By the way, contrast this (from August 2018) …
… with this interview with Steve Danuser, lead narrative designer, from March 2020:
https://www.windowscentral.com/world-warcraft-interview-building-story-shadowlands
Battle for Azeroth’s character arc with Sylvanas feels a tad familiar to how Garrosh Hellscream played out in previous expansions. How do you feel about accusations that Sylvanas is becoming a "Garrosh 2.0?"
One of the major themes in this expansion was expressed by Sylvanas in the opening words of the Battle for Azeroth trailer: “Ours is a cycle of hatred.” To demonstrate that there is a cycle, we created a story structure for Sylvanas that, on the surface, echoed many broad strokes of the road Garrosh took. A warchief promoted under questionable circumstances. A brutal act of aggression that instigated conflict. Distrust among the inner circle that led to an uprising. These parallels were intentional. But it’s within the nuance that we sought to show the story grow and change.
The Horde believed that, by putting the wise Vol’jin in place as warchief, their future was secure. But they hadn’t changed the underlying structures or practices that enabled Garrosh’s tyranny in the first place. The untimely passing of Vol’jin and a bit of manipulation in the aftermath of his death were all it took for the pattern to begin repeating.
Similarly, the Alliance found itself with a new leader after King Varian’s fall on the Broken Shore, but Anduin was so focused on living up to his father’s legacy that it blinded him to certain truths. Those blind spots proved costly and will be something he has to come to terms with going forward.
Once the plot was put into motion, the differences in the stories of Garrosh and Sylvanas began taking shape. The theme of change was brought home by Saurfang’s words in the cinematic that preceded the mak’gora: “Breaking the cycle.” Horde players were given the opportunity to see both sides of the conflict and decide which they wanted to follow. This time, the army that gathered at the gates of Orgrimmar didn’t raid the city; they caught a glimpse of what Sylvanas had been working toward the whole time.
So, is this their official explanation for how BfA is different from MoP? Because I, for one, still feel lied to about that particular point.
Also, Danuser seems to think that the theme of Anduin living up to Varian’s legacy actually happened in BfA, but I mained Alliance and I didn’t see it. 