Following The Release Of WordPress 5.9, It’s Possible That Default Theme Releases Will Become More Frequent

There are only 40 days left for contributors to finish the theme before Beta 1 is released on November 16

Let’s talk about the frequency of default theme releases after the November 16, 2021 release of WordPress 5.9 Beta 1. Many WordPress users who saw the design revealed for the new Twenty Twenty-Two default theme last week are eager to utilize it on their sites even before its construction.

Contributors have 40 days to finish the theme before the November 16 release of Beta 1. Even if it seems impossible right now, more frequent default theme updates are possible in the future.

Kjell Reigstad addressed the future of the frequency of new default themes in a few brief comments at the end of the announcement.

Kjell claims the community has collaborated on a dozen excellent themes, and we eagerly await each year’s release. It’s a perfect time to step back and reconsider how often we build default themes because the themes are in flux right now.

Blocks simplify theme development and give users new methods to personalize their sites.

Theme.json, block templates, and block patterns allow users to customize their sites more easily. All of this is new. In the future, the community may be able to use this to provide more theme and customization options for our users.

Reigstad didn’t specify if he meant to slow or speed up the release cycle of default themes. Upon inquiry, he confirmed that speeding up is being investigated.

The new tools, Reigstad added, “I expect to allow us to build and release more regularly than we’ve been able to in the past.”

This idea came to me while working on this year’s default theme. I included it to give it more exposure to the community. Since this is a new idea, I’m curious what others think! This situation has a lot of promise.

The annual brainstorming process includes early interactions with project leadership to plan and ensure the theme aligns with WordPress’ future.

Contributors are discussing increasing the frequency of default theme releases by releasing Twenty Twenty-Two. Reigstad says the established basic structure allows for immediate testing. Except for spacing, individual block styles, and block patterns, these elements are already in place.