When you look at it objectively this is truly the best expansion ever.
Covenants add a whole new dynamic to the game. There’s one to suit each type of personality. When you add up all the new covenant abilities added to the game it’s probably more than a new class, especially when you factor in uprunning. Being able to identify with your covenant and represent it proudly is basically an evolved version of factions.
Torghast is a blast. Some people say it’s boring but I think it’s because they’re doing it alone, in a group it’s the best innovation since m+. The crazy powers you get make you feel like a superhero.
Lore: The stories in SL touch you deeply because it’s not fluff, it’s about the fate of everyone’s freaking soul. The jailer is the most evil villain ever considering he wants to torture everyone for eternity, much more profound than some obscure octopus whispering in your ear. The Night Fae storyline was moving, and you felt sorrow for the wildseeds who didn’t make it.
Zones: Blizzard went above and beyond, the zones feel majestic and like parallel universes. The whole atmosphere in Ardenweald is soothing and makes you feel at peace, especially the music. Revendreth is probably the most visually impressive zone ever made.
PVP vendors: says enough
Dungeons and raids: The mechanics keep getting more complex over time, and this is great especially in dungeons because past expansions’ m+ were snooze fests. I like having to actually use my brain now.
The Maw: For the first time Blizzard has managed to create open-world content that feels dangerous and intimidating, which brings back some of that old school MMORPG flavor.
People will look back at SL as one of the highlights of WoW, just like they view Legion even though lots of people were complaining about it at the time. There’s so much innovation in this expansion that Blizzard deserves the praise for creating this masterpiece, especially when you consider this was done during a pandemic.
Shadowlands was the deathblow of WoW. However show must go on and resurrection is at hand. If not in 10.X totally 11.X and 12.X will absolutely get better and better. For sure.
I usually play few months into each expansion when they are released, but then I quit, as there is no real progress to be made, as it changes to timegated ilvl grind.
And I come back few weeks before the next expansion, to experience everything what was released during my absence,
And yes, Ive enjoyed these few weeks of shadowlands. Its nice to play, feel the progress of the story. Find out what happens next wihout having to wait for 6 months. Get new gear, and meaningful upgrades which really make you feel powerful when doing the content and like not just ”+3 haste chest piece” type of upgrades, and next week no upgrade at all.
Timegated content is just manure. While I enjoyed the shadowlands, I dislike the fact that few weeks/months worth of content is strecthed over two or three years. And the between time is filled with mindless +3 ilvls per week grind or similar. And thats done running same dungeons week after week after week… I get bored after two weeks and then I stop giving money to them.
I’m thinking this is bait, all of it, but despite that I have to bite on
All of the Shadowlands zones are exactly my least -favourite in WoW, except for Isle of Thunder, which is at least for sure ahead of the Maw. And no, the Maw never felt dangerous, not even in 9.0; just dreary and unfinished.
I had fun in the WoW game this year, I did a lot more of the quests in the Outlands. I enjoy saving the ugly man from a boar. I enjoy killing the beautiful enemy with four arms. Some quest I do not understand, so I will abandon them and tell the requester, that they can do it themselves if they wish to be so confusing.
Torghast in a group was boring as hell and harder, everything just became bullet sponges pretty much and as a result the elites got a stupid amount of stacks and did stupid amounts of damage. It was easier and faster to solo it.
Worst zones ever made, all of them. They are not even comparable to the feeling you get while playing classic/wrath and mop zones. Maybe because people like me are so sick of this superman narrative Blizzard is trying to push on us. Stop with this space/old gods narrative, let us go home
I’m not convinced, especially from a design point of view: the best zones ever made IMHO are Suramar and Tiragarde Sound so far… SL didn’t have any notable zone, except maybe for Tazavesh
Wod was the deathblow.
Ever since the game’s hanging on for it’s dear life
However I disagree with everything the OP said.
Shadowlands was relativily fun because off the interaction with Tier sets and Legendaries for me but that was it, all the rest he noted was garbo.
It’s one of the xpack’s I actually played the longest
Whatever peoples opinion, I’ve got to agree with OP on one point. Revendreth is one of the greatest zones they’ve ever created.
Ardenwald a bit fairy-ish for my liking, but still visually impressive, and ironically I ended up playing in that zone more than any other due to mostly maining a hunter this expansion.
Bastion, not so great. And Maldraxus I mostly avoided.
And, yeah, like others have said. Boreghast can do one.
I only experienced bastion.
All the classes i played in SL best conduits was Kyrian.
I gave up on an alt healer after the legendary base item went for 100k+ gold.
SL was way way worse than BFA, i disliked most of the zones aesthetic except for Bastion, that was an amazing place visually.
4 of the dungeons were complete trash in my opinion, they even got removed in season 4.
Dragonflight looks so much better, no borrowed powers at all, that is all i basically wanted.
But also; It’s impossible to look at it objectively. Because almost every aspect of gaming is subjective. Gaming is about having fun and what causes you to have fun is subjective. What you enjoy is subjective.
