WoW: Forever’s new Skyborne elves are getting updated visuals to better fit into old world Azeroth

The Skyborne elves, the new race added in World of Warcraft: Forever, are getting visual updates to their in-game character models to better fit the game’s classic art style. The first update will focus on reworks to the current high definition (HD) in-game models and is set to arrive in the near future, while a second update introducing standard definition (SD) character models to the game is scheduled for early 2027, for players who prefer the original low-rez Warcraft experience.

One of the main pillars of World of Warcraft: Forever is playing your way and the Forever created a set of features players could choose to customize their experience from the jump. This included the choices between SD and HD character models, essentially the choice between Classic and modern appearances for characters and NPCs. Related to the character models, players can choose which visual style of the open game world they would rather see, the vanilla/Classic style or the modern-day World of Warcraft aesthetic.

Blizzard’s goal to adjust the available in-game Skyborne model is to make it more cohesive with the overall visuals of Azeroth in Forever, acknowledging it was jarring for players to choose a Classic-looking open world and then have an HD character right in the middle of it, immediately disrupting their chosen visual style. Right now, the main example Blizzard is showcasing for updated HD models are the new Skyborne Druid shapeshift forms, with updated color palettes and textures to better fit in with the world around them while still honoring the exotic environment they hail from.

We don’t have any additional information on other adjustments that Blizzard may be considering (or is perhaps already working on) for the rest of the game. But if Blizzard is making more changes to keep the classic aesthetic, they may also tweak the current customization options players can choose during character creation. Of course, we’ll just have to wait and see what ultimately gets changed.

At the moment, the reworked aspects of Skyborne HD models don’t have a set timeline (but are expected soon), while the Skybrone SD models are on track for “early 2027.” For the HD model reworks, we could see them implemented in time for WoW: Forever’s November 4 launch but players shouldn’t bank on this until we get a confirmation from the Forever team. The SD model timeline of “early 2027” might make it into the game with the planned spring 2027 update from the WoW: Forever roadmap we got at BlizzCon.

With Forever’s launch rapidly approaching, we’re hoping to get more information on a timeline for the HD model reworks. Once we do, we’ll keep you updated!