Fans of old-school Azeroth have a reason to stay up late tonight. World of Warcraft: Forever, the new version of Blizzard‘s legendary MMORPG, officially launches on November 4.
It is not modern WoW, and it is not just another Classic. It is the “Classic+” the community has been asking for over the years: the world of 2004, but with brand new content.
What time it launches
Servers open on November 4 at 3:00 PM PST, which is 6:00 PM EST, 11:00 PM GMT and midnight CET on November 5. It is a global launch, at the same moment for every region.
The game is available on PC through the Battle.net app.
What World of Warcraft: Forever is
Blizzard announced WoW: Forever at BlizzCon 2026 on September 12 as a third permanent version of the game, alongside modern WoW and Classic.
The idea is simple: you go back to the 2004 roots, with a level cap of 60 and the original continents, but you also discover new zones, stories and dungeons that never existed in the original game.
What is new
- New zones, including Mount Hyjal and Zephras Isle, plus new areas inside the classic maps.
- 9 new dungeons and hundreds of new quests.
- A new race, the Skyborne, exiled elves who can join either faction.
- New race and class combinations, such as Dwarf Shaman and Forsaken Paladin.
- Revamped talent trees.
- A Legacy System with account-wide rewards.
- Upgraded visuals: new lighting, volumetric fog, flowing water and terrain that casts real shadows.
How much it costs
The good news: the base game is included with a WoW subscription or Game Time. There is no separate expansion to buy.
The less pleasant part: the Skyborne race and its starting zone are not included. For those, you need one of the paid packs:
| Pack | Price | What it includes |
|---|---|---|
| Skyborne Heroic Pack | $29.99 | Skyborne race, Zephras Isle, a mount and cosmetics |
| Skyborne Epic Pack | $59.99 | Everything in Heroic, plus 30 days of game time and extra cosmetics |
| Warcraft Forever Collection | $79.99 | Everything in Epic, plus Warcraft III: Reforged and the Forsaken Kingdom expansion |
Putting a playable race behind a paid pack, on top of the subscription, has drawn plenty of criticism from the community.
How to play it
- Install Battle.net if you do not have it yet, and log into your Blizzard account.
- Activate a WoW subscription or use Game Time. If your subscription is already active, you have access automatically.
- In Battle.net, pick World of Warcraft and select the Forever version from the version list.
- Download the game ahead of time so you are ready when servers open.
- If you want to play as a Skyborne, buy the Skyborne Heroic Pack or one of the bigger packs.
Also expect login queues in the first hours. They are almost unavoidable at launches like this.
What comes after launch
Blizzard has already shared a plan for the first months. On December 9, 2026, three raids open: Barrow Deeps for 10 players, Hyjal Summit for 20 and Onyxia’s Lair for 40.
Spring and summer 2027 will bring new raids, dungeons, zones, a Legendary questline and new PvP seasons.
Is it worth it?
If you played WoW in its golden years, or Classic started to feel too familiar, WoW: Forever is exactly what you have been waiting for: the feeling of 2004, with new things to discover.
And if you already have a subscription, trying it costs you nothing extra. See you in Azeroth!
I’m passionate about books and video games. These two great passions represent, for me, a boundless universe where I can “escape” from reality whenever I need or want to. There are so many stories, worlds, and landscapes where I can instantly teleport that I don’t think a whole lifetime would be enough to explore them all (though it would be my greatest dream to be able to).
