Old version just plainly looks better and brings in more imagination than those shots of in-game models. I prefer old artsy style. I mean sure, if WOW was some ultra quality Unreal Engine game with ultra realistic graphic, this change would be fine. But as us, even with improvements, it is MMO designed to run well on huge range of hardware and certain stylized graphic. And don't get me wrong, this type of graphics works fine for gameplay and definitely help with enabling team to do huge world. But not as much for purpose of representing races in those images. Old pictures were far better to sell you fantasy and get your imagination working.
Blizzard needs to make an iconic character for each race or class and have them wander around in each expansion's hub and run into the player characters now and again as if they were also players. They did something almost like it in each of the Dalarans, but they didn't do anything else with the characters. Maybe if they used them in promotional materials... mini stories, any promotional artworks like the above race pictures. Not really big name NPCs who are involved in the major storylines, but smaller scale every day characters.
The old artworks had CHARACTER. The new ones don't. ...Which reflects the "changing" of WoW. GG
I'd much rather have seen new artwork for the races, rather than just using in-game models that really lack the character, style, backgrounds of the old art.
Anyone else notice that the races that STILL haven't received their heritage armor, they comprised with other sets instead? SMH
Blizzard's painted art and style is iconic and it's what draws me (an probably a lot of people) in to their games and worlds. The art of portraits and their backgrounds are and were atmospheric, and required/invited you to meet the piece half way in order to generate/complete the emotion. Look at the old female undead, the wispiness, the strange fog, you can't help but develop a story and sense of wonder, while also being captivated by the art itself, the possible story behind what that undead is doing in that scene, it required you to use your imagination and subconsciously create story while also viewing memorable, meaningful artwork. It was a collaboration between you and the piece. Look at the old tauren or the panderen, their stances, the backgrounds that accompany them, the history, the presence, the possibility. There's something ongoing and not final about the painted versions, something that allows you to catch a glimpse of a character/race in a moment they're experiencing. That imagining of their moment is meeting the artist halfway in order to tell a tale and get you thinking and excited about the world, and about playing an interesting race. Refusing to welcome us to wonder, ruins intention of getting us excited. The models themselves are empty. This decisions misses any and every mark -including any marketing goal targeting older OR newer players. sorry, but even the 2-d, illustrated artwork in guides and on box art for games like Pokémon prove my point. Seeing a 2-d and/or painted character in Pokémon makes the viewer wonder about it, about the game and world, and that WONDERING about the thing you're looking at, that imagining you are doing, is what creates an inviting and fun time. Simply looking at a model is not inviting or fun, it's just an action figure -but action figures are based off characters we like because we got to experience their story and world -like we do with iconic art. helloThe screenshots of in-game models is one-note, boring/lacking, telling, instead of interesting, compelling and showing. Where once they generated enthusiasm and intrigue and excitement, now simply tell you very plainly what it is you'll be doing, with no intrigue, and no iconic art that blizzard is (or was) known for.Please keep the history pages with cool iconic art style and histories and backgrounds.I don't know why blizzard is forsaking their iconic and memorable art style in so much of their stuff. The auction house is grey and black and looks like a computer programming window instead of being made from materials in the game-world (wood, stone, rope, etc). The yellow glowing 'icons' on the character selection screen/customization screen are jarring and don't fit fit or compliment the game/style, they have nothing to do with anything. These decisions lack heart and lack meaning. Blizzard is known for their hand/digital painted art and style and are often moving away from it, and not in any meaningful way. Just feels like why throw away the one thing that binds their franchises and image, the thing that sets them apart from other companies and worlds, the main thing they have that everyone loves, their art/style, and choose to throw it away?I don't intend to offend anyone but if this decisions is because people today think 2-d is old or lame, and everything must be 3-d, then that's disheartening. Pixar isn't THAT good, I mean, they're too smooth or perfect to really be appreciated you know what I mean? hand drawn Simpsons and older Disney movies have that charm and specialness, older 'less-realistic' games with art that required you to fill in gaps, created the memorable experiences, while pixar and adn polished 3-d stuff just does all the work for you, and let's be honest they aren't very memorable and won't be on any nostalgia meters because they didn't ask the audience to come to them and instead they just shove their perfection onto the viewer and the viewer leaves, leaving the experience there with pixar instead of taking a piece of it with them. these 3-d portraits ask nothing of the viewr, and convey nothing of the game or world, and offer no experience.
Feel like it lost so much depth and authenticity with the new one. The original artwork carried character, the new ones are just copied/pasted from game files.