World of Warcraft: Legion Review Roundup

World of Warcraft: Legion released back in August, and critics have delivered their verdicts after spending a significant amount of time with the new expansion. So far, the critical reception is very positive.

Most notably, Legion adds the Demon Hunter class, which starts at level 98 and is more action-y than other classes. GameSpot sat down with Blizzard to talk about the expansion's development and how it reinvented its legendary MMO's mechanics to make players feel powerful as a Demon Hunter.

Blizzard also introduced Artifact weapons that become more powerful as you do, the new Broken Isles continent, and a revamped PVP progression system. You can find out more about the expansion here.

We've collected a series of review scores and editor opinions from around the internet and compiled them into an easy-to-read list below. For a wider view of the critical reception, check out GameSpot sister site Metacritic.

• Game: World of Warcraft: Legion
• Developer: Blizzard
• Platform: PC
• Release: August 30
• Price: $40

GameSpot -- 9/10

"With Legion, it's hard to remember when WoW's narrative and questing were ever this strong before. Time will tell if Blizzard will serve up a healthy dose of new content to keep the expansion and game alive (a la Mists or Lich King) or if it will suffer the fate of Warlords of Draenor, but right now (about a month after the expansion's release) Blizzard has proven it can still craft an MMO experience as well as--if not better--than anyone else." -- Don Saas [full review]

IGN -- 9.1/10

"After months of missteps, Legion shows World of Warcraft finding its footing again and asserting its relevance after more than a decade. Many elements make this an expansion worth enjoying, including class halls, gigantic zones filled with memorable stories, better socialization, the action-y new Demon Hunter class, and world quests. The one big question mark is whether Blizzard can maintain that energy after launch, but so far the outlook seems promising." -- Leif Johnson [full review]

Destructoid -- 9/10

"World of Warcraft: Legion does the greatest job so far of really connecting players to its world. Unlike the past several expansions, I really want to be a part of this universe and see this story through until its end. This is the best WoW has been since Wrath." -- Chris Carter [full review]

Hardcore Gamer -- 4.5/5

"Legion injects excitement into a game that for the past year has survived on being better than most. With the addition of features such as Artifact Weapons and cinematic story driven content, World of Warcraft's sixth expansion raised the bar back to where it should be while at the same time adopting ideas that will take it into the future. The first Legion Raid is set to release on September 20 and I'm sure that will continue to paint the narrative as to how this expansion plays out over the next year, but for now it's everything a fan could ask for." -- Derrick Bettis [full review]

Arcade Sushi -- 9/10

"Modern games tend to have players in control of someone of importance, a main character who makes things happen, while MMOs have often had you playing as an unimportant foot soldier constantly running fetch quests. Legion, on the other hand, wants to recognize you as a hero. You're cool and important, so you get to go to cool and important places, do cool and important things, and collect cool and important stuff. This smart new mindset has lead to a peerless addition to Blizzard's biggest beast, showing that the beast is not only still alive, but its heart is pumping more strongly than ever." -- Alex Langley [full review]

PC Gamer -- 9/10

"[W]hile much of the endgame, like raids and 'Mythic+' dungeons aren't available yet, Legion already represents World of Warcraft at its all-time best. Even after the weeks spent in the beta and now with the official release, its weakest elements, like artifact weapons, can't get in the way of how much fun I'm having exploring the Broken Isles. Legion's ultimate legacy may depend on what's to come, but what's available now has me excited about World of Warcraft in a way I haven't felt since my dwarf hunter took his first steps into Dun Morogh a decade ago." -- Steve Messner [full review]

US Gamer -- 4/5

"Despite my complaints about the currently unbalanced PVP facet of the game, I think that overall, WoW is in as good a shape as it has been for many years. Legion is an expansion that packs a tremendous amount of content at launch, and looks to continue to add to its impressive roster of activities as the new Emerald Nightmare and Suramar Palace raids open, and the much-anticipated Karazhan five-man dungeon is ushered into the game in the upcoming 7.1 content patch. Whether the game will continue to maintain this considerable momentum over the course of the expansion's duration remains to be seen, but for now Legion offers a smorgasbord of things to do that should keep the WoW faithful busy and engaged over the coming weeks and months." -- Jaz Rignall [full review]