Why no High or Blood Elves? Blizzard speaks on WoW: Forever's controversial new Skyborne race — 'We may occasionally make a bold choice'

Blizzard Entertainment has addressed the controversial addition of the Skyborne race to World of Warcraft: Forever, explaining that it was added to help manage long-term population balance between the Alliance and Horde factions. The Skyborne race, an Elf race that is accessible to both factions, arrives alongside a new starter zone, Zephras Isle.

Some fans have expressed concerns about the addition of a new Elf race when existing High and Blood Elves already exist in the game's setting. However, Blizzard defended the decision, stating that it has a great story to tell and has used a culture kit that has only been used a few times in WoW. The new starter zone is designed to ease the introduction of the race into the world, and players will only spend about 4-6 hours in the zone before returning to terrestrial Azeroth.

Blizzard also revealed that the decision to make the Skyborne race accessible to both factions was made to avoid a potential population swing, similar to what occurred when Blood Elves were introduced in The Burning Crusade. The population swung almost 40% from 60/40 Alliance/Horde to 60/40 Horde/Alliance. Despite the initial concerns, Blizzard has seen great reception to the Skyborne race in beta testing, especially after players complete the starter zone and experience the effort put into their story to make it feel like a natural inclusion into the world.