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[00:00] Hi guys, Frozen Hood here. Welcome to my

[00:02] channel and another World of Warcraft

[00:03] video. To start playing World of

[00:05] Warcraft, you need to make an important

[00:06] decision, which version to play.

[00:09] Choosing the wrong one could mean

[00:10] spending dozens of hours on something

[00:12] you'll eventually realize you don't

[00:13] enjoy. Games like WoW require a

[00:16] significant time investment before you

[00:18] really understand how they feel and

[00:20] whether they suit you. While the

[00:22] different versions of WoW share many

[00:23] similarities, they also have major

[00:26] differences that can lead to completely

[00:27] different gameplay experiences.

[00:30] And the game isn't free. You'll need to

[00:31] pay a subscription fee regardless of the

[00:33] version you choose. And in some cases,

[00:36] you'll also need to buy expansions. In

[00:38] this video, I'll give you a practical

[00:40] comparison of the different WoW versions

[00:42] to hopefully save you time and help you

[00:44] make the best choice for your play

[00:46] style. There's no bad version of the

[00:48] game. What matters is which one aligns

[00:50] best with what you're looking for.

[00:52] Currently, there are four versions of

[00:54] the game. The modern World of Warcraft,

[00:56] also known as Retail, which I'll refer

[00:58] to as Retail from here on for clarity,

[01:01] World of Warcraft Classic Era, World of

[01:04] Warcraft Mists of Pandaria Classic, and

[01:06] World of Warcraft Season of Discovery.

[01:09] I'll start with a brief overview of each

[01:11] version, then dive into more specific

[01:13] details.

[01:15] Retail WoW is the most modern version of

[01:17] the game. It offers the widest variety

[01:20] of both PvE and PvP content, the most

[01:23] character race and class options, the

[01:25] most quality of life improvements, and

[01:27] the most advanced graphics and

[01:29] interface. Roughly every 2 years, retail

[01:32] gets a new expansion that introduces new

[01:34] zones dungeons raids character

[01:36] customization options, interface

[01:38] updates, and sometimes even brand new

[01:40] races or classes. The current expansion

[01:43] is called The War Within. It has

[01:45] received a mixed but generally positive

[01:47] response from the WoW community with

[01:49] players praising some aspects of the

[01:50] game while criticizing others. If you're

[01:53] looking for a version that's frequently

[01:55] updated with new content and features,

[01:57] retail might be the right fit for you.

[01:59] However, there are other important

[02:01] factors to consider, and I'll get into

[02:03] those later in this video.

[02:06] The idea behind WoW Classic, also known

[02:08] as Classic Era, was to let the community

[02:11] experience the game in its original

[02:12] form, just as it was before the release

[02:15] of the first expansion. It launched in

[02:17] 2019 and was highly anticipated,

[02:20] especially by players who felt that

[02:21] modern WoW was heading in the wrong

[02:23] direction and no longer offered the same

[02:25] quality of experience. Over time,

[02:28] interest in this version has declined

[02:29] somewhat, but it still has a relatively

[02:31] large and dedicated player base, mostly

[02:34] found on the so-called anniversary

[02:35] servers. One very important thing to

[02:37] know about Classic Era is that it

[02:39] doesn't receive any new content or major

[02:41] updates. What's there is all you're

[02:43] going to get, so eventually you'll find

[02:45] yourself repeating the same content over

[02:47] and over. That might not be ideal for

[02:49] everyone depending on what kind of

[02:51] gaming experience you're looking for.

[02:54] In 2021, Blizzard separated Classic era

[02:57] into its own standalone version and

[02:59] launched a new progression-based version

[03:00] of the game where older expansions would

[03:02] be added over time. First came the

[03:05] Burning Crusade Classic, then Wrath of

[03:07] the Lich King Classic, followed by

[03:09] Cataclysm Classic, and now Mists of

[03:11] Pandaria Classic. For many players,

[03:13] Mists of Pandaria is considered one of

[03:15] the best expansions ever released. It

[03:17] features a great story, beautiful zones,

[03:20] well-designed dungeons and raids, and

[03:23] strong class design and mechanics. At

[03:25] the moment, there's no official

[03:27] information from Blizzard about whether

[03:28] they plan to continue adding more

[03:30] expansions beyond Mists of Or if this

[03:32] will be the final phase of new content

[03:34] for this version.

[03:37] Choosing a version of WoW became even

[03:39] more complicated when Blizzard

[03:40] introduced what they call seasonal

[03:42] servers, completely separate from any

[03:44] other version of the game. The current

[03:46] one is called Season of Discovery. It

[03:48] offers a brand new way to experience the

[03:50] world of classic era with fresh content,

[03:53] new game mechanics, and faster leveling.

[03:56] It's essentially a blend of classic era

[03:58] mechanics and features from various

[04:00] expansions and some experimental ideas

[04:02] unique to this version. Content was

[04:04] released in phases, and Season of

[04:06] Discovery is now in its final phase.

[04:08] Blizzard has confirmed that active

[04:10] development on this version has ended,

[04:12] so no major updates are expected going

[04:14] forward. Since the announcement about

[04:16] the end of development, this version has

[04:18] seen a significant drop in its active

[04:20] player base.

[04:22] Now that we've gone through a brief

[04:24] overview of the different WoW versions,

[04:26] it's time for a more in-depth

[04:28] comparison. I've focused on four key

[04:30] factors: leveling experience, endgame

[04:33] experience, complexity, and popularity.

[04:36] Of course, these factors can be quite

[04:38] subjective, which is why I mentioned

[04:40] earlier that whether or not you'll enjoy

[04:41] a certain version really depends on your

[04:44] own expectations and personal

[04:45] preferences. That said, this comparison

[04:48] is based on my own experience with

[04:50] hundreds of hours spent in each version

[04:52] of the game.

[04:54] Retail WoW is primarily focused on

[04:56] endgame content rather than the leveling

[04:58] experience. Compared to the other

[05:00] versions, leveling in retail is very

[05:02] fast and very easy. So much so that many

[05:05] elements during this phase feel almost

[05:07] irrelevant.

[05:08] Things like following the story,

[05:10] leveling professions, making gold, or

[05:12] paying attention to the gear you pick up

[05:14] along the way don't matter much or not

[05:16] at all. You can think of the leveling

[05:18] stage in retail as a kind of training

[05:20] ground to get familiar with different

[05:22] classes, roles, the interface, and

[05:24] overall game mechanics. And that

[05:27] training might actually come in handy

[05:28] because the endgame in retail can be

[05:30] quite complex and even overwhelming,

[05:32] especially for new players. If you're

[05:34] looking for a slower paced, more

[05:36] immersive leveling adventure, there are

[05:37] better options among the other versions.

[05:41] WoW Classic is one of the versions that

[05:43] offers a completely different experience

[05:44] when it comes to leveling. Right from

[05:46] level one, everything matters. how much

[05:49] gold you have, what gear you found,

[05:51] which professions you're leveling, and

[05:53] many other small details can make a big

[05:55] difference. Leveling in classic is much

[05:58] slower and more difficult than in

[05:59] retail. It encourages you to take your

[06:02] time exploring zones, completing quests,

[06:04] and gradually building up your

[06:05] character. It offers a solid challenge,

[06:08] but also the opportunity for a more

[06:10] relaxed and immersive adventure,

[06:11] especially if you're not in a rush. On

[06:14] the other hand, if you prefer a faster

[06:16] paced leveling experience, WoW Classic

[06:18] probably isn't the right fit for you.

[06:20] When it comes to leveling experience,

[06:22] Mists of Pandaria Classic and Season of

[06:24] Discovery falls somewhere between WoW

[06:26] Classic and Retail, but they lean more

[06:28] toward the faster pace of retail. In

[06:31] both cases, leveling is much quicker

[06:32] than in Classic era, but still takes

[06:34] more time and effort than in retail.

[06:36] You'll have plenty of time to get

[06:37] familiar with your class and roll. In

[06:39] Season of Discovery, you'll even get

[06:41] some raiding experience before you hit

[06:42] max level, which helps prepare you for

[06:44] the endgame. In both versions, it's a

[06:47] good idea to start leveling your

[06:48] professions early and gradually build up

[06:50] your gold reserves. This is especially

[06:52] important in Season of Discovery, where

[06:54] gold management plays a bigger role.

[06:56] Overall, both versions are designed to

[06:58] help you reach max level faster while

[07:00] still giving you time to engage with the

[07:02] game systems along the way.

[07:05] Endgame content is where retail really

[07:07] stands out. As I mentioned earlier, it

[07:09] offers the widest variety of both PvE

[07:11] and PvP activities. You'll find dungeons

[07:14] with multiple difficulty levels,

[07:16] including mythic and mythic plus, which

[07:18] are exclusive to retail. There are also

[07:20] delves, a newer type of content similar

[07:23] to dungeons, that can be played solo or

[07:25] with other players, and offer valuable

[07:26] rewards. These are also exclusive to

[07:29] retail. On top of that, retail includes

[07:31] a wide range of raids, world bosses,

[07:33] world quests, and PvP events, some of

[07:36] which do exist in other versions, but

[07:38] not at the same scale or depth. In

[07:41] comparison, the endgame content in

[07:42] Classic Era, Season of Discovery, and

[07:45] Mists of Pandaria Classic is more

[07:47] limited. Of the three, Mists of Pandaria

[07:50] Classic arguably offers the richest

[07:52] endgame experience, but it's still far

[07:54] behind what retail has to offer in terms

[07:56] of content variety. But all that variety

[07:59] in retail comes with a cost, complexity.

[08:03] It has a much more complicated talent

[08:05] system than any other version. Classes

[08:07] have far more complex spells and ability

[08:10] rotations. Sometimes you might even need

[08:12] a proper mouse with more buttons to

[08:14] manage everything effectively. Blizzard

[08:16] recently introduced the new single

[08:18] button assistant feature, which has

[08:20] received mixed reactions from the

[08:22] community, and that's to be expected.

[08:24] While some players appreciate its

[08:26] accessibility and convenience for casual

[08:28] gameplay, creating a complex class

[08:30] system with tons of spells and abilities

[08:33] only to offer a one-button option

[08:34] doesn't really make sense. Honestly,

[08:37] pressing the same button over and over

[08:38] isn't very engaging, especially in an

[08:40] MMO RPG where depth and player skill are

[08:43] supposed to matter. Professions and the

[08:45] reputation system in retail are also

[08:47] much more involved. There's a lot to

[08:49] learn and many of these systems directly

[08:51] affect your character's performance and

[08:53] overall gameplay experience. That steep

[08:56] learning curve can be overwhelming,

[08:57] especially if you're new to the game. On

[09:00] top of that, each expansion usually

[09:02] introduces new systems and concepts you

[09:04] need to master. Sometimes these are

[09:06] similar enough to previous ones that you

[09:08] can pick them up quickly, but other

[09:10] times they're completely new and require

[09:11] extra effort. The other three versions

[09:14] are much simpler in comparison. They

[09:16] feature straightforward talent trees

[09:17] that you can get comfortable with during

[09:19] leveling. Their profession and

[09:21] reputation systems are easier to

[09:23] understand for new players, and class

[09:25] ability rotations are much less

[09:26] complicated, especially in classic era.

[09:29] So, if you enjoy complex mechanics,

[09:32] skill trees, and deep gameplay, retail

[09:34] is probably the right choice for you.

[09:36] But if you prefer a more casual

[09:38] experience, don't have a lot of time to

[09:40] invest, or don't want to feel like

[09:41] you're constantly playing catch-up, one

[09:43] of the other versions might suit you

[09:45] better.

[09:47] Retail is by far the most popular

[09:49] version of the game with the highest

[09:51] number of players and servers. Many

[09:53] features in retail are cross- server,

[09:55] some even cross faction, making the

[09:58] choice of server much less critical than

[10:00] it used to be. Classic Era and Mists of

[10:02] Pandaria Classic don't have as many

[10:04] players as retail, but they're still

[10:06] very popular versions. In both of these,

[10:09] picking a more populated server can be

[10:11] crucial to your experience, especially

[10:13] if you like playing with others. Larger

[10:15] servers tend to have more active guilds,

[10:17] more active auction houses, and more

[10:20] group events.

[10:22] As I mentioned earlier, since Blizzard

[10:24] announced the end of active development

[10:26] for Season of Discovery, many players

[10:28] have left that version. Season of

[10:30] Discovery was built around constantly

[10:32] adding new and unique content in each

[10:35] phase. That's what made it stand out and

[10:37] attracted more players over time.

[10:40] Because of this, it's possible that

[10:41] Season of Discovery will become even

[10:43] less popular going forward, which raises

[10:45] the question, is it still worth

[10:47] investing your time and effort into this

[10:49] version at this stage?

[10:53] That wraps up this overview of the

[10:54] different versions of World of Warcraft.

[10:56] Hopefully, this has given you a clearer

[10:58] picture of what each version offers and

[11:00] helped you figure out which one might be

[11:02] the best fit for your play style and

[11:04] preferences. If you found this video

[11:05] useful, please give it a like. It really

[11:08] helps support the channel and lets me

[11:09] know you want more content like this.

[11:12] And I'd love to hear from you. Which

[11:13] version of WoW are you currently

[11:15] playing, and what do you enjoy most

[11:17] about it? Or maybe you're still deciding

[11:19] and have questions. Drop your thoughts

[11:21] and experiences in the comments below.

[11:23] Thanks for watching, and I'll see you in

[11:25] the next video.