I think that we can all agree that, for the most part, Warlords of Draenor is a pretty successful expansion. The grand majority of players appear to be enjoying it, even now that we are a few months in. While I don't' have the numbers, it seems that the initial momentum that was inspired by this expansions launch hasn't really fizzled out. An excellent sign of the overall success of this expansion.

However, despite the awesomeness that is Warlords, there does seem to be one major complaint that I have seen expressed again and again by players. It seems that many feel that this expansion has pushed the game towards a more single player experience. With Garrisons being named as the primary culprit, players feel that the beloved social and multiplayer aspect of the game has been lost. Players in the game are feeling lonely, lost, and out of touch with the community. So, has Warlords of Draenor managed to take the multiplayer out of MMO?

If you would have asked me this question when I first started to play Warlords I would have said; absolutely not. I loved the game. I was dedicated to logging into my Garrison to complete missions, mine, herb, and complete my daily quests. As you all know, this can take some time, but the Garrison was so cool, I didn't (and still don't) mind.

Then afterwards I would either log off or simply hang out in my Garrison, until the next raid/instance/farming run happened. Basically, I was spending a lot of time in my Garrison...alone. Bust out the violin and cue the sappy music.

Sure I could whisper people, but something was missing. Something I couldn't quite place my finger on. Then I realized, I missed being around other players. I missed seeing them run by, checking out their mounts, starting up random conversations, and /licking people just because it is fun.

Having access to chat channels and my list of friends wasn't enough. It didn't compare to seeing other players actually around me, to see the game full of life. Looking around my barren Garrison, with only my overly eager Followers to keep me company, I started to think that the game had lost it's appeal. I believed fully what many people were saying; Warlords of Draenor had killed the multiplayer aspect of the game. Perhaps forever.

With this in mindset, I started to log on less. Doing the duties around my Garrison felt like a chore. While I still went on various runs with friends, I found that I was logging in less and less. I wasn't quitting the game, but I really was feeling pretty hopeless and clearly, based on the number of posts on the subject, I was not the only one.

After sulking around inside my Garrison for a bit, I had all but given up hope on ever rediscovering the social magic of World of Warcraft. Until I had a sort of epiphany. What if I made a change? What if I went out and sought out the social interactions that I so missed and desired? Would I find them? At the very least I could give it a try and confirm for myself that the World of Warcraft that I loved was changed forever.

So I headed out into the world and I discovered, life. The vibrant social in-game world was still there, I just had to put myself back into it. I started to only spend the time needed inside my Garrison, instead choosing to part my character in Ashran or another major city, all of which were teeming with life. I struck up conversations with strangers, answered questions in general chat, and opened myself up again to interacting with other players. I even decided to use the LFG feature, where I met several nice people, one of which that I stuck with for almost an hour completing quests.

What I found was, that Warlords of Draenor could very well be an expansion that takes the multiplayer out of the game. You could probably spend the entire expansion by yourself. However, for most of us, that isn't what the game is about. Part of loving MMOs is loving being surrounded with and interacting with other players.

So instead of sitting around holed up in your Garrison like the Lich King, get out there and rediscover the world. Don't hesitate to visit the major cities of the world, chat up a random person, or ask for help. Sure, there might be some less than pleasurable experiences along the way, but those will be far outweighed by the good ones. Rediscover the community of World of Warcraft, it is still there waiting, you won't be disappointed. Remember, the game is what you make of it and the change starts with you.