Almost every available content for World of Warcraft, except for the upcoming Battle for Azeroth, will now be accessible via a monthly subscription. The fee will cost players $14.99 per month and will include the base game plus all previously released expansion. As it appears now, this change is probably permanent.
All players, whether veteran or new, will need to sign up for a subscription to access the game all the way through Legion, the game's sixth expansion. Developer Blizzard introduced this change after the pre-patch for the upcoming DLC, Battle for Azeroth, which is slated to release on August 14.
The introduction of the monthly subscription will lower the barrier to entry for World of Warcraft. Previously, players would need to purchase the base game to play and would need to make additional payments to access expansions. However, with the introduction of the subscription, players can level up all the way through 110 as long as they pay their monthly fee. Lastly, players who wish to access the upcoming Battle for Azeroth, they will still need to purchase the expansion separately for a one-time price of $49.99.
What do you think of the new system to play World of Warcraft?