WoW players criticize Blizzard with only one content patch released a year

Lauren Bergin
WoW Shadowlands two people torture a third in chains

World of Warcraft fans have realized that there has only been one WoW content patch a year, for the past two years, and they’re not pleased.

It’s been a turbulent year for WoW. The challenge remains of maintaining its playerbase in the aftermath of the lawsuit against Activision Blizzard, and the situation continues to be gloomy.

With players slamming decisions to remove material deemed inappropriate from the game, instead of fixing existing content, the slow release of hotfixes and patches is becoming another issue on players’ minds.

Players have now looked back, and tallied up that there has only been two content patches within the last two years – a slower cadence than one might expect, especially when compared to other games of a similar genre and production budget.

wow player riding a unicorn through a desert area with huge chains
The last content patch added the Chains of Domination into the game and was largely unsuccessful.

Where are the WoW content patches?

With the last content patch adding the WoW Shadowlands: Chains of Domination expansion into the game, players were left disappointed with gamebreaking lag, as well as how little new content was actually added.

The upcoming Patch 9.1.5 has gained momentum because it removes several of Shadowlands’ most irritating systems, but it doesn’t look to be adding any substantial new activities.

Sparking the conversation, one player exclaimed, “I just realized when reading up on 9.1.5 that we’ve only gotten one content patch a year for the past two years. We got one in January of 2020, one in June of 2021, and if the rumours are to be believed, we may only get one in 2022.

“I know there is a lot going on at Blizzard,” they continue, “but what exactly does the subscription cover these days? It’s not like they’re even on the ball with help tickets or fixing stuff in the game. And they’re sure as heck not providing content anymore. What is going on with Blizzard? How long can a game with a sub survive with no content?”

For many this is news, as time flies when you’re having fun (whether you’re in Azeroth or somewhere else.)

“This comment actually made me realized how f**ked it is right now,” laments one player, with another calling the situation “absurd.”

A final response reads “we’re not getting our money’s worth for another six months I reckon. 9.1.5 is going to be a flash in the pan and then nothing else, 9.2 and 10.0 need to pull it out of the bag but it’ll be difficult as WoW is playing second fiddle to FFXIV now.”

As players await the highly anticipated 9.1.5 changes and a crackdown on in-game toxicity, we’ll need to wait and see what information slips through the cracks regarding Patch 9.2. However, at the moment the next content update is just like the reasoning behind the Jailer’s ambitions: a mystery.

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About The Author

Lauren was formerly Dexerto's Features Editor and resident Diablo Sorceress. With two Master's degrees under her belt and a lot more Steam achievements, she specializes in all things Blizzard and Riot Games, with some Lost Ark and FFXIV on the side.