World of Warcraft veteran says to expect “difficulty spikes” in his new MMO: “RPGs are better when they are a little difficult, and I think that goes doubly true for MMOs”

World of Warcraft veteran Greg Street says you can expect his upcoming MMO – currently codenamed Ghost – to have "difficulty spikes even in the open world." 

Street has taken to Twitter to muse over how difficult an MMO should be to strike the right balance. Spoilers: he's a fan of something that offers a bit of challenge. 

"I think RPGs are better when they are a little difficult, and I think that goes doubly true for MMOs," he says. "Having another player help you out, friend or stranger, is really at the core of the genre [in my opinion]. I think in the name of 'everything must be solo-able,' MMOs lose something. I think you see this in classic vs. retail WoW. I don't think it is 100% nostalgia."

Street goes on to recall his time working on World of Warcraft. For the veteran developer, the Dungeon Finder tool introduced in Wrath of the Lich King that lets you party up with others was released "at a time when running heroics was already pretty trivial." 

While Blizzard would try and "reverse course" by making dungeons in the next expansion, Cataclysm, more challenging, fans of the MMO only ended up switched off.

"This was an abrupt shock to a lot of the community who was used to the easier dungeon model and dungeon participation declined dramatically," he says. "I still think the goal was a good one, but the change was confusing for players."

As such, you can expect Ghost to "have difficulty spikes even in the open world." Think of it like World of Warcraft's Stranglethorn Valve, as there are easier or harder locations you can come across.

We haven't seen much of Ghost at the time of writing, though the team of Blizzard and Riot Games veterans has been open about their design philosophy from the word go. Street doesn't want Ghost to give you FOMO, whereas the class system is more, you guessed it, World of Warcraft than Final Fantasy 14. Don't fret, though – the team wants Ghost to fit into your life all the same.

Can't wait for Ghost? Here are the 10 best MMORPGs to play in 2023.