World of Warcraft Season of Discovery is coming to an end as new project begins

World of Warcraft Season of Discovery is being brought to a close as Blizzard's WoW Classic team moves onto building something new. The creative twist on the MMORPG takes players back to the early days, offering the potential to unlock new abilities outside of your standard skill set that can entirely transform the way classes are played. Following the launch of the Scarlet Enclave raid in April, however, the developer confirms that it's now planning to "slow down" work on SoD, although it reassures players that realms will remain open for the foreseeable future.

That creative spark has made Season of Discovery one of the most fun ways to revisit the MMORPG's heyday, while also giving things a fresh feel. "We are incredibly proud of the time we got to spend with you all in this unique take on the original version of World of Warcraft," Blizzard writes in a new developer update. "From the first moments that players sat down at the demo stations at Blizzcon in 2023, we knew we had something special." It says it's happy that the experiment proved the "enormous appetite for new experiences set against the backdrop of original World of Warcraft."

The team explains that it had originally planned for Naxxramas and the Karazhan Crypts to be the mode's final big update, but "couldn't let go of the one major unrealized dream for Season of Discovery: the Scarlet Enclave." It therefore "decided to take a risk" and invest the time in creating the new raid tier to finish with a major climax. "We are very glad we did," it notes, "it's been incredibly fun to play and progress through the new content with you."

Blizzard says the success of SoD has "invigorated" the team, but in a manner that feels "somewhat bittersweet, as we've made the decision to slow down on Season of Discovery and begin work on our next major project in the original WoW design space." It adds that there are "no plans to shut down the SoD realms, and we hope to see the game mode continue to operate similar to WoW Classic Era for many months (if not years) to come."

As for what comes next, the team is taking the lessons learned here to create something new. "We have big plans and big ambitions for this type of 'found photographs' content set in the original world of Azeroth," it teases, but says it will take time before there's anything specific to show. "Season of Discovery was always meant to be an ephemeral seasonal experience, and while it became so much more for a time, we're extremely excited about the things we're working on in the future."

For now, if you manage to overcome the Balnazzar encounter in the Scarlet Enclave by Monday June 30, you can earn a special present: a free level 85 character boost for the launch of WoW Mists of Pandaria Classic. Set to release on Monday July 21, it'll take us back to the glory days of the beloved expansion, and Season of Discovery players have the chance to get a headstart on proceedings.

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