World of Warcraft Might Bring Plunderstorm Back in the Future

Highlights

• Plunderstorm may return in WoW with new twists based on player feedback.
• Blizzard plans to use Plunderstorm as one of many future events for engaging players.
• WoW’s openness to new events like Plunderstorm should benefit the game in the long run.

World of Warcraft is open to bringing back Plunderstorm in the future, either as a direct repeat, or with new twists. According to Blizzard, the future of the popular new World of Warcraft game mode will rely on what fans want from it.

Plunderstorm is a new battle royale game mode World of Warcraft introduced as a part of Patch 10.2.6. Players can compete solo, or in teams of two or three, with 59 other would-be Plunderlords as they seek to gather treasure, collect unique ability upgrades, and be the last one standing at the end of the match. The limited-time event does not have a solid end date yet, but Blizzard previously said it was planned to run for about six weeks, meaning it will likely run until the end of April.

However, World of Warcraft recently stated it is open to bringing back Plunderstorm in the future. IGN recently interviewed Warcraft general manager John Hight about the success of Plunderstorm, to which he said he hopes the game mode is the first of several tools in a “repertoire of fun things for the live team” to use whenever they need. “If we get a point where we can see the players want a new event or engagement,” he explained, “we can fire up a Plunderstorm or we can fire up some other event. And we are planning a lot of different kinds of events like that.” Hight’s words indicate WoW has no intention of letting Plunderstorm be a one-and-done thing, and that it will return again in some fashion.

WoW Could Bring Back Plunderstorm In the Future

While this is no confirmation that Plunderstorm is coming back for certain, it is a good sign for the future of the game. The tech used for the unique combat system, account-wide reward progress for Plunderstorm rewards in World of Warcraft, and its alternate in-game client are all promising, and could have any number of applications to improve both retail and Classic WoW. Beyond the obvious benefits of having new things to enjoy, Hight’s openness to bringing back Plunderstorm, and making other similar events, will likely benefit World of Warcraft as a whole in the long run.

If we get a point where we can see the players want a new event or engagement, we can fire up a Plunderstorm or we can fire up some other event. And we are planning a lot of different kinds of events like that.

WoW vice president and executive producer Holly Longdale also recently released a statement indicating World of Warcraft was already working on new experiments. Between this and Hight’s interview, it seems like World of Warcraft may reveal some exciting things in the near future.

In the meantime, the Plunderstorm is still raging in World of Warcraft. The piratical battle royale is still getting frequent updates, including a recent Plunderstorm feature that lets World of Warcraft players compete in trios to seize victory over the competition. Fans still have plenty of time to farm Plunder and earn all the mode’s transmogs, pets, mounts, and other rewards before the mode goes away for the time being.