Ever wondered what happens when you lock a version of World of Warcraft at level 60 forever? That's exactly what Blizzard is doing with WoW Eternal, and the dev team just dropped some big news in a written interview.
Executive producer Holly Longdale and associate production director Clayton Stone sat down to talk about the game's beta, player feedback, and a few surprises. First up: that GDKP ban everyone's been arguing about? It only applies to North America and Europe. Other regions can still run GDKP, same as the Season of Discovery and this year's anniversary servers. So if you're outside NA and EU, your gold runs are safe.
The team also confirmed they're working on an SD-resolution model for the new Ascended Elf race, set to arrive after launch. Apparently some players using standard-definition settings felt the HD elf model looked out of place next to the classic environment. Blizzard heard that feedback loud and clear, and now a lower-res version is in development.
Beta has been a massive experiment for the no-server architecture, and it's working better than expected. Stone said players keep running into the same faces out in the world, just like the old days when servers held only 2,000 to 3,000 people. That sense of community was one of the team's main goals, and it seems to be paying off. The team also learned a lot about area share targets, which cap how many players fit in a zone before the UI prompts you to refresh or move on.
On the dungeon XP nerf that's been frustrating some players, Stone explained the philosophy: the journey matters more than the destination. The original WoW devs probably never intended for people to grind 1 to 60 entirely inside dungeons, so Eternal is trying to find a better balance. Expect more tuning in future beta phases, and a new podcast episode about dungeons dropping this week.
Cross-region play won't be available at launch, though the team says it's something they'll keep evaluating. AI real-time translation? Stone called it a cool idea but said there's nothing to share yet. Meanwhile, the economy is getting a boost, with more gold available than in 2004-2005, and items like Black Lotus getting price caps through vendor sales.
Endgame content will include 10- and 20-player raids going forward, with 40-player raids designed to be easy to jump into, like Onyxia's Lair. Longdale also noted this was the biggest beta ever, with some players saying they're logging in to play the game their parents played. That's a pretty wild thought, right?
What do you think about the GDKP ban staying region-specific? Will you be rolling an Ascended Elf when Eternal launches?
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