Classic Azeroth with a new story, zones, and raids. Beta starts September 17; global launch on November 4 at 23:00 UTC.
About World of Warcraft: Forever
World of Warcraft: Forever is a new version of World of Warcraft that Blizzard showed at BlizzCon on September 12, 2026. The developers put it like this: it's not a mode, not a season, and not another version of Classic, but a separate permanent world. The base is original Azeroth, the Eastern Kingdoms and Kalimdor, and the principles of Classic, but the story here goes its own way. Leveling runs from 1 to 60, with more than a thousand new quests. New and reworked zones: Mount Hyjal, Shen'dralas, Riverglades, and the starting island of Zefras. Nine new dungeons — among them Hall of Thanes, Ruins of Lordaeron, City of Dalaran, and Drowned City — plus the 20-player Hyjal Summit and 10-player Barrow Deeps raids and the 15v15 Darkspear Islands battleground. The new race is the Skyborne from the island of Zefras. During character creation it picks a side: shaman with the Horde, mage with the Alliance. Access to the race comes with the Skyborne Heroic Pack and above. Systems include Legacy progress for alts, campfires with shared buffs, optional transmog, a choice between new and classic models, and gamepad support. The beta starts September 17 for those who bought the Skyborne Epic Pack or the Warcraft Forever Collection. The global launch is November 4, 2026 at 15:00 Pacific time. New raids open on December 9, and Blizzard says Hardcore is coming later. The date being floated for editions' early name reservation is October 27, but Blizzard hasn't confirmed it in writing yet.
