To make it less boring in the open world of World of Warcraft, Blizzard has found a solution that brings more action.
At gamescom 2025, the next expansion of World of Warcraft was revealed. In addition to some controversial discussions about the intro cinematic of Midnight, a lot of gameplay was shown. One announcement that got a bit lost was a new feature called “Prey.” This is likely to make your outdoor experience in Azeroth significantly more action-packed than before.
What is this feature? At an NPC in Silvermoon, you can sign up for the Prey feature. You then go, more or less passively, hunting a special enemy. This could be a feared leader of the Amani trolls or an agent of the Void.
After you sign up, it can happen at any time during gameplay that you fall into an ambush – whether you’re finishing a quest, mining some ores, or casting your fishing line. Enemies can lurk and strike from ambush to blow out the life lights of Azeroth’s great champion.
This is somewhat reminiscent of the “Nemesis” enemies from the depths, who can also appear at any time and suddenly turn a simple fight into a sweaty affair.
Are there different difficulties? Yes, there are and they differ significantly in their impact. “Normal” is the introductory level. Here not much happens, and other characters can help if they happen to see you being attacked.
At the two higher difficulty levels, “Hard” and “Nightmare,” you will not only be attacked by stronger enemies, but you may also lose the support of your friends. In an ambush, you are often forced into a “duel,” where you have to take down the attacker without other characters being able to intervene. This means it’s down to your gear and your skill whether you can defeat these enemies or end up as prey yourself.
A hunt for prey usually does not consist of a single fight, but rather several incidents and tasks that are recorded in a new interface. The final battle is then against the chosen boss, from whom you must extinguish the virtual life lights.
What rewards are there? While there are no exact details released yet, Blizzard has already hinted at some of the rewards that will be available in the Prey feature.
There will primarily be cosmetic rewards. These include mounts, but also titles and special items for housing. How broad the range will be may also depend on how well the feature is received by the community.
There should also be a bit of character power, although you will need to work towards that. Whether this occurs in the form of particularly good gear or other advantages in the open world is still not entirely clear.
Why is Blizzard doing this? Currently, Blizzard is experimenting with several methods to make the open world of World of Warcraft a bit more challenging for everyone who enjoys being there. The Prey feature is one of these experiments, another one is what we will see in “Legion Remix.” There, there will be a “heroic” version of the world, where even ordinary enemies have affixes and fights are significantly more challenging.
Is the feature mandatory? No, it is not. Blizzard states that it is an “opt-in” feature, meaning you have to consciously activate it to be affected by ambushes during gameplay. So if you just want to farm some herbs or enjoy the story of the quests in peace, you don’t have to worry about elite enemies popping up from ambush every few minutes. However, if you enjoy the additional threat and want to find yourself in challenging fights (and want cool rewards), you will likely find your stay in the open world significantly more intense.
More details about WoW Midnight can be found in our comprehensive overview of the expansion.
