"Retail WoW is dead": Asmongold discusses World of Warcraft's current issues, opens up about his expectations for Classic+

Zack “Asmongold”, like many World of Warcraft players, is getting ready for Blizzcon and recently discussed Retail and Classic+. The latter is a version of the Classic servers that fans have been hearing whispers about for some time now, and many feel that it could be what saves the game. While the OTK co-founder is an active WoW player, he has very strong opinions on what’s holding the game back and what could be done to fix it.

While some feel positive about Dragonflight, they also feel that an expansion isn’t enough to undo the damage the last few expansions did to the Retail experience. In fact, it’s only making things worse.

“Like, I’m gonna be honest; Retail WoW is dead. Literally, nobody cares about it.”

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Asmongold discusses World of Warcraft’s future ahead of Blizzcon 2023

In a recent YouTube video on Asmongold’s channel, the long-time World of Warcraft player discussed the major problems that the game has and his hopes for Classic+. This isn’t the first time the OTK streamer has expressed interest in the leaked plans for a Classic+ expansion to WoW, either.

As the streamer showed what was on Twitch for World of Warcraft, he said that there is just no interest in the Retail version of the MMO. A few people were streaming it, but the vast majority were playing on the Classic servers. In addition, he’d highlight the major problem the Retail edition of the game faces:

“But for the most part, nobody gives a f**k about Retail. Classic WoW is what it’s all about. Now, I don’t think Retail can bring out an expansion to undo the problems it has, because Retail has bloat problems.”

Each new expansion just adds new features, new abilities, and new mechanics on top of what’s already there. So an expansion won’t fix the problem. In order to fix Retail, Asmongold suggests a hard reset on the whole game:

“Like every game has a reset in one way or another. Like, we’re having PoE 2, there’s Diablo 4. Diablo 3 was out for a really long time, then there’s Diablo 4.”

According to the streamer, all an expansion does is have players level again and get new gear. It does nothing to solve the overall state of World of Warcraft at large. There’s no difference between a patch and an expansion - except you pay for expansions.

However, Classic+ could be exactly what the community needs, according to Asmongold. He discussed his expectations for this teased Classic content during the video:

“This is my best-case scenario for Blizzcon. They announce Classic+, they say it’s in development. They say it won’t be out anytime soon. In the meantime, we’re doing fresh Classic Servers, with, maybe, I dunno, actually just do nothing. Just say, ‘the Gates are closed’, we’re gonna do it just like 2019.”

Players would be able to open the Gates of Ahn’Qiraj again, hunt down the Black Scarab Mount, get the Necromancer title, and all the fun stuff of Classic. The idea is that these new servers would become Classic+ servers. That way, you can level there now, build up your reputation, and etcetera, so when Classic+ launches, you’ll be ready.

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YouTube comment section reacts to Asmongold’s Classic+ thoughts

Lots of classic players are hoping to relive their glory days. (Image via AsmongoldTV/YouTube)

If there’s any crowd that agrees with Asmongold, it’s the older players, who were around for the earliest days of World of Warcraft. Many shared their memories or hopes for the future of Classic+. The majority of them reminisced or talked about an older player, Perplexity, defeating Sonii during the Mak’gora tournament.

Crafting is easily the weakest part of Classic WoW. (Image via YouTube)

Another major talking point was the nature of crafting. Many feel like Classic+’s crafting would need a major overhaul. Some hoped they could craft legendary gear like Thunderfury, Blessed Blade of the Windseeker, while others simply feel leveling professions in Classic is “boring”.

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As of now, there’s no word on if World of Warcraft Classic+ will really come to the game. However, Asmongold, like many of us, hopes there’s some announcement during this weekend’s Blizzcon event.