Blizzard releases data-filled World of Warcraft infographic

Shawn Knight

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It’s hard to believe that World of Warcraft has been around for nearly a decade but true enough, the biggest MMORPG will celebrate its 10th anniversary this November. Ahead of that milestone, Blizzard has released its first ever infographic which is filled to the brim with interesting fact and figures about the game.

Rather than comb over every fine detail ourselves, we’ll leave you with the infographic below to study at your own leisure. Enjoy!

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WotLK was some of the best online gaming I have ever experienced. I haven't played much since but the new expansion has my attention. I rock a SpaceGoat Mage and seeing Draenor would swirl some interest.
 
Truly a magnificent infographic and wonderful game. It keeps getting better over time. The latest expansion is the most beautiful zone created yet. I've never seen a developer more open and in touch with their players than in Warcraft, or able to make changes to the game as quickly as Blizzard does.
 
These statistics are quite impressive. I currently play WoW, and have been since '05 - and much like every video game, (especially MMO's) there have been hiccups. However, in my opinion, no MMO (may I be as bold to say not too many games at all) have come close to the experience and evolution this game has offered.

100 million accounts created on just one game, not counting any other Battle.net service. Incredible.
 
Make something simple enough and any ***** will play it. Its a shame that everything will be compared to this now....
 
100 Million INCLUDING Trial accounts, so cut the number in half please, I hate inflated numbers and Blizzard could have NOT included trial accounts very easily, but it would have been no where near 100 Million or as impressive.

Next time they should tally up all the hours spent playing by all the characters of all the NONE trial accounts. I can contribute at least 3 weeks of game time spread across 5 characters, but that's nothing compared to one of my friends who has twice that on a single character. And then compare that to how long it would take to build an Egyptian pyramid.

To humor myself, The Great Pyramid of Giza took two shifts of 100,000 men working around the clock for 20 years. 100,000 x 24 x 365 x 20 = 1.752 x 10 to the power of 10 hours, or 730 Million days of labour. So take Blizzards over inflated 100 Mil, cut it roughly in half to get a more likely figure of actual paid accounts of 50 Million. 730 / 50 = just 14.6 Days which falls into my play time... That being said, if the average play time per account exceeds 14.6 days then the players of wow could have built a Pyramid in the same time period that WoW has been out. Funny

Not funny is going on the WoW forums to see if there's any kind of Average and seeing people with over 180 days of game time on single characters... 6 months wasted and you have nothing to show for it other than how big of a loser you are, fantastic.
 
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Let me correct that sentence.

Make something enjoyable enough and almost anyone will play it. Its a shame that every studio has poorly copied WoW, and everything will be compared to this now....

WoW wouldn't be the 'bar' or 'comparison point' if there was a better MMO out there. Logic speaks for itself. If WoW wasn't such a sweeping success over the past decade, no one would be comparing every new MMO to WoW upon reviews. Think about that before you start cursing millions of people worldwide.

100 Million INCLUDING Trial accounts, so cut the number in half please, I hate inflated numbers and Blizzard could have NOT included trial accounts very easily, but it would have been no where near 100 Million or as impressive.

Next time they should tally up all the hours spent playing by all the characters of all the NONE trial accounts. I can contribute at least 3 weeks of game time spread across 5 characters, but that's nothing compared to one of my friends who has twice that on a single character. And then compare that to how long it would take to build an Egyptian pyramid.

To humor myself, The Great Pyramid of Giza took two shifts of 100,000 men working around the clock for 20 years. 100,000 x 24 x 365 x 20 = 1.752 x 10 to the power of 10 hours, or 730 Million days of labour. So take Blizzards over inflated 100 Mil, cut it roughly in half to get a more likely figure of actual paid accounts of 50 Million. 730 / 50 = just 14.6 Days which falls into my play time... That being said, if the average play time per account exceeds 14.6 days then the players of wow could have built a Pyramid in the same time period that WoW has been out. Funny

Not funny is going on the WoW forums to see if there's any kind of Average and seeing people with over 180 days of game time on single characters... 6 months wasted and you have nothing to show for it other than how big of a loser you are, fantastic.

I'm glad everyone can fully read - yes, including trial accounts. Cut the 100M in half due to trial accounts? Link a source proving that and we'll be golden.

As for the Egyptian Pyramid example, the logical fallacies there are almost as realistic as the 50 million 'real' accounts being used. For example, following your line of logic with the 100,000 men and 730 million days of labor with the resulting number of ~14.6 days - you didn't account for physical space. Your math may be correct, (the numbers are a moot point, but I digress) but unless the Egyptians mastered Quantum Psychics, and could have that many physical humans in one location efficiently building in this hypothetical example, that's impossible.

Just because you have a bad taste in your mouth regarding WoW, doesn't mean you go making assumptions and rash generalizations about the game and it's respective players. Look around at other modern MMO's and tell me you don't see blindingly similar UI and game mechanics. Ignorance is bliss, I suppose.
 
Just because you have a bad taste in your mouth regarding WoW, doesn't mean you go making assumptions and rash generalizations about the game and it's respective players. Look around at other modern MMO's and tell me you don't see blindingly similar UI and game mechanics. Ignorance is bliss, I suppose.

On the contrary, I enjoyed my time playing, it was many years ago at this point and don't see myself going back to the style of game just because I realized how much time I wasted. The only rash generalization I'm making is that the people sitting there playing away hours on end don't realized how much more productive they can be with said time.

And even at 50 Million, the number is vastly higher than it should be. If you can prove otherwise, go for it, if not I'll stick to that number thank you very much.
 
WoW wouldn't be the 'bar' or 'comparison point' if there was a better MMO out there.

Just because you have a bad taste in your mouth regarding WoW
First off I realize you were addressing someone else.

I have never had a taste (much less a bad one) in my mouth for WoW. And from this perspective, I've never considered WoW as the "comparison point" to be. If this makes me a minority, then I graciously accept the title. In fact I consider myself a minority, as I prefer RPG titles and won't touch FPS or top down titles.
 
Just because you have a bad taste in your mouth regarding WoW, doesn't mean you go making assumptions and rash generalizations about the game and it's respective players. Look around at other modern MMO's and tell me you don't see blindingly similar UI and game mechanics. Ignorance is bliss, I suppose.

On the contrary, I enjoyed my time playing, it was many years ago at this point and don't see myself going back to the style of game just because I realized how much time I wasted. The only rash generalization I'm making is that the people sitting there playing away hours on end don't realized how much more productive they can be with said time.

And even at 50 Million, the number is vastly higher than it should be. If you can prove otherwise, go for it, if not I'll stick to that number thank you very much.

As prior stated, as soon as a source stating any solid account numbers is given, the point is up for debate. You can stick to 50M or 500M, the claim holds the same amount of water. I agree that the 100M is significantly inflated by trial accounts, however at WoW's peak of 12M active monthly users (http://wow.joystiq.com/2010/10/07/world-of-warcraft-reaches-12-million-players/) 50 million+ total created accounts over the course of ten years, not including trials, is feasible.
 
Just because the masses have adopted a game because of its simplicity doesnt mean its 'good' I mean look at Windows it is a horrible OS compared to linux for stability but because it was easy enough for the masses it caught on. So dont fool yourself into thinking that WoW is a superior game when 75% of the players could probably NEVER do as well in a game that wasnt so dumbed down.
 
Just because the masses have adopted a game because of its simplicity doesnt mean its 'good' I mean look at Windows it is a horrible OS compared to linux for stability but because it was easy enough for the masses it caught on. So dont fool yourself into thinking that WoW is a superior game when 75% of the players could probably NEVER do as well in a game that wasnt so dumbed down.

@cliffordcooley - I understand, and the angle I was approaching from on that standpoint was a very broad one. There are other perspectives out there, and I (believe it or not, heh) am in that minority as well - in regard to the literal content of the game. As far as MMO's go, my two favorite MMO's are still Ultima Online and Asheron's Call. Merely from a content/application standpoint today, the majority of development studios are attempting to mimic what WoW has done. I am very excited for ESO. :)

@Guest - That is a very valid point, the bandwagon approach is not one to embrace. Currently, the game is dumbed down - yes. As recently as 2 years ago this wasn't so much the case. WoW used to be a very complex and skill-based game (as far as serious raiding/PvP is concerned). I'm merely encompassing the entirety of it's 10 year span, not just the past 1-2 years.
 
I played WoW in the closed beta and during its release up until around the time the Battlegrounds came out sometime in 2005. The battlegrounds sealed the deal on why I quit. I primarily played because of the fantastic and player driven world PvP dynamic and faction/guild driven drama/competitiveness and unfortunately Blizzard decided to go another direction

It still is one of my favorite games I have ever played in any given time frame. Too bad it was so short, but sweet.
 
guest said:
I mean look at Windows it is a horrible OS compared to linux for stability...

Typical nonsense from a Linux fanboy. For your info, I've left my Windows machine running for three months before now with no issues. Can't remember the last time I had it crash neither. So stop touting the stability argument as it's outdated.
 
Some impressive numbers . Amazing how many people have played . I played since Beta till the panda's came out then quit. Had some great time's and a lot of fun over the years , for a few years I loved the game. definitely some memories I won't forget.

I don't like it when people play a game for 24 hours a day for 5 years then leave and slag it off , everything comes to an end. I'll remember my time on WOW fondly.

The WOW game engine was the best thing they ever did , most companies since haven't learned from the WOW engine , forget flashy graphics , lovely animations with simple graphics at 60FPS with a hundred people on the screen was what made WOW better than most who tried to follow it.
 
Just because the masses have adopted a game because of its simplicity doesnt mean its 'good' I mean look at Windows it is a horrible OS compared to linux for stability but because it was easy enough for the masses it caught on. So dont fool yourself into thinking that WoW is a superior game when 75% of the players could probably NEVER do as well in a game that wasnt so dumbed down.
I don't find logic in your statement. Making something "dumbed down" doesn't make that thing inferior. Or the inverse of making something complicated doesn't connote superiority. Comparatively speaking, designing something which is simple to use is one of the many reasons that Apple has become successful. It should be stated that World of Warcraft appeals to the masses for how it stands on it's own merits.
 
100 Million INCLUDING Trial accounts, so cut the number in half please, I hate inflated numbers and Blizzard could have NOT included trial accounts very easily, but it would have been no where near 100 Million or as impressive.

Next time they should tally up all the hours spent playing by all the characters of all the NONE trial accounts. I can contribute at least 3 weeks of game time spread across 5 characters, but that's nothing compared to one of my friends who has twice that on a single character. And then compare that to how long it would take to build an Egyptian pyramid.

To humor myself, The Great Pyramid of Giza took two shifts of 100,000 men working around the clock for 20 years. 100,000 x 24 x 365 x 20 = 1.752 x 10 to the power of 10 hours, or 730 Million days of labour. So take Blizzards over inflated 100 Mil, cut it roughly in half to get a more likely figure of actual paid accounts of 50 Million. 730 / 50 = just 14.6 Days which falls into my play time... That being said, if the average play time per account exceeds 14.6 days then the players of wow could have built a Pyramid in the same time period that WoW has been out. Funny

Not funny is going on the WoW forums to see if there's any kind of Average and seeing people with over 180 days of game time on single characters... 6 months wasted and you have nothing to show for it other than how big of a loser you are, fantastic.
Yeah I agree.
 
I don't want to remain hidden for any particular reason, but I'm at work and can't create an account so guest it is.

WoW was awesome. Like a pevious poster commented, I too have many great memories from playing. My time in Azeroth (and other regions) came to an end after WotLK as I was running out of time and didn't enjoy it as much as I used to. I get the feeling it is somewhat dumbed down these days but it matters not to me. I wouldn't be playing anyway. The key to remember is that when this game was released I was 17 and I had maybe 6 or 7 (at a push) years with it. Now I feel like the game is "too dumbed down" but no doubt there are plenty of 17-22 year olds out there that love it. I can't see it re capturing the older audiences but then after turning over a new audience I'm sure WoW will thunder on for a few more years yet.

After playing hearthstone recently I did get a touch reminiscent and activated the trial account on my battle.net (to avoid paying for a month subs, another factor which may show that the stats could be way off) but within minutes I knew I wouldn't be sticking around. Perhaps if it was free to play I might give it an hour or two per week but overall I think Blizz are right to not go F2P. Whilst they still have several million players they have no reason to and with a new expansion in the not to distant future I am sure some deactivated accounts will be back.

For me, another game from the Warcraft franchise is eagerly anticipated but my WoW experience died a few years ago.

I tried to fit a lot in so I hope there isn't too much gibberish in this text :D
 
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