The severe lack of using existing assets

[Therougetitan]

I think wow does a lot of things right. This is not one of them. There are a lot of existing unused assets in the game that can be used with minimal effort on the developer side of things without creating new content as incentives for players. Island expeditions somewhat solved this but they didn't go far enough and the drop rates at launch of BFA were so low no one wanted to do it but was eventually fixed.

I propose a simple solution. Add cosmetics to content that already exist either to current content or evergreen content. Here are examples:

• Torghast
• Timewalking badges OR drop in the raid versions
• Trial of Style
• Keystones

Armor sets:
Tier sets: From as far back as Tier 10 and possibly further back there are unused sets that already exist that could be used.
Armor pieces: Stuff like the Exile's Reach boots exist as items in the database aren't given. Just add them to a vendor.
Heritage sets: Mag'har have access to all their colors. Lightforged and Nightborne still do not. The colors exist but are simply not given.





Pets:
This one isn't as bad. They do add many recolors of pets. However there is an entirely unused pet moddle that hasn't been obtainable since 7.3. That's right since FOUR years ago!


Mounts:
There are tons of unused mounts. MoP gave many skins but also didn't give a ton of unused skins. Again, these all exist already so no art team is required. They just don't have a source. A list of these can be found here: https://www.warcraftmounts.com/unimplementedgallery.php

The Deathbringer's Flayedwing mount existed in beta for Shadowlands but they removed it for no reason alongside the Deathbringer title and there has been no reward for the world pvp meta achievement. Another notable example is the Stormcrow mount. This has been in the game in almost EIGHT years. The item exists as can be seen here: https://www.wowhead.com/item=104011/stormcrow

[shoc]

Datamining was a mistake because it inevitably leads to stupid useless threads like these

[loras]

Datamining was a mistake because it inevitably leads to stupid useless threads like these

There is nothing wrong with pointing out / complaining about wasting time and resources, no matter who does it.

[saintminya]

No need to be so rude. Blizzard really ought to utilise their frequently gorgeous assets to add more flavour to the world. Why not create a pool of nice structures and gives us true randomly generated mini-dungeons/RNG loot hallways.

Plus, like, you do realise that this site is predominantly centered on datamining. Go to the official forums if you don't like it lmao.

[starstationprofm]

Datamining was a mistake because it inevitably leads to stupid useless threads like these

It's not stupid if it makes sense. What logic is there in not giving out stuff like recolors to the players? It already exists, why waste it?

[Couchpotato2013]

It's not stupid if it makes sense. What logic is there in not giving out stuff like recolors to the players? It already exists, why waste it?

So they can sit on it for near to 10 years and bundle it in content like islands. Or save for something like an alt-time of old azeroth or w/e nonsense WoD had.

Lastly, as a real answer there are genuine models that they withhold, just so they can help retain the value/prestige of existing things. So a rough example, look at the brutosaur and urzul mounts. They have like 4+ skins for both. However to introduce them into the game would in blizz’s eyes (and to the invested aka elite population) devalue the argus mount and the longboi. So hence why they withhold them.

[starstationprofm]

So they can sit on it for near to 10 years and bundle it in content like islands. Or save for something like an alt-time of old azeroth or w/e nonsense WoD had.

Lastly, as a real answer there are genuine models that they withhold, just so they can help retain the value/prestige of existing things. So a rough example, look at the brutosaur and urzul mounts. They have like 4+ skins for both. However to introduce them into the game would in blizz’s eyes (and to the invested aka elite population) devalue the argus mount and the longboi. So hence why they withhold them.

I have a better idea. Use the assets now, and new assets later. This gear won't be exciting in 2030 anyway, it will look dated.

[Couchpotato2013]

I have a better idea. Use the assets now, and new assets later. This gear won't be exciting in 2030 anyway, it will look dated.

Yeah but you see that would open the situation with them having to create new things in the future because they burned all their “reserve fuel”. Plus they can always play on the drive to get such things by using nostalgia.

[saintminya]

Oh boo hoo, what a pity it would be for the devs to get off their asses for a change. Really though, they have an art team constantly conjuring new set pieces. I think the real de-valuing is on them when their assets end up getting used so sporadically. AKA Blizzard doesn't only disrepect us as players, but even the brave souls under their employ.

[Powerogue]

I feel like they already did this for a ton of assorted models with island expeditions.

And all I'm asking for for nightbornes is removal of the chin plate on the female transmog set, squinted eyes, and some transmogs of the civilian clothes we see in the city.

[Amnaught]

Datamining was a mistake because it inevitably leads to stupid useless threads like these

I think we'd still have the mount complaints without datamining. Look at the Netherdrake vendor, then look at the mount you get from Zandalari reputation, and think about how many different colors of that same mount are used for NPCs and flightpaths but are still unobtainable.... For no reason.

There are updated wolf, nightsaber, gryphon, and wyvern models ingame. But EK and Kalimdor flight masters still use the ones with like five polygons.

Head to Outland and check out the massive clunky 2006-model infernals right as you walk through the Dark Portal. You could say that's for nostalgia, but now we have BC Classic. So like, why are we still using the old models?

[Lucetia]

There is nothing wrong with pointing out / complaining about wasting time and resources, no matter who does it.

Well the time wasted on recolors is pretty minimal. The way they have it setup it likely only takes about a minute or two to do a recolor (based on their software from the past). So, yeah in this case the complaining isn't really warranted.

Especially when Blizzard decides to reuse assets/recolors and releases them then a good chunk of the community complains that Blizzard is lazy and wasting time by releasing an existing asset with a different color.

[aceperson]

blizzard is lazy, blind, and doesn't know how to run their games anymore... news at 11... i get the complaints about this kind of stuff but they can't even get main focus expansion features right anymore. unused models, armor, and npcs are the least of our concerns.

[Kaleredar]

I feel like they already did this for a ton of assorted models with island expeditions.

And all I'm asking for for nightbornes is removal of the chin plate on the female transmog set, squinted eyes, and some transmogs of the civilian clothes we see in the city.

The nightborne in the city aren't dressed up player models; they're modeled with those outfits on. They have a sort of variable selection of interchangable appearances that can be filtered between, but the things they're wearing aren't necessarily distinct "items" that could be slapped onto a player model. Almost all NPC races from MoP onward were made using this sort of set up. The player nightborne are basically a whole new distinct model from the NPC nightborne that can be dressed up in conventional nightborne wear.


As to the OP... if I had to guess why these assets go unused it's honestly probably because they... well, forget that they're there. Between the artist that made the asset originally and whoever implemented the system and whoever decided which skins to use and which skins not to use I'm doubtful that, internally, Blizzard keeps a very vigilant or holistic eye on those things. That same artist has newer assets to develop and that same designer has newer rewards to implement and chose the skins for, etc, etc.

I work in 3D art at a medium-sized company and I can tell you that even among what we do individual, especially granular, assets can get lost in the shuffle and duplicate work occasionally happens. I can also tell you that the amount of "take a break to go back and look through everything and catalog it" down time is... very small. When you're done with one asset... you're starting on your next asset within 15 minutes, not sitting around twiddling your thumbs looking for something to do. And every artist you take off to start cataloging things is one fewer artist you have working towards the deadline.

[VinceVega]

Datamining was a mistake because it inevitably leads to stupid useless threads like these

Is it though? Espacially with armor tints... i will NEVER understand why they don't put them in a a hard to get prestige kinda way. There are so many finished assets they never use. The heritage sets are the worst offenders.
Always annoying.

And datamining was never and will never be a mistake. You can just see if they can bring something to the table before you invest hundredsof hours into the game.

[Shaetha]

they removed it for no reason

Your ignorance of the reason doesn't mean there wasn't a reason. Don't state opinions as fact.

- - - Updated - - -

Is it though? Espacially with armor tints... i will NEVER understand why they don't put them in a a hard to get prestige kinda way. There are so many finished assets they never use. The heritage sets are the worst offenders.
Always annoying.

And datamining was never and will never be a mistake. You can just see if they can bring something to the table before you invest hundredsof hours into the game.

This is all well and good in a system with infinite memory and install size. We don't live in that world, so they can't just add everything.

Oh, and an example of datamining being a mistake is when people with no idea how software development works see the datamining and think asset creation is all there is to putting something in a game.

[Clozer]

They don't change enough things if they reuse. We fought the same boar like 150 times with a different texture on it, but it was always a boar doing the same boar attacks. Imagine they gave these boars special effects and attacks. They wouldn't feel like the same old shitty boar but completely different. This way they can save soooooo many resources.

Path of Exile does that to a great extent.. but when wow does it, it's literally just copy pasta - that's now how you are supposed to reuse old assets.

[Super Kami Dende]

If they use old assets the autists in the community screech about "OMG LAZY BLIZZARD REUSING THINGS!"
If they take time to make new assets People complain about "OMG wasting time on UNNEEDED THIGNS!"

damned if do, damned if don't.

[deenman]

They could introduce these unused variance with a dye system

[Syegfryed]

It is pretty shit when NPcs have so many cool items and mounts that you cannot obtain i must say.(also abilities, but that is another subject)

as a rpg, those npcs should drop the items for you to use, no question, pretty sure many people like when a boss have a cool weapon and you drop that, i think in Wod, we had many of those, we could drop Archimonde cloth, Gul'dan pauldron, Some boss weapons like Ju'beithos and blackhand, fuck man, that was awesome.

Those things are fun imo, they add a lot more meaning to farm items and cool cosmetics, a next level of engagement with the world too.

Also about mounts, is pretty shit how so many recolors are lost too, when they could put then to buy with gold, the netherdrake i think it was the best on that department. I'm still waiting an update version for the old manticores, like that alabaste, but colored.