Blizzard’s former president wanted there to be a WoW 2 rather than ’the same WoW 1 expansions over and over re-skinned'
World of Warcraft’s 20+ year reign as the dominant MMO has faced recent challenges, and now former Blizzard president Mike Ybarra has revealed why the studio never pursued a sequel. In recent comments, Ybarra expressed his preference for developing a full World of Warcraft 2 rather than continuing the current model of perpetual expansions to the original game.
According to Ybarra, the ongoing expansion approach has resulted in repetitive content that merely reskins the same base experience. This perspective highlights a fundamental tension in live-service game design: whether to continuously expand an aging title or invest in a fresh sequel that could modernize the entire experience.
World of Warcraft remains a titan of the MMO industry despite turbulent periods, notably the controversial Shadowlands expansion. However, the game’s longevity comes at a cost, as maintaining and evolving a 20+ year old foundation presents significant technical and design challenges.
Ybarra’s comments suggest internal disagreement existed about the game’s long-term direction. While Blizzard ultimately chose the expansion path, which has kept the game running and profitable, his alternative vision points to the potential benefits of a complete overhaul—modernized engine, refined mechanics, and contemporary design philosophy.
The revelation adds context to ongoing industry discussions about when aging franchises should receive sequels versus continuous support. For World of Warcraft specifically, it demonstrates that even at the executive level, there were those questioning whether the expansion model represented the best path forward for the franchise.