The open world designer on the Forever team publicly explained who the game is aimed at — and laid out three principles he follows in his work. This is his personal opinion, not Blizzard's official position.

The open world designer on the Forever team, known as Marmstrong, publicly explained who the game is being made for, in his opinion. The post went live on September 23, 2026 — a week and a half after Forever was announced at BlizzCon on September 12 — and immediately sparked debate in the community.

Marmstrong clarifies that he's speaking for himself, not for the whole team. He joined the Forever team after 8 years working on the modern version of WoW and now leads open world design. According to him, Forever's core audience is Classic players and those whose accounts have been sitting without a subscription because of 20 years of accumulated changes — in art style, story, social systems, class design, or gameplay in general.

In his work on the starting zone of Ashenvale, Marmstrong follows three principles he listed in the post:

— 'Convenience is the death of the journey.' — 'If you make a game for everyone, you're not making it for anyone.' — 'Every change you make puts a debt on the game's authenticity, and sooner or later that debt has to be paid.'

From this he draws concrete decisions: resist changes that would set off a chain reaction, preserve friction and inconvenience in the game, and bring back the social layer — having to look for a group, talk to strangers, and form a party instead of playing solo.

At the same time, Marmstrong adds that he hopes to attract as many players as possible — fans of the modern version, those who haven't played in years, and newcomers. But authenticity comes first for him.

The post caused a stir in the community. Some players thanked the designer for his honesty: when a developer names the target audience outright, it's easier to know what to expect from the game and easier to point to a specific statement in arguments about its direction.

Others found the format itself strange — openly saying 'this game isn't for you' to players of the modern version. In their view, that framing gives part of the community a cue to answer 'You're not welcome here' to anyone interested in Forever who came from retail. The atmosphere between Classic fans and modern-version fans is already tense, and the designer's blunt statement doesn't help.

What this changes for the player:

— Forever is being made by a team that openly puts authenticity above convenience — expect a slow, Classic-style experience with mandatory social play, not a modern session-based one. — This is one designer's personal opinion, not Blizzard's official position — other team members may see things differently. — If you value quick sessions and the ability to do everything solo — the statement is a direct warning: there will be less of that.