AS a World of Warcraft player for the last 11 years, I felt very excited to step into the expansive lands of Dragonflight. Given the mixed reception of previous expansions, this is definitely a breath of fresh air – with four massive zones to explore to get you from level 60 to 70, eight new dungeons, all of which will be available on day one, as well as one raid — Vault of the Incarnates — that will open on December 13. Mythic+ dungeons will also be making a return, with a Shadowlands Season 4-style rotation that begin December 13 also.
From the moment I stepped off the boat I was enthralled with everything I saw – this expansion feels like coming home. I fell more and more in love as I explored the incredibly beautiful new zones. The contrast within The Waking Shores is a breathtaking introduction to the expansion, from volcanic wastelands to lush river valleys you will always find yourself somewhere amazing. The side quests are incredibly charming, I particularly enjoyed becoming a duck hearder in The Shady Sanctuary for the Green Dragonflight and saving the duck named Firequackers. The world is full of these little heartfelt moments, which is what made me fall in love with WoW all those years ago. So far I feel that World of Warcraft is better than it’s ever been!
One of the stands outs for me so far is the brand new feature Dragonriding. This is a brand new feature of the game allowing you to soar above the Isles three times faster than traditional flying mounts. I found the restrictiveness of the mount very incentivising to continue to customise the dragons abilities, exponentially adding to the enjoyment of my drake. Furthermore, the courses scattered across the Isles are extremely fun. I can imagine both the adrenaline junkie or achievement hunter would enjoy the challenge they present. Although I will say combining Dragonriding with the new Drakythr race does take some getting used to. There are also welcome changes to the talent trees and professions – making them more customisable and enjoyable than ever.
The story I have experienced so far is rich in lore from both in and out of the game. I would recommend anyone who wishes to get a better understanding of the lore, to look up the Dragonflight Legacies videos. I am particularly interested in how the succession crisis within the Black Dragonflight resolves itself, Prince Wrathion is certainly an entertaining character and I look forward to seeing more. Gameplay is great, even with the packed servers causing a few outages, and I am loving all the new content. I have found every NPC I have ran into is carefully crafted to encourage deep immersion into the story, and I am so here for it.
This expansion feels like a love letter from Blizzard and it’s a welcome entry in the long-running MMORPG. For newcomers or lapsed veterans, it’s still easy to recommend World of Warcraft: Dragonflight. Only half of the expansion has been released so far, so I will continue to update you on my thoughts. But for now, travel well friends.
