In recent weeks, World of Warcraft has started to turn over a new leaf in communicating with their players. The latest development in this regard has come in the creation of the World of Warcraft Community Council–a group of roughly 100 diverse players who will act as intermediaries between the development team and the community at large.
The purpose of the World of Warcraft Community Council is to elevate voices from the playerbase and invite them to provide nuanced and respectful feedback to the developers. Blizzard’s plan is to pull players from every aspect of the game–from hardcore raiders and World of Warcraft Classic enthusiasts to achievement hunters, transmog collectors, and role players–and have them act as the mouthpiece of the community so the development team can more easily communicate with their players.
The Community Council is currently accepting applications from any World of Warcraft players interested in taking part in the program. Those who are selected to join the Council serve for a one year term, after which the application process will repeat. Those chosen will be given special access to post in a new discussion forum, which will be available for the public to read. This forum will give the opportunity for Council members to share their unique perspectives and experiences, for Blizzard devs to respond and post updates and inquiries, and facilitate direct interaction between its members so more voices can be heard.
World of Warcraft has also stated that in the future, live chats between Blizzard developers and Community Council members could be held to provide a chance for active Q&As.
One of the key goals with this program is to encourage discussion with players from a wide variety of different playstyles. To help ensure this, part of the application process will involve sharing your areas of interest and expertise. Whether it’s cutting-edge raiding, playing alts, completing achievements, accessibility, or collecting transmog, we want to know your perspective and ensure you’re heard.
The World of Warcraft community has been receptive to this idea so far. The increased focus on heightened communication between the community and dev team is something players have wanted for a long time. Many are hopeful the Community Council could be indicative World of Warcraft is learning from games like Final Fantasy 14, who have forged a reputation for being sensitive to the feedback of its community.
Some players are skeptical of whether or not the Community Council will truly help World of Warcraft, however. Many are concerned casual players and quieter voices who might be able to provide important feedback to the development team may be bypassed in favor of forum big shots, streamers, and influencers. Others are disappointed it took 17 years for World of Warcraft to implement this idea when many other MMORPGs have done so for years, citing the bad press from the lawsuits Activision Blizzard has been wrestling with since July as the catalyst for the Council’s creation. Either way, the Community Council is coming soon, and until World of Warcraft selects its members and begins its discussions, one can only speculate on whether or not this will have a positive impact on the game, or allow Blizzard to repair the bad faith it has earned with its players over the years.
World of Warcraft: Shadowlands is available on PC.
Source: World of Warcraft Website