We were already talking about it last March, but Blizzard confirms: the Dragonflight extension of World of Warcraft will be available during the year 2022 , with pre-orders for the standard and collector’s editions already available. This one looks like a rather well-stocked extension. It contains all the components for a rich gaming experience: a new territory – the Dragon Islands – as well as new mechanics. In particular, it will be possible to travel on the back of a dragon.
Already in April, the director of World of Warcraft, Ion Hazzikostas , presented the content that could be expected in the update. The pre-patch, which will be released a few weeks before the expansion, will already give a good taste of what awaits players, with events that will serve as an introduction to the update.
He also took stock of what the players most invested in the story of the Plains of Azeroth could expect: while finding familiar characters, the expansion will allow you to learn more about the proto-dragon Galakrond and the different Aspects. Overall, he adds that the storyline of the expansion will work similar to Mist of Pandaria, with a great antagonist that will reveal itself bit by bit as the story progresses.
What will be at the heart of the game will really be exploration: Blizzard is betting everything on the new territory, the Dragon Islands , which are divided into four zones. While using the expansion’s new flight feature on a customizable drake, players will be able to experience the Shores of Awakening, the Plains of Ohn’ahra, the vast Azure Span, and the area of Thaldraszus.
To take full advantage of this new mode of movement, Dragonflight offers players a new playable character class, the evoker dracthyr , which takes advantage of dragon-riding flight while combining ranged damage and healing powers.
While we’re talking more about the new features of this expansion, Blizzard has taken player feedback into account and got rid of the progression model: players will be able to use the new Talents system , which is divided into two trees, one for utility techniques, and another for specializations. The professions system has also been revised, and the craft professions will have new specializations.
From a purely aesthetic point of view, the user interface will (finally) benefit from a facelift: lighter and customizable, it will now be possible to create the most suitable interface for everyone. The graphics of the game in general will also gradually evolve, and, if the game will be more beautiful than ever on recent configurations, and that it will remain very correct on slightly older computers, only the minimum configuration necessary to be able to play remains. in World of Warcraft: Dragonflight will be higher than for its predecessors.
Finally, all these new features are available for pre-purchase. The game is available in three editions: the Base Edition, for €49.99, the Heroic Edition, for €69.99, and the Epic Edition, for €89.99.
- The Base Edition gives access to the expansion and, if pre-purchased, to the Drakkes mascot, which will accompany the player through his quests on Azeroth.
- The Heroic Edition, in addition to Drakkes, grants access to another pet, Murkastrasza, a Key to Dragonflight content , and a new flying mount, Entangled Dreamweaver.
- The Epic Edition adds to the Heroic Edition content the Timewalking effect for your Hearthstone, the Spell Ward Diadem head transmog, the Awakening Wings back transmog and its five color variants, and 30 days of game time.
Finally, for those most attached to the physical medium, the Collector’s Edition, in addition to a digital key for the Epic Edition, consists of an artbook relating the visual development of World of Warcraft: Dragonflight , a mouse pad with the likeness of Alexstrasza, and five pines depicting the five major dragonflights of Azeroth. This edition is already available for pre-order on the Blizzard Gear Store.
For the final word, we can note that the opening of pre-orders underlines the confidence that Blizzard has in the ability of its teams to finish the development of the game on time. Indeed, it would seem counterproductive to us if the company chose to reproduce the debacle that was the delay of Shadowlands, which had resulted in a refund offer for pre-orders that had not been honored.
