As the latest expansion for the popular MMORPG, World of Warcraft: Shadowlands takes players through the various realms of the afterlife. Some fans think the morbid subject matter makes the perfect ending to the entire game, while others want more. So, is Shadowlands really going to be the last WoW expansion?
The main source of this speculation apparently stems from two places. First, taking players into the realms of the dead in Shadowlands seems like a natural endpoint. Second, Activision Blizzard is at an odd place where it's canceling some franchises like StarCraft and focusing on newer ones. Since World of Warcraft has been around for the better part of two decades, fans wonder if it's perhaps time for the company to move forward with a different project.
During the Shadowlands beta, some players couldn't help but feel like the quality wasn't on par with that of past installments. The World of Warcraft expansion was delayed, as Blizzard took the criticism into account and worked to make the game even better. Still, some fans couldn't help but feel like this was a last hurrah for World of Warcraft. While the subject matter of Shadowlands does involve the dead, and Blizzard has had some shake-ups in the last few years, there are still plenty of reasons to assume Shadowlands WON'T be WoW's last expansion.
Why Shadowlands Probably Isn't The Last World Of Warcraft Expansion
One factor to consider is that Activision Blizzard hasn't given any indication of stopping World of Warcraft support anytime soon. A final expansion for a game like WoW would be a huge selling point, so it seems Blizzard would announce something like that beforehand to drive more interest and sales. In previous statements, members of the Blizzard team have even spoken about what they'd like to see in future installments. Some fans believe a time travel story arc will occur in the next expansion after Shadowlands. This could make sense, and time travel is already canon, so it wouldn't be too much of a stretch to assume the next World of Warcraft expansion could provide a soft reset of events.
Another factor to consider is money. From a business standpoint, it doesn't make sense to end World of Warcraft after Shadowlands. Although Blizzard hasn't officially shared stats since 2015, WoW appears to still have almost 5 million players worldwide. While it isn't nearly as impressive as WoW's subscriber numbers at the height of its popularity, that still shows the game is incredibly popular and profitable. It's unlikely Blizzard will end the project while it's still so financially viable.
Nothing official has been shared about WoW's future expansions yet. However, it's reasonable to assume World of Warcraft: Shadowlands won't be the last expansion for the popular MMO. As long as the game remains successful, Blizzard will probably continue making content for it.