"Future WoW Expansion". They were always there, right in front of us.

[shise]

I was in Karazhan and this is probably old, but maybe many players didn't know it, so I would like to point out how we could already have some hints about Northend, Cataclysm and Pandaria by the time we were raiding there.

See how each circle shows each expansion since TBC.

http://i45.tinypic.com/pxmc.jpg


UPDATE: It looks like it could have been patch-updated. However, why would they keep the basic polygonal structure rather than simply change the entire globe? It takes about 5 minutes to open the file and update it, making it look more like a globe and less like a.. square.

This is the room where the globe stands.
http://i45.tinypic.com/2ns2d0l.png

UPDATE 2: A GM couldn't really tell me. Unfortunately I was afk just when he did answer so I can't know his personal opinion.



I'm interested because it could mean that we can find much more about the incoming expansions than we already might know (clues at least, and that's always fun for the lore lovers!).

[Deleted]

well Northrend was never really a mystery, it was pretty obvious we were heading there soon. and it was known there was a southern land mass on azeroth, but it wasn't known it was pandaria.

as for that globe, thats interesting how it even shows the effects of the cataclysm, thats a pretty neat little hint they left there. though if i remember rightly the globes in halls of lightning did not show the cataclym effects on Kalimdor, though they did show Pandaria. most people who saw that globe at the time probably thought it was just a bad drawing of kalimdor and not a hint.

---------- Post added 2012-12-13 at 11:37 PM ----------

wonder if there was any hints in Cata about MoP.

in MoP i think there have been a few hints towards a demon invasion, and blizzard themselves hinted towards a Bunring legion expac at blizzcon, so i think thats our next expac.


also, that globe, is there any evidence that it was always there and not a recent addition?

[GKLeatherCraft]

Also there are alot of places that have changed, and had things changed too, So it's very possible that globe itself could have been changed, unless anyone has any screenshots of it back in TBC, Not saying it isn't ofcourse, but you never know, as it does make sense they would update a few little bits like this

[shise]

The best part is how detailled it is. See how you can perfectly apreciate the Jade Forest, for one. I can't remember how the one in Ulduar looks exacly, might get to see it tomorrow.

I'm pretty sure we have tones of information about Sargeras the Titans, etc all over the game.

---------- Post added 2012-12-14 at 12:42 AM ----------

Also there are alot of places that have changed, and had things changed too, So it's very possible that globe itself could have been changed, unless anyone has any screenshots of it back in TBC, Not saying it isn't ofcourse, but you never know, as it does make sense they would update a few little bits like this

That was my first thought. But, on the other hand, Blizzard barely cares about updating such things... not that it's a bad thing, but they simply don't consider it. We have many other maps in the game which haven't been updated since vanilla, so why would they update this one, inside a room of Kara were we don't even need to get in?

I'd also like to know if someone knows if it's been updated or it's the original tho. It kinda fits the same textures as everything around it.

[Thulvaso]

There is also a large globe in the Alliance gunship that flys around Icecrown, it has Pandaria on it too.

[shise]

However, I retain my theroy where Pandaria was created over The Emeral Dream lands many of us have explored. That would also fit what they said about "MoP was considered to exist instead of TBC". And that's why it could have been there in the map. But that's all in my mind, don't mind it

[lockedout]

There is also a large globe in the Alliance gunship that flys around Icecrown, it has Pandaria on it too.

True but this is in Kara which was developed before TBC was released and from what I read was supposed to be a level 60 raid originally.

[Firecrest]

I don't think MoP was known when they created Kara. If nothing else, it's safe to say that they didn't know they would make MoP during the early stages of BC.

There's been much made about the quote stating that Pandas were in the running as the Aliance race for BC. Blizz would never have even considered that if they knew they'd be needing Pandas for a future expansion. It would not surprise me if they had Cata in the very early concept stages when they were fleshing out BC, but I doubt they went much further than that.

[Monteverdi]

Horde Insignia Azshara on that map is pretty obvious... we sure this was there pre-Cata?

[Lefrog]

Also there are alot of places that have changed, and had things changed too, So it's very possible that globe itself could have been changed, unless anyone has any screenshots of it back in TBC, Not saying it isn't ofcourse, but you never know, as it does make sense they would update a few little bits like this

Horde Insignia Azshara on that map is pretty obvious... we sure this was there pre-Cata?

This is what I think as well. Northrend sure, I can believe that...even a landmass in the south (not necessarily originally pandaria) because those kinds of things were probably on paper as a rough draft a long time ago. But I seriously doubt that back in vanilla (this is when they started working on the models for kara), the artists had any clue about what landmasses would be reshaped in Cata (even if they knew they wanted to do an xpac like that).

Saying Blizzard is unlikely to go back and change something a small as this make less sense than some high end developer making sure a globe in kara is the exact representation of the game 5-6 years later.

[Splatter]

True but this is in Kara which was developed before TBC was released and from what I read was supposed to be a level 60 raid originally.

If you look at the blizzcon panel Kara was slated as a dungeon for vanilla. MC and Ony were specifically listed as "raids". That said Panda's were considered as the ally race for BC before the space goats were ultimately picked so the idea of Pandaria existing as a place in wow has been around since vanilla.

[sir-connor]

Here's an image of that room from an old post here on mmo champ; http://img841.imageshack.us/img841/1781/schambersm.jpg

Looks to me like the globe has a different texture there. My guess is the model has been reused in a more recent dungeon (Perhaps the Scholo or Scarlet monestary revamps?) and they updated the texture to fit. They didn't go back to Khara just to change this globe.


Added:
Closer view from google images:

[lockedout]

I don't think MoP was known when they created Kara. If nothing else, it's safe to say that they didn't know they would make MoP during the early stages of BC.

But they said TBC was supposed to have pandas as a race. Wouldn't they have to be from Pandaria?

[Spl4sh3r]

Are we sure that those maps/globs weren't updated once those expansions were released?

[Knighthonor]

Whats also getting interesting is the new take Jaina is making with Dalaran joining Alliance.
Khadgar is also supporting her!!!

rumor is General Turalyon is returning as well next expansion. Could he be ALLIANCE FLAGGED?!!?

Man this is getting real!!

the 4th War!!!!!

---------- Post added 2012-12-14 at 12:06 AM ----------

But they said TBC was supposed to have pandas as a race. Wouldn't they have to be from Pandaria?

they lied.

[Tsuna]

To be fair, anyone that knows anything about wow lore could have accurately guessed all of the expansion locations and general storyline. I'm no lore buff but playing wc3 was enough to tell me we'd meet illidan, arthas, and giant pandas somewhere down the line in wow.

I did like the globe though, how cheeky it would be if they had it that way in the first use in vanilla. However, I'm inclined to believe it's just a generic model used many times in the game and it got a revamp sometime in MoP beta and all instances of the globe were just updated fairly recently. We just don't really pay attention to things like that.

[Deleted]

Wasnt Northrend mentioned in warcraft 3?

[Luuth]

There is probably some file in game called "Globe_Texture" or something like that that is used on all the globe models that are the same. They may have updated the texture for some globe in MoP or Cata. Since all the places that globe model appear in game would use the same texture it got updated in Kara as well.

[Deleted]

Are we sure that those maps/globs weren't updated once those expansions were released?

They were.

[Deleted]

Pause right as the globe hits the World of Warcraft logo, at the 3:01 mark.