9.0 General Discussion

[Aeluron Lightsong]

I'm definitely curious to see how far along they are. Based on the initial previews from Blizzcon, everything seemed pretty early in development compared to previous expansions. Makes me slightly nervous on top of the lukewarm reception the announcement had.

I've heard that several streamers/Youtubers are gearing up to be extra thorough and harsh when it comes to feedback. A lot of people really want this expansion to be successful.

Lukewarm response on this forum is nothing new, thats how it always is. People are jaded beyond belief. The lukewarm feeling is not what non MMO-Champion people feel.

[Asphyx22]

Lukewarm response on this forum is nothing new, thats how it always is. People are jaded beyond belief. The lukewarm feeling is not what non MMO-Champion people feel.

But it wasn't just this forum that had a lukewarm response. Everyone (or at least a lot of people) felt pretty "meh" over the whole announcement including myself. I'm usually super hyped for expansion announcements too.

[Nathanyel]

Either i'm late or it's just happened, but the launcher's just switched to Shadowlands?

https://i.postimg.cc/8z4dtW7p/Screen...t-14-48-28.png
https://i.postimg.cc/Hxm19fR8/Screen...t-14-56-41.png

It's a normal process that's happened with previous expansions as well and doesn't state anything about the state of the expansion, just that you preordered.

Not sure why they bothered though, the first image you linked is the Beta client, which has a total revamp of the game detail pages anyway, without that background image.
Eh, at least it's not a closeup of some character anymore, that was kinda grating the past few expansions.

[THEORACLE64]

It's a normal process that's happened with previous expansions as well and doesn't state anything about the state of the expansion, just that you preordered.

Not sure why they bothered though, the first image you linked is the Beta client, which has a total revamp of the game detail pages anyway, without that background image.
Eh, at least it's not a closeup of some character anymore, that was kinda grating the past few expansions.

Yeah I know, it’s usually there when the pre-orders go up though and it wasn’t this time - guess they got around to it though! I guess they did both because that beta client is very much different than the normal one atm and it’s not the standard, so it’s not like there’s only minor differences between the both and how they display stuff.

[Sondrelk]

But it wasn't just this forum that had a lukewarm response. Everyone (or at least a lot of people) felt pretty "meh" over the whole announcement including myself. I'm usually super hyped for expansion announcements too.

Usually players are excited for the prospect of a new untested system.
Everyone seemed to look forward to Warfronts and Islands when BfA was announced, same with M+ for Legion or Garrisons in WoD.
Shadowlands does not have that, so players are confusing their lack of excitement for thinking the game looks sparse, which it really isnt when you think about it. The expansion is basically Legion with more stuff added on top, Order halls replaced with Covenants and generally the knowledge that all the good changes we got to systems in Legion will likely be in place to begin with instead of having to wait halfway through like we had to for the Legiondaries.

Though that being said, the features trailer will definitely have ot take most of the blame for this one. It did not do a very good job showcasing the strengths of the expansion and generally just made the game look more like a glorified patch than anything.


There is also the fact that 8.3 is on the Horizon which i assume many players are looking forward to, so player attention is divided between those who are interested in Shadowlands and teh discussion around that and those who are interested in 8.3 and the discussion around that, meaning the threads for eac hone feels emptier than usual.
Once 8.3 and the raid rolls around and players get it on some semblance of farm we will probably see more activity on teh forums.

[Asphyx22]

Usually players are excited for the prospect of a new untested system.
Everyone seemed to look forward to Warfronts and Islands when BfA was announced, same with M+ for Legion or Garrisons in WoD.
Shadowlands does not have that, so players are confusing their lack of excitement for thinking the game looks sparse, which it really isnt when you think about it. The expansion is basically Legion with more stuff added on top, Order halls replaced with Covenants and generally the knowledge that all the good changes we got to systems in Legion will likely be in place to begin with instead of having to wait halfway through like we had to for the Legiondaries.

Though that being said, the features trailer will definitely have ot take most of the blame for this one. It did not do a very good job showcasing the strengths of the expansion and generally just made the game look more like a glorified patch than anything.


There is also the fact that 8.3 is on the Horizon which i assume many players are looking forward to, so player attention is divided between those who are interested in Shadowlands and teh discussion around that and those who are interested in 8.3 and the discussion around that, meaning the threads for eac hone feels emptier than usual.
Once 8.3 and the raid rolls around and players get it on some semblance of farm we will probably see more activity on teh forums.

I agree with your logic for the most part. I do think they have more to offer than what most people think. However, from what they showcased, I was pretty unimpressed. That's just a personal opinion that could change once I see those systems more fleshed out, though. While they do have several systems that are basically an evolution of Legion's systems, I still feel we are getting less. The fact that there is no new class or race kind of dumbfounds me.

Sure, we are getting new race customization, but it doesn't really impact me the way that a new race/class did. They aren't really hyping the new customization options either, which makes me think it might not be as in depth as we are hoping.

[Sondrelk]

I agree with your logic for the most part. I do think they have more to offer than what most people think. However, from what they showcased, I was pretty unimpressed. That's just a personal opinion that could change once I see those systems more fleshed out, though. While they do have several systems that are basically an evolution of Legion's systems, I still feel we are getting less. The fact that there is no new class or race kind of dumbfounds me.

Sure, we are getting new race customization, but it doesn't really impact me the way that a new race/class did. They aren't really hyping the new customization options either, which makes me think it might not be as in depth as we are hoping.

Much of the blame here has to fall on the features trailer, which failed to show anything of note, and the system deep-dive panel which went into very little in the way of promises or anything substantial beyond "this is a thing that will definitely be here".
Previous expansion tends to promise stuff wildly, or in general oversell the features being shown, which Blizzard, wisely in my opinion, have decided to stay away from.

The new customization feature is something i do think will be good enough that people consider it one of the best selling features of Shadowlands, but Blizzard probably does not want to promise too much by doing things like fully flesh out a single race with new customization and then realize too late they cannot give all races that level of depth.

[infinitemeridian]

Much of the blame here has to fall on the features trailer, which failed to show anything of note, and the system deep-dive panel which went into very little in the way of promises or anything substantial beyond "this is a thing that will definitely be here".
Previous expansion tends to promise stuff wildly, or in general oversell the features being shown, which Blizzard, wisely in my opinion, have decided to stay away from.

The new customization feature is something i do think will be good enough that people consider it one of the best selling features of Shadowlands, but Blizzard probably does not want to promise too much by doing things like fully flesh out a single race with new customization and then realize too late they cannot give all races that level of depth.

The customization they showed off is laughable compared to most other games though - it's just that WoW player's standards are so low when it comes to this stuff. Besides, 99% of people won't even see these updates because it gets covered by gear.

I don't see how this is a selling point of the expansion.

[Aeluron Lightsong]

The customization they showed off is laughable compared to most other games though - it's just that WoW player's standards are so low when it comes to this stuff. Besides, 99% of people won't even see these updates because it gets covered by gear.

I don't see how this is a selling point of the expansion.

By that logic customization options shouldn't exist, people do care A LOT about how they look, Transmog wouldn't be so popular if they didn't care. Don't undersell it.

[Makabreska]

By that logic customization options shouldn't exist, people do care A LOT about how they look, Transmog wouldn't be so popular if they didn't care. Don't undersell it.

The loudest cheers in the audience during Blizzcon were, when they shown dwarves and trolls customization.

[Hyrja]

Dont like the new launcher, hope they add an option to keep or switch to the old UI.

[Nathanyel]

Dont like the new launcher, hope they add an option to keep or switch to the old UI.

Are you talking about the background image, or the new layout currently in Beta? Either way, you'll not get an option.
The layout will eventually come to the live client, possibly with more changes inbetween.
The background is significant branding. I've tried during WoD to replace that image by altering the client's files, because I was sick of staring at Grommash's nipple. But it simply wasn't possible. I could only replace the top left logo and task bar icon when the client was called the "Blizzard App" for a while. But nothing game-related. I guess these were always downloaded from the server.

[Dracullus]

The loudest cheers in the audience during Blizzcon were, when they shown dwarves and trolls customization.

Similar to transmog reveal on Blizzcon '15 and class mounts on '16. People really care about that stuff.

[Nathanyel]

Similar to transmog reveal on Blizzcon '15 [...]

Took me a moment to realize you're talking about the change to make it account-wide.

[Redzonetode]

Dont like the new launcher, hope they add an option to keep or switch to the old UI.

my god, dude. it's a launcher. you look at it for 5 seconds before you never think about it again and you're in game. stop whining about insignificant stuff

[Dracullus]

my god, dude. it's a launcher. you look at it for 5 seconds before you never think about it again and you're in game. stop whining about insignificant stuff

Heh, reminds me how people are whining that loging screen is dogshit every.single.time. But it's good memory, means that new expac is very close. ;D

[FlubberPuddy]

The customization they showed off is laughable compared to most other games though - it's just that WoW player's standards are so low when it comes to this stuff. Besides, 99% of people won't even see these updates because it gets covered by gear.

I don't see how this is a selling point of the expansion.

You can hide almost every piece of gear now except pants I think. So the "it gets covered by gear" isn't applicable anymore. Players love character customization and more of it is sorely needed.

Lack of customization is actually what stops me from playing certain races, and I don't consider myself a minority in that regard.

Current WoW is also very focused on obtaining appearances nowadays more so than before, people absolutely love to tailor their appearance.

[Directionalk9]

The character customization is like having having a chest tattoo, its personal to you, you chose it, you want it, its not for others, just you.

[FlubberPuddy]

The character customization is like having having a chest tattoo, its personal to you, you chose it, you want it, its not for others, just you.

It's like getting dressed before going out for the day. I dress in what I like, not what I think others will like.

[Caerule]

So, those new DK eyes are kind of cool, but I have no DK, so I'm curious what people that actually play them think.

I did check out my Blood Elf. They seem to have the same color and level of glow as on live now, but the glow comes from the iris of the eye, rather than floating before it.

I like it. May take some getting used to for some though. But, I'm a fan, at least as far as my initial reaction goes.


Fingers crossed Blood Elf is getting even more eye colors in 9.0. I would kill for red eyes like a Dark Ranger for my Hunter.