World of Warcraft: Shadowlands

 PC
User Score
2.6

Generally unfavorable reviews- based on 2560 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 561 out of 2560
  2. Mixed: 98 out of 2560
  3. Negative: 1,901 out of 2560

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  1. AskeNacht
    Jan 21, 2023
    10
    It is on the second place in the list of my favorite expansions after the BfA, which in my view was the best expansion in the history of WoW. Shadowlands has perfectly ended the arc of the BfA as well as it has resolved many sharp problems of the past, especially problems in the life of many WoW main characters, including those which were connected to gaps in the plot of the game. TheIt is on the second place in the list of my favorite expansions after the BfA, which in my view was the best expansion in the history of WoW. Shadowlands has perfectly ended the arc of the BfA as well as it has resolved many sharp problems of the past, especially problems in the life of many WoW main characters, including those which were connected to gaps in the plot of the game. The death of Garrosh was very impressive. Sylvanas has finally found herself. All who worked on this have done a very nice job. At the same time, it was the most philosophic expansion of the WoW and this was beautiful.… Expand
  2. Crazygame
    Jan 16, 2023
    10
    ıt wasnt best expansion in wow but it wasnt bad i think. I loved raids, dungeons. Shadowlands added best back transmogs too wow, still many players using shadowlands back transmogs. Also mounts and toys were cool. The game's atmosphere was good. you could feel like in otherside in warcraft universe...
  3. Jacktronics
    Dec 3, 2022
    10
    I enjoyed just about EVERY minute of this expansion! It started well, ended well, the story was excellent, the gear looked gorgeous, and it ran incredibly well on a full range of PCs. What else is needed?
  4. shenkenhigh
    Aug 27, 2022
    8
    Why i'm giving this 8, -2 for removing the possibility of achieving Champion of Naaaru and HoAD. Just in time when i came back to this game, and found out original quest lines in my old character log. Fair review out here. Guys let's face it, compared to BFA this isn't that bad. 8/10 from and old WoW Player ( since april 2007 ). It has great zones (except bastion), nice raids, finally someWhy i'm giving this 8, -2 for removing the possibility of achieving Champion of Naaaru and HoAD. Just in time when i came back to this game, and found out original quest lines in my old character log. Fair review out here. Guys let's face it, compared to BFA this isn't that bad. 8/10 from and old WoW Player ( since april 2007 ). It has great zones (except bastion), nice raids, finally some level squishing but it didn't turned out greatly. Solid PvP.. Yeah it has a lot of farming problems which i hope will be solved in the future, but overall, Shadowlands > BFA. Bfa was a total failure, let's admit it.… Expand
  5. Mercyow
    Mar 6, 2022
    10
    Perfect expansion .I was not expecting wow to give good expansion after worst bfa .but here we are .love it
  6. dariolord
    Feb 16, 2022
    10
    it is usual for wow to drop a good addon after a bad one like bfa. like the gameplay especially the rework of the mistweaver monk my favourite class all in all a very balanced and well done package
  7. Georguz
    Apr 8, 2021
    9
    This expansion revives the feeling of the players to commit to a cause since, you can choose what you want to belong to and you choose the content you want to do.
  8. Skyie
    Mar 3, 2021
    10
    They really did a good job this expansion. They eliminated some of the systems from the past 2 expansions that were destroying the game, such as titanforging. The amount of unfun weekly chores that only served as mans to artificially bump up engagement has been drastically reduced. The classes play much better than Legion and BfA, and the unpruning brought back some fan favorite abilitiesThey really did a good job this expansion. They eliminated some of the systems from the past 2 expansions that were destroying the game, such as titanforging. The amount of unfun weekly chores that only served as mans to artificially bump up engagement has been drastically reduced. The classes play much better than Legion and BfA, and the unpruning brought back some fan favorite abilities that were dearly missed. There are, of course, the typical early expansion balance problems, but they are applying balancing fixes once every 2 weeks or so, which is a good thing. Overall, I haven't had as much fun in WoW for years. I only hope SL gets better and better as more content patches are released, and I hope they won't make the mistake of going back on the good decisions they made.… Expand
  9. dafunkk
    Feb 28, 2021
    8
    I don't understand the level of negativity in many of these reviews. Honestly I think some folks might just need a break from WoW. This is easily my favorite expansion since Wrath (I skipped a couple here and there) and there are many reasons why I feel the game has improved. Leveling is no longer a slog, nor does it include the pain of something like "I just hit 80... only 40 levels toI don't understand the level of negativity in many of these reviews. Honestly I think some folks might just need a break from WoW. This is easily my favorite expansion since Wrath (I skipped a couple here and there) and there are many reasons why I feel the game has improved. Leveling is no longer a slog, nor does it include the pain of something like "I just hit 80... only 40 levels to go." You get something new most every time you ding, it's actually a lot of fun leveling up in the BFA content, at least in my opinion, and when I level an alt, I can choose from any expansion out there to level in.

    My wife and I have been having a blast running heroic and mythic dungeons and just stepping into raid content this week. This is no longer a game that demands all of your free time, the classes still feel iconic and the worldbuilding in Shadowlands is a cut above anything I've seen in the decade+ this game has been out.

    Is it perfect? No. Is it a solid game? Definitely. Is it the greatest MMO out there? That's up to you. 8/10, would recommend.    … Expand
  10. notsarke
    Feb 14, 2021
    8
    I was very unkind to BfA (although it kind of deserved it) and so coming into shadowlands my expectations weren't overly high. I have to say though, Shadowlands - so far - feels like an excellent expansion. The systems are great, the zones are amazing, the classes (generally) feel like they're in a good place, the storyline and all that jazz seems decent enough. The raid is fun. This isI was very unkind to BfA (although it kind of deserved it) and so coming into shadowlands my expectations weren't overly high. I have to say though, Shadowlands - so far - feels like an excellent expansion. The systems are great, the zones are amazing, the classes (generally) feel like they're in a good place, the storyline and all that jazz seems decent enough. The raid is fun. This is some of the most fun I've had in wow in... ever
    Like with anything, I'll list a few downsides:-
    Gearing so far has been heavily on the PVP side of things, with a majority of top players opting to gear up via the vendors than to gear up via other means, which has meant that the m+ community may have seen a major drop off in participants, given that the loot situation in m+ is a bit dire at the moment. So if PVP isn't your thing, prepare to dive into the grim m+ scene...
    The M+ dungeon community seems to be as big of a filth swamp as ever. So if you plan to play the game in a casual setting, the M+ wall will hit you pretty hard without your own clique of mates to play with.
    Some classes (mine in particular RIP rogues) are in a bit of a grim state compared to most of the other classes in the game, however it does feel like blizz is looking after the bin classes early days.
    The alt situation, while much better than BfA is a bit of a grind - although SL gearing alts feels more like a 'fun' grind if that makes sense?
    Some people say that the Vault is unrewarding... but for the most part it's been some of the most rewarding content in the game - currently i'm 9/10 heroic progress, and if i had to guess i'd say about 30-40% of my gear has come from the vault. I can see how players would get their hopes up too high, and then blame that on the vault 'being bad' but if you temper your expectations a bit the vault it fine.
    otherwise yeah - solid expansion - would highly recommend you give it a shot.    … Expand
  11. Kaihon
    Jan 21, 2021
    10
    A lot of content and it's interesting, as well as a good first raid and other content
  12. nizlopi
    Jan 15, 2021
    8
    I don't often write reviews, but reading the amount of subjective, unfounded remarks being tossed around here (often leading to very low scores that do not reflect the game at all) I had to join the fray.

    Shadowlands is one of the better expansions Blizzard released in the past years. They learned from mistakes made in BfA and tried to do better. This expansion is key since public    I don't often write reviews, but reading the amount of subjective, unfounded remarks being tossed around here (often leading to very low scores that do not reflect the game at all) I had to join the fray.

    Shadowlands is one of the better expansions Blizzard released in the past years. They learned from mistakes made in BfA and tried to do better. This expansion is key since public opinion on the game was at a low during BfA.

    Pros:
    - Beautifully designed zones
    - New leveling experience (faster than ever before)
    - Quests tell a linear story and the story feels good (obviously that is bound to your own view on it)
    - No need to go through the entire story multiple times when leveling an alt, the choice is yours.
    - No need to spend your entire week getting rep for your covenant. Just a few quests and you can be done. You can also choose to keep going, but it doesn't limit your gameplay in the future if you choose not to.
    - PVP rewards
    - The Vault: you determine what you do during the week and what reward(s) you go for. Beats the mythic+ reward in BfA in so many ways
    - Nathria is a great raid
    - Some classes feel really good to play

    Cons:
    - The Maw and Thorgast feel somewhat tedious after a while
    - Some classes feel not so good to play. Class balancing remains a sore point.
    - Gated content might feel too artificial at times
    - Covenants are still something that feels pushed if you want to be competitive i.e. you can choose whatever one you want but some are really bad for your class. Sucks if you like the armor or other perks of that sucky covenant.

    No doubt I missed some pros and some cons. For me, this game is worth an 8 or maybe a 9. For others there might be things that warrant a 7 or a 6. That's normal, games are subject to taste. What is not normal, is giving this quality game a 4 or less. That's just a bad way of rating things. Don't get fooled, if you liked WoW in the past, you should definitely give Shadowlands a fair chance.    … Expand
  13. Luvbread
    Jan 1, 2021
    9
    World of Warcraft Shadowlands did alot of things absolutely right:

    After the mess of Battle for Azeroth i returned to WOW:SL with really low expectations, but was really, really surprised:

    The story is packing, i wanted to be part of it, it was just amazeing. The end-game is also setup really well, and they also managed to balance weeklys in a way where it becomes not as annoying.
  14. Fynnuch
    Dec 26, 2020
    10
    Best expansion since wotlk. Amazing dungeons, amazing new regions. Covenant stories are awesome. Best lore. No crashes, not as many bugs as last expansion. Worth every penny.
  15. Jemvie
    Dec 22, 2020
    8
    Fantastic expansion. Giving it a 7.5 for now instead of 9 because there aren't any good world pvp activities like assaults, recurrent skirmishes like in Nazjatar or loot crates like in BFA.
  16. Kel_Sceptic
    Dec 20, 2020
    10
    ne of the best expansions I've played in a LOOOONG time. Dunno why tf people are saying this is grindy, since it is the first time in the last 4 years when I can finish my weekly stuff on reset day or Thursday, and for the rest of the week I can actually do what I love. In my case being PvP.
    I am fully epic equipped from PvP, from doing BGs and upgrading the blue gear with Honor till    ne of the best expansions I've played in a LOOOONG time. Dunno why tf people are saying this is grindy, since it is the first time in the last 4 years when I can finish my weekly stuff on reset day or Thursday, and for the rest of the week I can actually do what I love. In my case being PvP.
    I am fully epic equipped from PvP, from doing BGs and upgrading the blue gear with Honor till epic. Then I've started doing Arenas 2s, and altough PvE playes still have a good advantage cause they get higher ilvl gear from Mythics, I can still enjoy doing 2s.

    I have done ONLY 4 normal dungeons since I hit 60, and that is only cause they had zone ending dungeon quests, else I would have not set foot in any dungeon at all.

    The PvP system implemented is one of the best that ever existed in WoW, and you can earn gear FROM actually playing PVP, and upgrade it on an ilvl direct proportional with your PvP rating.    … Expand
  17. blacknalla
    Dec 19, 2020
    10
    A well done expansion, cant wait to see what will they add in the upcoming patches
  18. Skaffah
    Dec 18, 2020
    9
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. PvP feels amazing, characters feel powerful again. There is a pvp vendor, but it's time gated too much after rank 5 you need renown 22 which will take ages, should be around renown 14 instead. The great vault is a nice improvement. The legendary system is okay. Thorgast sucks.… Expand
  19. Miha55
    Dec 16, 2020
    10
    So far i played many expasnsions. I like maps, very colourful. I won't even mention music.
  20. JeffoUA
    Dec 15, 2020
    10
    One of the best WoW expansions ever. If you never played this game right now is the best chance to try. If you used to play before it's time to come back
  21. HolyFox
    Dec 15, 2020
    8
    OK, here are my two cents.
    First of all, I would like to say, that i stopped playing WOW after WOTLK and came back late in Legion and played a lot in BFA (worst expansion ever)
    For me, this expansion is going in the right direction. We have less RNG, in Dungeons, we have to focus on 1-2 mobs to kill instead of terrible 50 mobs pull with AOE and Cleave, which again is a good change. We    OK, here are my two cents.
    First of all, I would like to say, that i stopped playing WOW after WOTLK and came back late in Legion and played a lot in BFA (worst expansion ever)
    For me, this expansion is going in the right direction. We have less RNG, in Dungeons, we have to focus on 1-2 mobs to kill instead of terrible 50 mobs pull with AOE and Cleave, which again is a good change.
    We have PVP vendors, a way more interesting RAID and mechanics, not only running away from circles like in previous expansion.
    What I don't like is that we have a tiny zones (remember old WOW, where the road in a zone is halfway of your monitor. With having tiny roads, we constantly meet mobs and Horde/Ally, which engage us to combat. Probably, Blizz have to think to create more wide Zones, with better roads etc, if you get my mind.
    What i don't like as well is the Professions. For instance, currently I am an alchemist/herb. Well, I hit max level almost immediately on Alchemy, and i don't see any valuable recipes or something to farm after. I have Mana Potions, I can create Flasks that i need, so basecly profession does not make me feel that I have earned something special. For instance in TBC, you have to farm recipes etc.etc.
    Lastly, I am happy that they tried to change/update class abilities, because most of them are extremely boring. They did some job, but they can do better.
    In addition, I am more happy with Shadowlands than all previous expansions of modern WOW.
    Blizz, if you are able to implement more of the already known things in Vanilla, TBC and WOTLK things (professions, farming of recipes, more insteresting zones to level, with bigger space and roads, so you can decide weather to enter in combat in PVP or PVE), together with more changes to boring mechanics in classes and continue improving, I thinkg WOW will become again a Masterpiece. Besides that, I am happy with the new expansion as well.

    P.S. Apology for my not so good English.    … Expand
  22. Dreamwarden
    Dec 14, 2020
    9
    Well menaged and complete storyline, good dungeons with a lot of tricks and things to learn. Raids competitive. Torghast a new feature, a tower on levels that you can climb alone or with friends. Farming is not that much, as it was on other expansions. All this elements for me make this expansion a great one, waiting forward to start the Mythic raiding.
  23. Hugoholanda
    Dec 14, 2020
    10
    Essa é de longe a melhor expansão de de wrath pf the lich king. Fazia tempo que não me divertia tanto com pve w com pvp.
  24. Lakamilla
    Dec 14, 2020
    9
    This addon was a real shock for me. New locations, unforgettable atmosphere, amazing music. For the first time in 8 years of playing, I like absolutely everything. Playing for two weeks now, I find only minor technical problems. After the absolute failure of the Battle for Azeroth, it's like a breath of fresh air. Thank you to the developers! We look forward to further development of theThis addon was a real shock for me. New locations, unforgettable atmosphere, amazing music. For the first time in 8 years of playing, I like absolutely everything. Playing for two weeks now, I find only minor technical problems. After the absolute failure of the Battle for Azeroth, it's like a breath of fresh air. Thank you to the developers! We look forward to further development of the beautiful game.… Expand
  25. paoloking
    Dec 13, 2020
    10
    This will most likely be remembered as one of the best expansions in WoW history. It offers everything ppl used to love (pvp vendors, optional daily tasks before raiding, a lot of content and ways how to play game) and adding some new great features like picking Covenant (which will strenghten the bond with your character) or roguelike mysterious tower Thorghast which could be stand aloneThis will most likely be remembered as one of the best expansions in WoW history. It offers everything ppl used to love (pvp vendors, optional daily tasks before raiding, a lot of content and ways how to play game) and adding some new great features like picking Covenant (which will strenghten the bond with your character) or roguelike mysterious tower Thorghast which could be stand alone game itself.… Expand
  26. Junkdroid-AD
    Dec 13, 2020
    10
    As famed slayer raider, this expansion brings challenge when it comes to gearing up. Good loot is hard to find and mythic plus dungeons are decently hard and fun. No more titanforging/warforging, you only have chance to get gem socket on the item which gives more value to mythic raids and key pushing in m+. Also "weekly chest" big upgrade item can be obtained from completing pvp, m+ orAs famed slayer raider, this expansion brings challenge when it comes to gearing up. Good loot is hard to find and mythic plus dungeons are decently hard and fun. No more titanforging/warforging, you only have chance to get gem socket on the item which gives more value to mythic raids and key pushing in m+. Also "weekly chest" big upgrade item can be obtained from completing pvp, m+ or raiding, so if you do all of three you have 9 items to pick from ( you pick only one) therefore destroying rng.

    Spec/class wise some talents are utterly useless and should be reworked, but at least more talent choices than in BFA (former expansion).

    Covenant and conduits are also boring when it comes to some specs/classes forcing you to pick covenant depending on spec, most conduits (items that enhance some of your abilities) are just raw % dmg increase while others are overnerfed and useless(Speaking from beast mastery view of conduits, simply boring). But to sum it up covenants are weak anyway and don't change gameplay that much.

    Professions are fun and gold is easily earned, also it's worth farming gold with gathering professions. Item level changing material is good concept.

    Story is sloppy, some aspects of shadowlands were badly described, perhaps they are described somewhere but surely not in main quests for leveling, quests are mainly focused on problems within shadowlands instead of explaining how are races made and such, what happens if they die in shadowlands, what exactly is anima. For "shadowlands are infinite" they sure feel small. Also I was expecting more casual back cosmetics, normal looking backpacks, quivers, etc.    … Expand
  27. Sumea
    Dec 12, 2020
    10
    I am playing WOW since Vanilla and this is the best addon so far. It has an excellent story and every spec is different but well designed. I don't understand that these guys are giving such a bad rating to such a great game. Since 16 years WOW was and still is some of the best games ever.
  28. Bobbycar80
    Dec 10, 2020
    9
    Can‘t understand the negative reviews. Release day went super smooth for me, I really like the story/lore, the new zones are great (especially from an artistic standpoint ) and the pact features keep growing on me. Best WOW expansion in a long time.
  29. Kpackom
    Dec 9, 2020
    10
    A great expansion to a game that is still going strong. Fantastic storyline, questing through it is fun and immersive. Great new features that cater to both new players and veterans alike. Revamped levelling fixes the entry barrier finally making this game accessible to new players. Slight time-gating of content allows you to stay competitive even if you can't afford to spend 10h a dayA great expansion to a game that is still going strong. Fantastic storyline, questing through it is fun and immersive. Great new features that cater to both new players and veterans alike. Revamped levelling fixes the entry barrier finally making this game accessible to new players. Slight time-gating of content allows you to stay competitive even if you can't afford to spend 10h a day every day, which upsets no-lifers sure, but for most players - now they can finally not feel behind whole expansion. Core pve balancing problems addressed and for the most part this game is pure joy in its current state. Spent over a hundred hours in the first 2 weeks alone and still waking up excited to dive in for some more!… Expand
  30. xiamara
    Nov 30, 2020
    10
    One of the best expansion.good story telling, interesting dungeon, beautiful design
    .
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Awards & Rankings

34
#34 Best PC Game of 2020
8
#8 Most Discussed PC Game of 2020

Critic Reviews

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Metascore
83

Generally favorable reviews - based on 32 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 31 out of 32
  2. Mixed: 1 out of 32
  3. Negative: 0 out of 32
  1. LEVEL (Czech Republic)
    Apr 12, 2021
    80
    Blizzard 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]
  2. Shacknews
    Jan 29, 2021
    90
    World 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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  3. GamingTrend
    Jan 27, 2021
    90
    World 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.
    Read full review
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