Developer Interview - Ion Hazzikostas

Developer Interview - Ion Hazzikostas
WowChakra is sitting down with Ion Hazzikostas to discuss World of Warcraft.



Torghast
  • The long term goal for Torghast is not for it to become extremely easy the higher you rise in floors. It is still very much in development and the team doesn't want runs to take forever.
  • There will be a range of achievements to complete in Torghast.
  • The team is building Torghast with including events in mind to change up the experience, such as different creatures invading the tower.
  • They are hoping to have legendary crafting testable in a few weeks. Collecting parts for legendary creation will unlock a door just outside of Torghast where a mysterious smith (the one who crafted Frostmourne) will help you use the materials to craft your items.
  • You should be able to unlock the door to the rune smith during the first week of the expansion, but material gathering will take longer.

Shadowlands
  • Time is different in Shadowlands. It is a construct or order and structure, which isn't a focus in the Shadowlands.
  • We will have to see how this difference in time will effect our characters when we come out the other end.

Covenants
  • Choices with consequences tied into the mechanics of the game are core aspects of an RPG. They fully understand modern community mentality, however, and do not want people to feel like there is a wrong choice. They want to iterate on the covenants during the alpha to expand past just the abilities, such as with the soulbinds. They want these to showcase strengths and weaknesses for different content.

Class Trainers
  • Class trainers will teach new players about their different specializations in Shadowlands.
  • When you make a new character in Shadowlands, you will simply be a class with no specialization until you reach level 10.
  • There are no plans to have players learn spells from class trainers again.

Burning of Teldrassil
  • Tyrande's story will continue a piece of the burning of Teldrassil in Shadowlands. The war started in BfA is not over in her eyes.
  • We may encounter many who fell during Battle for Azeroth in the Shadowlands.
  • The team knows there is an unresolved story with Teldrassil and plan to continue it in future stories, not necisarrily in Shadowlands.

Heritage Armor
  • Races will continue to receive their heritage armor throughout Shadowlands. There is nothing to announce regarding who gets it next, however.

Adventure System - Mission Table
  • The team is hoping to have the adventure system up on the Alpha in a month.
  • The team is looking to shift the mission table to something that matches the fantasy of encounters in WoW. They don't want it to be simply a coin flip or automated by add-ons.

Professions
  • Armor crafters will be able to craft items to help with legendary crafting. They want item crafting professions to feel important throughout Shadowlands.
  • The optional crafting materials might be added to previous expansion professions in the future.
  • You can still craft items without optional items and get random stats, but the team wanted to introduce a way for the player to have some control of what they create.

Legendaries and Catch-Up Mechanics
  • There will likely be some sort of catch-up mechanic for legendaries throughout Shadowlands.
  • The system is designed so a fresh alt can start aiming towards a legendary right away, unlike Legion.
  • The team is experimenting with making legendary recipes account-wide for alts.

Technical
  • The team always wants to take advantage of the latest technology, such as with the options for ray tracing support.
  • They also want to maintain a totally accessible minimum specs.

Tier Sets
  • Tier sets will make a return later in Shadowlands, but the team is still deciding what to do with set bonuses.
  • Set bonuses are one of the reasons they pulled back on tier sets originally. They limited item diversity because certain slots were locked to tier sets.

PvP Gear
  • PvP stats are not returning. Itemization will remain like it is in Battle for Azeroth, with the inclusion of a PvP vendor to give players more choice of gear acquisition.

Transmog
  • Current thinking is that transmog from each covenant is locked to players that belong to that covenant.
  • If you have multiple characters in a covenant, however, the transmogs will be account-wide for characters of the same covenant.

Pre-Expansion Event
  • The pre-patch can only release when all of Shadowlands is done.
  • The team is monitoring BfA and thinking of additions that will give players rewards and goals to pursue while they wait for the pre-patch.

War Mode
  • The team is continuing to build upon War mode in Shadowlands. There might be more free-for-all events instead of faction events, including the possibility of challenges between covenants.

Current Reputation Buff
  • The reputation buff is still ending, but the team is planning to add new permanent bonuses that will help alts catch up for the rest of the expansion, such as the with the legendary cloak progression or getting corruption that you want.

Legendary Progression
  • Legendary acquisition won't necessarily get faster as you progress in the tower, but you will likely get more options for different scenarios as you accumulate more.

CGI Cinematics
  • The team will continue to use all of the expected media seen in Battle for Azeroth throughout Shadowlands.

Characters in Shadowlands
  • Many important characters from Azeroth will be in Shadowlands in some form, and the team is excited for everyone to see where different characters end up.
  • Arthas is obviously SOMEWHERE in the Shadowlands, but they want to be respectful with the character. We will learn more about him and his true nature, but we most likely won't be adventuring or interacting much with him.

Oribos
  • Oribos will be available in the alpha in the next week.
  • Oribos will function much like Dalaran did in Legion while the Covenant sanctums will function much like order halls.

Loading Screens in Torghast
  • The loading screens between floors is a technical limitation. The team might experiment with using a visual effect to transition instead of a blue-bar loading screen.

Shadowlands Lore
  • The ability to travel between Azeroth and the Shadowlands is possible for your characters in lore. It also allows us to take characters from Azeroth into the Shadowlands.
  • Bolvar will be involved in the pre-expansion events and the story of Shadowlands. Sylvanas left him alive at the end of their encounter.
This article was originally published in forum thread: Developer Interview - Ion Hazzikostas started by Stoy View original post
Published on 2020-05-14 05:59 PM
96 Comments
Comments 96 Comments
  1. Benedictogr's Avatar
    Choices with consequences tied into the mechanics of the game are core aspects of an RPG.
    They absolutely are not. In no RPG ever, not even in D&D, do you get a choice between different abilities just for allying yourself with different people. That is just bad design, because it forces the player to make a decision either with RP criteria or minmaxing criteria, and you should never ever inflict that choice upon your players.

    They want these to showcase strengths and weaknesses for different content.
    If there are weaknesses for certain content, people might just find themselves frequently excluded from that content. It's mindblowing that he can't even see this.
  1. Gleem's Avatar
    Quote Originally Posted by Benedictogr View Post
    They absolutely are not. In no RPG ever, not even in D&D, do you get a choice between different abilities just for allying yourself with different people. That is just bad design, because it forces the player to make a decision either with RP criteria or minmaxing criteria, and you should never ever inflict that choice upon your players.
    That's a little disingenuous with the D&D comment, considering that the game is free-form enough that you really could get special abilities, or at least items that majorly affect your character, by picking sides in some kind of faction war. It's not literally in the rules, but I've personally been in games that worked exactly that way.
  1. Sunnydee's Avatar
    Quote Originally Posted by Restors View Post
    Pretty much... Part of me is kind of excited over this idea. Cant wait to see what Blizzard has in store for us. But knowing Blizzard lately, I will probably end up disappointed.
    Or you have to high hopes :P
  1. Benedictogr's Avatar
    Quote Originally Posted by Gleem View Post
    That's a little disingenuous with the D&D comment, considering that the game is free-form enough that you really could get special abilities, or at least items that majorly affect your character, by picking sides in some kind of faction war. It's not literally in the rules, but I've personally been in games that worked exactly that way.
    While that is true, I stand by what I said that I consider it bad and I would never do it to my players. Especially not laying out for them exactly what they'd get from each faction, because that would unfairly inform their decision.
  1. Phryx's Avatar
    Quote Originally Posted by Benedictogr View Post
    They absolutely are not. In no RPG ever, not even in D&D, do you get a choice between different abilities just for allying yourself with different people. That is just bad design, because it forces the player to make a decision either with RP criteria or minmaxing criteria, and you should never ever inflict that choice upon your players.



    If there are weaknesses for certain content, people might just find themselves frequently excluded from that content. It's mindblowing that he can't even see this.
    It really amuses me, that they want to balance the abilites with the soulbind system. It't not like that one specific soulbind-specc wouldn't be the best for a specific kind of content as well. To balance it out, they have to aknowledge that -- for example -- a certain ability is theoretically best in M+ and then have to make soulbind-glyphs that dampen the power the ability grants you. And they have to make glyphs, that increase your potential in raids, pvp. So what they are implicitly say, when they proclaim that soulbinds will be a great balance tool:

    (1) They know what covenant ability is good for what content
    (2) They can estimate how good it is in this specific and how much worse it is to in the other scenarios, to offset the strengths and weaknesses
    (3) They can estimate what soulbind tree will be meta, so they can balance it

    How big is the chance that they mess something up and instead of having soulbinds be a balancing tool, it will be a method to increase or further the niche, the ability already put you in. To avoid that, blizzard has to deliberatly make any soulbinds that favours the specific part of the game, that the ability suggest it is. And even the contrary is true. Soulbinds can be so powerful, that it renders the ability in itself completely useless. The problem will always persists: one covenant x soulbing combinations will be best for one specc x content combination. And I highly doubt that the difference between the worst and the best performing combination is within 1% for each specc x content combination. It will widly range from 5-25% (which is of course a guestimate)
  1. Mrbleedinggums's Avatar
    Quote Originally Posted by Saltysquidoon View Post
    It's swings and roundabouts though.

    Maybe prot uses the tier chest, shoulders, hands and legs and needs a boss drop helm, maybe arms needs tier helm, shoulders, chest and hands and needs boss drop legs.
    Maybe Fire needs azerite traits from boss 1,7,9, maybe frost needs traits from 2,6,7.

    The amount of work the tier system adds (other than unique visuals which was always is the real reason) is frankly marginal to azerite.
    Fair point. I actually posted earlier in the thread a suggestion for how to tackle tier sets in Shadowlands, but essentially it was using the same idea of Classic tier sets where there were 8 pieces, but say you only need 4 to get your max set bonus. You could even have items like end boss weapons or trinkets have a equip effect that lets them count as +1 to your tier bonus count. Maybe that just convolutes the system and doesn't address the main issue though?
  1. Feral Druid ist Op's Avatar
    i guess mmo champ missed the bigest thing, targeted corruption is a huge deal

    https://www.wowhead.com/news=316070/...gendary-cloak-
  1. Natureseer's Avatar
    not necisarrily in Shadowlands.
    lol who wrote this shit
  1. Saltysquidoon's Avatar
    Quote Originally Posted by Mrbleedinggums View Post
    Fair point. I actually posted earlier in the thread a suggestion for how to tackle tier sets in Shadowlands, but essentially it was using the same idea of Classic tier sets where there were 8 pieces, but say you only need 4 to get your max set bonus. You could even have items like end boss weapons or trinkets have a equip effect that lets them count as +1 to your tier bonus count. Maybe that just convolutes the system and doesn't address the main issue though?
    Eh I mean the old system was fine.

    With PL token rarity doesn't matter. Then if they just lost the visuals (one set per armour type) all they're have to do is make a non-tier piece for each slot (which would have the same visuals so just a name and secondaries), because different specs favour different secondaries then it's just a sim for each spec to see which tier/offtier combo is optimal.
    If they wanted to make it really spicy they could make tier drop from different bosses for different classes (since PL) but that opens up additional balance concerns.
  1. Chickat's Avatar
    Quote Originally Posted by damonskye View Post
    I agree, and it would be perfect... we all come out, say, 200 years later to a dramatically changed Azeroth.

    They can update the open world again and make it work within the story.

    They can ditch Horde vs. Alliance as we suddenly come back after 200 years of the peace that progressed from BFA.

    A time jump would be amazing.
    I feel like it would be more 10-50 years so a decent but of current characters can be alive. Khafgar would look like oldgar again. Guessing khafgar lives like 100 years past a time skip too. Don't mages live longer?
  1. TorAndre's Avatar
    Quote Originally Posted by Benedictogr View Post
    They absolutely are not. In no RPG ever, not even in D&D, do you get a choice between different abilities just for allying yourself with different people. That is just bad design, because it forces the player to make a decision either with RP criteria or minmaxing criteria, and you should never ever inflict that choice upon your players.



    If there are weaknesses for certain content, people might just find themselves frequently excluded from that content. It's mindblowing that he can't even see this.
    What nonsense comment is this?

    Of course this happens in many RPG. And even if it didn't (which is does btw) Wow would be taking a step in the right direction if they were the first to do so.

    You should and must put people in these choices, it's what makes a game into the RPG. The minmaxing issue is community problem. Not a Blizzard problem. If the community started to force minmaxing upon other players, its also the responsobility of the community to get us out of it.
  1. RoKPaNda's Avatar
    This is the first WoW expansion that I almost definitely won't play at launch, I've never been this unexcited about a WoW expansion. This is going to be Cata/WoD all over again.
  1. apelsinjuice's Avatar
    Quote Originally Posted by Feral Druid ist Op View Post
    i guess mmo champ missed the bigest thing, targeted corruption is a huge deal

    https://www.wowhead.com/news=316070/...gendary-cloak-
    people are more intrested in SL but yes this could be huge for rest of BFA
  1. Doffen's Avatar
    Quote Originally Posted by Hugnomo View Post
    Old Man Anduin from the comic incoming
    Thats what I was thinking as well(many do I guess)

    The end of the comic is when Anduin with us the players are taking back a corrupted Azeroth from the Void Lords/N'Zoth(you know, we winning is a vision).
  1. Kuntantee's Avatar
    They probably realized how shit of an idea locking skills behind factions is, but when they did (in alpha), they knew it was too late. They will keep lying about why this system makes sense, probably up until 9.2/3.

    There is no attraction/hype around shadowlands. The expansion is set for failure. It can be a good expansion, but they need to drop faction/skill locks.
  1. Redroniksre's Avatar
    Quote Originally Posted by Kuntantee View Post
    They probably realized how shit of an idea locking skills behind factions is, but when they did (in alpha), they knew it was too late. They will keep lying about why this system makes sense, probably up until 9.2/3.

    There is no attraction/hype around shadowlands. The expansion is set for failure. It can be a good expansion, but they need to drop faction/skill locks.
    Bunch of liars they are. Honestly they should just get rid of everything except the new dungeons and raids. I am sure Shadowlands would be the fastest selling expansion if they just got rid of any new feature and just made it more of the same ol'
  1. TheRevenantHero's Avatar
    Quote Originally Posted by Spaceboytg View Post
    I love that, it's the way it should be. You want the pretty Kyrian wings on a character? Then that character is gonna be a Kyrian.
    The issue is that people will be essentially required to take a certain covenant either for raid or pvp reasons. So while people on roleplay realms can pick what they want based on aesthetics, people who are minmaxing are screwed. Are you a Hunter on a mythic raid team? Well you better go with Night Fae because it has the best ability for Hunters. We don't care if you like Kyrian's look more.
  1. Nzx's Avatar
    Choices with consequences tied into the mechanics of the game are core aspects of an RPG. They fully understand modern community mentality, however, and do not want people to feel like there is a wrong choice. They want to iterate on the covenants during the alpha to expand past just the abilities, such as with the soulbinds. They want these to showcase strengths and weaknesses for different content.
    This is the Azerite Armor of this expansion. The 9.0 patch will be awful for covenants and there will be regular, frequent adjustments to the power of each covenant. 9.1 Blizzard will allow you to "sub-spec" a Covenant, freely switching between two abilities. in 9.2, they will finally cave and realise they're morons and unlock free switching between Covenants. Unfortunately, this will be a year and a half after release and they will have missed the boat again on making the game fun. I don't understand their obsession with coming up with these ideas and sticking to them despite the entire community telling them they do not want to play the game with those restrictions in place because they aren't enjoyable.
  1. Protar95's Avatar
    Quote Originally Posted by Onikaroshi View Post
    Because that's boring as fuck, would rather they just leave each expansion zone to rot and create new ones. Who wants to spend years in freaking EK/Kal or Northrend?
    I would. Obviously I'd like to see new areas as well. But Kalimdor and the Eastern Kingdoms are the heart of Azeroth. It's a shame that they've been left behind in favour of island chains and other dimensions with ever more tenuous links to the story of Warcraft.

    I think Blizzard needs to find a way to incorporate endgame content into the old world, beyond the odd phased quest. I'd love to see a full world revamp in 10.0 which provides max level world quests and events in Kalimdor, EK, Outland and Northrend.
  1. deenman's Avatar
    Quote Originally Posted by Saltysquidoon View Post
    Tier sets returning, that's potentially raising my hype-o-meter from -50 to -45.

    Nothing about actual base spec work again that's a worry though.

    EDIT

    Not like legionaries, artefact weapons and azerite gear (legit though, azerite + neck is the same number of slots as tier).
    What an absolute pumpkin...

    legenderies and artefacts were pre bfa,it was with bfa that they made that choice to change it,and azerite gear isnt like tier at all,you change it a lot,be it for diferent specs,pvp or pve,aoe or single,different raid tiers etc,a set piece you got it and you were done until next tier(you changed it like once to replace hc with mythic),you didnt even need to change tier sets for dif specs as that was changed with wod
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