Shadowlands Preview: Character Customization

Nice. Cosmetic customization is my thing.

Looking forward to having my fire kitty and steroid bear forms available to me while I'm in Balance spec. Good times ahead!

Really should say change sexuality, not gender.

I'm saddened by the new character creation screen. It's missing that blizzard art style. The sleek modern style leaves it feeling empty, like it's missing heart and warmth and excitement. The character creation experience helps to create excitement and anticipation as well as providing a doorway and peek into the azeroth, it generates interest, inclusion and invites us in. This fails at doing that and what it gains by being less 'cluttered' is ..nothing.

It should reflect blizzard's iconic art style, incorporating in-game materials use in it's design. This character creation screen looks like an attempt to be sleek and modern, but in doing so it not only clashes with the characters and background, but worse, it lacks that heart and any warm, welcoming gesture. It's cold and there's nothing about it that roots it in the worlds nor the game. As a player for most of wow's life, I can say that this decision doesn't seem to be with us older players / lovers of the game and story in mind, it looks like it is intended to appeal to newer audience, which isn't in itself bad I guess, but makes me wonder how many of us older players will stick around if things such as this and AH redesign keep replacing our tried and true art style that appeals to so many and sets blizzard's art and aesthetic ahead of many other generic, sleek, modern looking menus.

It may sound extreme but I feel forgotten with the new ah design and now this new futuristic character creation design that incorporates nothing form the game world.

When cheating a character we are greeted with music and backgrounds of that character's homeland, and the player's experience is affected by the visuals; the materials that communicate a sense of connection, craft and delight in what is often an immersive experience. The design of character creations screen is part of the player's journey, is an interpretation and sample of the player walking though a traditional azeroth setting. Stone, rope, parchment, iron, feathers, magic, fire, rocks, nuts and bolts, tapestries and plenty more materials in the likeness and thickness of the backgrounds, of the characters, of the historic and signature blizzard art style should be incorporated into each button, frame, slider, of the menu.

Buttons, sliders and frames / borders, should have a corresponding material, color and texture to reflect the game's world. The design should apply the patterns and world's stones, woods, cloths, colors and textures to create a local feeling, to immerse the player.

Bring players to azeroth's natural beauty, design the interface with clouds and shapes that represent the rocks, trees and materials, and foster a connection between player, landscape and adventure.

The sleek, 'elegant' design of the new character creation screen may seem refreshing upon first glance, but then quickly something uncomfortable sets in, and I think it's that the new concept is that of many other consoles and phone and apps - modern and glassy and forgettable. the menus that get me excited and fit within their world are the best ones. The risk of not caring about simpler things such as the look of a character creation screen is that it will spread to more places in game. The AH already suffers from a futuristic look with nothing tying it to azeroth, nothing tying it to the world of the game - it's like looking at a playstation menu of sorts, not wow. I don't think we want our mailboxes, inventory, banks, etc getting this sleek new design that interrupts the player from the game with its' jarring and unfortunate appearance.

Blizzard you've always used your awesome art style in your games, why change it now? And why change it to something that looks like an app or a microwave panel? Animal crossing uses it's art style for it's menus in mostly icon form that appeals to players and further immerses them in the world, pokemon's inventory and buttons are very much in sync with it's world's style, mortal kombat character selection screen fits perfectly and is enriched by and enriches the world, the story and the gamer's experience. You have a great style that I think is being forsaken and forgotten for a more trendy look, but it doesn't help the game, therefore, it hurts the game.

I'd go a step further and say each race should have a theme; Night elves could have leafy borders, and buttons that chime like wisps when you click, or tauren having carved wooden frames tied with rope and beaded feathers, etc, but even if you didn't have specific race themed character creation menus, you should still use your iconic art style and materials from the in-game world to excite and immerse the player to enter the game and begin their journey. Not this thin, sleek, nebulous stuff that floats like an eyesore and has no connection to the game or to the world.


I'm saddened by this change (as well as the AH). I miss the iconic blizzard art style. This looks cold and empty when it should look warm and inviting; exciting the player to get into the game and begin their journey by offering a glimpse of the signature style and welcoming materials found in azeroth: wood, stone, rope, feathers, parchment, tapestry, etc. The flags/banners were appropriate and they generated a feeling of getting in there with your character onto your team's side and begin adventuring from your part of the world. There is something special about tying menus, icons, buttons, sliders, frames and borders, etc, in with the style of the game's art and connecting the player to the world and to story of the game.

This sleek, minimalistic appearance does not hold those warm, exciting experience that I feel new and returning and even older players should get to experience and be immersed by. These new symbols and shadows really clash hard with the nice backgrounds and character models, I mean, yellow neon highlight icons? I suggest wood or stone carvings, like shop signs in a fantasy realm. The sliders can even have feathered arrows or something that at least ties in with azeroth. Sad. And they're not really even sliders, they are what we have now, just without the nice little preview, so this is a step backwards.


People claim to like this 'new' 'modern' style then after a while it will set in that it was the 'new' 'modern' look that got them excited upon first glace, but after giving it a while and some deeper thought, it'll probably become true that this new modern style probably is a step in the wrong direction because it misses the blizzard mark of invigorating the player in the world with and clashes and doesn't immerse the player, it kind of jars them out of it. Missed opportunity to display iconic and memorable blizzard art in the form of buttons, borders, wood, stone, cloth, tapestry, etc. Instead, it looks like a forgettable playstation game menu or a microwave control panel. even the icons are very generic and not portraying wow's signature style. I've seen blizzard to icons before and they usually match the theme and excite the player at the same time. not these. there is a coldness to this barber menu, character customization screen and definitely the auction house. when our mailboxes and spellbooks and extra action bars start looking like microwave control panels, don't say no one spoke up beforehand. concerned.

Blizzard's art always sets them apart from other games, they should and could have it shinning for them front and center here, but for some reason forsake their cool style for this minimal style that really doesn't help the game, therefore, it only hurts the game.


This does not look like it invites us to journey in azeroth. It looks like a space game or another kind of game that isn't wow - and it isn't because it's 'new', it's because the neon, the thin rings, the glowing icons, the lack of worldly materials, all clash and in a way seem distant and non-caring for the player or their experience. There is nothing connecting the player to the world or giving them an experience of creating a character within a fantasy realm. icons and stuff could be like shop signs hanging from fantasy potions shops, libraries, clothing stores; made from wood and stone, etc. Cloth tapestries. why is everything floating and 'sleek'?

This is not blizzard's memorable art style which usually works well to set them apart from the forgettable stuff out there. This could be a starcraft mmo menu, but even then, a starcraft mmo would probably make use of planets, starship control paneling, neon lights, glassy buttons, and materials and themes from WITHIN the game and WITHIN the game's world! Offering immersion and excitement, offering the player an experience while creating their character to become excited to enter the world and begin playing. The auction house also is lacking being built from azeroth materials and looks like an app or playstaion 2 / game console screen instead of something found within azeroth. This colder, detatched version removes me / the player from the world instead of connecting us with it. Sure, it's new but blizzard's menus and icons have pretty much tied in with their ip's aesthetic. imagin hearthstone if the buttons and icons were dull grey. If I sound extreme, I'm really just passionate about my game world and a little concerned, and voicing that blizzard hold on to what they're great at and supporting them in producing what has set them apart and made them memorable.

Your customers are already moving slowly to Classic, too little too late to keep subs.

If that was even true how would that mean that they lose subs? It's the same sub to play Classic so you might wanna try abit harder next time.

Originally Posted by Frozenbeef

Really should say change sexuality, not gender.

You people are hilarious.

Originally Posted by Frozenbeef

Really should say change sexuality, not gender.

Your "sexuality" and your "sex" are two different things. If you're gonna troll and try to stir up shit atleast say the correct thing.

Originally Posted by ryjkur

Your customers are already moving slowly to Classic, too little too late to keep subs.

I'd say it's quite the opposite. Or if Classic players aren't going to Shadowlands they're just quitting altogether.

Originally Posted by Frozenbeef

Really should say change sexuality, not gender.

You mean, pick whether our characters are homosexual, heterosexual, bisexual, pansexual, etc?

So they are finally bringing the "randomize name" from Beta to live? Only took them since TBC beta to implement..

Originally Posted by tetrisGOAT

So they are finally bringing the "randomize name" from Beta to live? Only took them since TBC beta to implement..

USA always had it for some reason.

Originally Posted by Frozenbeef

Really should say change sexuality, not gender.

...Why?
[

10 character limit]

Originally Posted by Frozenbeef

Really should say change sexuality, not gender.

As soon as we have to pick whether our character is straight, gay, bi, pan or whatever, I’ll quit. Choosing gender, aka male or female (in this case, as Azeroth doesn’t have fluid, trans, etc) is fine.

Still. No. Date.

It's pretty ridiculous at this point. I thought the transition would be smooth with Bastion > Maldraxxus > Ardenweald > Revendreth > Prepatch. At this point the whole hype has lost its momentum.

Originally Posted by Xilurm

USA always had it for some reason.

That makes it unlikely we'll get it now as well.
That means they are just copy-pasting the US one for us as well, with no proof-reading? I wish I was more surprised.

Originally Posted by Frozenbeef

Really should say change sexuality, not gender.

I assume you meant sex and not gender? Sexuality is not the same as sex(or gender for that matter).

Originally Posted by keymil

Still. No. Date.

It's pretty ridiculous at this point. I thought the transition would be smooth with Bastion > Maldraxxus > Ardenweald > Revendreth > Prepatch. At this point the whole hype has lost its momentum.

No date for what? I thought they announced the pre-patch to be Sep 30th? And 27th of Oct for the expansion?

EDIT: No date announced for pre-patch. Must've dreamt that.

Originally Posted by Amerissis

As soon as we have to pick whether our character is straight, gay, bi, pan or whatever, I’ll quit. Choosing gender, aka male or female (in this case, as Azeroth doesn’t have fluid, trans, etc) is fine.

Shadowlands literally has a transgender character.

Who cares about gender, sex or whatever americans complain about?

We still have no troll beards. That's just sad

Originally Posted by Amerissis

As soon as we have to pick whether our character is straight, gay, bi, pan or whatever, I’ll quit. Choosing gender, aka male or female (in this case, as Azeroth doesn’t have fluid, trans, etc) is fine.

We need a boob and bulge slider. Also let girls have a bulge too.