Over the last month or so,World of Warcrafthas been quietly changing a number of old pieces of content, from art assets and NPC names to quests and achievements. Today, the developers released a statement explaining the intentions behind the updates and spoke of plans for the future.
The statement, posted on the officialWorld of Warcraftwebsite, explained the updates as a “relatively small part of a comprehensive, company-wide effort to improve theWoWteam and Blizzard as a whole,” and confirmed the developers themselves put a lot of care into doing so. According to the statement, the changes were the result of feedback gathered both from players and from internal channels, which allowed the company to identify content that was inconsistent with the image it wished to present for the game and company.
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World of Warcraft, while tackling serious subject matter, has always included humor and innuendo, but with this statement, it seemsBlizzard wants to update its comedyfor a new era. “We want our jokes to be inclusive and not punch down.” The statement was well-written, and seemed to come from a place of caring and compassion for both players and developers. The statement also outlined this was far from the end of these changes, with the hope it would create a more inclusive and respectful game where everyone could feel welcome and comfortable.
The statement concluded with a number of specific examples of changes Blizzard is planning for both liveWorld of Warcraftas well as the Classic servers. Blizzard ensured players it does not plan on removing options or cosmetics, but rather plan on adding more options for players to represent themselves through their characters.
One specific example was the inclusion of the male-presenting incubus demon for warlock characters to summon as an alternative option to the female-presenting succubus–a change that has been requested by players since the game’s launch way back in 2004. This development is also being done by a different group from those working on new content and features, so it will be rolled outparallel to World of Warcraft’s normal content.
This statement is a refreshing change of pace forWorld of Warcraft. The explanation was timely and empathic, and it is obvious that in spite of the recent lawsuits and controversy the company has been facing, there are manyBlizzard developers who care to make a changefor the better. This communication can and should become a precedent for the game moving forward.
But this cannot be an excuse for Blizzard to slow down.World of Warcrafthas created a bad reputation for itself even before thelawsuits against Blizzard began to roll in. However, this is a strong first step in the right direction, and if the company continues to show it is listening, growing, and trying to do better, there might be hope for the game yet.
