Shadowlands also boasts some of the strongest engagement numbers for the WoW universe in the past decade. “The game reached and has sustained its highest number of players on monthly or longer-term subscriptions compared to the same period ahead of and following any WoW expansion in the past decade, in both the West and the East,” Blizzard said.

The expansion allows players to explore the Shadowlands, the realm of the dead in the WoW universe. It also features a complete overhaul of the game’s leveling system, as well as new zones, dungeons and raids. In the WoW timeline, Shadowlands takes place after the Battle for Azeroth, the seventh WoW expansion in which Sylvanas Windrunner defeats the Lich King Bolvar and rips open a portal into the Shadowlands.

Blizzard continued to report players have spent more time in WoW in 2020 year-to-date than any other year in the past decade, with total play time double that of 2019, year-to-date.

Photo courtesy of Blizzard Entertainment