World of Warcraft will get houses you can build and decorate via its Midnight expansion, something players have quite literally been asking for since the game launched over 20 years ago. However, those playing Midnight’s alpha may have discovered WoW’s housing will come at a price, literally.
Details from a datamine of the Midnight alpha shared by Wowhead (thanks, PC Gamer) have unearthed something called Hearthsteel. Hearthsteel appears to be a currency of some sort, one that players are fearful will be used to buy housing items and decorations due to Hearthsteel’s connection to the Midnight expansion.
The Discovery Of Hearthsteel In Midnight’s Files Has Got WoW Players Fearing The Worst
You can already buy stuff in World of Warcraft, and it has already been confirmed that some of the housing items available through Midnight will need to be bought. The key difference is that until now, outside of some minor exceptions, everything can be bought directly with real money.
The appearance of Hearthsteel implies that at least some of World of Warcraft’s in-game cosmetics, most notably stuff tied to housing but potentially even more, will be locked behind this new currency. The type of currency you will have to buy in bundles, like Fortnite’s V-Bucks, before you can then spend them on what you actually came to the virtual store to buy.
It does indeed seem as if Hearthsteel will be sold by the bundle when WoW’s Midnight expansion is rolled out next summer. Those bundles are the leading reason why, after 21 years, WoW players are fearing the worst and believe the premium currency model that has become commonplace in almost all ongoing games has finally arrived at this door.
Similar currencies have been available in other Blizzard games like Overwatch and Diablo for a while. It was always a matter of time.
It’s also a given that, if Hearthsteel is what it appears to be, it will be sold in bundles that cost more than you need. As it stands, if you want to buy something in WoW, you can use real money to buy that item for exactly how much it costs. If Hearthsteel is real, you’ll likely have to buy a bundle that costs more than you actually want to spend.
This is far from confirmation that, come next year when Midnight launches, we’ll be paying in Hearthsteel to decorate the houses we’ve been waiting two decades for. The discovery of what looks a lot like an in-game premium currency has cast a shadow over a feature WoW players were previously very excited for, though. That excitement is still there, of course, but until we get some sort of official communication regarding what Hearthsteel is and how it will work, the excitement for housing in WoW will be tempered.
- Released
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2026
- Multiplayer
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Online Multiplayer, Online Co-Op
- Engine
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Proprietary
