In 'Mists of Pandaria', is WoW’s age starting to show?

The newest expansion for Blizzard's massive multiplayer juggernaught, World of Warcraft, titled Mists of Pandaria has gone live this morning, much to the delight of MMORPG fans across the globe. The highly anticipated expansion introduces a new race of anthropomorphic panda bears, called Pandarens, as well as an entirely new continent filled with quests for players to tackle.

Already a success for the undisputed champion of online role-playing, Mists of Pandaria is sure to rank among this year's most successful titles. What's surprising, however, is the mixed reaction that the expansion pack is receiving from fans and critics alike.

It should be noted that, due to Pandaria's length and extensive content, most outlets will not post official reviews of the expansion until later in the week.

However, several outlets have already sounded off on the initial moments of the expansion, with IGN reporting the story's initial strength, while Kotaku and Examiner.com launched commentary on WoW's diminishing place in the increasingly competitive field of online role-playing.

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