The total number of Mythic+ dungeons being run in WoW Dragonflight each week is down dramatically during the expansion’s second season when compared to season one, and players in the game’s community have been putting their heads together to come to a reason as to why.
In a thread posted to Reddit earlier today—with data accumulated by a user named NORATHEDESTROYER—WoW players debated the reasons for a dropoff in popularity among the game’s Mythic+ playerbase between seasons one and two.
We’re six weeks through the second season of WoW Dragonflight, and just over 930,000 players ran Mythic+ dungeons during the last weekly reset. When compared to the sixth week of season one, that’s a dropoff of about 800,000 dungeon runs; 1.7 million Mythic+ dungeons were completed during the sixth week of the previous season. Furthermore, the total number of dungeons run this past week dipped below one million for the first time since Shadowlands.
With numbers down, WoW players—particularly in that Reddit thread—have cited plenty of reasons for a potential dropoff, including the changes to Healers in Patch 10.1, as well as new (and occasionally tricky-to-deal-with) Mythic+ affixes such as Incorporeal and Afflicted that are widely Healer-focused.
Perhaps the biggest reason, though, as to why fewer players are tackling Mythic+ dungeons this season is the increased rate at which gear was acquired early on in the new patch. Just a few weeks into the season, the most dedicated of WoW players could fully gear their character and equip them with the most optimal loadout of weapons, trinkets, and best-in-slot crafted gear due to the introduction of Shadowflame Crests. Since gear is relatively easy to come by in season two, fewer players have a dedicated reason to go back into Mythic+ dungeons on a weekly basis and hunt down the items that they need for their character to reach their fullest potential.
Related: Blizzard confirms Shadowflame Crests are here to stay in WoW Dragonflight season 3
Outside game releases also may be playing a factor in this downtick. WoW players on Reddit specifically cited last week’s Final Fantasy XVI release as a time-consumer that dragged them away from WoW, in addition to The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom. However, the biggest cannibilizer could have come from within Blizzard itself, with Diablo 4 taking up much of the spotlight from WoW’s new season.
Blizzard games have traditionally had strong player overlap between them, with fans of one game usually having a stake in other franchises that the company develops, and the relationship between WoW and Diablo fans may just be the strongest.
With 2023 being such a stacked year for games already, the WoW team will need to make strides towards retaining its playerbase throughout the mid-section of Dragonflight. The second half of WoW expansions have traditionally been difficult for Blizzard to navigate, with expansion launches usually being a strong safety net for the game. Historically, Blizzard has had no problem letting numbers dip midway through an expansion in order to focus on bringing players back for the next one’s launch.
Related: WoW director credits player feedback pivot for Dragonflight’s big bounceback
However, Dragonflight has been a noteworthy exception. Although Mythic+ numbers are down, Blizzard is still pumping out content for the game, and players are sticking around. Retail WoW players will be treated to yet another major patch in Patch 10.1.5 on July 11, keeping the devs’ promised pace of new content intact. With content-heavy patches arriving every six-to-eight weeks, WoW players continuously have a reason to come back to Dragonflight, even if they’re not focusing directly on their Mythic+ rating. From a business standpoint, a consistent flow of content keeps WoW players from a loop of constant subscribing and unsubscribing that Blizzard aims to stay away from.
When Patch 10.1.5 releases in a little under two weeks, a bump in the Mythic+ numbers should be expected, as players will be returning to the game to test out fresh content, including a new megadungeon, as well as a third specialization for the Evoker class.
