In the meantime, even the “new” character models in World of Warcraft are quite old. Is it time for another graphical overhaul?
World of Warcraft has evolved significantly over the past 20 years. The graphics have been improved in many areas, and when you look at the creature models from 20 years ago and compare them to a modern Xal’atath, the differences are obvious.
The characters of the players have also undergone a fundamental overhaul at one point. However, this overhaul was over 10 years ago. Thus, veterans of the first hour have been using the “new” models for longer than the old ones. Is it time for another revision?
Here is the status of the models: The old models were updated for the first time over 10 years ago. At that time, “Mists of Pandaria” had just ended, and “Warlords of Draenor” was around the corner. Most races received their overhaul at launch, but Blood Elves and Draenei came along later.
The overhaul took Blizzard a lot of time. While the vast majority of races received their new models in Warlords of Draenor, Goblins and Worgen were the last races to get their upgrade in 2019.
Only the Pandaren still have their original models, but they were only introduced with Mists of Pandaria. This currently makes Pandaren the oldest character models, something that is often apparent.
What else has Blizzard done? In recent years, most races at least have had some new customization options. This ranged from new skin colors to hairstyles, as well as specific details like the tail length of Draenei. Some new species – such as the Mechagnomes or Zandalari Trolls – expanded the possibilities of existing races with interesting alternatives.
What the community criticizes: If you hang out in the community forums or the WoW subreddit, the character models are occasionally discussed. Some players have still not gotten used to the “new” models even after almost 11 years, find the animations still inappropriate, or details lacking. In a recent Reddit post, the community discusses what currently bothers them about the models:
- “I think the biggest problem is the textures for hair and beards, which look outdated. They should get an update, and there should be many more options.” – TombOfAncientKings
- “I believe character animations are particularly important right now. The difference in visual feedback between a Pandaren and a Human or Tauren is just crazy.” – Avistje
- “First, we need to make long hair possible with hats. There are so many hats I can’t use because my character ends up bald.” – Shalelor
However, many believe that the character models in modern WoW are still sufficient and do not need an overhaul in the next few years. What do you think?
Some are also currently discussing entirely different topics: Like healers, who are having a particularly tough time.
