When I declared World of Warcraft player housing should emulate Animal Crossing: New Horizon, I did not expect them to go above and beyond my recommendation. We are months from the Midnight expansion, and the initial housing previews show it to be one of the most packed features the game has ever launched, with thousands of decorative items, flexible placement options, and an expansive dye system. I expect the next preview will focus on exterior decoration, and I hope, soon after, we will learn the role music plays in our homes.
Music gives a soul to the universe, wings to the mind, flight to the imagination, and life to everything
Music has special meaning to those who play with the Loop Music setting on. The game’s soundtracks are as indelible an aspect of World of Warcraft as the iconic art style and monstrous shoulder armor. I still get a chill when the Barrens music fades in upon crossing the bridge from Durator with a fresh Horde character. It feels like coming home. I am certain we will be able to play music in player housing. It is just a matter of how.
I will not comment on how other MMO’s handle music in their player housing. I feel a kinship between World of Warcraft and Animal Crossing New Horizon. This may be due to Blizzard’s evolving focus on player fun and individuality. It could also stem from WoW itself evolving into cozy. From everything we have seen for player housing, the game is heading further in this direction. Which is fine with me. I am happy with a game where I spend hours decorating my house and then go massacre mobs.
Animal Crossing New Horizon provided the player with a wide selection of music, performed by the artist K. K. Slider, and activated through the many music players found in the game. I liked music linked to the music player, so placing one in every room meant every room played a different tune to complement the room’s vibe.
Player housing music should be accessed through via a similar item. I love the idea of entering my World of Warcraft house to the music of the Barrens and then transitioning to crunchy Undermine tunes when I step into the game room. There will be a game room.
There are many decorative styles to be utilized; elven music boxes, goblin jukeboxes, and undead gramophones, to list a few. Adding music players as a new item type adds to housing immersion and customization potential.
Music Is The Soundtrack of Your Life
Obtaining new music in Animal Crossing New Horizon was a somewhat random process and it was possible to end up with duplicates if you didn’t remember everything you already owned. I confess I did this several times. However, duplicate covers did make for nice album wall art.
Blizzard is front-loading so many features into player housing, I expect our starter music library to be fairly extensive. Whether the library encompasses all expansion soundtracks or leaves some pieces to be obtained via the Trading Post or other in-game means will have to wait until the official reveal. This would be a great way to introduce new pieces composed specifically for player housing.
Outro
What do you think about player housing music? Is it a given and is there something special you would like done with it?
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A placeable jukebox item would be an excellent choice, and I’ll be surprised if someone at Blizzard hasn’t had the same idea. I could even see them tying certain tracks to achievements or quests, to make collecting more fun.