’t get tired of spending their time with the MOBA even after tens of thousands of hours.
• Asmongold himself gives an interesting example of the system: The MMORPG Black Desert has a lot of microtransactions, grinding and a lack of PvE focus that speaks against success in the West, but the core gameplay is so extraordinarily good that Black Desert is holding up. Black Desert’s toughest fans play for thousands of hours just to reach a new level.

Despite all the criticism of WoW: It is this core gameplay from WoW that ensures that fights still feel good even after 16 years of grind. For many MMORPG fans, the farming of mobs or the daily quests belong to a kind of meditative routine at the end of a work day. It only works because fighting feels “so good”.

Many of the best MMOs and MMORPGs that can be played in 2021 are characterized by a good core gameplay, a certain “basic quality” in the foundation of the game:

The 15 currently best MMOs and MMORPGs in 2021