World of Warcraft back on top – 10 million subscribers for first time in two years
Blizzard Entertainment’s World of Warcraft has been the juggernaut of Massively Multiplayer Online (MMO) gaming for nearly 10 years, and with the subscription numbers released on Wednesday, it does not look like it is going anywhere anytime soon.
The game’s latest expansion, Warlords of Draenor, has brought the MMO’s subscribed user base up to over 10 million people, the highest number of subscribers the game has seen since Fall 2012 and 2.6 million people higher than were subscribed just two months ago.
Many old players have returned for the new expansion, which promises a return to the franchise’s roots.
“We’re thrilled that so many players jumped in to play Warlords of Draenor on day one and are having a great time with the new content,” said Mike Morhaime, CEO and co-founder of Blizzard Entertainment. “We poured a lot of hard work and passion into this expansion, and we appreciate all the kind words from players and the overwhelming support they continue to show for World of Warcraft.”
The drastic increase in users may have contributed to the many server instability problems experienced when Warlords of Draenor launched last Thursday.
Blizzard Entertainment apologized for the issues, giving all actively subscribed players a free 5-day extension to their accounts. At $15 a month, that works out to roughly $25 million in subscription time for the 10 million subscribers.
A Cutthroat Industry
The current bump in subscribed players is good news for World of Warcraft, as June 2014 had seen the lowest number of subscribers in nearly eight years. But that does not mean Blizzard Entertainment’s golden goose was on its way out, especially compared to other games in the genre.
The industry has seen several MMO games come and go over the course of the last 10 years, and many new games often claim to be a “WoW Killer,” saying that they will finally be the game to topple the giant, but while several achieved a dedicated fanbase, few manage to approach numbers anywhere near those of World of Warcraft.
For example, compare World of Warcraft’s “paltry” 6.8 million subscribers in June to Star Wars: The Old Republic’s 1.6 million players, Guild Wars 2’s 3 million players, and Star Trek Online’s 3.2 million players.
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