Image Credit: Bethesda
Forgot password
Enter the email address you used when you joined and we'll send you instructions to reset your password.
If you used Apple or Google to create your account, this process will create a password for your existing account.
This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.
Reset password instructions sent. If you have an account with us, you will receive an email within a few minutes.
Something went wrong. Try again or contact support if the problem persists.
key splash art for WoW war within beta
Image via Blizzard Entertainment

‘Wild they’re still around’: WoW players beg Blizzard to lift faction block for casual play

Fans just want to play together.

Now that World of Warcraft has cross-faction guilds, players are begging Blizzard Entertainment to drop faction restrictions across the board, especially for casual content. This change would allow players to group up with their friends no matter which faction they picked.

Recommended Videos

Cross-faction guilds were introduced back in Dragonflight’s Embers of Neltharion Patch 10.1, but there are still many activities cross-faction players can’t do together, including queue up for raids and dungeons or compete in PvP matches. Although WoW‘s long-written lore should prohibit Alliance and Horde players from teaming up, players are simply tired of cross-faction blocks and want them gone—even those on roleplaying servers.

The Horde portal location to Mount Hyjal in Orgrimmar in WoW Cata Classic
Which faction rules your server? Screenshot by Dot Esports

Being able to do everything together would be a huge selling point for jumping back into WoW, especially with The War Within releasing in August, players argued when they called for Blizzard to bring down the walls. Removing cross-faction restrictions would not only shorten queue times and provide more group opportunities, but also give imbalanced factions a chance to survive. As one player pointed out, it’s “wild they are still around.”

It wouldn’t be easy, of course; the lack of cross-faction activities is likely the result of legacy code, lack of manpower, and quests being tied to specific faction-based NPCs, which means changing something so ingrained in WoW won’t be easy or as simple as flicking on a switch. But as players pointed out, cross-faction queues already popped up at the start of Remix, so it must be possible somewhere in the game design.

One big reason Blizzard may have been holding off is faction imbalances. These faction imbalances have been prevalent for some time because players will join one over another purely because their friends are there or they like the faction’s ideals. So, one faction will always be more popular than the other. Blizzard has tried to curb this by locking factions in Classic, and while the devs claim this has been a success, it has stopped players from joining particular servers and factions their friends are in; not ideal for those who enjoy group content. So, it may not be the best long-term solution or one that will work on retail WoW.

Blizzard has not mentioned whether it will officially implement cross-faction queues. Given how quick there were to remove them from Remix, it’s unlikely to be on the cards for some time either, which is a real shame for WoW players.


Dot Esports is supported by our audience. When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn a small affiliate commission. Learn more about our Affiliate Policy
related content
Related Content
Author
Image of Hayley Andrews
Hayley Andrews
Hayley Andrews is a staff writer for Dot Esports with a dual degree in business and human resource management. After discovering her passion for creative writing and gaming, she now writes about MOBAs, MMOs, and cozy games.