The mob can put away their pitchforks and torches because Blizzard will in the future allow players to take to the skies on their mounts in World of Warcraft’s Draenor. Why was it restricted airspace anyway?
The studio says it was a design decision for the ”best moment-to-moment gameplay” with the thrill of discovery ‘only possible by ground’. They also ”recognize that breaking free” is just as fun and exciting.
What exactly they plan to do isn’t entirely revealed but something is coming ‘in the near future’ that will allow players to use their hard-earned flying mounts in Draenor, but ”in a way that doesn’t compromise the excitement of ground-based exploration.”
They’re introducing a meta-achievement called Draenor Pathfinder in the Public Test Realm, which is earned through exploration, collecting 100 treasures and unlocking Draenor Loremaster and Securing Draenor achievements, as well as raising Tanaan Jungle reputations to Revered. Do all that and you’ll earn a rylak mount: the Soaring Skyterror.
”We believe this strikes the right balance between ensuring ground-based content lives up to its full potential, while providing players who’ve already fully experienced Draenor’s outdoor world extra freedom to “break the rules.” This also provides a general blueprint going forward for content to come.”
“Players will explore new and undiscovered lands from the ground, and then once they’ve fully mastered those environments—a notion that continues to evolve with each new expansion—they can take to the skies and experience the world from a new vantage point.”
The mob seems to have scored a double victory over Draenor’s flight ban as Blizzard will now use this as a ‘blueprint’ going forward for future content. Flying mounts were a big impact on World of Warcraft’s mobility, and losing that new found freedom in expansions is a bitter pill.
Check out the Dev Watercooler – Flying in Draenor blog on Battle.net for more.
