Fri, Aug 01, 2008 | 20:31 BST

Tweet

Blizzard: WoW doesn’t guarantee huge success for next Blizzard MMO

Blizzard may very well be the most powerful development house in the world right now, but wealth, fame, and shacking up with Activision definitely hasn’t gone to the developer’s collective head.

When asked by Kotaku about WoW’s inevitable successor, game director Jeffery Kaplan responded humbly.

“I believe it can be [as big as WoW],” he said. “… Are we going to make the right decisions? I don’t believe that just because we made WoW, we’re guaranteed on the next MMO that we make to have the same success.”

He also noted that WoW didn’t spring from Blizzard’s figurative womb with 10 million subscribers. He emphasized that the game, in a sense, had a five to six-year development cycle – and even more if you count its two expansions.

“I really believe you’re only as good as your last game. I really think you gave to prove it every time,” said Kaplan.

We may be jumping the gun a little, but we’re thinking WoW has earned Blizzard a little good will for its next title. Just a smidge.

By Nathan Grayson

Tweet