Is World of Warcraft Worth Playing in 2024?

Huge changes are coming for World of Warcraft. With the War Within expansion set to kick off a whole new narrative saga, new talent trees, the introduction of solo progression content in the War Within, and retail WoW's long list of catch-up mechanics, there's a lot to consider for anyone thinking of returning to WoW. So, is World of Warcraft worth your time in 2024? Let's take a look.

World of Warcraft in Crisis:

Gone are the days when WoW could call itself king of the MMORPGs, not because WoW was robbed of its crown, exactly, but because the king began rotting on its throne a long time ago.

Ask a hundred players what went wrong, and they'll cite a hundred different reasons for abandoning the game, be it cross-realm, a specific expansion pack, class changes that ruined their favorite spec, dissatisfaction with raids or PvP, or just plain old real life getting in the way. One theme, however, remains a constant.

Folks are tired. Apathy towards modern World of Warcraft, approaching its 20th birthday this year, has grown with every new bungled expansion, and there have been plenty of those. So, why would the future of WoW be any different? Well, you might be in for a shock in 2024.

New WoW Expansion: The War Within:

Announced at Blizzcon 2023 by none other than Chris Metzen himself, The War Within expansion promises an entirely fresh feel for new and returning WoW players, and a story that will roll out over the course of multiple expansions that will be known as 'The Worldsoul Saga.'

The War Within promises content and storytelling on a scale WoW players have never seen before, as well as new ways to play including solo progression dungeons known as 'Delves' that can be completed alone or with as many friends as you like.

Here's a quick breakdown of The War Within's new features:

• New zones including an underground realm
• New talent trees, such as Chronowarden for Evokers, called 'Hero Talents' to further customize your builds
• Warbands that allow for account-wide banks and Reputation gains
• Delves that will act as flexible dungeon content (play solo or as a group)
• Solo queue rated battlegrounds seem likely
• New playable allied race, the Earthen
• The Dragonflight flying system will continue in perpetuity

However, while new features are great, the simple fact that Chris Metzen returned to Blizzard to direct the future of World of Warcraft's narrative is by far the most promising 'new feature' for most players. The value of having the man who practically wrote the book on old Azeroth cannot be overstated, even if it remains to be seen what power he truly has to right the ship.

If the above pointers have you interested, great! But how hard is it to get back into WoW right now in 2024?

WoW Catch-Up Mechanics:

There are a ton of factors to help you get caught up in modern WoW, even if you haven't touched the game in years (or even a decade).

Leveling is Easy:
Leveling your characters is extremely fast in modern WoW compared to WoW Classic standards, and most classes and specs are intuitive to learn.

Free Starter Gear:
Got an old character you haven't played in a while? Chances are you'll get a free Gear Update by hitting the red 'Next' button (as shown below) on your character select screen. This update includes fresh gear, good bags, and a quest log clearout.

Free Experience Boosts:
Character experience boosts are extremely common in WoW before a new expansion drops, so make sure to take advantage of this in the months/weeks leading up to the launch of The War Within.

Get a Free Level 70:
Pre-ordering the War Within expansion for your account will gift you a free level 70 character boost on that account, allowing you to immediately jump in and begin prepping for The War Within.

Is WoW Worth Playing in 2024?

In a word, yes. Nestled between the ravings of cynics and musing of dreamers, there's a pretty logical middle ground that says: There hasn't been a better time to return to World of Warcraft in about a decade. The War Within promises the beginning of a whole new chapter for WoW, and even if Blizzard and Metzen can only make good on half of their promises for the future, we'll be looking at a solid new expansion pack to (hopefully) jumpstart a new era for Azeroth.