- Publisher: Activision
- Release Date: Nov 23, 2020
- Critic score
- Publication
- By date
- Unscored
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Jan 29, 2021World of Warcraft: Shadowlands certainly manages to capture the same feelings we’ve had since first started playing the game. The leveling experience overhaul, constant sense of progress with rewards, and new campaign stories make Shadowlands a must-have for any avid player.
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Jan 27, 2021World of Warcraft: Shadowlands is a return to greatness for the franchise. The content is both accessible and fun for all types of players, and the story actually makes you feel like everything you’re doing is helping to save the Shadowlands. Torghast is one of the best features ever added and makes each experience unique and fun. While there are some issues which can slow down the time it takes to get everything you want, the journey there is still enjoyable.
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Dec 18, 2020Obviously, Shadowlands isn't perfect. There are some balancing and tweaking which need to be done and will continue throughout the expansion. However, this is an expansion where I can honestly say the core systems feel solid.[...] Blizzard has struck an outstanding balance between giving us plenty to do and respecting the fact not everyone can play 24/7. I'm currently at a point where when I have free time, I want to log in and do things instead of feeling like I have to for x, y, or z reason. It's a great feeling.
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Dec 8, 2020Shadowlands is the shock to the system World of Warcraft needed. It says goodbye to Azeroth and leads the player to places unknown, places full of creativity and vision. If you haven’t played WoW for some time, now is the time to jump back.
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Dec 3, 2020Post-launch support will ultimately determine Shadowlands' fate, but as it currently stands World of Warcraft: Shadowlands is a fantastic expansion that once again proves why Blizzard's 16 year old juggernaut remains the king of the MMORPG genre. While we may be touring Azeroth's afterlife ourselves, it's clear World of Warcraft won't be sauntered off into the great beyond any time soon.
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Nov 30, 2020Shadowlands plays it safe with numerous takes on established systems and structures, but lets players enjoy those features with a plethora of personality via the covenant factions and themed zones. Shadowlands also takes chances with a deadly zone that promotes teamwork and careful play alongside a fantastic roguelike run tower that’s full of surprises. Shadowlands is a satisfying addition to the annals of World of Warcraft expansions, and with a robust and revamped leveling experience rolling out with it, it’s a great time to come back to the MMORPG that made the genre mainstream.
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Dec 17, 2020Shadowlands is a great starting point for an expansion to World of Warcraft with some amazing art direction, storylines and tons of collectibles which will appeal both casual and hardcore players.
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Dec 17, 2020Shadowlands is a fun and interesting expansion that adds some really good ideas to the most important MMO ever made.
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Dec 14, 2020The latest expansion pack for the hit series World of Warcraft is just at the beginning of its journey, and is off to a strong start. The gameplay experience is still very fun and the amount of new content is insane. Only time will tell how successful this expansion pack will eventually be, but for now we can do nothing but to enjoy it.
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Dec 12, 2020World of Warcraft is already 15 years old, but you won't notice that playing Shadowlands. The new expansion offers interesting new customization options through the Covenants, the new areas look stunning and Torghast adds a new challenge for players. While there is more focus on the story, it does mean a much more linear experience however and the new antagonist, The Jailer, hasn't convinced us yet. Hopefully, that changes as Shadowlands gets new content updates, such as the upcoming raids.
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Dec 10, 2020Quotation forthcoming.
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Dec 9, 2020With plenty of quality content, a revamped progression system and many intriguing features like Torgast and Covenants, Shadowlands is an artistic triumph and one of the best expansions ever. It doesn't revolutionize World of Warcraft and the leveling phase doesn't really develop the character that much, but who cares? The Afterlife is fun.
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Dec 9, 2020Shadowlands is an appropriate expansion in many ways, but between merits and novelties stand out a masterful audio-visual system and a fun worthy of the golden days. It doesn't revolutionize anything, but it reshapes the progression system with intelligence to rejuvenate an evergreen like World of Warcraft.
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Nov 27, 2020As always long term support remains to be seen, but for now, WoW is still one of the best MMOs out there.
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Dec 9, 2020Shadowlands is the revitalizing adrenalin injection the game desperately needed.
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LEVEL (Czech Republic)Apr 12, 2021Blizzard finally comes with an alt-friendly expansion that brings back the best features of the previous ones. The patch that WoW desperately needed. [Issue#309]
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Jan 5, 2021I was concerned about Shadowlands and Blizzard development in the COVID era. All those complex systems made a real mess on beta servers near the original game launch date in October. But other than some balance issues — and that core problem with covenant choices — the extra month of development time after the release date delay really gave Blizzard a chance to paint on some polish. The end result stands as one of the very best expansions the game’s ever had.
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Dec 23, 2020World of Warcraft: Shadowlands breathes new life into an aging MMORPG with some fun new features and an excellent story.
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Dec 18, 2020While its endgame suffers a few stumbles, Shadowlands prepares you to make one of the more meaningful narrative choices in a WoW expansion. Shadowlands thrives at its level cap, though, with new gameplay elements that combine to make an excellent experience.
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Dec 17, 2020Blizzard clearly learned from the mistakes from Battle for Azeroth's endgame launch state, injecting piles of content that actually contribute to player power in meaningful ways. On the one hand, the time gating on the story elements is irritating, but it's not like most players will find themselves short of things to do. Shadowlands has some of the most stunning art in the game's lengthy history, and the cinematic treatment represents a step up for the studio. Despite balance issues, Shadowlands may end up among the likes of Legion and The Burning Crusade as one of the game's best expansions to date — if Blizzard listens to its players, rather than its shareholders.
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Dec 13, 2020Shadowlands is a really fun experience that shows the future of World of Warcraft, and it is very promising.
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Dec 10, 2020World of Warcraft: Shadowlands is a solid experience all the way around but really finds its best footing in the endgame.
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Dec 10, 2020Shadowlands offers some great new characters and stories, alongside the most compelling max level experience WoW has had in many years.
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Dec 4, 2020It's impossible to know how an expansion will turn out at release, but an interesting story, gorgeous visuals and audio, a great leveling experience, and good endgame mean Shadowlands is off to a good start.
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Dec 4, 2020WoW's latest chapter offers a gorgeous leveling experience, interesting endgame systems, and a pile of well-designed dungeons. Though some rough edges remain, ongoing hotfixes are chipping away at them.
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Dec 3, 2020Ambitious but uneven, Shadowlands is an exciting evolution of World of Warcraft.
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Dec 1, 2020Shadowlands lays down the foundation for more MMO fun, but the expansion needs to deliver more than this to really wow the fans
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Nov 30, 2020With the first week starting to wind down, overall I’m happy with World of Warcraft’s latest expansion. Shadowlands allowing players to dive into the realms beyond life is an incredible adventure, and one I’m eager to watch play out over time. That being said, I have to be incredibly cautious this time around. Warlords of Draenor and Legion felt like incredible rides the whole way through, but Battle for Azeroth hit some serious snags over the course of its lifespan that may have left a sour taste in the mouths of gamers. That being said, at the moment I think World of Warcraft: Shadowlands earns optimistic praise with plenty of room to grow going forward. I do think this will start a trend for me of posting my thoughts about the state of the game going forward as future major patches roll out to give the readers a more accurate representation through Shadowland’s lifespan.
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Nov 29, 2020With so many gigantic changes to the way World of Warcraft is experienced, Shadowlands feels like the perfect jumping off point for returning fans, new players, and veterans alike. If nothing else, World of Warcraft: Shadowlands is immensely fun. Go play it and figure out the rest later.
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Nov 29, 2020World of Warcraft: Shadowlands is a very good expansion of the original game, and the sheer amount of content makes us forget about the lack of a new race or new class.
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Nov 22, 2020Quotation forthcoming.
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Dec 1, 2020World of Warcraft: Shadowlands gets lost in its attempt to offer players more choice than ever before, ultimately forgetting to restock the reward machine needed to keep patrons invested.
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Dec 22, 2020But let's not get carried away. Let's remember that one secret to WOW's success has always been its ability to modernise while staying true to itself, and never pretending to be anything other than the consummate old-school MMO. You can't have a dramatic reversal of fortune when you've actually had 16 years of consistent and smooth progress. You can't call it a comeback when you've always been the king. [Eurogamer Recommended]
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Nov 26, 2020So far Shadowlands does not disappoint, with the question of which of the four covenants to soul-bind to being a particularly tricky one, as you get to grips with the endgame content of world quests and dailies. Shadowlands is reminiscent of aspects from earlier expansions, such as Wrath Of The Lich King (even including the grind), but it has a style all of its own and a good sense of momentum that, so far at least, makes it great fun to play. [Review-in-Progress]
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Dec 9, 2020Shadowlands doesn’t do everything perfectly. The questing experience doesn’t feel as fluid in as previous expansions, and the quests aren’t as diverse. And it’s still too early to see how good the endgame content and updates will be. But even with the limited time I’m willing to put into Shadowlands, I’ll actually be able to play that endgame content as it comes out. And as my real life just gets more complicated the older I get, I couldn’t ask for a better shift in philosophy from my favorite MMO.
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Nov 25, 2020There's still a long way to go of course. I'm about halfway through the campaign, I've only unlocked three dungeons. I don't know what the end-game grind will be like and the rogue-like activity Torghast is still unknown to me. But I'm enjoying the process more than I ever have before, and more than anything, I just want to rescue the heroes of Azeroth and stop Sylvanas and the Jailer from doing... whatever it is they're doing.
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Nov 29, 2020For now, it's looking positive, even though it certainly has its issues. [Review in Progress]
Awards & Rankings
User score distribution:
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Positive: 561 out of 2560
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Mixed: 98 out of 2560
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Negative: 1,901 out of 2560
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Aug 3, 2021
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Jul 27, 2021
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Jul 31, 2021