This is a key component that should be examined for future games. Part of what made Wow so amazing was that it forced you to work together and communicate. It made us use our brain nuggets on quests, instead of following way points and being handheld, which also meant we were more invested in the world. We shared information and worked together, built real life friendships and communities in our interactions. I feel like devs have started to forget about what made this game so special. I hope revisiting this will inspire a deeper look into what aspects should be considered for future games. WOW classic may be dated in many respects, but the things they got right made it one of the best games ever created. There is a reason so many wanted classic WOW to happen and whether we knew it or not, I don't think it wasn't just for nostalgia. This is a game that challenges it's players to actually be a part of the world they are playing in. To explore and experiment. Discover. So many magical things were born out of this philosophy.
So much of the design is just built around the idea that it is
easier to group than it is to solo. Like, other players are right in front of you, you both are doing the same thing, and you are both worse off competing for whatever you're trying to get. It also squared well with the more heterogeneous classes - not everyone was good at everything, so you really felt the benefits of grouping more than it just being "more damage!"
I fully understand that a lot of the synergy between the community aspects and the class / world design were probably a happy accident, but it was a much more complete package than it is now in terms of engagement.
At the end of the day, players will always, always,
always take the path of least resistance, and it just so happened in WoW that the path of least resistance was building a network of people that made reaching your in-game goals that much easier and more pleasant. Again, some of that ease of interaction was by design while other parts of it were surely happenstance, but it worked out.
For many years in retail WoW it's been much, much easier to do everything either alone or in randomly sorted, disposable groups, so social interaction with strangers is just gone from the game entirely now.
