World of Warcraft recently shared a live chat interview that answered some of the community’s pressing questions about the Trading Post. The video gave players a good idea of what to expect from the new World of Warcraft feature in the future.
The live chat was held between World of Warcraft developers Jeremy Feasel, Jennifer Hauer, Crystal Tam, Tyler Neuhaus, Kenny McBride, and Andrew Bernard and several representatives of the WoW Community Council. The hour-long video explained the design process behind the making of the new World of Warcraft feature while addressing some concerns that have come up about it.
The major point of the Trading Post was to showcase desirable items without being tied to the current expansion’s theme, all while offering a variety of activities to obtain them. Exciting items like the Fury of the Firelord flail alongside mundane-style adventuring gear like the Squire’s Warhammer in the Trading Post allow World of Warcraft to flex its stellar art team. The developers brought up recolors of popular mounts like the Caravan Brutosaur as potential items players could see in the future.
The Trading Post won’t be adding items that undermine player effort, however. Gladiator rewards, Ahead of the Curve mounts, and other rare collectibles will not find their way into the Trading Post, though limited-time items not related to player skill, such as old World of Warcraft Recruit-a-Friend rewards, could. Likewise, character customizations will probably not be added, as the team decided these options should be available to all players at baseline.
One of the most important takeaways from this live chat was World of Warcraft’s emphasis on keeping the Trading Post a fun, stress-free activity. Items that cycle out of the Trading Post each month won’t be gone forever–WoW is working on a system to ensure players can eventually get items they miss out on.
World of Warcraft is also making sure highly-desired items, such as the color-changing Ash’adar mount, are given as free rewards, so player's don't feel compelled to buy them. Depending on player feedback, World of Warcraft may add other features to the Trading Post as well, such as early catalogs for items coming in future month rotations so WoW players can plan and save Trader’s Tender accordingly.
Players are relieved to see World of Warcraft giving the Trading Post so much attention. While it has been well-received so far, the new feature is far from perfect yet. Hopefully, with more time and player feedback, World of Warcraft’s Trading Post can eventually reach its full potential.
World of Warcraft is available now for PC.