Datamined Player Choice in Patch 8.1.5

Do you have something to report, $n?



Option 1: Baine Bloodhoof has requested that I help him with a secret task.

"So Bloodhoof wishes to act in shadow? We must know what he is planning.

Go along with his little task, $n. You are under my protection, so do not worry if you need to get your hands dirty to keep up the ruse.

Just do whatever he asks of you and return to me with your findings."



Option 2: Hiding this information will surely draw Sylvanas' ire. Are you sure you want to keep this from Nathanos?

Nevermind. <Don't report Baine's request.>

Option 1: The darkness within you swells. I warn you, this will be very painful.

Now, stand very still. That's it. Let me pull N'zoth's defilement from you.



Option 2: Are you sure you wish to cleanse the Gift of N'zoth? You will not be able to undo this decision.

Therazane, please. I didn't think it'd be tha big of a problem.

Correct. You didn't think. And now you shall answer for your crimes.

And you, $r. The audacity of you surface dwellers! Thinking you can just come here and take our secrets?!



I'd like to offer you a choice, fleshing.

You may either choose to free your ally, the one who betrayed his people by sharing our coveted knowledge with you and faces a punishment of death...

So, which will it be, fleshling? Make your choice.



Choice 1:

Typical surface dweller. Only thinking of yourself and how to further your own power.

Very well, the anvil is yours. And Ormhun shall face his punishment elsewhere.



Choice 2:

I had a feeling their may be a shred of virtue in you, surface dweller.

You're free to go, Ormhun. But do not think you will go unpunished. We shall discuss the details of that later.

As for you, $r. You have proven to value life over possessions, and I shall reward that honor. You may take the anvil as well.

Player Choice in Battle for Azeroth

In the Darkshore questline, players have a choice of killing Sira Moonwarden, a character we previously collaborated with in Legion as the Wardens quartermaster, or hesitating which forces Nathanos do the dirty deed.

In the Saurfang questline, players choose between siding with Saurfang or Sylvanas, when urged by Zekhan to abandon Sylvanas' mission and instead defend Saurfang.

Blizzard on Player Choice

"We have quest lines going in for Tides of Vengeance which we're really excited about, and those will actually afford players a choice whether to betray Sylvanas or not.



"Beyond that," he added, "once you play a choice like that, you have to follow it through, so in subsequent quests that come out, you're going to be on the side you pick, and we'll see what comes of that, if you're right or wrong."

If we had infinite time to show this world and how people react to it, you would see a lot of different perspectives--like someone on the street about Sylvanas. The average person who is hanging out in Orgrimmar or Thunder Bluff hears news second-hand. They might have a completely different perspective on stuff, as with today's news.



It's easy to fall into the perspective that everyone has seen everything. Dark God Titans, battles fought between Dark Elemental Lords...huge things. The average person who lives has only heard tales of that, maybe they're almost mythical.



There are different perspectives on the Horde that we knew that players felt as well. This wasn't a matter of us saying "we're going to fundamentally change the way of how questing in WoW works with different paths"...we decided that in this specific case we thought it was a good way to enrich the story by letting players pick who they side with (Sylvanas or Saurfang).



We can give a crystallized moment (in the quest) for that choice to happen. So once that choice happens, how do we pay off those paths moving forward? They must be meaningful. The last thing we want is a choice that doesn't actually have any ramifications down the line. While you get that initial reaction based on your choice, we have thought about where those paths go, and we have some stuff in store, that will make it feel like "I saw this through, and that choice mattered to me, and gave me a little something for my character."



Like cinematics, the core importance is to use it when it's most effective and appropriate. It's a tool in our toolkit. Choice is a toolkit. When it absolutely demands it, we'd like to be able to use it, if it facilitates a richer story.



Where Could Player Choice Go? (Opinion)

The Light has struck a bargain with the enemy of all.

Six seats at the high table. Six mouths that hunger. One will consume all others.