I think it’s undeniable that the average age of the WoW player is much higher than it used to be. In most guild discord servers I’ve joined the average age seems to be about 35. It’s very different from before when most people seemed to be in their teens or early 20s.
So has the game changed in a way that no longer appeals to younger players? Is it because there aren’t many new people joining so what we have now are the same people from 10 years ago? If so, why is it so uncommon for someone to pick up WoW now vs the first few expansions? The game is simpler and more streamlined now so arguably it should be EASIER to pick up now than it was before.
Curious to get other thoughts on this.
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As time goes on, people have lower and lower attention spans. As easy as WoW is compared to early MMOs, it’s still way too much to bother with. It’s also a game filled with old people, which is enough of a reason if you are not an old person.
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The problem is Wow is an old game and genre . Youngsters want instant gratification and not a game that requires a a lot of time investments
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Archaic systems and mindsets.
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Older game, older gameplay styles, kids are also less likely to have a PC for gaming than adults.
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Yes.
Competition. Plenty of others option out there. Meanwhile, WoW is still a game with monthly fee, that requires many hours of grind and its story appeals to die-hard fans.
I play because I know who Arthas was. I know the role of Thrall. I know that the Alliance vs Horde lore has depth. And, more than that, I like the classes and I like that I have over 7 friends playing it.
Why would my little brother that is 10yo play WoW instead of Roblox?
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Wow is pay to win and working older folk have more money
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What’s that you say? GET OFF MY LAWN!! 
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Just a sidebar I’d be curious to know if anybody knows the average age of people in Chinese servers. The game is much more popular there, to the extent that the movie was a success in China. It would be interesting if it’s still younger people playing the game over there. Does anybody know?
There’s probably a bunch of stuff you could get into about the new player experience in the game. I know I’ve tried to get some friends into it and even as people in their late 20s they have problems getting into the modern version of the game that they didn’t have as much even with Classic WoW.
but it’s also just an old game. It’s 16 years old at this point, and most kids are probably wanting to play whatever the latest thing is.
I know I did in 2004 when I was in high school, which at the time was World of Warcraft and Halo 2 and Counter-Strike Source. I wasn’t really thinking of playing games from the late 80s/early 90s, even if some of them were still being updated.
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We are in the age of the instant gratification gamer.
Make them wait to be rewarded? They will play something else.
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DnD isn’t a thing anymore.
Vampire the Masquerade isn’t a thing anymore.
Wow isn’t a thing anymore.
All the above go on, and some younger will latch on, but, none of the above are a “thing” anymore.
They are all just a really tiny niche thing for very few.
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DnD is more popular than it has been in a while thanks to things like Critical Role.
Granted it’s changed a lot since the old days of it, but it’s very much a thing still.
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I’d say it’s the sub cost. There’s a bunch of free games out there that kids can play and it keeps them entertained. Why spend any money at all?
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People streaming their DnD campaigns as well as the improved accessibility of 5E has skyrocketed DnD’s popularity.
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Sub cost. To many systems. To many currencies. To many mechanics. To many buttons. To grindy. To little reward.
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Oh, LOL. It’s more complicated than ever. You have learned this as you went. A new player, actual new player who hasn’t played this kind of game before, is swamped with stuff that’s only half-explained or nowhere explained in the game. They don’t even know what questions they should be asking.
And if they do try to ask questions, they get trolled mercilessly by antisocial losers whose only life skill is playing videogames.
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Games and fads come and go. In a few years, Minecraft players will wonder where all the teenagers went.
Another factor is that the number of entertainment options has increased massively in the past 15 years. A person, young and old, has to choose where to spend their money and time and there are more choices.
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DND (and board games in general) is extremely popular with millennials
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