Though, I do think it has less to do with being fair or not and more to do with artistic message. I think it can be hard to step out side of seeing the situation only in terms of what you (not you you. You as in everyone) wants.
For some people more customization is always a good thing. Options are good. For others, customizations are good, but customization that doesn’t re-enforce the “brand” of each race take away from that race’s overall look.
I’m somewhere in the middle. Customization for the most part is a good thing and I’m on board. However, there are limits that I have where I think we can go too far. (i.e. Void Elf Pallys, nameplate options, and racial ability modifications)
Though I will say I’m way more interesting in the why rather than the what at this point. I feel like I’ve hashed out the what with people like yourself quite a bit now and we get along pretty well. Why people want or don’t want changes and what that means to the game. That’s interesting.
Q: Were the Zandalari the most challenging because it doesn’t use another model like the other 5 allied races?
A: Most difficult because it’s a unique rig. It’s a modified Troll rig (straight, instead of hunch). Required a little more time on the touch ups. Same amount of time spent on them for customization options than the other allied races.
Lost Codex Interview, Blizzcon 2017 with Alex Afrasiabi and Shani Edwards
It’s not for me to decide but it’s not for you to decide either
I know it’s not for me to decide. But if you re-read what you quoted, all I did was say I think Void Elves do need traditional hair colors… IF… if Blizzard intends for us to have our Alliance High Elf fantasy via Void Elves.
That’s not me deciding. That’s me pointing out that… IF… if it’s Blizzard’s intention for Alliance players to have the High Elf fantasy, and it does seem that this is the case due to their own interview calling these options for Void Elves “High Elf Customization”, then I think Void Elves do need some traditional hair colors to fulfill that fantasy.
and frankly people like you are why people don’t like the High Elfer crowd so.
People like me? What exactly did I do that was so horrible?
As I said, I’m not trying to be snarky here. I’m trying to illustrate the point that, I don’t feel that it’s fair to hold what options Void Elves should or should not get, hostage based on what options Bloods Elves already have or are getting in Shadowlands.
I mean, Blood Elves are getting a jet black hair color option and yet your post that I replied to basically says Void Elves “don’t need” black hair because Blood Elves already have it.
Void Elves are Void Elves and they are a flavor of High Elves but they aren’t High Elves, so no you shouldn’t get everything Blood Elves and High Elves have or got because that doesn’t entitle you to it, it’s bad enough Void Elves are getting our skintones and we are getting zilch in return for it.
See some people want more customization and some people think that even the customization we’re getting is too much.
I don’t think either opinion is wrong, but it does shine a light on the fact that Blizzard actually has a pretty tough decision to make. Kinda shows why they’ve always trying to ride the middle of the issue all these years.
The issue I have with this subject is Blood Elves and Void Elves are different, I support Void Elves getting void or more void like options but wanting to take and take and take our options tends to get on my nerves because they aren’t Blood Elves they are Void Elves and the difference is exactly that.
Void Elves are Void Elves and they are a flavor of High Elves but they aren’t High Elves
Uh… wut?
so no you shouldn’t get everything Blood Elves and High Elves have or got because that doesn’t entitle you to it
I’m not asking for that. In fact, I even said that’s NOT what I want. Here look again:
That’s not saying I think Void Elves should just get all the Blood Elf hair colors and styles. I am on record as saying that’s precisely not what I want. But saying that Void Elves can never have any shade of blonde, even if its different from any of the shades of blonde Blood Elves have, is hardly fair.
I’m personally in the camp of asking Blizzard to share the Kul Tiran hair textures and a few Human hairstyles with Void Elves to provide a few traditional hair colors and styles without copying anything more from Blood Elves. This preserves distinction and the hair colors Void Elves would get in this way would be different shades from what Blood Elves have.
Yes here we are… Blizzard copied Blood Elf skin tones to Void Elves. It’s unfortunate that this is the route they went with but its what we have to deal with.
That’s why I’ve been vocal about asking for the Kul Tiran hair textures and Human hairstyles shared with Void Elves, so Blizzard sees there’s an option regarding hair that isn’t just copy/pasting all the Blood Elves hair styles and colors to Void Elves. I don’t want that.
Unfortunately, there’s a fair chance that’s precisely what’s going to happen. I think it’s safe to say that we’d both be happier if a copy/paste of Blood Elf hairstyles and colors didn’t happen. That’s why I’ve been pushing an alternative that avoids that.
It gets more nonsensical by the minute, literally.
I’d cut the crap and just do a partial to full swap of hair assets between Blood Elves and Void Elves. Hairstyles definitely as some of the Void Elf styles would look stunning on the Blood Elves and the reverse is most certainly true.
Colors are somewhat more iffy to me, but I’m past trying not to step on anyone’s toes, especially when I myself play a Blood Elf, so I have interests on both ends. At the least give the Void Elves the Blondes, Blacks, Browns, and the Death Knight colors. Especially the Death Knight colors as they fit the Void Elf fantasy fairly well as the High Elf Death Knight theme as well, matching the skins.
The whole reason that even happened is Alliance players and pro High Elfers cried and cried and cried because they didn’t like Void Elves being Void Elves, it has nothing to do with what Blizzard did except trying to give them something and even with that they are still here crying and crying and crying.
While that’s not the outcome I desire, if it does come down to that, I hope they at least give tit for tat and provide all the Void Elf styles (with tentacles remove where applicable) to Blood Elves along with at least some of their unique hair colors (the blueish greys, the light purple and the wine red are all unique and flattering to Blood Elf skin tones and even the blue-greens don’t look bad).
Also, regardless of the issue of hair, I would like Blood Elves to get Void Elf female face #5 which is the only Void Elf female face that isn’t a duplicate of a Blood Elf female face.
I don’t know why Blizzard felt the need to make the Void Elf female face #5 different from the Blood Elf female face #5, but they did and it’s unique. But with the new skin tones, Void Elves will have both their unique face # 5 and the Blood Elf female face #5 (#13 for Void Elves) and that’s not fair IMO. Since Void Elf females are getting the unique Blood Elf female face #5, then I feel that Blood Elf females should get the unique Void Elf female face #5 in turn.
I think the issue really does just boil down to asset usage. The devs decided they wanted to give more “normal” looks to void elves. Which to a point, I’m okay with. I want a fair skinned elf with EE and void tats/hair. That would be awesome.
But they did it by just “borrowing” all the assets from the belf models. Makes sense, it’s probably less work.
But, in light of belf (from what I heard) aren’t getting all that thrilling new customization options themselves, I can understand why people who are Belf fans might feel this kind of erases the visual uniqueness of their favorite race.
And we’re all passionate about the things we love/don’t love in this game.
I’d definitely be down for all of the above, the Blood Elves should definitely get an ample amount in return. They should also still be getting the Undead tones everyone has been asking for to make up for having every single one of their skin tones ported over and to give them something unique in return.
Not on the Alliance they didn’t. And You have to admit, Blizzard hasn’t exactly made efforts to have the Alliance High Elf NPC’s withdraw and be forgotten. In fact quite the opposite over the years.
What Blizzard should have done in TBC is replace the Alliance High Elf NPC’s with Humans or Draenei. And in WotLK the Silver Covenant should have been Night Elves & Dwarves (that Blood Elves fight in their starting areas).
But that’s not what Blizzard did. Instead we got Alliance High Elves in Allerian Stronghold in TBC, the Silver Covenant led by Vereesa Windrunner in WotLK, who also make a come back in MoP, and Legion. And that’s part of the reason why the request has continued to live on and led us to where we are.
And they don’t need to, you got Void Elves not Blood Elves or High Elves, that’s pretty much it for me and having a few NPC’s here and there does not make me think it allows you the right to steal everything from our race.
Yea Blood Elves kinda got meh offerings for options. Especially the males. The bulk of what Blood Elves got were eye color options and jewelry that only females can use.
The gals got 3 hair styles, 3 hair colors, and a bunch of jewelry options. The guys got 3 hair styles, 3 hair colors, and I think 3 beard options. And they didn’t even separate the beard and mustaches.
When stacked up against what Humans and Night Elves got, it’s no wonder they feel slighted, especially after sharing their entire array of skin tones with Void Elves. It’s completely understandable that they don’t want to share anything else after that.
