World of Warcraft Wrath of the Lich King Classichas finally released, and Blizzard is already asking players if they would be interested in aCataclysm Classicnext. TheWorld of Warcraft Classicseries has been successful at whisking players back to the earliest days of Azeroth for an adventure seeping in nostalgia. Blizzard has re-released VanillaWoW,The Burning Crusade, andWrath of the Lich Kingunder this banner, andCataclysmwould be the obvious next step.
While some players may beexcited to revisitCataclysm, this re-release seems to miss the point ofWorld of WarcraftClassicentirely. The three versions ofWoWthat have launched under theClassicbanner all allow players to explore the original Azeroth before it was revamped throughCataclysm. This is a version of the world that no longer exists in the main game, and that is a major part of what makesWorld of Warcraft Classicso appealing.Cataclysmdoes not offer that nostalgia trip, which makes the entire idea of having aClassicversion seem pointless.
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World of Warcraft Classic Brings Players to the Old Azeroth
The Azeroth that players could explorewhenWorld of Warcraftlaunched in 2004 is a very different world than can be found in 2022. It was made up of two different continents filled with quests to complete and stories to uncover.The Burning Crusadeincreased the amount of areas that could be explored by introducing Outland and a couple of new zones on Azeroth.Wrath of the Lich Kingfurther expanded Azeroth with the brand-new continent of Northrend, but Azeroth remained relatively the same as when it first launched.
The release ofCataclysmbrought with it a whole new version of Azeroth that was devastated by theblack dragon aspect Deathwing. Whole zones changed, and the entire world was revamped. The version of Azeroth that released in 2004 was no longer able to be explored, and some zones definitely benefited from the revamp, but many players had been clamoring for a way to explore classic Azeroth for years to come.
There were unofficialways to explore classic Azeroth, but it was not until the launch ofWorld of Warcraft Classicthat Blizzard offered an official avenue. Players could once again explore Azeroth ala 2004, and Blizzard quickly followed it by re-releasing the first two expansions asClassiceditions. Having that way to experience the classicWorld of Warcraftfeel alongside modernWoWhas been well received by the community.
Cataclysm Ushered in Modern Azeroth
One of the biggest changes that came withCataclysmwas the giant world revamp that saw the entirety of old Azeroth replaced. There has not been a large world revamp since, and theCataclysmversion of Azeroth is still whatplayers explore inWorld of Warcraftto this day. There have been a couple of additions since, and some zones have been changed by details like giant Titan swords. However, the main continents are still pretty much the same as they were whenCataclysmlaunched in 2010.
World of Warcraft Classicand all the versions ofClassicreleased since have given players the ability to experience a version of Azeroth that does not exist anymore. OfferingWorld of Warcraft Cataclysm Classicwould bring the game’s content back to how it was duringCataclysm,and as a result the game world would match what can be seen in 2022. This version ofClassicwould not feel as different or special as the prior versions, so it does not seem needed right now.
World of WarcraftWrath of the Lich KingClassicis available now on PC.
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