[DigitalToday reporter Choi Jae-won (최재원)] Blizzard Entertainment said it has no plans to add races from existing mainline expansion packs to its new title "World of Warcraft: Forever" (WoW: Forever). It plans to build its own universe based on a separate timeline from the existing series.

On Oct. 11 (local time), IT media outlet TechRadar reported Blizzard said in an interview, "We have no plans at this time to add races that appeared in WoW expansion packs." That means races from the main game such as goblins, vulpera and haranir are unlikely to be playable in Forever for the time being.

Blizzard cited the original Warcraft universe as the background to the decision. It said its key goal is to develop a new story based on the settings of the early real-time strategy (RTS) series.

Forever's narrative in particular starts from events after the "Warcraft III Reforged: Forsaken Kingdom" campaign. It plans to adopt an independent timeline separate from the existing main game and create new adventures and areas rather than repeat stories that have already been covered.

The scale and tone of the story will also be different. While modern WoW unfolded around major events that determine the fate of all of Azeroth, Forever will focus on more realistic and restrained adventures like early WoW.

Blizzard said, "Players are not the only hero in this world, but one of many heroes," and explained it will move away from a model in which the player becomes the center of the universe.

It has not completely ruled out the appearance of regions from existing expansion packs. Even if those regions are added later, it plans to reinterpret them in Forever's own way rather than recreate existing settings as they are.

The introduction of new races itself is not being halted. Blizzard plans to introduce Forever's new race, the Skyborn. It is also taking steps to prevent real-money trading (RMT) in the game.

WoW: Forever is set to be released on Nov. 5 in South Korean time. Combining an independent universe with the adventure experience of early WoW is the key direction of the new title.