Cataclysm release date set for December 7
by Alex Ziebart 
Oct 4th 2010 at 9:50AM
Press ReleaseIRVINE, Calif., Oct 04, 2010 (BUSINESS WIRE) - Blizzard Entertainment, Inc. today announced that World of Warcraft(R): Cataclysm(TM), the highly anticipated third expansion for the world's most popular subscription-based massively multiplayer online role-playing game*, will be released starting on December 7, 2010. The expansion will be available on DVD-ROM for Windows(R) XP/Windows Vista(R)/Windows(R) 7 and Macintosh(R) at a suggested retail price of $39.99 and will also be offered as a digital download from the Blizzard Store. A special Collector's Edition packed with bonus items will be available exclusively in retail stores for a suggested retail price of $79.99.
"Cataclysm includes the best content we've ever created for World of Warcraft. It's not just an expansion, but a re-creation of much of the original Azeroth, complete with epic new high-level adventures for current players and a redesigned leveling experience for those just starting out," said Mike Morhaime, CEO and cofounder of Blizzard Entertainment. "With the help of our beta testers, we're putting on the final polish, and we look forward to welcoming gamers around the world to enjoy it in just a couple of months."
The first two World of Warcraft expansions, The Burning Crusade(R) and Wrath of the Lich King(R), each shattered PC game sales records upon their release.* In Cataclysm, the face of Azeroth will be forever altered by the return of the corrupted Dragon Aspect Deathwing. Players will explore once-familiar areas of the world that have now been reshaped by the devastation and filled with new adventures. In an effort to survive the planet-shattering cataclysm, two new playable races - worgen and goblins - will join the struggle between the Alliance and the Horde. As players journey to the new level cap of 85, they'll discover newly revealed locations, acquire new levels of power, and come face to face with Deathwing in a battle to determine the fate of the world.
The beta test for World of Warcraft: Cataclysm is currently underway. Visit the official Battle.net(R) website at http://www.battle.net to set up a Battle.net account and sign up for a chance to participate. To learn more about World of Warcraft: Cataclysm, visit http://www.worldofwarcraft.com/cataclysm.
"Cataclysm includes the best content we've ever created for World of Warcraft. It's not just an expansion, but a re-creation of much of the original Azeroth, complete with epic new high-level adventures for current players and a redesigned leveling experience for those just starting out," said Mike Morhaime, CEO and cofounder of Blizzard Entertainment. "With the help of our beta testers, we're putting on the final polish, and we look forward to welcoming gamers around the world to enjoy it in just a couple of months."
The first two World of Warcraft expansions, The Burning Crusade(R) and Wrath of the Lich King(R), each shattered PC game sales records upon their release.* In Cataclysm, the face of Azeroth will be forever altered by the return of the corrupted Dragon Aspect Deathwing. Players will explore once-familiar areas of the world that have now been reshaped by the devastation and filled with new adventures. In an effort to survive the planet-shattering cataclysm, two new playable races - worgen and goblins - will join the struggle between the Alliance and the Horde. As players journey to the new level cap of 85, they'll discover newly revealed locations, acquire new levels of power, and come face to face with Deathwing in a battle to determine the fate of the world.
The beta test for World of Warcraft: Cataclysm is currently underway. Visit the official Battle.net(R) website at http://www.battle.net to set up a Battle.net account and sign up for a chance to participate. To learn more about World of Warcraft: Cataclysm, visit http://www.worldofwarcraft.com/cataclysm.
Filed under: Cataclysm
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 14)
Aaron Oct 4th 2010 9:52AM
/request a few days off.
/squeeeeeeeee
Aaron Oct 4th 2010 10:02AM
This was posted a few days ago in another comment section, but one of our fellow commenters deserves a pony (or a moose mount (come on GC you know you wanna give us a moose mount)): http://www.wowhead.com/blog=169603
Rakah Oct 4th 2010 10:10AM
I wonder if the download will be available at right away.
Emile Oct 4th 2010 10:23AM
I just read it and my jaw fell open... Sneaky Blizzard! 12.7%! (For the people who didn't read the above link contents: on April 8th Blizzard released a press release from High Tinker Mekkatorque stating: the last great threat to the citizens of Azeroth, the chance of any cataclysmic event taking place in the foreseeable future is "less than 12.7%,".) 12.7 - Dec 7th!
But immediately it raised a question, would this quote be some kinda hidden sign too?
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High Tinker Mekkatorque says: We've secured the surface! Operation: Gnomeregan is proceeding with 93% efficiency...well done, everyone!
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Zabre Oct 4th 2010 10:41AM
That is my Anniversary - think the wife will give me the best gift ever and let me play all night? Yeah, I didn't think so....
Eternalmagic Oct 4th 2010 10:59AM
So a couple of weeks before Christmas. Blizzard isn't stupid :)
John Oct 4th 2010 11:00AM
was that a Catagasm?
Cthulu Oct 4th 2010 11:02AM
Dude if your anniversary is less important than a game launch, you might should find a new girl. Wow is awesome..but that chick will pick your nursing home one day.
Jorges Oct 4th 2010 11:18AM
Well, 9/3 is my Bday. Soo, I hope Mekkatorque has a good surprise that day :D
N-train Oct 4th 2010 11:31AM
Can I request a few days off from finals? Please?
Well maybe I can ask Blizzard to compensate me for the extra semester of college I'm going to need seeing as Blizzard decided to release their freaking awesome expansion the week I have finals.
clundgren Oct 4th 2010 11:36AM
"That is my Anniversary - think the wife will give me the best gift ever and let me play all night? Yeah, I didn't think so...."
Depends what kind of "play" you are talking about. Pro-tip: World of Warcraft is not the answer she'll be looking for.
Faith Trust Oct 4th 2010 11:38AM
Ace all your grades with extra work so you dont need to present finals!
Bethontheharbor Oct 4th 2010 11:39AM
December 7th, 2010
- a date which will live in infamy
- the kingdoms of Azeroth were suddenly and deliberately attacked
by Elemental and Magical forces of Deathwing the Destroyer!
So are we as players somehow going to get Pearl Harbored?
just kidding, interesting release date.
Ok lets pay off those bets now folks.
(cutaia) Oct 4th 2010 11:41AM
"Ok lets pay off those bets now folks."
http://wow.joystiq.com/2010/09/02/the-queue-predicting-the-cataclysm-release-date/comments/30206389/
I take cash, checks and credit cards. But not Discover.
Ikarus Oct 4th 2010 11:43AM
Day before my birthday, but close enough. Thanks Blizz :)
Untflanked Oct 4th 2010 12:09PM
Cutaia=GC, for sure mon'.
Can you get me a Moose too?
Tokkar Oct 4th 2010 12:14PM
Excited about the release date? Yes, I am.
Excited about that particular date? No, I am not.
1) it seems a month later than it should be
2) Blizzard seems to be rather insensitive in picking it
Let me expound on #2 - the Pearl Harbor Day reference was mentioned by Bethontheharbor, above. As one of the "older generation" of players (I'm 44), I may not have been alive when we were attacked by the Japanese at the tail end of WWII, but I did lose a family member in that attack. My great uncle's body is entombed in the USS Arizona.
Given what will happen to Azeroth upon Deathwing's emergence, and given the release date, I just find this to be Blizzard being incredibly obtuse. It may just be coincidental, but I somehow doubt it. Come on...a TUESDAY???
Would I like to see the date changed? You betcha. If they're confident enough to announce an official release date, they're confident enough to release it a little earlier. Have it ready for the "official start of the holiday shopping season" - November 26th!
Tinious Oct 4th 2010 12:35PM
"Come on...a TUESDAY???"
Uhhhhh.... Tuesday is always patch day -- and perfect to work out major kinks before weekend traffic hits...
Dan Oct 4th 2010 12:32PM
Tokkar,
I suppose you're the same person who complained when WotLK was released on November 13, the same day that, in 1985, the eruption of the volcano Nevado del Ruiz in Colombia caused a glacier (like the ones in Northrend) to melt, killing approximately 23,000 people. It could have been coincidence, but it did seem a bit insensitive at the time.
(cutaia) Oct 4th 2010 12:36PM
"It may just be coincidental, but I somehow doubt it. Come on...a TUESDAY???"
Tuesday, November 23, 2004: Release of World of Warcraft
Tuesday, January 16, 2007: Release of The Burning Crusade
Thursday, November 13, 2008: Release of Wrath of the Lich King
As you can see, non-Tuesday releases are actually the outlier here.
November 23rd, 1946: French Navy fire in Hai Phong, Viet Nam, kills 6,000 civilians.
November 23rd, 1980: A series of earthquakes in southern Italy kills approximately 4,800 people.
November 23rd, 1985: Gunmen hijack EgyptAir Flight 648 while en route from Athens to Cairo. When the plane lands in Malta, Egyptian commandos storm the hijacked jetliner, but 60 people die in the raid.
November 23rd, 1996: Ethiopian Airlines Flight 961 is hijacked, then crashes into the Indian Ocean off the coast of Comoros after running out of fuel, killing 125.
January 16th, 1942: Crash of TWA Flight 3, killing all 22 aboard, including film star Carole Lombard.
January 16th, 1991: The United States goes to war with Iraq, beginning the Gulf War (U.S. Time).
November 13th, 1887: Bloody Sunday clashes in central London.
November 13th, 1965: The SS Yarmouth Castle burns and sinks 60 miles off Nassau with the loss of 90 lives.
November 13th, 1985: The volcano Nevado del Ruiz erupts and melts a glacier, causing a lahar (volcanic mudslide) that buries Armero, Colombia, killing approximately 23,000 people.
November 13th, 1990: In Aramoana, New Zealand, David Gray shoots dead 13 people, in what becomes known as the Aramoana Massacre.
It's a fact of life. The longer humans exist, the more bad things will happen on all of the 365 arbitrarily named and numbered dates on our calendars. With all due respect and sympathies to you and yours, I do believe that you're over-reacting a bit due to the emotional response of this particular date having more meaning to you than all the other dates on which tragedies have occurred throughout history. We can all agree that Pearl Harbor was a sad event, but I think many people would also concede that this is no reason for life to stop on that date every year.
Terrible things happen all the time. Life goes on. It's what our passed on friends and family would want.