What really matters for me in a classic experience is having a living, breathing world, without a ton of portals, flying mounts and all the immersion-breaking gatcha stuff. However, the character models haven’t aged that well and are quite comical if I’m completely honest. Is it a possibility to have some of the updated models on Classic Anniversary, even if just as a toggle? I think more realistic models would make for a more immersive experience.
Edit: And the UI. I don’t think any value of the classic experience is lost by having HD icons and more readable quest dialogs. Right now everything just feels stretched out and low-res.
I wouldn’t be against updated models and animation - but only as a toggle. The updated models, whilst higher poly etc, feel a bit off somehow to me, a bit too cartoony, even by Warcraft standards. Also, the updated male Tauren animations are far too bouncy.
I agree that the update Taurens could use a re-work to make them less… cute and more beastly. But the Night Elf models for example are on spot. I feel like in the case of Night Elves they are even more spot on to what I imagine them than the vanilla ones. For other races it doesn’t matter that much since they’re not that terrible either way (e.g., blood elves).
What I liked about the new models was that you could have both hunched and straight backed Orcs! In WC2 and, IIRC, WC3 they were not hunched. That been said, I’d have loved Night Elves to have a more buff model option, kind of like the “dad bod” Druids of the Claw in WC3, as well as a more broad-shouldered, swimmer body style model for the females.
Curiously, I don’t mind the old models. Maybe upscale them, like with WC3 Reforged v2.
UI is funny, in particular because Blizzard makes weird choices (like, anything recommended is instant taboo). I don’t mind the original UI mostly, but it felt a little off so I decided to try an overhaul add-on on one character and after a week I changed entirely. I’m mostly happy with icons, too. Guess I’m used to it.
I like the old UI scale, much better for the eyes. Web designers learned a lot about clarity, readability, clutter, layout over the years. Most WoW players play an overloaded, shrunk UI. Like old Windows was designed with 8pt fonts for 640x480 and then people still use 8pt with 1920x1080.
These forums are 16pt and feel HUGE after playing retail. The default scale in retail is like 65%, whenever I just tick UI scale it enlarges (and doesn’t fit). I played remix at about 90%.
I haven’t touched retail in a decade by now, so all I can judge is the modern guild UI they tried to shove down our throats. And… yeah, that sucked major Ds, so how about we stick to the character models, if all UI “improvements” are on that level then miss me with that crap.
On server side, the only calculation made are they type of X,Y,Z position, %hit, %crit, roll for damage etc… It’s just a stream of numerical data.
All the visual rendering is done client side. It is perfectly doable to have 2 client, one with low polygone count rendering, the other with updating model exchanging the same data with the server.
Especially since classic is running on Legion client which had at the time update model.
The two games use the same assets, so that part is okay.
There are two challenges:
Upscaling: Every old model should have a respective, by all means identical new model, so that every classic character will be visible to others however its player designed it. This is relatively straightforward, later points
Downscaling: Obvious part aside, only the old choices would be available even when using the new models.
Additional clumsy:
Beside the character models, gear has multiple versions. Cataclysm added fancier robes but there was a second round I think: old ones are paper thin but eventually some of them have become actual fabric. (For that reason, I adored Skyrim.)
Pets are also an issue. My Timber Wolf is different from yours. Better, you may have seen it as new but when I finish taming, it turns old.
Anyway, my only issue with the new models is running animation being different and a bit less smooth (rabbit-like). Beside old game vibes.
I don’t know about the guild UI in particular, but I am mainly talking about eye-candy and accessibility. Everything is smoother, higher definition and easier to read on retail, objectively. Even if they’re to keep the UI layout the same, it undoubtedly needs a facelift.
A bit hard to explain and I’m sure it’s a big range.
It’s not about graphics but physics.
I recall retail night elf character running being a bit jumpy. I cannot really explain. It’s kind of similar to how classic undead female runs. Float horizontally, then fall quickly, bounce back quickly, repeat.
I didn’t compare it to recordings of long distance and sprint runners, although there must be stylistic differences in how horizontal you are running - I have three styles myself, the sprint is extremely horizontal with my legs propelling, then there is the energic where I move up-down a lot, and the conserving in which I put extra emphasis on being completely horizontal again, to conserve hip, knees and ankles.
Anyway, I’m sure Blizzard did the science. It’s often about the change. Maybe the new ones are better but I’m used to the older ones.
I know graphics are a subjective topic, but you cannot possibly, in good faith, tell me that the original Sylvannas looks better than the new one, unless blinded by nostalgia. Classic dwarf models (and some Night Elf male models) are stuff nightmares are made of.
Some of the new models could use some work (as I mentioned taurens before), but most of them, by and large, look better in retail.
Bottom line is, I do think some graphics are timeless, like pixel-graphics and those isometric from back in the day… 3D never aged well. Not all that’s new is bad, not all that’s old is good.
I prefer the old ones. Yes they look old but still looking better than the new ones and the animations are waaaay surprior.
Every male character walks goofy with new model.
If they let the player decide which model he wants to use, sure but being forced to play the new models in classic would make me completely stop playing it.
Yeah, it would be ideal for the player to have the choice, if possible from a technological point of view. Otherwise, there’s still classic vanilla for the people who really want it. I do believe anniversary is not intended to completely give the vanilla experience.
they look old but still looking better than the new ones
I don’t think so. Maybe the animations, although they never bothered me on retail.
