For the past two decades, few games have been as prolific as Activision-Blizzard’sWorld of Warcraft.WoWchanged the landscape of an entire genre, bringing the niche MMORPG into the mainstream. While it still had its odd quirks,WoWwas far easier to get into thanEverQuestand quickly took its spot as top dog. Years have passed, and dozens of other MMOs have dubbed themselves the “WoWKiller” before promptly phasing out.
RELATED:Reasons To Join The Dragonscale Expedition Faction In World Of Warcraft: Dragonflight
As it turns out, the real “WoWKiller” was Activision-Blizzard themselves. As they say, “No king rules forever, my son.” It’s still a solid game, butWoW’s competition is better than ever, especiallyFinal Fantasy XIV. Let’s take a look at the lows and the highs, according to Metacritic, of the game’s expansion packs up to the present day.
Updated June 01, 2025 by Kristy Ambrose:The mostrecent World of Warcraft expansion, Dragonflight, was released in November to a hopeful but cynical gaming community. Shadowlands remains on the lower tier of WoW expansions when it comes to ratings, but the positive reviews of Dragonflight have redeemed the Blizzard name. Both gamers and critics have embraced the latest addition to the MMORPG family even if it’s not in Wrath of the Lich King territory just yet.
10Battle for Azeroth - 79
Battle for Azeroth,the latest ofWoW’s expansion at this time of writing, was released on August 01, 2025. The expansion pack was the best-selling pack of all time according to Blizzard, and the promises brought back several people. The relative success of theLegionexpansion gave fans hope for the future of the game. However, those hoping fornew content and balanced classesat release quickly realized the expansion was lacking that sweet, sweet MMORPG endgame.
Since its release,Battle for Azerothhas turned around on some of those aspects, but a lot of fans felt burned once again. Critics may have given the game relatively good scores, but the Metacritic user score sits at 3.0/10. When compared to the most recentFinal Fantasy XIVexpansion, it’s clear to see that people have a consensus on which is the worstWoWexpansion.
9Dragonflight - 81
The dragons of Azerothhave always been an interesting part of the lore, taking a pivotal role in almost every world-changing or universe-shifting event, and they finally have an expansion dedicated to their history and adventures. The most recentWoWexpansion allows introduces players to a new race and a new class, the only expansion to do both at once, and so far gamers are impressed.
It’s still early after the release, and the User Score ofDragonflightis still lagging with only a 4.4/10, but the trend is on the rise. Other changes to the talent and professional systems are also getting positive attention, and it’s also nice to see an expansion that also makes some changes for lowbies and new players instead of limiting it to experts planning their endgame.
8Mists of Pandaria - 82
Mists of Pandaria, released on September 25th of 2012, was one of the first times fan frustrations with the game extended beyondWoW’s community. The number of images containing a boxed copy of this game next to copies ofKung Fu Panda 2for Xbox was probably higher than the sales of the latter. For outsiders, the expansion’s new areas looked gorgeous. The new player experience was greatly improved. Pandaren was goofy and fun, and pet battles were a great minigame for casual players.
RELATED:MMORPGs That Are Still Fun In 2020
However, fans will say this is the point things started to become streamlined. A lot of the negative reviews talk about issues with talent changes and a bad direction for the gameplay. Some players might have been relieved to have leveling streamlined, making it easier to get to “the good part” of the MMO. Overall,MoPis considered by fans to be a weaker addition. Not the worstWoWexpansion but perhaps the most disappointing one.
7Shadowlands - 82
Shadowlands, released on Jul 06, 2025, following an extensive alpha and testing period, sees major sweeping changes to the game and the world to help make things fresh. The player will travel to an alternate reality, where only they can stop a great calamity that threatens both realms. It also, according to both fan and critic reviews, boasts what many consider to be the best storyWoWhas told in years. Critics also compliment the streamlined leveling process and the signs of great things to come for the timeless MMO.
Launch day jitters aside, it has a much more positive reception across the board thanBattle for Azeroth. Players also enjoy the new covenant system and the beautiful new landscapes Blizzard has crafted. It was the fastest-selling PC game for a while, a titleWorld of Warcrafthas held multiple times now.
6Warlords of Draenor - 87
Warlords of Draenor,released on November 13th of 2014, had to follow the relatively weakMists of Pandariaand deliver something old and new fans could enjoy. To its credit,Warlords of Draenordid improve on many problems with the previous release. Garrisons may have been a Facebook game at its core, but it was better than other things added in the past. Quests were still linear but improved, and the story was a step up fromMoP. A lot was settingWoDto be a return to form.
RELATED:WoW Dragonflight: Best Dragonriding Customizations & How To Unlock Them
However, as documented by the torrent of reviews talking about the issue, the expansion’s launch was an absolute disaster and the pack stayed like that for some time. The new content was also stretched thin, leading players to hit the new level cap pretty quickly.
5Legion - 88
Legion, released on August 30th of 2016, followed two (arguably three) less-than-stellar expansions in a row. When fans had lost all hope, they were not prepared for whatLegionwould deliver. The story was one of the greatest in a long-time, impressing fans and critics alike. It was steeped in nostalgia, but sometimes that’s a good thing. The expansion pack melded beloved elements ofWrath of the Lich KingandBurning Crusade, creating an experience that fans couldn’t help but love. Some had their issues, but they’re outnumbered pretty handily.
As the patches came through forLegion, more and more people were sold on it. The final raid tier in particular was especially fun. The grind was still present, but that is normal for an MMO.
4Cataclysm - 90
Cataclysm,released on December 7th of 2010, killedWorld of Warcraft,and the series was never heard from again. Naturally, despite what some might have said at the time, this proved to not be true.Cataclysmdid mark a turning point in Activision-Blizzard’s philosophy withWoW.The existing areas had started to suffer from age, and old quests felt archaic by comparison. The Azeroth of old was burnt to the groundand everyone got a pieceof what the expansion had to offer.
Critics were absolutely in love with the expansion’s attempts to revitalize what had become somewhat stale. Fans, on the other hand, were divided on whether this was a good idea or not. Some fans thought that the streamlined quests were much needed, while others felt it ruined the “challenge.” For better or for worse,Cataclysmwas a landmark expansion and success for Activision-Blizzard.
3Wrath of the Lich King - 91
Depending on who’s asking,The Wrath of the Lich King,released July 01, 2025, was the last timeWoWwas good. The expansion brought players to Northrend, home of the titular Lich King and his Frozen Throne. This expansion directly follows the plot laid out inWarcraft III: The Frozen Throneand the fanservice was well-received. The gameplay was still addictive and fun, delivering high-octane raids and fun quests, but now with better customization.
RELATED:Games To Play If You Like World Of Warcraft
Wrath of the Lich Kinghad a little something for all types of fans and reignited interest in the game. It could be argued that theWrath of The Lich Kingplayed a huge role in makingWoWa cultural landmark and is rated by many to be the bestWoWexpansion.
2Burning Crusade-91
Burning Crusade, released on January 16th of 2007, wasWorld of Warcraft’s first expansion and a smashing success. While it did have a somewhat poor new-player experience,Burning Crusadestill sits amongWoW’s best expansion packs.
Burning Crusadeadded a little bit of everything without drastically changing what madeWoWgood. New races were solid additions, the newmounts were great, and the raids and endgame content were just as good as what was delivered before. There’s a lot to love withBurning Crusade, and there’s a good reason why people won’t shut up about it after all of these years.
1Vanilla/Classic - 93
DoesClassiccount as an expansion? Just to be clear, this is referring to 2004’s original release and not the 2019 version. The user score is lower than bothBurning CrusadeandWrath of the Lich King, butWorld of Warcraft’s base game still has its fans.Classicdefined an entire genre and generation of PC gaming.
Blizzard was at the top of their game with this release. It was a bit of a grind and often obtuse, but there was hardly a better social experience in gaming thanWoW Classic. It’s not surprising to seeClassicat the top; sometimes, the original is just the best.
