In-game Player Housing and Last Names

With so many other big topics currently being discussed on the forums, namely the most recent PTR patch 3.0.2 build, WotLK Beta, and Blizzcon I didn’t expect to see this post from Nethaera. Though don’t get too excited, this brief post was intended more for role player appeasement than providing any real answers.

Blizzard has been talking about player housing and and last names for years now. With the expansion just a few weeks away it’s clearly not going to be a top priority for a while.

Beyond player housing, I’d really like to see some sort of player based shops introduced during WotLK. Many other MMOs have had features liked this that added great value to the economy and overall game play. Players could setup NPC characters to stand in their shop, perhaps selling item drops you found, profession crafted items, gathered items, special recipes, or even repair…who knows, the sky is the limit!

Adding shops and houses would be a welcome change and an exciting new feature to enjoy.

You can’t blame them for it being a bit of a surprise. Believe it or not, we can’t always anticipate the full reaction people might have to a feature we think will be cool to add. ;)

We’ve stated before that player housing is a consideration for some point in the future, but it would need to be thought out carefully and would want to maximize their usefulness. As always, suggestions are welcome in the Suggestion Forum.

Surnames are another thing we’ve said are a possibility at some point in time. Just keep in mind that with many things, there are often technical considerations that come into play as well as time tables that must be considered. We need to take a look at how much work it would take and how much time it would take and weigh that in with all of the other features that we want to add into the game or improve upon.

We’ve been working to add more touches into the interactivity of quests, the world, and atmosphere overall wherever we can. You’ll find more seating added in within various areas. You’ll find some larger more welcoming inns in some areas, or even just open spaces that allow for RPers to gather in.

In Dalaran, you’ll get to experience added touches such as a toy shop, the Barbershop, and pet store. There are more touches than that you will experience as you explore Northrend.

While you’re right in that we can’t do big GM run events without considerable resources, we have been continuing to push and add in as many interesting touches as we can to continue to bring the world alive.

Again, we’d ask that you post suggestions in the Suggestions Forum and please keep in mind that everything we do involves a lot of thought and planning so while it may be a great idea, it might not be something we can do right away due to other priorities. (source)