Player housing is on its way to World of Warcraft, and Blizzard has offered a first glimpse of how the MMO will implement it. In a new preview, the WoW team shared early details, even taking a playful dig at Final Fantasy XIV's housing system in the process.

World of Warcraft is introducing a highly anticipated housing feature in its upcoming expansion, World of Warcraft: Midnight. Among the core principles outlined in the recent developer blog, Blizzard highlighted "A Home for Everyone" as a key goal.

"As part of our focus on broad accessibility, we wanted to ensure Housing is available to all players. If you want a house, you can have a house," Blizzard stated. "No excessive requirements or high purchase costs, no lotteries, and no burdensome upkeep (and if your subscription lapses, don’t worry, your house won’t be repossessed!)."

Player housing is exactly what it sounds like: physical homes that players can acquire within the MMO world, offering extensive options for personalization and decoration, which other players can visit. This feature is immensely popular in Final Fantasy XIV, where it fuels player creativity, leading to the creation of theaters, nightclubs, cafes, and museums.

Of course, Final Fantasy XIV's housing system also faces some notorious challenges. Each server has a limited number of plots, requiring substantial amounts of Gil and entry into a lottery system, with the added risk of property demolition if left unattended for too long.

World of Warcraft's approach appears designed to address potential player concerns, informed by Final Fantasy XIV's experience. Housing will even be shared across a player's Warband, allowing different characters to access it, with rewards shared across characters and faction lines. While a Human character cannot purchase a house in a Horde zone, a Troll character in your Warband can, enabling the Human to use it as well.

Furthermore, while World of Warcraft's housing will be divided into just two zones with "Neighborhoods" of about 50 plots each, these areas are instanced and offer both Public and Private options. The Public Neighborhoods are maintained by game servers and generated "as needed," meaning there is currently no fixed cap on their total number.

Blizzard seems committed to the long-term development of World of Warcraft housing. Alongside its stated pillars of "boundless self-expression" and "deeply social," the team emphasized its goal for housing to be a "long-lasting journey" with its own roadmap, featuring updates planned for future patches and expansions. This signals a strong commitment, and while the preview included a jab at XIV's systems, it also shows Blizzard's awareness of potential pitfalls.

More details will be finalized ahead of the expected summer reveal for World of Warcraft: Midnight.