World of Warcraft: Wrath of the Lich King Classic is Bringing Back Divisive Raid

05/22/2023 10:03 pm EDT

World of Warcraft: Wrath of the Lich King is one of the best expansions in the MMO's long history largely due to its incredible raid encounters and compelling narrative. However, one raid, the Trial of the Crusader, wasn't as well-received at the time as most of the others, though that sentiment has changed over time. Today, Blizzard announced that it is bringing that raid and its patch to Wrath of the Lich King Classic on June 22. Of course, this time around the raid isn't butting up against the same issues that plagued it back in 2009, meaning it might not be as divisive as it was back then.

The issue with the Call of the Crusade patch in 2009 was that it was released while many players were still grinding through Ulduar, which is widely regarded as one of WoW's best raids. In comparison, Trial of the Crusader felt slight as it didn't really add to the wider lore and took place mostly within a single coliseum. Some players didn't like this as it seemed to have a much smaller scope than other raids, while others loved that it felt more like a true boss rush than anything they'd previously seen in the MMO. 

With this update to WotLK Classic, players have had more time to work their way through Ulduar. Plus, they now know exactly what to expect, so there won't be that initial letdown. On top of that, Blizzard is implementing new Titan Rune Dungeons, which will test players with more difficult instances filled with enemies that have different effects and increased health and damage. This should really change up the process of acquiring new gear, giving players tons of new content to work through.

All that said, it will be interesting to see how players' opinions change about the patch. It's hard to imagine the initial pushback being quite as drastic as it was in 2009, though we might still see some players bristling against content they didn't love back then. Either way, this brings World of Warcraft: Wrath of the Lich King Classic one step closer to the Icecrown Citadel and the fight against Arthas himself.

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