Blizzard teases new The War Within arachnophobia mode
Are you scared of spiders? No worries! Blizzard teases a new The War Within arachnophobia mode, disguising these creepy-crawlies as cute crabs!
Key Takeaways
- Blizzard introduces arachnophobia mode in The War Within, allowing players to replace spiders with crabs.
- Community reactions are divided — some praise consideration of arachnophobia, while others find the crab replacement unsettling.
- Some people offer humorous reactions, ask for more game modes, and make pop culture references, while others are happy to see the game becoming more inclusive.
Despite not saying anything specific in its fresh X/ Twitter post, Blizzard shared a YouTube video showing off a new feature. With the launch of The War Within, players with arachnophobia can use a special toggle in the game options to change the appearance of spiders to crabs. Considering that we will be encountering arachnids called Nerubians with creepy, long limbs during our TWW journey, this new mode will be a real boon in the upcoming expansion.
Previously, in an April 17 interview with Maria Hamilton, Associate Design Director at Blizzard, Eurogamer mentioned that crabs are not too different from spiders in WoW; therefore, their transformation does not make you feel like you are fighting something different. Additionally, crabs have the same hitboxes as spiders, so positioning and predicting their attack moves becomes easier.
When the team discussed The War Within and Nerubians, many members expressed discomfort with the idea due to their fear of spiders. Wanting to create Nerubians, Blizzard recognized that roughly 3,5 to 6,1% of people worldwide have arachnophobia, according to statistics. Considering these figures and the fact that other games like Star Wars Jedi: Survivor and Lethal Company have similar filters, creating such a mode was a good idea, Hamilton shares.
Community opinion
The community’s reaction to this news is mixed. Some people think it’s great that players with arachnophobia can now play World of Warcraft without fear, while others say that the newly introduced crabs are even scarier than spiders. Also, some players are poking fun at this situation by making jokes about Crab People from South Park and are even asking Blizzard to create an anti-Mechanognome mode.
Anyway, we understand and sympathize with all players with arachnophobia, and we hope that this new mode allows them to enjoy the game from a less intimidating perspective. Do you have a fear of spiders? If so, what are your thoughts on this new mode? Share in the comments below!
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