Brack clarifies graphical update plans
by Mike Schramm 
Aug 25th 2008 at 5:30PM
We heard just last week that J. Allen Brack said Blizzard was definitely considering a graphical overhaul for WoW in the future (something players have been asking about for a while), and now WorldofWar has asked Brack to clarify exactly what's going on with the game's graphics. And he's answered. He says that Blizzard's approach to updating the game's graphics will likely be very different than other games' attempts -- they want to do it organically and iteratively rather than all in one go.Which follows with what's happened already -- Burning Crusade got a few tweaks and upgrades, and Wrath has its own. Not only will they implement that shader system we heard about way back, but the shadows for each model ingame will be updated (and real-time, very cool), and Blizzard is increasing the view distance (to help out with vehicular combat, we hope?). But other changes, Brack says, will come in waves, not all at once.
He does mention an upgrade of how the water in the game looks, though of course he doesn't say when that might happen, only that Blizzard is looking at it. But it seems like a pretty sure bet not to expect an upcoming content patch to be "the graphical update patch." Blizzard is improving the way the world looks, but they're doing it one step at a time.
Filed under: Analysis / Opinion, Odds and ends, Blizzard, Expansions, Screenshots
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 3)
Saelorn Aug 25th 2008 5:42PM
Any mention if whether they'll have an option to play with less optimal graphics? One of the major draws has always been that the game plays well on a three-year-old low-end system, and I don't want my experience to degrade just because I don't have thousands of dollars to throw at one game.
Melenor Aug 25th 2008 6:21PM
You can build a brand new, top of the line PC for $600, and it will run Bioshock at 1280x1024 resolution, high settings, at 45 FPS.
For $400 you can build one that runs WoW on max settings, max resolution, at 40 FPS, 30 in Shattrath. Stop complaining. My computer sucks and I've been running at 60 FPS maxed out since the game was released.
One thing we can all agree on is that the graphics are a joke. The biggest reason I've had to quit WoW over the years is because it looks like a kid's show. (And because when I run away from mobs, they still hit me from what, in game, is about 15 yards away with a melee strike.)
darian Aug 25th 2008 6:33PM
Hopefully Blizzard will have options present to turn off new graphical features as they come, at least obvious ones like shaders.
At the same time, Blizzard seems to aim each expansion at the average graphical power of the time. Because BC came out 4 years after WoW, the graphics are notably better.
Similarly you can expect the same from Wrath. If you're still using the same computer you had at the start of WoW it's been nearly 6 years. While you can probably still run the game by turning various options down, you might find you're pushing the limits of obsolescence.
Thorn Aug 25th 2008 7:54PM
@Melenor: Quit being a douche. He's right, the low requirements have been a major draw for the game, and his question is legitimate. Also, no, we don't all agree that the graphics are a joke. In short, GTFO.
dpak Aug 26th 2008 1:42PM
Mel -
I have to disagree, I think the wow graphics are fine.
I have played tons of games over the years, and in my opinion gamplay > looks.
If you are looking for form over substance, and perhaps you should play something else.
I have a great computer and can turn wow all the way up, it looks amazing. But since its load is not that bad, I can also run multiple applications across multiple monitors....I dont want to lose that so it can look more "realistic".
Also, like many other readers, I play wow on a secondary machine (a notebook for travel) and do not have an option of upgrading it. It can run wow, and I am fine with how it looks...if you want to suggest to my work they issue gaming quality notebooks to employees, good luck with that.
Melenor Aug 25th 2008 8:58PM
Thorn: Quit living in the past. Blizzard should keep its current highest settings and implement them as the new lowest settings - but of course they won't do that. Face it, the graphics ARE a joke and it's shocking how long they've let them stay the same. There are college kids modeling things that look far better. There are middle schoolers doodling in their trapper keeper margins that come up with more inspired sketches than the stuff that ends up in the game. The low requirements draw in more people, sure - but in my case and countless others, they serve only to repel.
ScorchHellfire Aug 26th 2008 1:14AM
darian wow hasnt been out for 6 years... it came out on nov 23 2004 and bc was in january of 07 so yeah it hasnt even hit the 4 year mark...
melenor please diaf... i personally like the look of wow over all those retarded mmos that look like they tried to do realistic graphics and just made crap that is sort of glossed over (such as eq 2 or lotro etc...)
anyways... i just wish they would redo some of the old models... especially the little props and things that look really blocky (such as the hexagonal barrels and the carts with octogon wheels and the square test tubes in the alchemy sets...) they make the new versions of these sorts of things look right but they leave the old versions the same and reuse them in the new areas which doesnt look right (such as the flying machines in wintergrasp compared to the seige engine or demolisher...)
the new models in wrath ive seen so far look amazing (and ive seen a lot of them...) and a good deal better than the original wow stuff... so personally i just wish they would replace some of the old low polygon models with newer versions that look more real...
Willypiggy Aug 25th 2008 5:43PM
I got a new computer a few days ago and I am amazed by how much of a difference dynamic shadows make, I was playing Crysis and I kept noticing my shadow.. it was really strange to see it changing as I changed weapons and as the sun moved. Anyway, back to WoW. I hope that they include two options for the graphics, im currently struggling along on 20-25FPS with it dipping as low as 5 when in combat inside TK and its getting frustrating. If they upgraded them then I would probably scrape along at 10FPS without much happening on the screen. I guess i'm trying to say that upgrading the graphics is very nice but they do need the keep in mind that not every player is currently running WoW on max settings and not even taxing their computer.
Tordenflesk Aug 25th 2008 5:58PM
1. Better trees.
2. Water that doesn't look tiled.
3. Optimize! Going from 12x10 to 19x12 res killed my framerates, which is surprising considering other, more demanding games run just as smooth in both resolutions.
Glash Aug 25th 2008 6:12PM
That is literally more than double the number of pixels for each frame. I find it hard to believe that other (similar generation) games DON'T take a performance hit with that kind of jump in resolution.
Alch Aug 25th 2008 6:00PM
As long as they dont add that golden glow to everything that most games do to so they can say they look great.
Man I hate that.
Bromnir Aug 26th 2008 2:37PM
Amen to that! Bloom was great when it was first invented, but now it's like there's a "Bloom War" going on to see who can put the most outrageous glow in their game. It's starting to feel like someone smeared luminescent Vaseline on my monitor...
I refer to the comic of record:
http://www.vgcats.com/comics/?strip_id=224
(However, in all fairness, we have nothing to fear - WoW already HAS bloom, has since launch, and Blizz has already shown the sense to keep it to a respectable level. Thus the benefits of proper art direction over a pedantic desire for "more realistic graphics.")
Ferigno Aug 25th 2008 6:10PM
This could be EXTREMELY bad news for me. I have a mac laptop with a crap card in it. Shared 64megs of vram, which pretty much means 32 megs of video card crappiness. However, it rolls through WoW just fine on the low settings.
I wanted to play Pirates of the Burning Sea, and it would not run due to the pixel shading requirement that my card would not support. Period. Not "wouldn't run well". Just would not run.
Am I doomed to abandon WoW?
mko Aug 25th 2008 6:25PM
I second that.
Outland already drops my fps.
Rassia Aug 25th 2008 8:53PM
I understand your concerns, but...
Should the experience of all 10 million subscribers be limited due to your unwillingness or unability to purchase a moderately better computer?
This is a PC game. Eventually, it will upgrade past your current computer. That is the nature of these things.
Guvi Aug 26th 2008 3:11AM
How about our toon's graphics? the textures on our characters (minus helms and shoulders) need a serious bump in resolution.. You'd think for a game that focuses on character development that they would want to keep up the look of our own toons....
Dom Aug 25th 2008 6:20PM
The only graphics update I would care about is if they reworked the graphics so they'll allow us to use flying mounts in the old lands.
Thorn Aug 25th 2008 7:56PM
The reason that's not allowed has nothing to do with graphics.
s256 Aug 26th 2008 12:13PM
Yep, they would quite literally have to rebuild the entire world.
Arioch Aug 25th 2008 6:26PM
What I'd really like are updates to the ultra-low-polygon character models and their ultra-low-resolution texture maps. Those were outdated when the game originally shipped.