Blizzard lowers price of a cloned World of Warcraft Classic character following backlash
"After careful consideration…"
Blizzard has lowered the price of a cloned World of Warcraft Classic character following a backlash from players.
The company was set to charge $35 per character for an optional cloning service, which would let players keep playing the original World of Warcraft Classic content and The Burning Crusade content with the same character.
The $35 (around £25) price was roundly criticised by the World of Warcraft community as being too expensive - and Blizzard came under fire accordingly.
"This service - providing a player with a second copy of a character in a different game - is new for us," Blizzard community manager Kaivax said in a new post on Battle.net.
"Our original concept of the value of this service was largely based on how we price other optional items and services. We want players who choose Classic Era realms to feel as though their choice comes with the possibility that they'll be able to build relationships and guilds with other players they can count on.
"However, over the last week or so, we've gotten a very large amount of feedback from the community, and we've decided to lower the price. A lower price will likely still accomplish our goals with the new service, while allowing many more players to explore the option of playing characters on both Classic Era and Burning Crusade Classic realms."
So, "after careful consideration", Blizzard has lowered the price of a cloned character in World of Warcraft Classic to $15. You'll see the lower price in-game when the service becomes available next week, Blizzard said.
"As always, we deeply appreciate the passion and thoughtfulness of the WoW community. We play WoW alongside you, and we can't wait to join you next week on Classic Era realms, in the Burning Crusade Classic pre-patch, and as we step through the Dark Portal with you in June."
When you log in to WoW Classic after the patch next week, each of your Classic characters will choose between staying in Classic Era (version 1.13) and progressing to Burning Crusade Classic (version 2.5). For those who want to play a character in both versions, the $15 character clone service will be available. The Burning Crusade then launches on 1st June.