Blizzard have been looking into ways to revive the popularity of “World of Warcraft” lately, after the game has started to dip a little over the last few years. Considering how long it’s been on the market, it’s surprising it even made it that far, according to some – and a lot of that is due to Blizzard continuing to support their title with one major update after another, not to mention the expansion packs.
The company’s latest idea for restoring interest in WoW is called “WoW Tokens”, and will be presented in the form of $20 virtual tokens that players will be able to purchase soon, and use as a trading currency. Tokens can be exchanged for play time, effectively allowing players to trade their in-game gold for monthly subscriptions in an easier and more streamlined way.
Blizzard are still preparing for the launch of the feature, and they’re not quite ready to release it to the market yet. According to reports, patch 6.1.2 will lay some groundwork for the implementation of the feature, and gamers should see Tokens becoming available sometime shortly after. It’s not known if the system will be gradually expanded (meaning that the initial $20 tokens are just a starting step) or if Blizzard will release it in one go, but they will likely have some polishing to do over the next few weeks.
“World of Warcraft” is a unique phenomenon in the world of gaming. It’s one of the games that popularized the MMO genre and truly brought it into the spotlight, and it’s also one of the longest-running titles in the history of gaming. Despite being over a decade old, “WoW” is still played by many today.
It’s worth noting that the system won’t allow for completely unlimited back-and-forth trading, as Tokens purchased with in-game gold will become Soulbound, forcing the player who purchased them to use them on their own account. Still, it’s a much better system than what “WoW” players had access to before, and it should give a little extra incentive for those who like the game from a trading standpoint.
While some are claiming that “WoW” is well on its way out, and that it’s only a matter of time before the game shuts down for good, Blizzard apparently still see a lot of potential in it and aren’t ready to give up on it just yet. Which is certainly a great thing, because there are thousands of people who still login every day to continue their adventures, and some experts are even claiming that if Blizzard think outside of the box, they could still monetize that crowd significantly. The new Tokens could be a step in that direction.
Scr*w that, I want to fly in the new lands