Blizzard dishes out the details on World of Warcraft's player housing

When Blizzard confirmed that World of Warcraft will be getting housing back in November 2024, the community went a tad feral upon discovering a very-long requested feature is coming to the game. While we don't yet know when exactly housing will debut in the MMORPG, Blizzard has shared a ton of details about how it will work.

At the forefront is the massively customisable spaces that will be on offer that Blizzard promises will "allow players to build a house that shows off their own personal tastes or their Warband's, acts as a desired backdrop for roleplaying, or just allows players to create something in a flight of fancy."

It'll use a 3D toolset that is designed to be easy to understand and master but that is "powerful enough that players can surprise us with their creations or drill down to get the tiniest details just right."

The housing will enable other players to interact with them, it's regarded as an evergreen addition that has its own roadmap and that spans many patches and expansions into the future, and Blizzard goes as far to state "this is a long-term commitment for us as developers and offers players rewards all along the way."

Otherwise, housing will be based in specific zones around Azeroth, meaning there will be places you can and cannot build a home. The reason for this is that Blizzard would "much rather do a great job with a small number of zones than do a passable job on a large number". This will mean that the Alliance members will be able to construct homes inspired by Elwynn Forest with "touches of Westfall and Duskwood" while Horde members instead can create housing that is "inspired by Durotar, its coastline, and Azshara." The locations for these two zones is not mentioned, but Blizzard does affirm that more zones will be added down the line.

On top of housing being a feature for all players, regardless of how invested they are in World of Warcraft, as it will have "no exorbitant requirements or high purchase costs, no lotteries, and no onerous upkeep," Blizzard does note that there will be neighbourhoods, with each set of housing plots arranged into around 50 homes, meaning you will get to know the folk that you share a portion of the world with much better.

In a separate blog post, executive producer and World of Warcraft vice-president Holly Longdale stated: "Housing is more than a feature to us. No matter what we create, it's the community that will help to define how Housing gives everyone a place in Azeroth to truly make their own."

Speaking further about WoW, Longdale noted that work is still progressing on the WoW: Classic Mists of Pandaria expansion and that some of the changes for the future of the MMO will include adjusting Midnight and The Last Titan, and also the UI/UX, the social features, and the onboarding and new player experience.

What do you think about the direction that World of Warcraft is heading?