A recent Reddit post (which has since been deleted) showed a screenshot, supposedly of source code from Xbox's official website, that hinted at World of Warcraft getting a console release. The code showed World of Warcraft: Complete Edition in the "Upcoming" section of the website, with a release date of December 9. Interestingly, the same date of The Game Awards 2021 awards ceremony, often where announcements about new titles are made.
Although this rumor has yet to be substantiated, the meager hint has already left a large number of gamers speculating, and fans of the series hoping that it will soon be verified. If true, this will be the first time that any console has seen a World of Warcraft port, with the game being only available on PC until now. The evidence may be suspect, but the possibility of a console version does suggest some interesting directions that the game could take.
Not The First Time Players' Hopes Have Been Raised
World of Warcraft is perhaps the largest MMO in the world, with millions of players and plenty of post-launch support from Blizzard. The MMORPG may have been released way back in 2004, but it still has a large number of fans to this day. To date, the game has released eight major expansion packs, including its most recent release Shadowlands, and is a major critical and commercial success. As well as being one of the most well-known MMO titles ever made, World of Warcraft helped to establish many mainstays in the genre like constant raids and optimized toolbars for combat.
However, this isn't the first time fans of the franchise have had their hopes raised for a console release. Back in 2020, the most recent expansion pack Shadowlands was rated for the Xbox Series X in Brazil, leading to another deluge of speculation and excitement from players. However, this was quickly dispelled when Blizzard stated that they had "no plans" to bring World of Warcraft to the console. The shutdown of the rumor as recently as 2020 could mean that players should take this latest news with a pinch of salt, but there may still be hope.
What A Console Version Could Mean
Although World of Warcraft remains one of the most popular gaming franchises of all time, there is no doubt that the player base is declining. Although Blizzard doesn't officially publish player numbers, subscribers are still believed to be in the millions according to third-party data analysis sites. Bringing the game to consoles would open it up to millions more, and seems like it would make sense for a franchise that is having to compete with other online MMOs popular with players.
However, the potential port already has a pall cast over any upcoming announcement, after the ongoing lawsuit filed against Activision Blizzard for its "frat boy" work culture which alleged sexual abuse, assault, and harassment amongst its staff. With allegations continuing to rock the gaming community and rumors of Bobby Kotick's resignation, Blizzard's commitment to releasing a massive new venture is called into question.
Some have speculated that the focus on more benign leaks like a potential new console version of World of Warcraft could be an ill-advised attempt to distract from more malignant news coming out of the game's headquarters. Although this is unlikely to be the case, players can't help but wonder how the rumored news will be met if it is indeed announced at the upcoming Game Awards 2021 show.
How World of Warcraft Could Come to Consoles
Rumors and speculation aside, porting the MMORPG to Xbox is not without its technical difficulties. First of all, the game is massive, and trying to condense the UI down to a playable level on a different platform could present a number of problems. As an exclusive PC title, many players rely on specific mouse and keypad inputs as well as a whole host of mods.
The modding community is almost as large as the player base, with players adding creative add-ons and personalizations that wouldn't easily translate to consoles, if at all. In October 2020 World of Warcraft finally added native gamepad support, instead of making players rely on external programs in order to use console controllers, showing their interest in adapting the game at least in part for consoles.
Despite some interesting challenges, there are precedents in the gaming community for porting MMOs to consoles. The Korean MMORPG Black Desert Online made a successful transition to consoles in 2019, and Final Fantasy XIV lost none of its potency in its transition from PC to consoles either. The cross-platform play could prove to be a bit problematic, with unbalanced gameplay leading to unfair advantages in PvP modes. But it's undeniable that if World of Warcraft could manage it, creating a console version would ensure the game's legacy for years to come.
World of Warcraft is available now on PC.