Blizzard Working on World of Warcraft: Shadowlands Expansion Despite Working from Home
Blizzard developers are working from home but are still committed to completing the next expansion of World of Warcraft by the end of this year. The developers gave fans an update on the upcoming expansion in a recent developer update on April 6.
New Covenant Abilities Coming to World of Warcraft: Shadowlands
One of the exciting changes in the upcoming expansion is the addition of Covenant abilities. These abilities come from four ruling powers controlling the Shadowlands, each of which needs assistance from the heroes of Azeroth. By completing a long quest-chain, players can gain access to these Covenant abilities and the rewards and blessings they offer.
Concerns about the Covenant System
While the Covenant system presents new abilities for players, it may also pose a problem. Once players choose a Covenant, they cannot switch to another. This permanence could cause issues if certain Covenant abilities are nerfed or buffed, leaving players who chose other abilities feeling left out. Many players have expressed their dissatisfaction with this system and have recommended alternative solutions to Blizzard before the changes are released on live servers.
History Repeating Itself
Blizzard has a history of promising more than it can deliver due to time constraints. The rushed release of the Battle for Azeroth expansion resulted in scrapped features and disappointments. With the current situation of quarantine, players are concerned that Shadowlands may be released in an unpolished state like BFA.
Potential Solutions to the Covenant System
Players have suggested that Covenant abilities should be included as an additional talent row that can be unlocked through a quest chain, allowing players to freely change their abilities based on their needs. The more freedom players have, the more engaged they will be in the game. Ultimately, Blizzard will decide on the action to take based on player feedback.
The World of Warcraft: Shadowlands alpha release has been delayed due to the COVID-19 pandemic, as the development team transitions to a work-from-home setup. The team will send out alpha invites later this month when they have a more refined version of the game.