World of Warcraft: Season of Discovery is about to head into its second phase, and one developer working on the game has confirmed his expectation that the new Gnomeregan raid will be “cleared quickly.”
Set in the Vanilla world of Azeroth, Season of Discovery has changed much about the original game’s formula. The new leveling system saw players capped at Level 25 in the first instance, with further phases raising the cap to 40, 50 and eventually 60.
This approach necessitated the addition of extra “endgame” activities, as players who had reached the cap needed new challenges to conquer. One of these was the 10-man raid adaptation of Blackfathom Deeps, the capstone activity of the first phase.
Gnomeregan is set to step into the breach for Phase Two, again as a 10-man raid, though one developer working on the game does not expect it to go undefeated for long.
Gnomeregan may prove to be relatively easy in Season of Discovery
In a tweeted response to a player’s opinion on the raiding system in Season of Discovery, Senior Game Producer Josh Greenfield confirmed that the level-up raids/dungeons are not designed to be extremely difficult.
I think it's important to set some very clear expectations here; it will be cleared quickly 100%. We are not looking to make hyper-difficult raid content in these level-up dungeons. It might not be easy for everyone, but hyper-organized/comp groups will get it down.
— Josh Greenfield (@AggrendWoW) January 17, 2024
As a result, he expects that the first full clear of Gnomeregan should come in relatively short order for highly geared and organized guilds.
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This came as part of a broader discussion on whether the release of Gnomeregan should arrive a week after Phase Two launches. Fans were divided, with many concerned that a delayed release could limit competition among progression-focused players. Others felt the later launch was more in keeping with the experimental and relaxed nature of the seasonal experience.
One player said: “If the raid release is not day 1, the hype surrounding Phase 2 will be less impactful, and you will also have less content creators interested in Phase 2. SoD is not retail; there won’t be enough content to keep players that have leveled to 40 quickly otherwise.”
Another added: “I would say a delay allows the casual to keep pace, which is something you seem to cater for. But I will play devil’s advocate: why not make the raid difficult? Give us a challenge for once, and you can always tune it down when you get some stats.”
Whatever does happen with Gnomeregan, Season of Discovery continues to boldly go where no WoW flavor has gone before. With the game proving extremely popular, Blizzard will likely continue to push the boundaries.