You know, there's a solution to this, that would make both sides happy. Make the pets possible to get in the game, 3 months later, then sell new ones. That would be a wonderful compromise.

@bushkanaka86 -

I completely agree. I don't actually mind the pet store, in fact, I really kind of dig it. It's honestly no different than buying TCG packs for the cool loot cards. The difference is, when you buy a pet or vanity item (in the future) from the pet store or blizz store, you know that you'll get your money's worth, unlike the unpredictability of buying TCG cards.

And, I don't feel that Blizz will ever fall into the trap of selling non-vanity items to players, for real money. I'm not saying that it can't happen, but I'd like to think it never will and I certainly feel like it never will.

At the same time, my main fear and only real concern is that the money these pets bring in, might have a negative impact on the quantity and quality of pets created for the game, in the future. Right now, we've got awesome pets like the Perky Pug on their way, that you can only get in the game, and through in-game currency. You can tell the quality of work and effort that went into making such an awesome pet.

But, what if the pet store items sell exceptionally well and the designers get word from the higher ups that they should put more focus on the store bought pets, rather than the in-game ones that you get via questing/achievements/grinding?

What if it's not the designers' decision, but it's taken out of their control and that's just what they're told to do? That would mean that the only pets worth having, the only ones given priority, would be the ones that would make real money. All the quality and effort that might have gone into in-game obtainable pets will now be redirected and given almost exclusively to those that can come with a real world price tag. And, that scares me a little.

I have faith in the devs and designers. I trust that they love this game as much as, if not more than, all of its players do. And, so I trust that they care about it greatly and want nothing but the absolute best for it and it's audience. But, I don't know how things are done. There might be some people in charge who don't have the players' best interest at heart.

If the pets that are sold for real world cash stay limited to a certain number a year, similar to the TCG loot cards and don't take away from the effort and quality that goes into the normal in-game pets, then the store will be nothing but a huge success.

But, if the number of in-game obtainable pets diminish over time, only to be replaced by more and more store bought ones, and the quality of in-game obtainable pets begins to decline, as well, then things will have gotten out of hand. If the cash that these pet store pets bring in forces the designers to pay more attention to those pets, rather than working on ones that can be obtained the old fashioned ways, then that's where problems will occur and when people who love pet collecting, will most likely, start to get very very upset.

However, the pet store itself is a really wonderful idea. And, I do think Blizz should be free to enjoy and make money from the items they sell, in this fashion. It's really no different than the TCG cards, they're just simply removing the middle man. And, the community gets a fail-safe way to obtain these awesome items, compared to the cards, also. I think it's brilliant. And, I love that they're BoA. I think that was appropriate and good thinking on their part.

TL;DR version:

As long as the designers don't become forced to put more time, energy, effort, and quality into the pet store pets, as opposed to the in-game obtainable ones, for profits sake, then everything will be just fine.

But, the moment the number and quality of in-game obtainable pets begins to decline and diminish due to time spent on making the pet store pets, since they bring in a real physical cash profit, is the moment when this idea will have turned sour.

Until then, I'm going to enjoy my Lil' T.K. and Pandaren Monk. :)

Same here Snailking. I quit WoW because Blizzard is managing the game very poorly (like having paladins being OP for like a year, yes I have a pally) but I still read news out of curiosity and I just smiled at this.

Next step: Selling gold for money

@RogueJedi86

Sweet jiminy Jesus! A 2 pet head start? The race for world-first to 150 pets has been tainted. /sarcasm

There are ALREADY pets in the game that require spending real money, that you may or may not have -- TCG loot, Blizzcon, Collector's Edition. Just because there is a pet that you can (choose to) buy with dollars, does not completely invalidate your vast pet collection. Are you keeping up with the Joneses or collecting pets?

http://wowtcgloot.com/

Pets, mounts,and tabards have always been about making money. It was never a fair and even playing field in the first place.