Shadowlands Developer Update

[LeChomps-1451706 (LeChomps)]

@Kaivax

While we hope many players will be pleased at the increased accessibility and freedom for experimentation these changes will permit, we know that you might be wondering why we didn’t make adjustments like these sooner. After all, a large portion of the community has been vocal about wanting to see changes along these lines since mid-2020, when Shadowlands was still in Beta.

When it comes to the limitations on Covenant-switching, millions of players experienced Shadowlands for the first time through the lens of their Covenant of choice, and that would have not been possible had the choice carried less weight from the outset. Nevertheless, after the conclusion of the Chains of Domination campaign, the Covenants are united against the Jailer, and revisiting player feedback in that context has led us to re-evaluate our approach. In terms of the day-to-day player experience, the advantages of a rigid division between Covenants have diminished since Shadowlands launched, while the downsides (feeling disadvantaged in certain types of content, or having to choose between mechanical advantages and aesthetics) have only grown. That balance of factors no longer justifies the original limitations on Covenant-switching, so in 9.1.5 we’re looking to provide a way to circumvent them.

–The World of Warcraft Team

I don’t know at this point if you guys really believe this or you’re just forced into acting this way because you can’t publicly be like “haha yeah you guys were right sorry about that” but just in case its the former just here to let you know i have legitimately NEVER appreciated the game more because it made me choose my covenant or limited my conduit changing abilities.

I’d guess for most players whatever positive new player or immersion rp experience that you were trying to create with these restrictions had 0 positive impact on their shadowlands experience and saying you’re changing it because the benefits have dulled makes me actually feel like a company is gas lighting thier community.

Thanks I guess but its like you guys are saying “This vase shouldn’t be balanced on a large rubber ball, it should be on a sturdy table! Let’s put it in its proper place now that there is no longer any benefit to balancing it on a yoga ball” but the vase has already shattered on the ground.