The Classic+ thread

What is “Classic+”?

Back the days of TBC announcement a part of the WoW community set themselves claiming that TBC, as it was planned, will ruin the game for ever.

These players said that the game should not evolved as Blizzard was announcing, but in other way, with the past of time that divergion was called Classic+.

What is covered by Classic+?

Content

The starting point is the Vanilla end phase, finishing on the kill of Kel’Thuzad within Naxxramas raid.

Then what happens is:

  • New content is added to Azeroth: new zones, new quests, new dungeons and raids.
  • Level cap is freezed at 60.

This way all the old content still has a real worth. People will have to run all through Azeroth as it was known to level from 1 to 60. And once you get into max. level you still have to go into dungeons for some pre-BiS gear, followed by at least 2-last-raid-tiers. OK, ok … with the time, some raid tiers will be completely abandoned by the majority, but some few will still have some progress on them.

Part of the content that can be added are those items that were discarded in the original vanilla release:

  • Karazhan, as neutral city, dungeon or raid.
  • Emeral Dream.
  • Scarlet Crusade raid.
  • Aszhara PvP zone.

And new content that can be developed are:

  • Uldum.
  • Ghostlands, Everson Woods, Isle of Quel’Danas.
  • Gilneas.
  • Northrend.
  • Dragon Isles.

Lore

With this iteration over lore, we players do never go into Outlands after Illidan, but we can face Lich King in Northrend and finish the quest line for the Ashbringuer (maybe).

Also, many quest that were not-concluded during the WoW Vanilla development, now have their time to be properly finished, as for example The Essence of Eranikus.

Other nice point will be to add extra classes quest up to max level and beyond.

Game play

Some of you may state that vanilla was full of game play bugs.

Well with Classic+ Blizzard has an oportunity to fix those bugs and improve the game play.

How? Well, here are some nice bullet points that may can be covered:

  • Re-shape talens trees, as max as possible to be similar to WotLK expansion, but keeping the level cap into 60.
  • Give new skills and talents to those called meme-spec so they are now useful classes.
  • Balance DPS meters and statics so it is worth to be another DPS class rather than Warriors in raids.
  • Balance PvP mechanism so is possible to kill a counter-class.

Classes/Races

Some players may state that current vanilla classes distribution are fine, but some others think that in a Classic+ there’s space for other classes distribution or even new classes:

  • Hunters for Humans and Forsakens.
  • Demon Hunters and Death Nights for both factions.

What’s important, with the classes/races balance is that Paladins are for the Alliance and Shamans for the Horde.

Also, new races can be added to the game:

  • Goblins
  • Worgens
  • Ogres

Customization

Some players would love to have a better customization, talking about the characters themselves. So maybe the barber shop is something to consider.

Around the transmog of items, some players may consider it a nice thing to have, others not. As I don’t have an strong opinion on this, I would suggest to have trasnmog but with limited options, for example: weapons and upper-tier item sets (shoulder, header, chest and legs) can’t be modified.

Loot tables

Making meme-specs worth is something that must be completed with extra items for those specs, specially raid tier-sets.

Also, would be really awesome to add legendary weapons to those classes that back in vanilla never get a shot for getting one.

Collectables

Most players opinion is that mounts, pets, tabards or toys are a good set of items to hunt for …

But they should not be rewards to any kind of achievement or purchase in-game. So if you want them, you will have to work for them.

Achievements

Please, no.

And if so … leave out of achivements all related with dungeons/raids.

Flying mounts

This topic is a big one.

Obviously flying around Azeroth is a nice idea, it makes it faster to move from one point to another and having a new set of collectable mounts is an extra feature.

But the major handicap is that this feature completely kills outdoor PvP and kills part of the social enhancement required.

IMO is a 100% no.

Game textures and models

One of the greatest points of World of Warcraft is its cartoonish style. Maybe there are players that would love to have real textures in game, but that will make the game itself to look old and out-fashioned really fast as the game engines improve with time.

Keeping the cartoonish style, maybe Classic+ could improve some details as the trees and vegetations …

Life-saver tools

This is completely open to debate, some players would love it, some others not.

  • LFG tool as it was at the end of TBC (no-auto-transfer).
  • Summoning meeting stones.

What do you think?

2 Likes

Here you have a list of videos and posts that content or sum-up this ideas around Classic+:

Why would blizzard develop another version of wow competing with its many other versions of wow? the idea is a non starter dream of a bunch of bored level 60.

Well …

Then, why Blizzard did add a seassonal or hardcore modes to the game?
I think is not because classic players are bored.
I think is because we do love vanilla game mode and we’d love to have it expanded, but in the way others MMO have done all theese twenty (20) long years.

And I deeply believe there’s space enough for all of us …

  • Those who want to play an static version of the original game (classic era).
  • Those who want to review previous expansions sets until they catch the last expansion (classic).
  • Those who want a test to their skills (hardcore).
  • Those who want the original game improved and expanded, but keeping the basics of the MMO-RPG (classic+).

Classic+ has zero percent chance of being developed. It will splinter the current players even more.

i disagree,

currently the playerbase is retail, wotlk and era,

The majority of the wotlk playerbase has expressed their desire NOT to continue to CATA, many saying they will unsubscribe,

The retail playerbase have either never expressed interest in classic and have been retail from the start, or switch between classic and retail depending on patches,

and finally the ERA playerbase, ERA has only recently exploded in population, most likey due to it being a waiting room for a fresh server / classic +, the population of ERA players that have been there since tbc is very very small,

so if classic + happens, the wow playerbase split will be:

retail as it always has been,
ERA, a small minority,
CATA, a small minority,
and then the new classic fresh / classic + playerbase, which lets be real the majority of players will Definity play,

a split very similar to what we already have,
in addition the announcement of a classic + will bring many many previous wow players back to the game, just like 2019 classic did, so it terms of a business plan I.E making money, classic + is a no brainer.

3 Likes

This isn’t essentials making a new expansion/game. This is classic with some bolt on rubish.

I love classic as well and I guarantee blizzard wont execute Classic + in a way that the classic player base will be interested in. I think people are defiantly bored.

There is not, after the initial hype dies people will be crying on the forum for server transfers. you also forget about retail as well. no matter how much you want classic + retail will always take first base.

Lol ill come back to your comment after blizzcon. Classic+ will 100% happen

4 Likes

Yeah this would be nice. Maybe 1-3 new items for classes that are already good but have the majority of the item pool go towards meme specs.
I struggle to find a legendary item that would be only for classes/specs who don’t have one yet tho. I guess a ranged weapon that’s hunter exclusive so warriors and rogues don’t poach it would be good.

Its almost like the people who are against the idea of classic + have forgotten what happened PRE-2019 lol,

" blizzard will never do vanilla servers "
" blizzard doesnt have the recourses to do vanilla servers and retail at the same time "
" you think you do, but you dont "

and yet here we are in 2023, the lich king is dead, and now were talking about classic +, i wouldnt be so against it if i were you.

(2177) Blizzard’s Announcement On World of Warcraft Classic That Shocked The World (BlizzCon 2017) [4K] - YouTube

that is a link to the 2017 blizzcon wow classic announcement, give it a watch, and then come back to me and tell me that classic + is impossible.

2 Likes

Can you quote your source about the majority of players? That means more than 50%.

No, the announcement we will get is about SOM2 and it won’t be Classic+.

No need for a quote, just go to the WOTLK section of the forum and have a look at some of the threads, and then ask yourself if the player base really wants cata,

if you want to look at some numbers have a look at the 2010 sub count and then compare that to the 2019 sub count, that should give you an idea, i’ll give you a quick answer:
2010 sub count during cata = 12 mil
2019 classic sub count = 29 mil

its really not hard to look at history and the present day to predict the future, unless youre a robot.

You mean the 20 people who post there? That’s not 50% of players. Even if it’s 100 players that’s still a very small number of players.

Shouldn’t you be comparing Wrath with Cata when it first came out, not to Retail 8 years later?

It goes across all platforms, wow forums, twitch, Youtube, it is as clear as day that yes the majority of players dont care for cata, it is a simple as that,

and yes the comparison i made is the correct one, during the original wotlk - cata blizzard lost a substantial amount of subs, and it continued to decline until the release of classic, like i said:
2010 cata 12 mil
2019 classic 29 mil
over double the amount of subs, i dont mean to sound rude but it doesnt take a lot of common sense to understand that in the eyes of a COMPANY, the difference in the amount of income between 12 mil subs and 29 mils subs is astronomical,

blizzard knows that cata classic will not be able to uphold subs, it happened before and will happen again, its not rocket science.

again watch the 2017 blizzcon classic announcement, people thought it would never happen, it did, people think classic plus will never happen…

Mate you are 100% kidding yourself. Blizz are going to focus on their core game (Retail).

If you want new content, play retail lmao. Who the hell is even going to write the alternative story. You will all cry week one if it’s not got the classic feel and we are in 2023 so it wont.

their core game ay?

2016 leigon = 5.7 subs
2018 BFA = 5.2 subs
2020 SL = 4.9 subs
2023 = 4.5 subs

their core game is literally dying, while classic has been a success, so im the one kidding myself? just use your brain instead of trying to defend retail without a single valid point, its not a good look, its simple business.

Blizzard CEO: " lets focus on the thing that has been failing year after year and ignore the thing that has been a success and made us millions of dollars "

come on.

1 Like

It is a nice idea on paper, but as you say, it kills world pvp. It also kills the social effect: you never meet people out in the world anymore. Flying mounts are a big no-go.

Heck no!

I think you’re already changed Classic so much it isn’t entitled to be named Classic+. A better name would be Retail Lite.

Classic+ should have the main elements of Classic: same races, same social functions but some class balances and game improvements. A few ideas could be working Summon stones and Vellums (done without Inscription though).

Dude you were litteraly also the guy saying fresh would never ever happen before SoM. You are perma on forums and pretty braindead LOL. anyways see you after blizzcon when classic+ is announced.

1 Like

The subs have been decreasing since 2010 that doesn’t change the fact that retail is the core game.

Nowhere did I “defend retail”, I don’t need to. It’s a fact that retail is the core game just because you prefer classic, that doesn’t change.

Yes, WOW classic is the big boy bringing in all the bucks… Why on earth would blizz spend time developing new expansions, if they could just live off of classic. The answer is THEY CANT.

Get real, there will be no classic + it just wouldn’t pull and retain enough people. Only a few dedicate classic players actually want C+ when they are not crying for “Fresh”
or to get their toons cloned from woltk.

That won’t happen. Blizzcon will announce something-other-than-SOM2.