World of Warcraft is finally getting player shelters. At the recent Warcraft 30th Anniversary Direct event, Blizzard confirmed that the long-requested feature would be part of the MMORPG’s future Midnight expansion, saving the livestream’s biggest crowd-pleasing announcement for last.

In a short trailer, a Death Knight enters an ordinary home. Inside, the walls are decorated with the head of the dragon Onyxia, various weapons and shields, a miniature Goblin dismemberment machine, and more. The weary adventurer puts down his sword, sits in a chair by the fire, and takes a sip from the mug marked “Home, Sweet Home.”

That’s pretty much all there is to it, but GameSpot had the chance to chat with WoW game director Ion Hazzikostas about the big news ahead of the anniversary livestream. He confirmed that the feature has been in the works for several years.

“‘Is there any housing?’ “I certainly gave some sly and evasive answers about it, secretly knowing that it would happen,” Hazzikostas said. “We’ve known for a while that we really want to do this. I think figuring out how and when to do it and making sure we can deliver something that will meet and exceed our players’ expectations are the hard parts. What we’re announcing this week is a teaser, a hint, the subtlest previews, just for people Breaking the news, ‘Hey, he’s coming as part of Midnight.’

He said there will be a lot more information coming over the next year, but the team is excited to make this clear so players can start hearing what they want from digital dwellings in Azeroth.

“I’m excited to announce this news and start a conversation to start hearing from players about what they hope to see from the World of Warcraft housing system,” Hazzikostas said. “Double check that it matches what we’re cooking right now, but also give us some direction and some time to make sure we’re delivering what players are hoping for.”

During BlizzCon 2023, Blizzard announced the next three WoW expansions simultaneously, saying that it hopes to start rolling out expansions faster than the normal two-year expansion cycle. According to Blizzard’s newly announced 2025 WoW content roadmap, Midnight won’t be coming next year, but more details about the expansion will be revealed next summer.

Hazzikostas stated that although Midnight will not arrive next year and players will continue to play The War Within in 2025, the team is determined to maintain the game’s update pace at a steady pace while preparing a full-fledged new expansion pack. on time.”

The accommodation of players in WoW was just one of many Warcraft-related announcements to come out of the Warcraft 30th Anniversary Broadcast. Blizzard also announced remastered versions of Warcraft 1 and 2 (available now), a StarCraft crossover for Hearthstone, and what’s next for WoW Classic.