For better or for worse Steve Danuser has said goodbye to WoW and to Blizzard.

It would be a massive understatement to call the narrative of the long-running MMO World of Warcraft a bit convoluted. What started as a simple story of Orcs vs Humans way back in Warcraft 1, has turned into a globe-trotting adventure that has taken us to different worlds, times, the after-life, and the list goes on.

During this time we’ve had several people leading the charge narratively, but most recently it was Steve Danuser who appears to have quietly departed Blizzard without much fanfare.

There was no official announcement from the company regarding his departure. The only confirmation came from his LinkedIn page, which was noted by eagle-eyed players. His tenure as the Narrative Director was not without its controversy.

Starting back in 2015 during the Expansion Legion, he had a number of well-received storylines but garnered ire from many fans due to his obsession and re-writing of Sylvanas Windrunner. More particularly her controversial relationship with Nathanos Blightcaller.

Some theorize that he left the company due to the return of Chris Metzen, who had originally retired from the company back in 2016. Now that the voice of Thrall himself is back in action behind the scenes, it is certainly possible that he and Danuser butt heads on the direction of the series.

Regardless of these theories, Steve Danuser claims that Metzen had nothing to do with his decision to leave, citing Blizzard’s rather aggressive return to work policy and a desire for a change of pace after 8 years as his core reasons.

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Whatever spurred his decision, his absence is sure to be felt for better or for worse. Now with Metzen back at the helm, perhaps WoW can finally correct course in its upcoming trilogy of expansions: The Worldsoul Saga. And we won’t have to wait too long as the first installment, The War Within, is due out later this year.