Highlights
- Reverted changes in WoW Classic due to player outcry show Blizzard’s commitment to community feedback.
- Recent updates to Classic Era and Hardcore servers sparked petitions to bring back original gameplay.
- Blizzard acknowledged lack of transparency in recent changes and pledged to involve the community in future decisions.
World of Warcraft has reverted a number of controversial changes it had previously implemented on its Classic servers. This was done in no small part due to the outcry of World of Warcraft fans who petitioned Blizzard to get rid of the changes in Classic.
Recently, World of Warcraft Classic underwent a sizable update in preparation for Season of Discovery Phase 4. A handful of significant changes were made to Classic Era and Hardcore as well – much to the dismay of the players, who immediately petitioned World of Warcraft to revert the servers to their “perfectly imperfect” forms, with no changes from the original game.
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It seems like World of Warcraft Classic heard its fanbase loud and clear. About a week after the World of Warcraft update that added them, Blizzard announced it was undoing most of these changes on Classic Era and Hardcore realms. In the announcement, WoW recognized that, while these quality-of-life improvements sought to fix long-standing faction imbalances and gaps, implementing them on the Classic Era servers was shortsighted, and that it should not have done so without discussing it with the community first.
WoW Classic Era Patch Reverts – July 17, 2024
- Alliance players no longer have access to the Might of Stormwind, a version of the Warchief’s Blessing world buff effect.
- Druids can no longer train and use polearms.
- The 6-hour wait between applications of Rallying Cry of the Dragonslayer and Warchief’s Blessing has been restored from the reduction to 1 minute.
That said, not all the recent changes have been reverted yet. World of Warcraft Classic also updated the old Guild UI with a more modern version recently – a change that still persists on the servers at the moment. Blizzard explained this was because the updated UI helps a great deal with managing an in-game community – especially in comparison with the clunky Classic version – but likewise recognizes changing it out of nowhere was not the right move. WoW Classic is working on finding another option for the Guild UI that both the team and the community can be happy with in the future.
The biggest problem with these changes was the lack of transparency. “This lapse in communication was not in line with our values, and we need to do better here,” WoW community manager Kaivax said. He confirmed the Classic WoW team didn’t have any plans to make other major changes to the retro servers soon, but that if it did, it would “endeavor to discuss any potential community-led desire for changes with the community, well in advance of actually implementing any updates.” Hopefully, this means World of Warcraft Classic fans won’t see ripples from Season of Discovery or similar changes ever again.
All in all, players were satisfied with World of Warcraft Classic’s response to the matter. While they would like the Guild UI to be reverted as well, they understand Blizzard’s desire to make a more seamless experience for fans all the same. At the end of the day, this interaction is proof that World of Warcraft players should make their voices known, as it is clear Blizzard wants to do right by the community.