As I created a Hunter in World of Warcraft: Forever for what must be the 100th time by now, the saying 'the definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results' rolled around my head a lot. I've played this game before. A lot. Is Forever truly sufficiently different to be so obsessed again? Well, yes. It's this lovely, warm, flawed, wonderfully infuriating dose of nostalgia. It's simultaneously far improved from the original World of Warcraft and, more recently, World of Warcraft Classic (we'll get into the differences shortly), while leaving you with questions of 'why would you leave that in?'.

Will it convert those who never liked WoW in the first place? Of course not. I don't think that's the point of World of Warcraft: Forever. Instead, it brings home all those slightly lost souls from 20+ years ago (AKA millennials like me who want to return to familiar comfort once more), but with some core improvements. It does that incredibly well and given it has brought back a record number of lapsed players, so far it's succeeding.

Before I dive too deep, let's sum up the differences between World of Warcraft, World of Warcraft Classic, and World of Warcraft Forever so you actually know why the game's important. Retail is best seen as an entirely different beast to Forever. It's very fast-paced, throws nearly as many unlocks at you as a standard game of Fortnite, and is all about leveling up as fast as possible to get to the next part of the story. Getting from level 1 to the level cap of 80 can take just 10 hours if you know what you're doing. It has its place for sure and I really like it, but it's far removed from World of Warcraft's launch years, which is where Classic comes in.

Classic took the game right back to the start and has gradually introduced expansion packs in chronological order. It has a linear progression path, while its leveling process is slow-paced. Each level is richly earned and you'll spend around 200 hours or more playing to reach the level cap of 70. Crucially, not much has been done to spruce anything up. There are some odd UI choices, it looks increasingly dated, and it feels old. It's familiar and fun but also fairly rough around the edges once you start looking.

World of Warcraft: Forever takes what many loved about Classic, but with some key quality-of-life improvements. Player level is permanently capped at 60 with horizontal rather than vertical progression. Oh, and there's a new race called the Skyborne and a bunch of new race/class combinations. You'd be forgiven for thinking Forever still sounds a lot like Classic from this brief overview. It kind of is. But, it's better. This feels like a take on World of Warcraft Classic fans like me wanted, truer to the original experience but willing to remix its approach to deliver new sensations as well.

Hours together

I spent dozens of hours playing the World of Warcraft: Forever beta, and I've already put dozens more into the full release. I'm not alone either. Friends are excited about it again and the servers are packed. I've yet to see them prohibitively packed though. Forever uses a new layering system whereby players pick how they want to play the game (Normal, PvP, or Roleplay) and that's it. There are no pesky issues with 'oh no, my friend chose a different server to me and now we can't play' with the game shrewdly keeping an eye on its layers and moving people around as and when that layer gets full to the point it would degrade the play experience.

It mostly works. Early on, friends and I found that we had to manually reset the layer by logging out and back into the game, but after the first day, it worked seamlessly. Such a move is an early example of how Forever is designed to be far more accessible for all.

Right from the start, you're actually guided through the game with a helpful early tutorial teaching you how to move, attack, and what to do when you die for the first time. As a veteran player, I didn't need it, but I could see the substantial benefit. Retail has a tutorial, but Classic never bothered with one. Another point in favor of this iteration.

Diving in is a beautiful experience once more, especially if you roll one of the new Skyborne race characters. Affectionately referred to as blue Smurfs, these elves are wondrous. They look great amongst a game with improved looking models but none that can rival this new race. You can play either as Alliance or Horde with the Skyborne, with Druid, Hunter, Rogue, and Warrior available for all, while Horde and Alliance have Mage and Shaman classes at their disposal respectively.

There are specific Skyborne racial abilities which are useful too. Walk on Air allows you to glide in the air for 10 seconds which I found a great timesaver when wanting to fall from high distances. There's also Skysight for Horde which boosts run speed by 10%, while Alliance can activate a ley line and gain 100% increased health and mana regeneration for a time. Throughout my time playing WoW, I tend to forget to use my racial abilities – but these are the kind of skills I didn't want to miss out on.

Embrace your inner elf

Skyborne also has some delightful new animations such as a unique dance, a cute cheer, and a more appealing jump than most. Druids get new forms as well. It all feels very fresh once more. After extensively leveling with Skyborne, I didn't want to go back to the legacy races. The Skyborne starter zone of Zephras Isle is luscious. It has that typical World of Warcraft feel to it but it's sprawling, colorful, and a gorgeous reflection of how far games have come.

The water effects across the game are more realistic with waves moving naturally, and the lighting reflecting how it should be compared to real life. Even the audio is slightly muffled when you're underwater, although I found I needed good headphones to absorb this fully. There are some great looking weather effects too. Seeing The Barrens on a hot summer's day then the next day encountering bad storms and fog is special.

None of this would matter much if Forever wasn't fun but it is so much fun. Right now, everyone in-game is as welcoming as they were during the original days. I easily found pickup groups but also I'd have random players resurrect me just because they could, or toss me a heal at a key moment. Another time, I was boarding a zeppelin outside of Orgrimmar and the ship was full of shamans in wolf form dancing and encouraging everyone else to join in.

After years of World of Warcraft feeling lonely and more of a solo MMO, Forever has united players again. At points, I'd be in a silent group, but at others, we'd chat and share our experiences. My Hunter teamed up with a Druid for one quest, and even though neither of us spoke the same language so we communicated through emotes. It was a beautiful moment when we succeeded.

There are new dungeons too covering all level ranges. Hall of Thanes is an early addition for levels 13-18 and it isn't just a matter of 'run and smash' with a bit more strategy easing you into the dungeon mentality, before hitting Ruins of Lordaeron at 15-20, Excavation Site: Wetlands in the 20s, and more beyond that. There's a rich variety here with experience bonuses varying a little while Blizzard balances things. I don't live in dungeons but I've enjoyed diving in to break up the exploration side of the game.

Questing unity

Forever also encourages community spirit with its campfire system. Feeling delightfully RPGish, you can plonk down a campfire and share some buffs with other players. It ties into cooking well, but ultimately it gives you a moment to reflect. While exploring, I've come across plenty of players just camping and chilling. It's a nice reminder that you're playing an MMO, an active world full of players making their own way.

There are still predictable moments of tedium, of course. While Forever has much faster respawns than other versions of the game (sometimes too fast to keep up with in quieter areas), quest item drops can be very hit and miss. At one point, I spent a disproportionate amount of time trying to collect satyr horns from mobs. I needed 16. They only seemed to drop about every 10 mobs despite me being able to see the horns on the satyrs. A boring reminder that sometimes, you'll still be simply grinding away in-game rather than absorbing those beautiful moments of unity.

Combat is mostly much how it's always been. There's autoattack via one key press (or button on the action bar) and then you choose other actions such as casting a particular spell, buff, or special attack.

There's now gamepad support which has opened the game up to unofficial Steam Deck support via a few tweaks. I found this worked well enough. Much like Final Fantasy 14's implementation of gamepad support on console, I wouldn't fancy my chances using a gamepad during more intense moments such as dungeons or raids. It's just not quite as precise or as speedy as a traditional mouse and keyboard setup. It is handy for casual play though, and for those times you don't want to be hunched over your keyboard. Ultimately, more choice is only ever a good thing.

Curiously, while Forever has made the game smaller by not implementing expansion packs, it also feels much bigger as exploration is mostly conducted on foot until you can afford a ground mount (no flying mounts here) but it means everything you achieve feels richly earned.

For the most part, Forever is a wondrous success. The game I'm itching to play more of even though it's all I've done for days. There are so many good tweaks that make it better than Classic. A recent ally alert pops up next to players you've recently grouped with, there's Discord integration which was previously only on Retail, and the quest limit is now up to 40 from 20 (incredibly convenient if you're like me and stockpile quest hand-ins).

The promised 1,000 or so new quests are interspersed nicely with many of the early ones linking together zones more cohesively, and introducing professions and other valuable skills well. Some simply provide you with good gear like bags or a weapon that helps you feel strong for a few levels. All the new quests I've experienced feel like they deserved to be there rather than feeling like filler to pad out the experience.

I'm curious about what will happen further down the line for the game. There's a roadmap lined up for new raids in December before we get even more new raids, dungeons, and quests in 2027, so the next 12 months should be pretty exciting. From there, who knows? WoW: Forever focuses on horizontal progression so we won't see a level cap increase but that makes sense for a game that's all about the journey rather than the destination.

As in life, it's a smart move to enjoy the ride rather than think too far ahead and I haven't had this much fun with World of Warcraft in decades. Sometimes that's all you need. Now, if you'll excuse me, I have a Skyborne Hunter seeking my attention. I want to make some new gear for my guild and get raid ready. The good times are finally back.

World of Warcraft: Forever was reviewed on PC, with a code provided by the publisher.

Planning to play forever? Check out our best open world games and best RPGs rankings for more to play now, and keep an eye on our upcoming RPGs calendar for what's on the horizon!

Blizzard is meeting gold-starved World of Warcraft: Forever players halfway by making more quests more generous regarding the resource. That said, an old feature that plenty used to grind gold is staying gone.

When WoW: Forever launched, players racing to level up as swiftly as possible found that the XP-to-gold conversion for quests completed at max level was no longer present. If you'd like a quick history lesson, Blizzard added the feature to OG WoW before Burning Crusade launched, and it worked simply – once you're at max level, you get gold instead of XP.

The decision not to include that feature in World of Warcraft: Forever hasn't been popular. As such, Blizzard has made an appearance online to explain some of its rationale.

"We left that functionality in place in Classic Era in 2019, but we decided that for WoW: Forever, we would remove the XP-to-Gold conversion, as it created an incentive for players to hold a full quest log worth of completed quests to hand in after hitting level 60 for maximum gold returns," community lead Randy "Kaivax" Jordan explains in a forum post. "Under those conditions, the optimal way for players to level to 60 was to simply grind creatures for XP and not hand in quests at all, which is not a design we want to retain in WoW: Forever."

Jordan continues by explaining that one thing Blizzard did not account for, however, is that only 25% quests in the original World of Warcraft actually provide raw gold rewards. So on that front, Blizzard is saying, yeah, actually you might have a point if you think the MMO is being stingy.

But hopefully not any longer. Blizzard has now released a World of Warcraft: Forever patch that ensures most quests at level 48 and above now additionally reward gold. That said, don't expect the return of XP-to-gold conversion, as "it would be inappropriate" to have players keep hold of quests rather than hand them in.

"This change brings high-level quests in line with the rest of questing in WoW: Forever, with the goal of giving players a good reason to complete those quests while leveling up to 60 and thereafter," Blizzard explains in a new patch post. "Quests that were not affected by this change include those that already reward valuable items, repeatable quests, and those that don't provide significant rewards because they're quick, easy, or trivial to complete."

World of Warcraft: Forever is out now.

Blizzard knows World of Warcraft: Forever’s faction restrictions in PvP are "frustrating," is doing them anyway because "PvP is at its best when the Alliance and Horde are on equal footing."

In times past, being on road as a touring musician during a big game or expansion launch likely meant missing out until you were home. Not any more, as evidenced by the support for modern technical death metal giants Archspire making time for World of Warcraft: Forever while the band is performing on-stage.

Video evidence was posted by the group on Instagram. The footage shows Justin McKinney, guitarist in support band The Zenith Passage, actively playing Forever on his Steam Deck right at side-stage to Archspire's headlining performance.

"POV: World of Warcraft: Forever comes out on the same day as the show," reads the start of the clip, the caption adding: "When your set starts at [21:00], but you just zoned into Undercity to pick up your Voidwalker quest so you can pet-tank your way through Fenris Isle."

Tech-death in the vein of both Archspire and The Zenith Passage often soundtracks my RPG exploits, especially when I have to do a bit of grinding or push through some early game fluff. Getting the soundtrack live while you plow down rot hide gnolls would be legendary.

Although Forever is designed around vanilla World of Warcraft anyway, making it less hardware-intensive to run, it's nice that it runs so smoothly on the Steam Deck. These bands will have easier jobs maintaining their characters in Azeroth while touring around than George 'Corpsegrinder' Fisher, the vocalist for Cannibal Corpse, would've had back in the day.

Fisher's an old school WoW enthusiast, with the Horde tattoo to prove it. At one point there was an NPC named after him in tribute to his diehard fandom. Going handheld for Cannibal Corpse's jaunts around the world would've been like science fiction back in 2008, yet here we are. The future is cool sometimes.

If you've not checked out The Zenith Passage or Archspire, or their tourmates in Crown Magnetar and Analepsy, I'd recommend all four. Archspire's latest album, Too Fast To Die, is a strong start, though I think I rank Bleed The Future higher. Datalysium is where to go for The Zenith Passage, Everything Bleeds is Crown Magnetar at their filthiest yet, ditto for Quiesence by Analepsy.

For a bonus recommendation on Cannibal Corpse: Gore Obsessed. Thank me later. These aren't the only ones getting down while folk are in the pit; a tech for metalcore crew Cane Hill uses his PC to run around Forever during the band's performances right now.

I've inquired about McKinney's games setup while he's travelling, and what the preferred character builds for everyone else in the touring party. I'll keep you updated, and there are still a few European dates on this run - check 'em out if you can.

Blizzard knows World of Warcraft: Forever’s faction restrictions in PvP are "frustrating," is doing them anyway because "PvP is at its best when the Alliance and Horde are on equal footing"

World of Warcraft: Forever has suffered a bit of a PvP debacle since its official release last week, with faction imbalance drama hitting a high – but Blizzard is working to remedy it.

Yes, the studio is well aware of the issue – one that, if you're out of the loop yourself, has seen folks complaining about everything from too many Horde players to unplayable PvP realms – and a recent update on its official forums proves as much.

"It's vitally important that the PvP rulesets in WoW: Forever have balanced factions where both factions vie for supremacy," it begins, and I'd certainly agree there. "Creating memories of epic victories and stunning defeats that we all remember for years to come," after all, is what it's all about.

Blizzard says that that ideal balance, however, isn't there – even if it is "close," so to speak: "While even the most extreme case in a region is currently at roughly a 55/45 split, that is not as close as we want it to be."

In turn, the developers are rolling out some changes… and, unsurprisingly, restrictions.

"To better set the stage for the neck-and-neck conflicts we all want, we've adjusted the character creation system to better recognize the overall state of faction balance in each region's PvP rulesets, rather than what may feel like snapshots of points in time," Blizzard explains.

"Our goal is to bring things as close to a 50/50 faction balance as possible." And, yes, this means you can't create characters willy-nilly.

"In the short term, that means that it will become increasingly difficult to create characters on the more populous faction in each region – currently Horde on North American PvP rulesets or Alliance in EU Roleplay-PvP," as the devs say.

"As everyone settles and shifts, these may flip to the other side," though. It might be a bit annoying to Horde hopefuls in the US or those who prefer teaming up with the Alliance in Europe, but it makes sense.

In Blizzard's own words, "We recognize that while restrictions are in place, it can be frustrating to not be able to start playing a specific faction in that moment, but this is a necessary trade-off for the long-term health of the ruleset, especially early on when guilds are being established and rivalries developed."

The current imbalance isn't sustainable, basically, not to mention all of the controversy it's sparking.

Blizzard concludes that "World of Warcraft: Forever's PvP is at its best when the Alliance and Horde are on equal footing, and we are dedicated to helping maintain that balance so that we can all witness battles at the epic scale that has made WoW: Forever PvP so memorable thus far" – and I'm hopeful, personally.

All of the commotion has put me off dipping my toes into PvP, but Blizzard's adjustments might just change that.

Here's hoping we see better balance between the factions in PvP in the days to come in both the US and EU – it's evident that Blizzard's on the case, at least.

Blizzard admits "some zones had become too crowded in WoW: Forever," lowers population in the MMO's areas with the most "significant congestion"

It's no secret that World of Warcraft: Forever is proving one of Blizzard's most popular MMO releases already, boasting its biggest concurrent player launch – but it's a bit too popular for some, with many zones suffering from over-congestion as a result.

The topic has come up time and time again. There are countless threads online flagging how overpopulated WoW: Forever feels, especially in areas like the Redridge Mountains and Duskwood. It's one of the more common gripes folks have voiced since launch last week – and Blizzard knows it.

Associate production director Clay Stone admits as much over on X, writing, "Some zones had become too crowded in WoW Forever."

Ain't that the truth?

"As fun as it is to see a boatload of players everywhere," though, "there was significant congestion in some areas." Developers are working to remedy that. "Earlier today, we lowered the population in the most affected zones, especially on the PvP ruleset."

Stone links to Blizzard's official post on the matter, which outlines how the studio "lowered the population of players in various zones where there was significant congestion."

Blizzard isn't done there, either – and they're aware it's more of a point of contention for PvP players: "We've made this an even bigger change on the PvP ruleset, following feedback from players that they felt overcrowded in several places. We will continue to monitor how zones feel and make further adjustments as necessary."

It's a start to remedying PvP issues, at least, I suppose, amid all of the PvP faction imbalance drama.

Comments on Stone's words on the whole overpopulation subject are positive overall, too, with the top reply reading, "Appreciate all your transparency and hard work." Others hope Blizzard will come in with more tweaks.

"Nothing wrong with reducing players in some areas," as one response says, "although I do hope spawn rates in mines and caves also get reduced." Perhaps they will for better balance – who knows?

World of Warcraft: Forever devs address dungeon XP backlash with 50% boost – but fans of the MMO aren't satisfied with Blizzard's solution

It's only been a couple of months that we've known about the existence of Diablo 5, and as such there are a ton of open questions about the direction it'll take. Blizzard teased a few fundamentals during BlizzCon 2026, like the fact that it'll take place in a Sanctuary that's been completely overtaken by Diablo and his minions, and that there will no longer be any traditional towns or safe havens to hide from the bad guys. It's been clear to me that Blizzard is doubling down on the horror-driven bleakness that defined the first game in the series, and there are blatant call-backs to the series' roots in the itemization and procedurally generated environments, but there's still a lot left unanswered about what it'll be like to actually play Diablo 5.

Chris Wilson, co-creator of Path of Exile and noted Diablo 2 mega fan, has been encouraged by everything Blizzard has shown of Diablo 5, but has one concern based on the messaging so far. Referencing comments from Diablo leadership at this year's BlizzCon suggesting Blizzard is surveying all generations of players from Diablo 1 to 4, Wilson says he's worried Blizzard might be trying to appeal to too many different audiences at once. He points out that Blizzard didn't even label Diablo an action-RPG series until Diablo 2: Lord of Destruction, and that Diablo 3 and 4 each appeal to a different type of player as well.

"This means that when you survey Diablo players and say 'what would you like in a Diablo 5, how can we get you to play it?', you're gonna get many different answers, and I worry that some of these answers might be slightly mutually exclusive," Wilson says in an interview with Destin Legarie. "I'm optimistic by what they showed because there's heavy Diablo 2 signaling, and that's really cool. I just would urge caution, of, it's OK to not appeal to every Diablo player as long as the product that's made is really fun for the core audience you're targeting, and I'm sure they are thinking of the core audience. Like, I'm simplifying it a lot here, but that's my one worry, really, that they go a bit too broad.

"There's a saying, if you make a game for everyone, you make a game for no one," Wilson concludes.

I understand where Wilson's coming from as a fellow Diablo 1+2 diehard, but it seems a little premature to be worrying about a too-safe Diablo 5 based on such limited information. There are all sorts of reasons a developer might survey fans of a series from different entry points, and regardless of Blizzard's reasoning, everything we've seen so far points to the darkest Diablo yet, which if anything stands in stark contrast to a game like Diablo 3. Meanwhile, the aforementioned return to procedural generation and Diablo 2-style itemization further suggests an embrace of the series' roots rather than some broad-strokes appeal to every generation of Diablo player.

This could very well be pure hopium, but the overall vibe I'm getting as a lifelong Diablo player, and as someone who attended this year's BlizzCon and spoken directly with Blizzard, is that the original Diablo is at the forefront of the studio's mind as it works on Diablo 5. To be very, very clear, that's just the collective impression that's formed in my head over dozens of interviews, panels, and videos scanned, and not something I was explicitly told by Blizzard, but it's exactly what I'm hoping for nonetheless.

Diablo 4's nostalgic new season has convinced me that we need a Diablo 1 remake more than Diablo 5

World of Warcraft: Forever continues to soar, boasting Blizzard's biggest concurrent player launch in its MMO's history – but it hasn't come without controversy, especially in PvP, where players report a heck of an imbalance.

So, what imbalance would that be? Well, it has to do with the game's two factions – because of course it does.

You've got the Alliance and the Horde, each encompassing unique races (and within them, unique racial abilities that prove more powerful in either PvE or PvP), and they're, as always, at war with one another. You can choose to sit it out altogether by picking a realm that's strictly PvE, or opt for a challenge on the PvP server.

The thing is, said challenge isn't fair so far as the chart between Alliance and Horde players is heavily skewed toward the latter – and because of that, folks with Alliance characters aren't able to do… well, much of anything.

As one fan puts it over on Reddit, "PvP realms are currently unplayable as Alliance." They go on to allege "there's literally 50% more Horde" players, and as a result, it's "an unplayable gankfest for Alliance."

Questing feels "impossible" – and they're not alone in thinking so. Another thread argues that "faction imbalance is going to kill the PvP server," worrying that "if nothing changes, this will only get worse. Alliance players will increasingly quit or reroll PvE, further worsening the imbalance and encouraging even more Alliance players to leave."

They fear "Horde character creation" will end up "permanently locked," too.

This dissatisfaction comes from Blizzard's own past promises of a "faction-balanced PvP server" – and, again, it's visible just about everywhere online right now… even on the studio's official forums, where players similarly declare "The faction imbalance in WoW: Forever PvP is MASSIVE."

They beg Blizzard "PLEASE DO NOT LIFT THE HORDE FACTION LOCK," saying "restrictions need to remain STRICTLY enforced" for the time being.

It's a lot, to put it lightly, and it's evidently on many players' minds. While I'm not a PvPer myself, I'd wager Blizzard will have to address the debacle further in the future – so, as World of Warcraft: Forever churns on, we might see sort of fix soon.

World of Warcraft: Forever devs address dungeon XP backlash with 50% boost – but fans of the MMO aren't satisfied with Blizzard's solution

Although World of Warcraft: Forever has brought back a record number of lapsed players and boasts the biggest concurrent player launch in the MMO's history, fans aren't entirely pleased with it – or, at least, not with Blizzard's treatment of dungeons.

The point of contention here isn't Forever's inclusion of dungeons or the way that any of the nine new group activities play out – it's to do with the heavy nerfs that Blizzard applied to experience points players can gain from killing enemies inside the dungeons.

These rolled in over WoW: Forever's Beta period, when developers cut XP earned in dungeons (resulting in a massive gap between them and Classic's own dungeons) to encourage questing.

Those cuts were not popular, to say the least, spurring discussion among fans questioning why there was such a difference between WoW: Forever and Classic in terms of dungeon XP – and, evidently, Blizzard's been listening.

Just yesterday, the studio confirmed as much, writing on its forums, "We deployed a hotfix that increased kill experience in dungeons by 50%, so it feels better to go back in for more runs."

The thing is, however… that's still not enough for lots of folks.

A thread on the matter over on Reddit proves so, with comments expressing discontent despite Blizzard's hotfix. It still leaves a lot of room when considering Classic's dungeon XP.

As one person asks, "So 37.5% instead of 25% of Classic?" Another adds, "Great that they are listening. But it seems like that would still be a big nerf compared to normal exp?"

A separate post pokes fun at the situation with a meme, outlining how dungeon XP is "still only 1/3 of Classic" – oof. Replies are similar to those aforementioned, with one exclaiming that "Blizzard's shamelessly bad at math or they're trolling."

Unfortunately, I'm not sure it's either myself. I do think the aim was to balance dungeon XP with questing, but it's clear this might not have been the best way to go about striking this hoped-for balance.

I wouldn't be too surprised if we saw more changes roll out to World of Warcraft: Forever with how the community is reacting to Blizzard's first remedy to its brutal dungeon XP nerfs – but I suppose only time will tell for certain.

World of Warcraft: Forever devs say "this launch was crazier than the insanity we imagined" as MMO fans dub it "the smoothest WoW launch" ever.

World of Warcraft: Forever is one of the rare big-budget online game launches that seems to have mostly gone down without a hitch. Not only has the MMO been well-received critically and by players, it's also been an exceptionally smooth release from a performance standpoint as well, with the MMO community dubbing it "the smoothest WoW launch ever." And yet, in the early days of the dev team's pitching process, it took some convincing to get Blizzard leadership on-board with yet another WoW branch.

Talking to Bloomberg, Blizzard senior game designer Josh Greenfield says it wasn't until the dev team showed off the project's new lighting system and updated visuals in a very specific area of the map that everyone was sold. Working with the 2023 WoW Classic update, Season of Discovery, as a concept, the dev team cooked up an updated version of the Northshire Abbey zone, calling it a "beautiful corner" and visual showcase for the people making the calls.

"There were a lot of people who were diehard, original Classic players on the team who were skeptical," Greenfield says. "And we knew we had something special when we showed them that 'beautiful corner' and they said, 'OK, yeah, I’m in.'"

For the uninitiated, or just for anyone confused about there being three distinct WoW branches now, WoW: Forever is essentially the version of the MMO that launched in 2004 but with dramatically upscaled visuals and new features that were never added to the vanilla release. It's distinct from WoW: Classic, which continues on a parallel track to the original release, meaning it gets the same updates and expansions that followed way back when. In other words, WoW: Forever is staying in 2004 Azeroth permanently and keeping the old 60 level cap, but adding new dungeons and quality of life features, while WoW: Classic is continually being updated exactly how the vanilla WoW was from 2004 on.

World of Warcraft: Forever's devs are preserving "meaningful friction" and going "beyond consoles", giving us 7 reasons to be excited for launch: "We don't know what's going to happen"

World of Warcraft: Forever was finally released into the wild yesterday, and it's safe to say it already stands as one of Blizzard's best launches – if not the best - according to fans.

Although the Beta has been available to play for some time now (if you've paid at least $30 to access it and the controversial Skyborne race, that is), the MMO didn't launch in full until this week – and boy, is it leaving its mark already.

The World of Warcraft subreddit proves as much, with one poster describing how the "WoW: Forever launch is the smoothest WoW launch I have ever played," and many others like it.

Over on X, developers themselves have taken note of this sentiment, with World of Warcraft executive producer and vice president Holly Longdale writing, "At the risk of jinxing things, so far so goodish which is crazy by itself. The team prepared a lot since the wildness of Beta. And this launch was crazier than the insanity we imagined but thankfully the team built plans and contingencies. They are incredible imo."

She's not wrong. Blizzard has been hard at work on its spin-off MMO, having recently announced some class changes and saying, "our aim in class design is not perfect numerical equality," with promises to introduce more "over the course of the months and years ahead."

Before that, there were racial ability tweaks and other adjustments, too. It's been a process, to say the least, and Longdale isn't alone in acknowledging it from the dev side.

Senior game designer Josh Greenfield is celebrating it and WoW: Forever's successful launch thus far as well with his own post.

"Long day but great day today," it reads, with the dev going on to reveal that Blizzard's work is far from over. After all, a successful launch doesn't mean a perfect one.

First, he notes, "We had some issues with the service that manages transports like boats and zeppelins," which led to a "temp fix." This saw Blizzard spawn "some portals to get us through the night," but a proper fix is coming.

Then, there's the issue of population. "We are aware some zones feel more empty than they should," as Greenfield writes. "Tomorrow we'll be tweaking some numbers to make things feel more lively."

He then thanks folks for "making this a great, super smooth launch" – and it's evident, again, that folks largely feel the same on that point.

Heck, the top comment exclaims it's the "smoothest WoW launch ever," declaring Blizzard "crushed it!" Others say devs "knocked it out of the park," and I'd be inclined to agree.

Last World of Warcraft: Forever patch before public release sends fan-run Shaman Discord server into lockdown: "Class fantasies are getting destroyed"

It's a day ending in 'Y' because members of the wider World of Warcraft community are annoyed about Blizzard's decision-making. This time, it's a number of fans of the Shaman class, who feel the latest attunement in World of Warcraft: Forever undermines their beloved elemental spellcasters, with a prominent Discord server literally locking itself down in response.

The Shaman is among the classes affected by the latest patch for the World of Warcraft: Forever beta. There are various tweaks and fine-tuning ahead of today's public release, and they aren't going down well with Shaman fanatics.

Yesterday, the Classic Shaman Discord server announced it would close its doors indefinitely because of "how the developers are approaching all Shaman specs in World of Warcraft: Forever," according to a moderator announcement reposted on social media. "Community feedback gets completely ignored and class fantasies are getting destroyed," the statement continues.

"With this we intend to give them a sign and show them, that the community is not okay with how they approached our beloved class," the mod finishes.

The relationship between Blizzard and World of Warcraft players has been colorful since the MMORPG first launched. Antics like this are not unusual, and whether it yields any results is up in the air.

This move isn't going down well among other fans, either. "The WoW community has some of the most hysterical man-children in gaming," says one tweet. "As if Blizzard even cares about the class discord servers."

Another on Reddit sees the debacle as a blessing. "The more of these types of players decide not to play the game, the healthier the game will be," says a commenter. If you decided to give Forever a look, I can tell you one class to avoid, at the very least.

With World of Warcraft: Forever, Blizzard promises "our aim in class design is not perfect numerical equality"

A frustrating aspect of any creative process is having a good idea, but not the right means to execute it. Thankfully, if you're a studio the size of Blizzard, you can transfer mechanics across series if something's good but not quite fitting into the game it was designed for, which is how a notion for Diablo 3 wound up becoming central to an encounter in World of Warcraft.

Wyatt Cheng, a former game director at Blizzard, went through what happened on his Instagram account. In 2004, he was part of the devs working on Diablo 3, and they started experimenting with what set enemies might look like, as in ones that followed the logic of wearing green equipment to get an added bonus.

"Maybe a set monster pack is four enemies with one ability each, and each monster would grant its ability to the other three upon death," he explains. "We prototyped it internally. It was not fun."

He mentions that Diablo players don't tend to pay as much attention to the creatures they're battling on-screen, always going for the fastest kill and the best loot. The transfer of abilities would frequently go unnoticed.

Then, Cheng was transferred from Blizzard North after Diablo 3 was put on ice to assist in making the then-rapidly growing World of Warcraft. He was assigned boss encounters, and one of those battles happened to involve four beefy bros players would have to face, the Anubisath Sentinels at the Temple of Ahn'Qiraj. "Every single reason set monsters failed in Diablo was solved right here," he says.

To give some RNG, he made it so the Anubisath each randomly pick from a pool of eight abilities, forcing players to carefully assess each encounter. Everything fit, and Cheng learned that sometimes context is all it takes to make an idea shine.

Blizzard finally sees sense and caves to Diablo 4 players, increases Prime Evil Splinter stack size by 9900%

As World of Warcraft: Forever nears its big release tomorrow, Blizzard continues its work on the new MMO spin-off to address fans' growing feedback from the Beta – particularly when it comes to classes and their identities.

World of Warcraft has always done well to ensure every class feels unique and brings something to the table that others don't. It's the mark of a good MMO, after all, and Forever will offer no exception there.

In the latest roundup of Beta development notes from Blizzard, the developers make as much clear, explaining that "trying to hold ourselves roughly to Classic power budgets for each class" hasn't been simple.

Every new addition came "at the expense of something else," and "those reductions left some iconic abilities feeling lackluster, and closed the door to other potentially exciting design options. So over the last two weeks, we've raised damage on classes across the game, and have increased the health of higher level creatures to compensate. This additional 'headroom' has allowed us to tune things to a place that we hope feels better overall."

As for this latest round of changes, it "reflects areas where we were likely hasty in turning to Burning Crusade – or Wrath-era solutions rather than carving out new ones that better fit into the Forever combat model. Our aim in class design is not perfect numerical equality, but rather for every class to feel valuable to the groups they join, with powerful, unforgettable moments brought on by mastering them."

In Forever, in particular, "this is accomplished by doubling down on the strengths and differences that make each class unique, rather than overly unifying them."

Blizzard lists some of this "doubling down," so to speak, detailing changes to everything from the Druid (buffs and new passives, yippee) to the rogue. There's a lot, and that's putting it lightly, so I'd recommend browsing 'em all to see what your class will look like.

It won't all happen at once, either – there's more to come.

"Once we have sufficient data from players leveling past 30 and engaging in a wide range of content, we expect that we will do a large tuning pass based on our data," as the devs admit. "And this is all merely a starting point for the classes in Forever, which will continue to evolve over the course of the months and years ahead just as they did following the original launch in 2004."

That's… pretty darn big, and I'm not alone in thinking so. Over on Reddit, it's clear that fans are happy with Blizzard's news – they just hope they stick by it.

"I really hope they remember and stick to this throughout," one comment reads. "Let some classes be stronger for one raid, and then change things up for the next. As long as everyone gets their moment in the sun, I think some classes falling behind at times is a fair price for keeping things unique."

I'd agree.

Another response echoes this, calling the news "a massive W," while somebody chimes in, "They've learned. Amazing."

I suppose all that's left now is to wait and see how it all unfolds come World of Warcraft: Forever's journey post-launch.

Here's how after 22 long years, World of Warcraft: Forever has finally sold me on Blizzard's undying MMO – and now I never want to leave.

It's amazing to think that World of Warcraft has been around since 2004 yet here we are with a whole new version of the game launching imminently. World of Warcraft: Forever is shaping up to be the WoW you know and love from the original launch days but with some significant quality of life additions that make it feel much more modern and up-to-date. WoW: Forever has already been affectionately referred to as World of Warcraft Classic+ by fans thanks to this combination and it's a potent mix for long-time players. It's nostalgic while improving upon the regular format.

Having spent dozens of hours with WoW Forever and being very excited to play more, I've had plenty of time to consider the differences between WoW: Forever and traditional WoW (which is better known as Retail or Vanilla). With so many different variants of World of Warcraft out there, it's important to know what will appeal to you most. Fortunately, the same subscription covers all types of the MMO so you can always switch around and see for yourself. Here are the 8 ways in which I've found WoW: Forever to be most different from Retail.

8. There's no flying

Having your own flying mount in World of Warcraft is fantastic. It's liberating and means you can move far faster than other methods, but you see far less of the world. It can feel quite clinical simply flying between locations without taking in the journey. Even Holly Longdale, WoW executive producer & vice president, admits that "when you're flying over it, [...] it loses something". Forever has no flying mounts so exploration actually feels adventurous again. Some tweaks have been made to make things safer such as a new boat from Auberdine to Stormwind, but it still feels more mindful and epic than before. It takes a slight mental shift as you need to plan for a 10 minute journey or more, but it's much more satisfying than WoW has felt in a long time.

7. It's a smaller world (but no less exciting)

There are no expansion packs in World of Warcraft: Forever. The world is smaller yet also bigger because of the aforementioned travel changes. The many expansion packs of WoW Retail have meant everyone's spread out so you don't come across as many other players. By reducing the world size in Forever and taking out flying mounts, it actually feels bigger when you're playing. There are no more individual servers either so players simply pick a ruleset and then are placed in the same world. There are also new zones such as Mount Hyjal, Zephras Isle, and Riverglades so there are still new things to explore.

6. Every new item of gear feels huge

World of Warcraft has suffered from something known as gear creep in recent years. New gear drops rapidly with substantial stat boosts. That sounds great but, over time, it means you don't feel excited by a new item of equipment as you end up swapping them out regularly for better stuff. It all feels soulless. Wow: Forever has changed that. Like WoW Classic, better gear is relatively rare but a huge win. You'll cling onto your gear for longer which means when it drops or when you buy it, you'll feel more attached to it. At low levels, even gaining some bags is a gamechanger. It all means you have more attachment to every part of your character.

5. People actually talk and group up

Remember when MMOs required cooperation? Retail is an experience that can almost entirely be soloed which isn't really very MMOish. WoW: Forever's beta saw people team up and actually enjoy themselves again. You can still solo a lot of content, but thanks to the reduced world size and the step away from separate servers, there are players everywhere. Whether that means a bustling general chat (sometimes not so good), or simply finding people to group up with, it means you're finally no longer alone. During the beta, I had players resurrect me just because they could. It's been a nice reminder of the human side of the game.

4. It's a more cohesive experience

Forever has over 1,000 new quests and many of them link different elements of the game better than before. There are quests which guide you towards learning new professions and tradeskills, while others set you up with a bag or some simple but effective weaponry. As you level, you're more accurately encouraged to travel to new zones to level up. It all links together better than before and makes it a more welcoming and also more cohesive experience. If you're interested in Warcraft lore, the more cohesive path is particularly attractive. For newbies, it simply makes it easier to know what to do next.

3. Gaining levels is slower but more satisfying

I've managed to hit the level cap in Retail in about 10 hours. Forever is very different from that. As an efficient player, it took me about 10 hours to hit level 15 with others hitting level 20 in that time. Those timelines change depending on how you play, but it's still clear that Forever is a slower process. That's a good thing as it means you can take in more of the game and become more embroiled in this sprawling world, rather than just speedrun your way to the 'end'. It also means that later levels feel truly earned. Each 'ding' feels like a big win rather than soulless. It's all part of Forever's bid to ensure you claim ownership of your character and it's more than 'just' an avatar.

2. It's more about the journey than the destination

Forever is a calmer experience than Retail. Yes, calmer. That's not something you expect to hear about World of Warcraft, but Forever feels less about the rush to hit the level cap and more about the journey along the way. Exploration is the new focus here as well as getting to know other people. It reminds me of the old days of when WoW first launched. It's exciting and surprisingly fresh for a game you've likely played before. Even little details like the campfire that allows you to gain buffs as a group encourages you to sit and take in the world. It actually feels like a relaxing game at times.

1. There's a permanent level 60 cap

In a bold move, Blizzard has announced that Forever has a permanent level 60 cap. It won't see any expansion packs or an increase in levels. Instead, progression at the level cap will be horizontal rather than vertical which is a bold move in an industry dominated by vertical progression. For me, as a non-hardcore raider, I suspect it means I'll be enjoying the journey a lot and rolling new characters but that's not much different to how I've played over the years. Such a permanent level cap ties in well with the slower pace and the more cohesive world that means you gain genuine attachment to your character rather than simply look to the next level or gear upgrade.

Check out our best open world games, best RPGs rankings, and our games like World of Warcraft recommendations for more to play now, and keep an eye on our upcoming RPGs calendar for what's on the horizon!

With well over 5,000 hours clocked in Final Fantasy 14 and a good few hundred in The Elder Scrolls Online, I'm certainly no stranger to the MMO genre. I've endured many a dungeon, healed through various hardcore raids and trials, and witnessed just about all the cringe-y cat girl roleplaying one could stomach – but somehow, some way, I've not so much as touched World of Warcraft – before WoW: Forever came into the picture, that is.

For years, I resisted Azeroth's allure, as much as I yearned to take up the staff as a Night Elf and experience all the wild chaos Druid had to offer. It all boiled down to FOMO, you see… I was just four years old when World of Warcraft launched, after all, and a plethora of expansions, world changes, and updates (and, ahem, lots of missed pets and mounts I'd have liked to collect) followed, leaving me in the dust.

Or, at least, feeling like I was. I felt the same way about World of Warcraft Classic – as though I had missed a train that I simply had never been ready to board. World of Warcraft: Forever promised to remedy that, introducing me to Blizzard's genre-defining universe as it would perhaps feel if it launched today rather than in 2004 while still maintaining everything that made it such a beloved name in the MMO space in the first place.

And, it's done just that. I've happily been hooked on the WoW: Forever Beta for a month now, learning the ropes as a shameless Skyborne Druid who has never set foot in Azeroth in all her two-plus decades of gaming before… and, guys, I'm loving it so far. The janky 2000s-coded combat, the punny dialogue, the cartoonish animations, and the old-school whimsy of it all. I'm finally sold on the magic that Blizzard's boasted for decades.

It's never too late

Lore implications be damned, I'm doing it all as one of the controversial Skyborne, Blizzard's new elf race (that, yes, will set you back at least $30). Character creation is simple but charming, the sort of experience I'd expect out of an "old" roleplaying game. I choose a periwinkle-blue shade for my skin and a pale pink hair color, tweak my ridiculously luscious eyebrows a bit, and set off into Azeroth as Wisteria, my pointy-eared Druid.

And, I'm confused. Everything is new to me, and there's certainly not the amount of direction and hand-holding I'm used to as a veteran of Final Fantasy 14's Eorzea. Menus are dated, I have to mess about with the interface to get my HUD how I want it to be, and boy, is the sound loud in here. When I finish adjusting things and getting a hang of it all, however, I realize I actually sort of… like it? It scratches this weird nostalgia-induced itch I can't quite put my finger on.

Sure, I never played World of Warcraft, but I remember spending hours on my blocky white PC in Wizard101 – a magical little MMO in its own right – and somehow, WoW: Forever is sending me right back into the shoes of that enamored little girl (very) slowly casting spells over and over again. The visuals help here, too, perfectly capturing the cozy vibes of every ol' enchanting adventure game and RPG I grew up with.

As for the gameplay itself, there's a whole lot of exploring, questing, and, sigh, floating back over to my body as a defeated ghost. It's rewarding in such a simple way, though – one that manages to keep me grinding. Seeing the world alive with other players is just the cherry on top of the cake, even if you don't always get anything out of helping others out.

I enjoy partying up and tackling challenges with my pals, too, thanking the Light that quest drops are a bit more fair and evenly distributed than I've heard they were for OG players back in the day. I also don't feel overwhelmed at all by the leveling up or spell-learning, as it's spaced well enough that I'm able to get the hang of how to deal damage and heal more efficiently (the mana management is admittedly a bit brutal, though).

I'm officially locked into World of Warcraft's tight grips now thanks to Forever, with the whimsical throwback to simpler times that it offers, and I can finally say that I get it – I get why Blizzard's managed to amass such a dedicated decades-old player base, and I'm fully convinced it'll only grow come World of Warcraft: Forever's November 4 release if my experience with the Beta serves as any proof. Now if you'll excuse me, I have some post-questing junk to sell.

Check out our best open world games, best RPGs rankings, and our games like World of Warcraft recommendations for more to play now, and keep an eye on our upcoming RPGs calendar for what's on the horizon!

World of Warcraft: Forever is a brand new entry point to the 22-year-old, beloved MMORPG, but it skipping Xbox despite Microsoft's ownership of the studio, not to mention seamless game pad support, feels like a missed opportunity.

We raised this in a recent conversation with Blizzard for our World of Warcraft: Forever Big Preview, and the answer we got seems to strongly suggest the studio has console plans for its newest MMO. "Play it wherever you want, and at some point on whatever you want," series executive producer and VP Holly Longdale tells us. "But the first leg of that journey is getting game pad working really well with World of Warcraft. We thought Forever was the perfect place to start.

"And, you know, looking at where things are going when we hear about [Xbox] Project Helix, etc., I think platforms will be a bit more ubiquitous. I mean, honestly, we just want to be able to play it anywhere."

Longdale then points to instances of people getting World of Warcraft: Forever to run on handhelds like the ROG Ally X and even a modded Nintendo DS as proof that when she says "anywhere," she really means it.

"I think just doing some of the work on game pad is going to give players a lot of flexibility that goes beyond consoles," she says.

Of course, this messaging from Blizzard echoes Xbox's "play anywhere" program, which lets you play Xbox games on console, PC, and handheld without having to buy them separately. The big question with any Xbox-owned title, World of Warcraft: Forever included, is whether it'll eventually come to competing platforms like PlayStation 5 or Nintendo Switch 2, but that feels like a question for a later date as it's yet to even be confirmed for Xbox yet.

After 20 hours with World of Warcraft: Forever, I'm convinced it gives old-school fans nearly everything they could want

We set out for Azeroth in our World of Warcraft: Forever Big Preview this month, but not quite as we know it. With dev access and hands-on play, we dig into this third game that will sit besides vanilla and Classic.

I loved my dozens of hours hands-on with World of Warcraft Forever so much that I'm itching to dive into the full game. As a long term World of Warcraft veteran (a polite way of calling myself old), I've seen the game go through a lot of changes and iterations, and I'm confident WoW: Forever is shaping up to be the best new version yet. It feels good to return to something so familiar yet somehow so fresh.

Right now, World of Warcraft's community is split between the 'main' experience (also known as Retail by its players) and World of Warcraft Classic – the version for those who preferred the less cluttered earlier days of the game, and my personal favorite option. WoW: Forever is taking the nostalgia of WoW Classic with many of the quality of life additions that Retail brings, and it looks to be an incredibly compelling combination. There's a lot to love here, but I've picked out the eight things that are the true highlights of WoW: Forever and exactly why the legendary MMO is going nowhere any time soon. If you haven't played for a while and you're on the fence ahead of the game's launch on November 4, these eight factors could be exactly what swing you back in favor.

8. Crafters feel like they're playing a new game

Love to make your own equipment and items? WoW: Forever has made that so much more fun. There are a huge number of new crafted items, but they're also far more relevant again. One standout feature is being able to place campfires down and share buffs with anyone who joins you. It creates a sense of community which is something Forever is really pushing. It's actually worth taking a moment to sit down with others, shoot the breeze, and just take a moment to relax in-game. Those buffs can boost your stats making leveling afterwards simpler so it's a win-win situation.

7. It's combining nostalgia with a hefty dash of innovation

You know what the first thing I did in WoW: Forever beta was? I rolled a Night Elf Hunter and checked out Teldrassil, the opening zone for Night Elves. Something I've done over dozens of times since the original's beta in 2004. That's the beauty of Forever. You can just enjoy the nostalgia of the original while also taking in the quality of life improvements that have been much needed in recent years. Or you can roll a Skyborne character and feel like you're playing a whole new game. Variety is the spice of life, but so is comfort and feeling like you're in your happy place. Forever merges those two feelings well so you won't want to leave.

6. There are over 1,000 new quests to explore

World of Warcraft has always needed more quests. Right from the start, this was quickly realized by the development team. Fortunately, we have another 1,000 or more to try out. Some are small, some are big, all are an utter delight to see. During my time with the beta, I found a lot of the new quests bridge knowledge gaps. Some encourage you to learn trade skills or entice you into moving onto a new zone, others might kit you out with new gear which make a significant difference to your progress and leveling experience. You can feel the dots being connected properly with certain areas feeling more well rounded than before.

5. WoW: Forever servers are incredibly simple to understand

MMO veterans of all kinds know the frustration of discovering their friends are all on different servers and they have to commit to one, potentially missing out on some extra social time and definitely requiring them to pick which friends to play with. Servers have been significantly simplified with WoW: Forever. There are no more realms to pick from. Instead, you pick a rule set. Want the standard experience? Pick Normal. If you want PvP, there's a PvP server, while roleplayers can stick to the RP server. Hardcore with its permadeath mode will be added later in the game's lifespan. It's a small sounding step, but one that's just made everyone's life easier. Make sure to choose Alliance or Horde, though. That isn't changing.

4. There are new race/class combos to entice you

WoW: Forever adds a new race with the Skyborne elves packing in a huge new starting zone, but I think the more interesting addition is the new race/class combos. You can now play as an Undead Paladin or an Orc Mage. You can also roll a Human Hunter, Gnome Priest, or Dwarf Shaman. These are all much-requested combinations which expand the variety for both Horde and Alliance, and prove to be a lot of fun too. Undead Paladin is my personal highlight because it's such a quirky mix. It's another example of something about Forever which is going to mean you stick around it for a long time to come.

3. The game looks beautiful all over again

Bounced off World of Warcraft because it never looked pretty enough? That changes with WoW: Forever. It isn't the perfect visual upgrade, but there are some great improvements here. Notably, lighting, fog, and water are all far better looking than ever before. I remember when the game looked beautiful, but it's been a while. It's lovely to see Forever bring back those visual delights. Seeing shadows reflect the day and night cycle, and the water glistening is yet to get old. Zephras Isle, the Skyborne starting zone, looks particularly luscious.

2. There's a huge amount of variety for WoW fans now

There's a WoW for everyone at this point. At heart, these may all have overlapping qualities but it's fantastic value for money given one subscription pays for all modes. There's Retail, and Forever, but also Classic with its wide number of types. You can play pure Classic with its level cap of 60 (something I suspect will be now in direct competition with Forever), Classic Anniversary which unlocks expansion packs sequentially, and then there's Classic Hardcore for those who want to suffer permadeath. (I'm that person, it's me.) With Forever, there's now something for every mood which conveys the sense that WoW will never truly die.

1. It'll make you talk to people

Remember when MMOs required you to talk with strangers? And actually team up with them to achieve things? Over the years, World of Warcraft has become more antisocial. In Retail, it's very easy to hit the level cap without ever speaking to someone if you don't want to. That has benefits, but isn't really in-keeping with the MMO spirit. WoW: Forever gives you a reason to talk. It can still be soloed, so you're not dependent on others, but there's a noticeable shift towards encouraging you to converse with others, team up for more than just dungeons or raids, and actually get to know people. It's a delight to see, and something I hope will last.

Check out our best open world games, best RPGs rankings, and our games like World of Warcraft recommendations for more to play now, and keep an eye on our upcoming RPGs calendar for what's on the horizon!

There's a new World of Warcraft launching next week, and it's not just another expansion. World of Warcraft: Forever is a new pillar for the universe that proves why the series always remains one of the best MMORPGs in the packed genre. Returning to the culture of collaboration and connection that helped define the earliest years of the epic online RPG, it's built with innovation at its heart to make the old feel new again – new graphics, better UI, an expansion's worth of new content including nine new dungeons, two new raids, new zones, talents, and systems.

The launch is imminent, and the WoW: Forever beta has already racked up huge player numbers as lapsed fans return, vanilla players get a dose of nostalgia, and newcomers are finally tempted to experience the magic. In that wake, I caught up with Holly Longdale, executive producer & vice president for World of Warcraft, and Clay Stone, associate production director, to talk about the response to the beta, community expectations, and adding long-awaited controller support.

"There may never be another time where we're standing up on a BlizzCon stage announcing a brand new World of Warcraft and having a response like this. So, trying to take it all in, it's been amazing," says Stone. Join us below as Longdale and Stone take me through everything we need to know before the big Wow: Forever launch next week.

7. The beta was a monumental success…

Holly Longdale tells me that World of Warcraft: Forever had been under consideration for "quite some time." The community spent years asking for 'Classic Plus' and all that time Blizzard was quietly listening, gathering the data and insights it needed to turn a wild idea into a reality. Longdale says the development teams working across World of Warcraft knew that there was a "clear opportunity here", but nothing could have prepared them for such a rapturous response to the beta.

"With every single day that passed, we thought, 'OK, it'll calm down now – it'll be fine.' And then it just kept getting bigger. I'll call it a spark, but I'm not going to call it a lightning strike – just so I don't jinx anything," she laughs. "It was only a beta, but people were treating it like it's live. So we've been kind of hanging on by our fingernails to make sure that we do everything that we can to keep moving things in the right direction in preparation for launch."

Longdale adds: "This is one of those times where, when you've found a spark, you follow it through and see what lights up – and then you adjust afterwards."

6. …but Blizzard is still ready for anything come November 4

"I'm not sure we can fully predict in either direction what launch will be like. It's an interesting time, and we have our heads on a swivel!" says Longdale, speaking to whether a popular beta guarantees a successful launch. Still, multiple increases to the population cap of the beta servers (as well as a public stress test) have given Blizzard a lot of data and feedback to work with in the final days before release.

"From a live-ops management standpoint, you obviously hope that players will treat a beta like a full launch – but you don't even dream that something like that is actually possible. But our players did do that, and they've been playing it in a way that reflects that as well, which is super exciting," says Clay Stone. "Seeing the data and the response… we are just trying to take it all in as much as possible."

Blizzard is preparing final tweaks; tinkering with the balance of the 1-60 leveling journey, and trying to meet the community in the middle on controversial changes to Racial Abilities and Traits. The question now is whether it can get those servers ready for an onslaught of new players wanting to see what all the fuss is about and returning adventurers looking to recapture some of that vanilla nostalgia.

5. Forever complements the existing WoW offering

You'd think that Blizzard had seen it all through 22 years of supporting World of Warcraft, but the franchise has arrived at an unfamiliar crossroads. The WorldSoul Saga was announced in 2023, a multi-expansion effort for retail that delivered more content, faster than ever before, and is set to resolve in 2027 following the release of The Last Titan. WoW Classic reached divisive territory following the decision to push beyond Wrath of the Lich King and into Cataclysm and Mists of Pandaria. And then there's Forever. Is there a risk that the playerbase could fracture?

"We don't know what's going to happen," says Clay Stone, "but we're excited to see how players move around. We expect that some players love their homes where they are, and that some players will find their way to Forever. It's going to be an interesting journey for us, for sure."

That's certainly one way of putting it, although Stone is emphatic with his belief that World of Warcraft remains flexible enough to thrive under changing tides of player behaviour and interests. "Forever is a powerful new pillar within our ongoing World of Warcraft ecosystem," he adds.

4. Year one, forever

Speaking of that ecosystem, it's good for you to understand what's available if you're thinking of returning to World of Warcraft right now. Let's start with the 'retail' experience, which Clay describes as continuing to "chart a course as [a] best-in-class modern MMO." Then there's Classic, which has seen Blizzard "revisit classic experiences as players remember them." Where, then, does Forever fit?

"We think that it'll fit perfectly within the ecosystem, alongside Classic and the modern game, by providing something for players that we are otherwise not providing. And that's this forever home in a vanilla-inspired space that'll chart its own course in the future with new content being added over time as we exist in essentially this year one of World of Warcraft, forever," says Stone. "Or at least as long as players want to go on this journey with us."

Holly Longdale adds: "We have modeled out every possible scenario we can think of about what will happen to our retail audience, what happens to our Classic audience, and what the Forever audience will be."

3. Reasons to explore again

World of Warcraft: Forever strikes a wondrous balance between celebrating the legacy of the past and innovating just enough to make the MMO feel fresh for 2026 and beyond. As someone who was there for vanilla (and who has dipped into every expansion since) it's fun to see Blizzard embrace some of the friction that was inherent to the game in its early years.

Forever is far slower and more contemplative than the contemporary version of WoW. Clay Stone says that the team has gone to great lengths to "preserve meaningful friction" wherever possible as it returns the focus to discovery, exploration, and social connection. "Players are coming in and discovering this slower-paced game, where they have to run places and party up with other players to see all the content. They are responding positively to that, so I think it speaks to this desire in players – whether they are old or new to WoW – for this style of game again."

One interesting example of this is how stripping flying mounts (first introduced in the Burning Crusade expansion) out of the game will alter your relationship with the world itself. "We say that Azeroth is the main character. And when you're flying over it, essentially bypassing the progression of content across the world itself, it loses something," says Holly Longdale, who adds that getting players back out into Azeroth and discovering its mysteries (both old and new) together is a big part of the Forever appeal. "The audience that Forever is focused on, the players who will go into the corners of the world, look behind every rock, and into every cave, we want to encourage that!"

2. Evolving a timeless world

World of Warcraft: Forever may be firmly rooted in the 2004-2006 era of the MMO's history, but there's a spirit of innovation inherent to its design that surprised me. New races and class combinations, the introduction of campsites to encourage social connection, and revamped visual fidelity are some of the highlights – although the real efforts to evolve a timeless world focused fully on how Blizzard is building beyond the content that was present in vanilla.

"Part of the design ethos for Forever, and the community's desire for 'Classic Plus', is that we never went through the Dark Portal. I'm not saying that this couldn't ever happen, but we do place these boundaries on what it is that we're building because it provides us with structure around what this game is versus what it's not," says Clay Stone. "When we think about Azeroth, and we think about all the places we haven't gone in the world, there is so much for us to play with."

Blizzard is pursuing 'horizontal-progression' in Forever. There's a fixed level 60 cap, so the focus will instead be on world and system growth. How Azeroth develops is all part of the fun. "I think there are other places in Azeroth, besides Kalimdor and the Eastern Kingdoms, that we could potentially go one day, and there's so much excitement about that," he says. "There's ways for us to build the world out – think back to the vanilla version of the continents, there's a lot of unused space that was never filled in."

1. World of Warcraft on Xbox? Gamepad support goes "beyond consoles"

One of the biggest surprises of the World of Warcraft: Forever beta was the introduction of native-support for controllers. WoW has always been designed with mouse and keyboard being the primary points of interaction with the world of Azeroth, so it was pretty surprising to discover that controller mapping not only works but is actually a pretty wonderful way to experience Warcraft. As is (it must be said) playing Forever in bed on a ROG XBOX Ally X.

Having an entire playerbase start from scratch – levelling from one to 60, together and forever – is an exceptionally rare occurrence in the realm of MMORPGs, and one that can never be repeated. So I put it to Holly Longdale: Is World of Warcraft: Forever launching as a PC-exclusive a missed opportunity?

"What you just described is really what we're after. Play it wherever you want and, at some point, on whatever you want. But the first leg of that journey is getting gamepads working really well with World of Warcraft, and we thought Forever was the perfect place to start. Looking at where things are going when we hear about Project Helix et cetera, I think platforms will be a bit more ubiquitous," says Longdale. "Honestly, we just want to be able to play it anywhere. We've seen people getting it working on the ROG Ally X…"

"Someone modded a Nintendo DS!" Stone adds.

"I think just doing some of the work we're doing on gamepad [support] is going to give players a lot of flexibility that I think goes beyond consoles," says Longdale.

There's a whole gaming world out there (some involving war). Check out our best open world games and best RPGs rankings for more to play now, and keep an eye on our upcoming RPGs calendar for what's on the horizon!

Although World of Warcraft: Forever is still in Beta, racial abilities and traits have been a hot topic in the WoW community since, well, forever – and Blizzard's recent update to them is no different, adding fuel to the seemingly eternal fire.

Every race has its own unique abilities, known as "racials" for short. For instance, modifiers to damage and the like. Folks are never quite happy with how they play out, though, it seems, with players on both sides expressing discontent in some way or another – but Blizzard's well aware.

That's why, as per the developer's official forums, the studio is opting to shuffle them around a bit while prioritizing "racial identity."

"Some players have expressed that some of the new racial traits feel too generic, while others have raised concerns that some are objectively stronger than others," the devs write. "In taking a final pass on these, we've prioritized racial identity, which means that some races will naturally be slightly more effective than others at certain combat roles."

And, uh, it's safe to say that this "natural" effectiveness isn't going over well with fans.

The changes, as Blizzard lists them out, affect Humans, Dwarves, Tauren, Orcs, and the Skyborne. Some of them see buffs moving from one to the other, like the Tauren losing its 1% hit chance modifier but Humans gaining it – and that's where the drama starts. Players see this as a slight against the Horde faction.

Over on Reddit, you can find them saying as much, with one comment reading, "Why even play Horde at this point?"

Another fan adds, "LMAO the bias by these devs is unbelievable. They take 1% hit away from Tauren and give it to Dwarves. What a joke." Right underneath, somebody else says, "Blizzard has no idea what they are doing with these racials" – and I see a good few replies echoing this sentiment.

It's not just there, either. A different thread sums up the entire issue as a "favoritism" problem from the World of Warcraft studio. "Racials are NOT fine," it reads. "The favoritism towards alliance is getting ridiculous…"

It's important to note that not everyone agrees here, however. I see plenty of people arguing that this isn't a matter of "favoritism" but rather what Blizzard itself explains – that some races are more well-equipped for certain forms of combat and the like. As one player puts it, "Alliance has always been the better PvE side," while the Horde is superior in PvP.

Others simply state that they feel it's fair as this is "how Alliance felt for 20 years," clapping back that Blizzard previously favored the Horde.

Honestly, my head hurts just reading back and forth between the discussions, but I understand both sides. It's tough to strike a proper balance that'll please everyone, though. I'm happy with what Final Fantasy 14 did… you know, making the racial buffs and whatnot essentially obsolete.

I doubt that'll ever happen in World of Warcraft, of course, but it'll be interesting to see how this conversation develops as WoW: Forever releases into the wild early next month – and how Blizzard chooses to react in regards to updates, too.

Despite controversy, World of Warcraft: Forever's $30 Skyborne race is one of the Beta's most popular among both Horde and Alliance players

After weeks of outcry, Blizzard has seemingly caved to pressure from the ever-vocal Diablo 4 community and increased stacking on Prime Evil Splinters from 1, which means no stacking, all the way up to 99, a 9900% increase. That's not just a compromise, that's a full-blown reversal seemingly based on feedback from the players.

"WE GOT A SPLINTER STACK SIZE INCREASE," reads an excited Reddit post featuring a screenshot from the latest Diablo 4 patch notes, which confirm, "The stack size for Prime Evil Splinters increased from 1 to 99" starting October 28. Unfortunately, the reaction at least on the Diablo 4 subreddit hasn't been as positive as Blizzard is probably hoping. In fact, the vast majority of comments, including those with the most upvotes, are from players who feel the change is too late, if not too little.

"Nice. Wait until the bulk of the playerbase has given up in disgust," reads the top comment on the post. I very much doubt "the bulk of the playerbase" has really given up on Diablo 4 because of this, and in fact I'd argue the majority of players don't give a damn about stackable Splinters, but it seems the subreddit is in agreement that it simply took Blizzard too long to make this change.

Season 15 has been out for a few weeks now, and this whole time the seasonal Prime Evil Splinters you use to grant yourself Prime Evil powers have been locked to one per inventory, meaning you could only have one of each type on you at any given time. Diablo 4's endgame grinders hated that so much that they came up with an incredibly fussy and demanding workaround, but now Blizzard has made that technique obsolete by letting you stack up to 99 of the suckers, which seems excessive to me.

Regardless, Diablo 4 players aren't letting Blizzard off the hook for this one.

"Too fuckin late," says another disgruntled denizen of Sanctuary.

"I’m good. Too little too late!" says another, and so on...

Although unstackable Splinters have been seen as a season 15 bug by many, I'm convinced Blizzard was being very intentional when it limited players to just one per type. The wording in the new patch notes to me suggests a reversal rather than a bug fix, which makes this yet another example of Blizzard's willingness to make significant design changes in response to feedback from players.

Diablo 4 PTR 3.3.0 confirms Season 16 is "carrying forward" some features by popular demand, and Blizzard is taking Druids back to school to address broken tags

The new Diablo 4 PTR period is right around the corner, and Blizzard's revealed what changes players can tinker with ahead of the full update. The druid class is receiving some significant tweaks, war plans are getting deeper and more intricate, and more.

"Some features from the Season of Hell's Legacy will be carrying forward into Season 16," the introduction says. "However, these will not be part of this PTR, as we want to focus on new features for testing."

The notes from the devs start with what's happening to war plans, and it's a good place to kick off. Firstly, there's a new progression system specifically for the endgame quests. Conveniently called War Plans Tactics, the notion is to make the missions you do and what you get out of them more specific.

"Earn points from completing War Plans activities, then invest these points into nodes to increase the chance of preferred activities or rewards appearing," the official description reads. "This allows you to tailor your War Plans more closely with both your goals and playstyle."

You can add up to three points into any given selection, which will increase the odds of it coming up for you as a potential choice, and you can do the same for the type of reward you'll get. On top of this, Marks of Wisdom, a currency for war plans, is being introduced.

These are what allow you to change nodes across your war plans and tactics skill trees. It's mentioned they're capped at 20, but I don't know if that's the amount you can carry or have in use - one to clarify once you're in the public test realm.

The druid rework is pretty hefty, and according to the dev team, it's based around two guiding principles. First, prevent druids from stacking tags as much, and second, to give resolve and fortify more pep in their step as builds.

They go about the former by removing Nature Shift and Shapeshifting tags from skill upgrades. Instead, either will simply be tied to the base ability, and if one or other was part of the tags on an ability, it'll now be removed.

The second is achieved more roundly through changes across how druids are built up. There's a lot to go through in terms of what Blizzard's changing, and I'd expect a lot of experimentation when this PTR arrives. It kicks off on October 27, and runs until November 3.

Diablo 4 players rally for a homebrew fix to a huge season 15 annoyance, but you'll need at least one very good friend

The Splinters of Evil are some of Diablo 4 season 15's rarest drops, but once you get your hands on a specific type – Hatred, Terror, or Destruction – that's all you can hold of that type at once. Blizzard seems to have intentionally designed this specific seasonal drop to not stack, meaning you can only have one splinter of each type in your inventory at once. That might seem like a pretty niche problem applicable only to endgame players in the highest Torment tiers, and it is, but for those players it's a major issue precisely because splinters are so rare. Imagine having to walk away from one of the game's rarest drops simply because you already have one in your inventory, and then you can understand why endgame grinders have rallied for a homebrew solution, and found one.

As detailed in a new video from prolific Diablo creator Rob2628, there's a fairly simple – but tedious – workaround you can do if you really want duplicate splinters in your inventory. As Rob2628 points out, you'll need at least one friend who's leveled enough in Diablo 4 to access Torment tier 10 where you can farm Splinters of Evil from Diablo, Mephisto, and Baal.

Once you've successfully bribed your buddy with delivery pizza – ideally the good stuff from your local Italian joint and not just some fast-food slop – you'll need to invite them to your party once you've got your duplicate splinter to drop. Next, have them hang out near the splinter while you switch to another character that doesn't already have that same splinter in its inventory, and then have your friend invite your alt to the server with the dupe so that you can pick it up.

In Rob2628's words, your friend is essentially "holding the instance" so that the duplicate item doesn't despawn when you log out as your primary character, which makes it very important that they decline the prompt to return to their own world.

I haven't tested this trick out myself yet, and frankly I wouldn't be able to because I only have one character that can get into Torment 10, but I see no reason it wouldn't work. It's just bound by so many limitations and requirements tied to other players that I'd be much more likely to just close the game and play something else. Rob2628 adds in his video, "many of you don't have friends" anyway.

One of Diablo 2's most coveted items surprise-drops in Diablo 4, and it's just as overpowered as it was 25 years ago

Diablo 4's deeply nostalgic season 15 is loaded with all sorts of neat references to the series' history, including a whole quest recreating OG Diablo's critical path and an entire armor set themed around the notoriously elusive cow level first introduced in Diablo 2. Players were pretty quick to find out how to get all of the pieces of the Bovine armor set except one: the gloves, or the Foreshanks, sending the community into a weeks-long treasure hunt that, until now, has come up empty. As it turns out, the Bovine Foreshanks simply hadn't been added into the game until now. See, there's a cow you have to pet to get the gloves, and that cow didn't exist until patch 3.2.3 went live this week.

As reported by Icy Veins and independently verified by me, the newest version of Diablo 4 adds a cow that spawns in Old Tristram behind the Cathedral. All you have to do is pet the cow and it'll drop the Foreshanks of the Bovine. It's really as simple as that. Diablo 4 players have been tearing apart season 15 looking for the missing piece of the cow armor set for weeks, and Blizzard just casually snuck it into a patch with no mention of it in the patch notes. That's, uh, that's gotta sting a little.

On the bright side, Diablo 4's tireless loot chasers can finally acquire the full set, with this handy guide from Auscraft detailing exactly where to track down each piece. Now, depending on how you like to transmog your Diablo 4 character, you might find the Bovine set utterly repulsive or extremely cool. Personally, I'm a huge fan. It's disgusting, and I don't know how else Blizzard could've paid tribute to such a beloved part of Diablo history other than going full camp and making the armor look like an actual live cow grazing the fields of Old Tristram. I'll let you be the judge:

One of Diablo 2's most coveted items surprise-drops in Diablo 4, and it's just as overpowered as it was 25 years ago

We know development on Diablo 5 is well underway, since the sequel was announced at this year's BlizzCon with a snazzy trailer. How far along is another question, since no gameplay was shown; however, production on the action-RPG's cinematics is now in motion.

We know this thanks to Neil David Carter, the cinematics director for the Diablo series at Blizzard. He posted an image on Twitter of an empty soundstage, ready for production crew and actors to start putting scenes together.

"First shoot Diablo 5," he says in the caption. Nothing else is said, but he wouldn't be at liberty to discuss any of the finer details right now. And I imagine a lot of material will still be in flux, too.

This is day one of filming, aspects of the script will almost certainly still be up in the air. Things can change quickly, scenes can be shot that are either changed later or scrapped entirely. These things happen on TV and film productions all the time, and this is a medium where the cinematics are more dependent on what makes the cut for the released product.

Right now, Diablo 5 is eying a 2029 release window, leaving some time for the devs to sculpt the next installment of the beloved series. But it could easily be delayed, and, in fact, Chris Wilson, a central designer on fellow ARPG Path of Exile, believes we could be waiting until 2030 or beyond for the fifth Diablo to arrive.

Plenty of time and space for the cinematics to require another go. I'm curious about who they might get to star in these scenes. MCU actor Simu Liu did an advert for Diablo 2: Resurrected, and they've had the likes of Debra Wilson and Ralph Ineson perform various roles in recent games.

Those would all be worthy additions to this iteration. It's all go at Blizzard HQ, anyway. We'll be back in Sanctuary before we know it.

Diablo 4 update fixes problem preventing players from completing the Season 15 questline properly - but there's still no splinter stacking

World of Warcraft: Forever hasn't come without its controversies, with the most notable of all perhaps surrounding the new Skyborne race – but the Beta proves it's not that unpopular.

The WoW: Forever Beta has been underway for nearly a month now, giving fan-led projects like Classic.io, which collects player data from the game, a chance to bloom.

So, what do the numbers on the site tell us so far, then? Well, perhaps most interestingly, the Skyborne aren't even the least popular race. In fact, the Alliance-aligned Skyborne are the fourth most popular race, with their Horde-aligned counterpart following close behind.

They've got the Night Elves, Dwarves, Gnomes, Tauren, and Trolls beat, too. The only races ahead of them are, perhaps unsurprisingly, the Undead, Humans, and Orcs, with the Skyborne making up nearly 20% of all World of Warcraft: Forever players.

Heck, Skyborne Druids also make up the fourth most chosen race and class combination in the game, and folks have had some less than positive thoughts about that combo to say the least.

Blizzard actually had to step in recently and promise to make World of Warcraft: Forever's Skyborne less "jarring" to look at, specifically mentioning Druid animations in its statement. So, yeah – the stats are a bit mind-boggling, as they don't line up with all the controversy.

I suppose it's not too surprising, though, when you consider the fact that the same $30 that grants you access to the WoW: Forever Beta comes with the Skyborne included.

I'm happy with the periwinkle-skinned elf race myself (the pink hair goes hard, y'all), and I doubt Blizzard regrets its introduction, either.

Senior game designer Josh Greenfield said the team always "knew we wanted to add some sort of elves" and the Skyborne had apparently stemmed from veteran Chris Metzen himself – so, there you go. They're here to stay and it doesn't seem the community is all that broken up about it, honestly.

I am, however, disappointed to see Night Elves so low down. If it were up to me, we'd all be donning some sort of elf character – lore be damned.

World of Warcraft: Forever aims to "aggressively shut down the flow of suspicious gold" – but Blizzard warns there "may be false positives" at first

On the journey to the big World of Warcraft: Forever release next month, Blizzard has been working hard on social media advertisements for the new MMO – advertisements it assures fans do not contain any generative AI content.

The company's digital marketing manager confirms as much on X, explaining that they've seen some of the controversy the WoW: Forever ads have sparked online, with allegations of gen AI use – but it's all unfounded.

"Not seeing much discourse here on X, but there have been comments on whether or not we use AI in these videos," they write. "That's a big hell nah." Why would they, when they have real creatives at hand?

As they put it, "We have real team members writing scripts, getting and editing footage, and I've been in recording booths with our VO actors every week."

They're not alone in assuring the community of it, either. World of Warcraft's social media manager chimes in with his own post, stating, "To add, we don't use AI on ANY social content we make. Big hell nah indeed." And, honestly, that's great news, to say the least.

It's a bit of a strange time right now in the game development scene and elsewhere, with many suddenly announcing their support of gen AI amid widespread layoffs.

Epic Games immediately springs to mind, having unveiled a new "vibe coded" version of its launcher just yesterday while company CEO Tim Sweeney spoke on a "huge pivot" at the studio toward "maximum AI acceleration" – so, yeah.

I, for one, am pleased to learn that other developers and publishers – like Blizzard here – are shying away from the controversial tech and opting to support their own creative staff, even if it's for something as simple as social media advertisements.

World of Warcraft: Forever aims to "aggressively shut down the flow of suspicious gold" – but Blizzard warns there "may be false positives" at first

As it turns out, there was a bug in Diablo 4 Season 15 that prevented players from finishing the main questline. Mercifully, the issue has been rectified in the latest patch, though there are other problems players hope Blizzard will look into.

The topline change in the update focuses on players getting access to a Splinter of Prime Evil before they're supposed to. Doing so stops you from finishing the central quest, because the Prime Evil powers are meant to be part of your reward.

The glitch has apparently been rectified, but anyone who's already gotten it will need to use Blizzard's workaround to sort out their character, since quest progress isn't affected. "This change prevents this bug from happening but does not reset quest progress on characters who are already bugged," reads a developer's note.

"To allow affected characters access to Prime Evil Powers, create a new character in the same partition (Normal/Hardcore and Normal/SSF) and complete the seasonal questline," the post continues. "This unlocks Prime Evil Powers for all characters in that partition."

Not ideal, but at least there's a fix of some description. Another bugbear where four affixes couldn't be rerolled using the Horadric Cube has been remedied as well - sadly, the wasted resources can't be returned, but at least it's sorted.

While these are certainly helpful alterations, they don't stack splinters, a mechanic players have been requesting for several weeks now. "Splinters not stacking is truly the dumbest decision of the season," writes one Redditor, summing up a theme across the comments responding to this update.

We'll see if Blizzard decides to address that problem in the coming weeks. For now, at least you can definitely complete the current questline without extra hassle.

One of Diablo 2's most coveted items surprise-drops in Diablo 4, and it's just as overpowered as it was 25 years ago

Although World of Warcraft: Forever is still only available to play via its Beta – a Beta which won't see any player progress carry over to Blizzard's full release, mind you – it's not enough to deter folks from purchasing in-game gold with real money.

You know, real money trading. If you've played any MMO at all, whether that be retail World of Warcraft or something like Final Fantasy 14, you know it's a problem. And even though it doesn't really make sense financially, the WoW: Forever Beta offers no exception.

A little while ago, Blizzard took $200 in gold from a streamer after suspicions of real-money trading. Shortly after, an add-on targeting gold purchases made rounds.

In other words, it's an ongoing issue, "Beta" be damned – and the community has looked to Blizzard for a harsher crackdown against it… Something the developers are evidently aware of.

A new update from the studio proves as much, with Blizzard outlining measures it's currently implementing to counter real-money trading before it really takes off in-game, as part of its "latest weapon" against illicit gold purchases.

"If your account is suspected of being involved in RMT, either the selling or receiving of illicit gains, you may find your account subject to a Temporary Economy Hold," the post reads. "You will have restricted use of trade, mail, guild banks and the Auction House while this economic hold is in place."

It sounds just like the tough crackdown the doctor ordered, honestly – and Blizzard doesn't seem to be playing around.

"Our aim with this new system is to aggressively shut down the flow of suspicious gold before it has been transferred or put into circulation into the economy, while providing us the time needed to investigate more thoroughly," the dev explains. "If you are just playing the game normally, it is unlikely you will ever see this restriction applied to your account."

And, if you do see it, things will progress in one of two ways.

"If this restriction is applied to your account, it will be either automatically removed when the actions that triggered it have been investigated and found false, or you will receive account actions if found to have been involved in RMT," as Blizzard says… but it might not be 100% clean at first.

"This system is new. There may be false positives while things are fine-tuned," the studio admits – but you don't need to worry too much.

That's because "merely having a Temporary Economy Hold will leave no permanent strikes against your account unless also later proven to be RMT motivated."

It's not such a bad deal, in my opinion – but I'd also never engage in real money trading, especially during a beta, so my take makes sense, I suppose. I'm just happy to see Blizzard taking further action against those who are, even if it'll include wrinkles that need ironing out.

Blizzard is "committed to ensure that WoW: Forever is not marred by the Real Money Trade" – and that's not all, either. "All of these systems will also be deployed to all versions of World of Warcraft if proven successful" – Forever, retail, Classic, you name it.

As Blizzard launches yet another version of World of Warcraft, lead says "our hope is to grow the audience, not to fracture it"

World of Warcraft: Forever is the third mainline World of Warcraft MMO Blizzard's bringing to the table to stand alongside retail and Classic – but the developers aren't trying to cause a rift in their community with yet another version of the game.

In fact, they actually want to draw more players into Azeroth's welcoming hands, as game director Ion Hazzikostas tells PC Gamer in a new magazine interview.

"Our belief is that Forever will offer something that appeals to a lot of folks who maybe aren't currently well-served by what they see from WoW," he explains – and that lines up nicely with what Blizzard's been saying, honestly. World of Warcraft: Forever is for fresh faces and old fans.

"Maybe modern Wow isn't quite their speed, and when they look at Classic, they played that game already, or it's a little bit too janky and too 2004," he continues. World builder Matthew Armstrong said similar before, that WoW: Forever is "for the millions of people who have had their accounts lapse" in Classic – that plus newcomers, of course.

Blizzard wants to reach more fans across the board, and Hazzikostas assures the community of this. "Our hope is to grow the audience, not to fracture it," he states. And "it's not something we take lightly."

This isn't the devs' first go at revamping World of Warcraft, after all, considering Classic. "For years now we've had two distinct flavors of the game, with different paces to them, and they've appealed to large but distinct audiences," as the lead puts it.

We've got retail and, of course, Classic. Soon, we'll have three.

Much like with Classic, WoW: Forever will hopefully bring people who've never touched a WoW game in their life to the MMO universe, Hazzikostas says – and, you know what, I'd argue it already has.

I'd never been willing to dive into World of Warcraft prior to the new Beta myself, having suffered from some serious FOMO. Now, I'm all in, and I doubt I'll be any sort of exception to the standard.

Here's hoping World of Warcraft: Forever indeed doesn't "fracture" the community. Senior game designer Josh Greenfield said he's witnessing "the craziest numbers I've seen in 17 years working at Blizzard" however, so I've got a good feeling.

World of Warcraft: Forever may take us to Northrend and Pandaria one day as "Azeroth is a big place," Blizzard teases, even if it's all about the first year of the MMO for now

Now that the World of Warcraft: Forever beta is in full swing and Blizzard's public release is quickly approaching, it comes as no surprise that fans are wondering where the MMO might take us in Azeroth – and the possibilities sound endless.

Speaking to Holly Longdale, executive producer and vice president for World of Warcraft, and associate production director Clay Stone, content creator JackedIQ learns more about what Blizzard has in store for us regarding zones and the like – you know, whether we'll ever see Northrend or Pandaria – and the developers' answers are exciting, to say the least.

"I mean," Longdale says first, "broadly speaking, nothing is off the table." And, yes, she means nothing.

"It's more what the team decides to do, where they want the narrative to grow." Much of this will come from what Blizzard gathers from us as players, but "another piece of this is the original continents too can change in and of themselves."

As the lead puts it, "You could spend a lifetime in the two continents as they evolve." However, once again, she reiterates that "everything is on the table at this point."

As it stands, Blizzard is simply focused on "the best story to tell," which does mean "there's plenty of opportunity." Longdale jokingly concludes, "We just wanted to see if anyone was going to play it first."

Considering how well the beta is going – so well, in fact, that senior game designer Josh Greenfield said he's witnessing "the craziest numbers I've seen in 17 years working at Blizzard" – I'd argue we can hold our breath.

Stone echoes Longdale's teases, too, adding, "Azeroth is a big place – and this time period that we get to play with is a really cool time period, basically staying in that first year of World of Warcraft…"

And, with all of the available lore, "there's some really cool creative ideas that the team has for how we can play in that space." Stone repeats that "Azeroth is a big place," perhaps filling me with too much hope now.

All in all, though, I'd wager we'll see a lot more of Azeroth than we may have initially gone into Forever thinking we'd see, and I'm thrilled to hear it. How will Blizzard pull it off while remaining faithful to its 2004 MMO? Well, that's for time to tell… not us.

World of Warcraft: Forever patch notes leave fans asking Blizzard "why" and hoping for more class adjustments.

A new patch for the World of Warcraft: Forever Beta is upon us, bringing everything from the new City of Dalaran dungeon to various class changes – but it's not exactly landing well with all of the MMO's early players, it seems.

The World of Warcraft: Forever patch notes outline a lot, and that's a bit of an understatement – we're entering the fourth week of the Beta, after all.

You'll find them over on Blizzard's official forums, beginning with bug fixes and leading into a plethora of class changes which are, unsurprisingly, stirring quite the storm in the community. The first point of contention has to do with looting, however.

As the WoW: Forever patch notes read, "This build reintroduces Classic looting behavior, where creatures that dropped no loot can still be interacted with." In other words, enemies are now professional time wasters as you can interact with them whether or not they have loot.

To say the least, it's pretty annoying – and I'm not alone in thinking so. Over on a Reddit thread on Patch 5.01, one person simply asks, "Why?"

They continue: "I mean, what purpose does this have beyond 'it's how it was?' Is it just masochism from thinking you got a quest item?"

Honestly, I get it. It's already confusing folks, too, with another commenter saying, "I found it mildly annoying/confusing at first when I killed a mob and I couldn't loot it. Took me a bit to realize what was going on." Perhaps this is one thing they should've axed from the original game.

Players are also unhappy with the new World of Warcraft: Forever class changes – and lack thereof. It's looking especially rough for Rogue fans specifically, with one reply joking, "Sick Rogue changes" (spoiler alert: there are none).

Caster classes like the Druid, Priest, and Shaman do see tweaks – but they're apparently, uh, not the greatest. "They're committed to making casters feel bad at low levels," as one fan amusingly puts it.

For example, Blizzard has adjusted the Shaman's Lightning Bolt and its "base points and points per level of ranks 1-5" so as "to make the growth rate of ranks 1-6 more consistent, and new ranks always an upgrade" – but it feels like a non-change.

As one fan writes, there are "0 meaningful changes" in reality. All in all, it feels like the developers opted to nerf lower, currently preferable ranked skills than "making the higher ranks better."

It's worth a browse through the full World of Warcraft: Forever patch notes to see it all for yourself if you're interested, but something tells me Blizzard might be delivering even more changes following fan feedback soon.

World of Warcraft: Forever is "simplifying" Blizzard's usual PvP but also adding a controversial weekly grind as MMO fans beg "please don't do the weeklies thing."

Now that the World of Warcraft: Forever Beta is entering its fourth week, Blizzard's got some new content in store for us – like the exciting new City of Dalaran dungeon.

Yes, that's right… we're finally heading to Dalaran, and we'll get to test a new dungeon, too – one that's already managing to stir up some chaos, it appears.

If you're familiar with World of Warcraft, then you likely know that Dalaran belongs to the Alliance and not the Horde. Well, it seems that the latter is somehow able to enter the city regardless after the dungeon's introduction to WoW: Forever, as per Wowhead.

Apparently, Horde players just need to complete the City of Dalaran, accompanying dungeon quest "Heart of Disruption," and get the Dalaran Sewer Key – the item that grants us entry to Dalaran. It's at that point that folks are then tasked with bringing the loot they got from the dungeon into Dalaran, in fact, through a new quest titled "Shrewd Negotiations."

Whether you're Alliance or Horde, you'll be safe in the city following this sequence.

All of the guards that should be hostile will act neutral toward you, should you be a Horde player, and offer safe passage (as long as you defeat the Archmage in the City of Dalaran and so on, so forth).

What's more, you can freely explore the city after completing everything, much like an Alliance player – but although you can stock up on supplies, you won't be able to access every NPC's services, apparently.

As Wowhead amusingly points out though, you can fish for coins in the Dalaran fountain – heck yeah. Not everyone is pleased with the Horde being in Dalaran, however.

Over on Reddit, players find it so mind-boggling they say it's "probably just a bug." Others argue that, as it's tied to a quest, it "doesn't sound like a bug." Nonetheless, it's stirring up some lore-related discussions, which aren't exactly new to World of Warcraft: Forever.

There's the whole controversy surrounding the new Skyborne race, from its $30 price tag to its lore implications, and the fact that Blizzard has just revealed it's changing the elves to better fit the rest of the MMO, for example.

It's never easy dealing with source material that's this old and beloved, I suppose, but I do think Blizzard's well aware of this and how fans feel about the legendary 2004 game that started it all.

World of Warcraft: Forever is "simplifying" Blizzard's usual PvP but also adding a controversial weekly grind as MMO fans beg "please don't do the weeklies thing."

World of Warcraft: Forever won't be emulating the retail or Classic versions of Blizzard's beloved MMO when it comes to PvP – it's got its own way of approaching it.

The studio outlines as much in a new post about how PvP works in WoW: Forever over on its official website, and it's somehow easier than it was back in the early 2000s but also… a tad grindy?

Blizzard first describes it bringing "a refreshed sense of purpose to every match-up" with an approach that "gives players more reasons to take part throughout the season while preserving the spirit of competition that defined PvP in the original World of Warcraft."

The developers explain that they "wanted to keep the design pillar of 'Approachable and Familiar' firmly in view: simplifying the original Honor System while staying true to its roots" – so, how does it work?

Well, there are two parts to World of Warcraft: Forever PvP: Honor and Rank Points. Honor is a form of currency you earn by taking part in PvP content, with Blizzard promising to ensure that "acquisition rates are more consistent across the board."

You gain Rank Points from specific PvP activities, like battlegrounds and certain quests. This system is similar to the original World of Warcraft's own, as you'll be working toward titles like Grand Marshal or High Warlord (depending on which faction you've chosen, of course).

There's a catch, however: "Ranks have a weekly cap, retaining the foundation of the original system while making the journey more accessible." That makes it easier, sure, but it also feeds into a weekly grind – and as a Final Fantasy 14 player myself, I'm all too familiar with (and not really a fan of) weekly grinds.

There are more layers to this, too, with Blizzard going on to detail how seasons function: "During a PvP season, players can progress through the ranks and earn Honor. Each season also includes a journey with weekly tasks to complete." Sigh. Yes, weekly.

"Successfully completing those tasks grants Honor and Rank Points, and three tasks each season also grant a Legacy Point," the devs continue. "Completing these tasks is part of the seasonal journey, and because they are tied to the Legacy System, they remain available to complete in future seasons."

In other words, it's definitely a bit simpler to get where you want in PvP rank-wise, but I'll feel more inclined to be consistent. You know, whether I want to be or not – and I'm evidently not alone.

A comment sees a fan saying, "Please don't do the weeklies thing." Another adds, "One of the things I'm trying to avoid is weekly checkboxes I feel I need to hit. Just having X item cost Y Honor and Z rank is enough." A separate response reads, "Please don't do that system. It's unhealthy at all. Having to farm every freaking week without taking any break is not fun."

Overall, though, it's admittedly certainly an accessible PvP system. Blizzard seems to know it as well, concluding, "With more ways to make progress each week and meaningful goals to pursue throughout the season, PvP in World of Warcraft: Forever gives players a clear path to jump in, compete, and keep building toward what comes next."

Fingers crossed it all plays out smoothly come the MMO's November 4 release.

To make World of Warcraft: Forever's controversial Skyborne less "jarring" to look at, Blizzard is going back to 2004

Since Blizzard first unveiled World of Warcraft: Forever at BlizzCon 2026 last month, one thing has been weighing particularly heavily on fans' minds about the revamped MMO: the Skyborne race.

It's hard to deny the controversy surrounding the new Skyborne race, from its $30 price tag to its lore implications, but Blizzard doesn't seem to necessarily agree with fans critical of the blue-skinned elves.

In fact, senior game designer Josh Greenfield said the team always "knew we wanted to add some sort of elves" and the Skyborne had apparently stemmed from veteran Chris Metzen himself.

That doesn't mean Blizzard isn't open to any change at all, however.

As it stands, folks can opt for HD or SD player models in WoW: Forever. Put simply, HD is a "newer" style, while SD provides that old beloved 2004 look. The Skyborne don't have that option in the Beta right now, though – but that'll change.

Blizzard reveals as much in a new update on its official website, explaining that the developers "focused on the pre-existing races from original World of Warcraft" first, regarding the SD and HD toggle.

That's because, you know, "many people have an attachment to those models." The studio is aware that it leaves the Skyborne looking a bit… different.

"We have heard feedback that the HD Skyborne can be jarring by contrast when placed in the same world as the SD models and world, and we agree."

The solution? "Skyborne player characters (and yes SD Druid forms) are in development and arriving early 2027." Attached is an in-progress image of models.

So, the SD Skyborne won't be available when World of Warcraft: Forever fully releases on November 4, but they're coming.

Is it enough for disgruntled fans, though? Well… is it ever? Comments show that plenty of players are still, erm, displeased, to say the least, with some asking Blizzard to just "please remove Skyborne druid" altogether – which is a tad extreme, if you ask me. There is some positivity among the replies, thankfully, however.

I'm of the (evidently unpopular) belief that the Skyborne are stunning, and have their place in WoW: Forever, so I'm thrilled. And, you know what? A huge chunk of the Beta players I see myself are playing as the race, so take that as you will.

WoW Forever player beats Blizzard to the punch, builds add-on that catches real-money trading on the spot

As notorious Overwatch hero Sombra makes her support class debut in Season 5: A Grim Doctrine, Blizzard is well aware that the former DPS losing her Hack ability is going to leave some players "upset," but insists the change is "better for the game."

Sombra's big support rework was announced last month, and basically comes in an attempt to make her less annoying for both her foes and allies. As you'd imagine, the rework means big changes to her abilities and perks. She's now got a new ability called Cyberspace, for example, replacing her damage-over-time Virus ability with a new projectile that weakens foes and heals allies.

Perhaps most notably, though, Sombra's Hack ability has been replaced by Hotfix. Rather than being able to mess with opponents by temporarily removing their abilities from them, it instead can be used to heal allies over time.

It's certainly a choice considering that Sombra's whole shtick is that she's a hacker – especially after game director Aaron Keller previously said that the rework wouldn't change "her identity" – and the devs are obviously aware that not everyone is a fan.

"We've seen a lot of reception about the Sombra rework, and one of the things people have talked about is the hacker losing hack," senior hero designer Leo Robles Gonzalez admits in a new dev livestream.

Robles Gonzalez reveals that Blizzard "tried a lot of different versions of Sombra where she still could hack enemies," but regardless, even with her lower damage output "there was always that feeling of Sombra appearing out of nowhere, turning off my abilities, and then outputting damage that I can't really do anything about."

Now though, the devs are hoping that they've successfully produced "the last rework" of the notorious hero, adds hero designer Scott Kennedy, and while "obviously players are going to be upset that they lost this hacking enemies version," the team reckons that "this overall is going to be better for the game and players will really learn to love and enjoy her."

It's not that her hacking abilities are totally missing, either. Hotfix is still able to hack health packs and deployable objects like Torbjörn's turrets and Ashe's B.O.B., and human enemies can be hacked when she uses her ult, EMP.

Even so, these changes are definitely going to take some getting used to for the veteran Sombra players. As a support main, though, I'm excited to give the new version of the not-quite-as-hacky hacker a go.

Diablo 4: Lord of Hatred and Overwatch's resurgence reportedly drove Blizzard to its "first back-to-back years of growth" in almost 10 years.

As Blizzard continues to flesh its PC storefront Battle.net out with the likes of The Witcher 3, Xbox CEO and executive vice president Asha Sharma doubles down on what the World of Warcraft studio has said before – it's not trying to create another Steam.

Yes, Blizzard partnered with CD Projekt Red to see The Witcher 3 make its way onto its own storefront – but that doesn't mean Battle.net will continue to accept just any game willy-nilly, or that it's a one-to-one Steam competitor.

Andrew Guerrero, Blizzard's vice president of product management and global insight, confirmed as much last month, saying the company isn't "trying to do the Steam or Epic Games Store thing."

He said Blizzard already has its "audience," a "passionate core of people that play Blizzard games and games similar to Blizzard," assuring that they'd only "get after" titles for Battle.net should they make sense for that core.

Sharma is now saying the same herself, telling Xbox in an internal town hall (as per Windows Central) that Battle.net will grow, and is actually nearly retaining as many users as Steam already – but it'll never be Steam.

She hints that it'll instead be a more selective, curated storefront than platforms like Steam or even Microsoft's Xbox PC. Sharma also teases that the partnership bringing with CD Projekt Red bringing games like The Witcher 3 to Battle.net will grow, too, although carefully.

In her words, "We will do it the right way for those communities." So, there's clearly a sense of executives taking utmost care with the whole situation.

As it stands now, Battle.net really isn't anything like Steam, anyway. It's primarily a home for Blizzard's own lineup of games, from World of Warcraft to Diablo 4 and the like.

Sure, there are other partner titles, like Call of Duty entries and Xbox Game Studios gems such as Avowed and Sea of Thieves, but it truly is a more particular store than its competitors.

How will that work out in the long run? Well, I suppose only time will tell.

Xbox Helix is seemingly pulling a Steam Deck, CEO discusses devices for players "on the go" with "a great console first"

The potential for real-money trading in World of Warcraft: Forever has been a concern since the new MMO's reveal at BlizzCon 2026 – and despite Blizzard already taking action against alleged rule-breakers, fans are coming up with their own ways to deal with it.

In case you missed it, Blizzard took $200 in gold from a streamer last week after players flagged it as having been accumulated through real-money trading. Many fans thought the developer's punishment should be stricter, with some calling for "permabans" and the like.

One of the most pressing issues here, regardless of punishment, is how to actually tell which way somebody's gold was made.

Sure, when a lot of money is made in a short period of time – like during the Beta – it can feel a bit obvious… but it isn't always. Fans have figured out a workaround, however: an add-on that can tell whether or not gold was legitimately accrued.

It came up during a stream on Twitch (hosted by Ziqo, the very same content creator whose $200 worth of gold was nabbed back by Blizzard), in which a viewer said they've created just that.

They dub it IRS, amusingly enough, which is short for "Illicit Riches Scanner." Although it hasn't yet gone live for public downloads, its creator apparently sent Ziqo a beta file directly.

He commented on the add-on himself, saying it ensures "all gold that we receive in the future is fully natty" while calling it "a fucking add-on that compares their gold income to see if it looks sus" – with "their" meaning different players here, of course.

Ziqo describes the add-on as "bugged," but it's pretty interesting. It essentially scans through an account's historical gold against income statistics to flag any money that can't be spoken for legitimately.

The add-on looks at in-game trades in action, too, so I can see how it'd catch real-money trading, honestly – and, yes, it does indeed flag the majority of Ziqo's gold as illegitimate, so, uh, take that as you will, I suppose.

I do wonder what Blizzard's next move will be, and whether or not it'll deem the add-on all right, come its full release. The studio has been targeting inappropriate names recently and more, so it's clearly paying close attention.

Blizzard warns WoW Forever players that its stance on real-money trading is "crystal clear" following beta ban spree: "We will continue to take action"

World of Warcraft: Forever is all about preserving the original, vanilla WoW experience as it was back in 2004, but there's one quest from 2007 that the MMO's community has been asking Blizzard to make an exception for, and now their wishes have been granted.

For the uninitiated, the Kyle's Gone Missing quest was originally added to WoW during its Burning Crusade era from 2007. It was a Make-A-Wish request from a young player named Ezra 'Ephoenix' Chatterton, who had been battling brain cancer at the time. Blizzard did the right thing and let Chatteron design and perform the voice lines for the quest, which tasks you with helping Chatteron's NPC, Ahab Wheathoof, find his dog. It's an absolutely adorable and extremely heartwarming quest, but as WoW Forever only includes content from the original 2004 release, Kyle's Gone Missing has been, well, missing from Blizzard's new MMO until now.

Chatterton sadly lost his battle with cancer in 2008, but almost 20 years later, his memory is being honored in WoW Forever. Users on Blizzard's forum have been requesting that the quest to be added, and earlier this week a community manager indicated it was happening. Now, WoW Forever principal game designer Johnny Cash has confirmed in a tweet that Kyle's Gone Missing and Ahab Wheathoof have been added to the game in an emotional moment for the developer and anyone else who's familiar with Chatterton's story.

"I had the honor and privilege of bringing 'Kyle's Gone Missing!' into WoW: Forever," says Cash. "Ezra Chatterton was an enormous WoW fan, the creator and voice actor behind Ahab Wheathoof, and the creator of Kyle.

"A tear was shed during this one, my friends. Rest in peace, Ezra."

If you want to take on Ezra's quest and help find his dog, you'll find the character in Bloodhoof Village in the Mulgore region, which is actually the starting zone if you're playing as a Tauren. I won't spoil anything about the quest itself if you've yet to experience it, but you'll need to hit level 5 before you can start it.

I'm a lifelong MMO fan since the early days of Ultima Online and EverQuest, but WoW has always been a massive blind spot for me. I'm being sincere when I say I'm more compelled to dive in now than ever after researching and writing this story. It being the biggest MMO in the world, I'm no stranger to issues like player toxicity, but it's hard not to be just a little bit won over by gestures like this.

After 20 hours with World of Warcraft: Forever, I'm convinced it gives old school fans nearly everything they could want

Blizzard has issued a statement on real-money transactions in World of Warcraft: Forever as the new MMO continues its journey through beta, and it's clear the devs want to stamp out the issue before it gets more commonplace.

Over on the official forums, community lead Randy "Kaivax" Jordan confirms that developers have been taking action against accounts "found to be botting to amass gold in the WoW Forever beta, as well as the accounts of those who were found to have purchased or knowingly received illicit gold."

Moving forward, Jordan confirms that Blizzard will continue to do so and will also add a warning to the MMO that'll appear whenever you trade with strangers.

"Our stance on RMT in World of Warcraft is crystal clear: any account belonging to any player that is found to have participated in generating, selling, buying, or receiving illicit gold is subject to the gold being removed, account suspensions, or permanent account closures," Jordan says.

Blizzard stance on RMT in WoW: Forever is something it's tried to be firm on since the fresh take on the classic MMO was announced at BlizzCon 2026. Touching on why something like GDKP – Gold Dragon Kill Points – isn't allowed, senior game designer Josh Greenfield said it's largely because it can encourage RMT, and that devs are taking the economy in WoW: Forever "very seriously."

Did that stop WoW Forever beta players from engaging with RMT? Absolutely not. As we previously reported, one WoW streamer who really caught the attention of the wider community found themselves losing $200 worth of gold for allegedly breaking the rules. They aren't the only one, and others have cried foul and maintain they didn't knowingly do so.

Regardless, if you find yourself with ill-gotten gold in WoW: Forever, it would appear that Blizzard will come down on it sooner rather than later.

WoW: Forever isn't about the MMO's many expansions, but Blizzard is making an exception for a Make-a-Wish quest from Burning Crusade in response to fan feedback: "Stay tuned."

Old Diablo heads will remember the Annihilus charm from Diablo 2 as one of the iconic ARPG's most powerful and coveted items. Even in its worst-rolled form, having one in your inventory granted +1 to all skills, +10 to all attributes, +10 to all resistances, and +5 to XP gained. It's the only small charm in the game that grants bonuses to all skills and attributes, and because it's small, it only takes up a single inventory space. It's the crown jewel of Diablo 2's endgame, and now it's in Diablo 4 as a Unique Horadric Seal.

The unfortunate thing about Annihilus in both games is that it's really freakin' hard to get. The exact parameters required to initiate the encounter in Diablo 4 are still being figured out by the community, but we know from various reports on Reddit as well as an in-depth video from Diablo creator Rob2628 that one of the ways you can get your hands on the Annihilus seal is by triggering an encounter with Uber Diablo, which in every case seems to follow a battle with the World Boss Azmodan. After that fight is over, an on-screen message warns, "Diablo walks the earth." Annihilus recipients say Diablo Clone drops the item when slain, just like in Diablo 2.

Also similar to Diablo 2 are the ridiculous passive buffs you get from the item. At max roll, this gloriously, stupidly over-tuned seal grants +20% to all stats, +20% resistance to all elements, +10 to all skills, and +10% bonus XP. Best of all, you can re-roll it at the Cube until you get the stats you want, although reports indicate it becomes account-bound once you do so. If you manage to get your hands on one of these bad boys, that's a genuine game-changer for literally any build.

While I don't have anywhere near the patience to try my luck at spawning Uber Diablo, much less beating him, I'm very much enjoying seeing all of these callbacks to older Diablo games in Diablo 4. The recreation of Diablo 1's campaign as a new Waking Nightmares activity was heavily marketed from the jump, but it seems there are still plenty of more niche discoveries to be made in season 15.

A broken Diablo 4 charm is dominating Season 15, but Blizzard has "decided not to make changes to it" for now

It's a day ending in 'Y', thus Blizzard is having to navigate some balancing problems in Diablo 4. In this instance, though, the devs have made the rare choice of just embracing what's going on, maintaining an unintended change from the Hellfire Torch in Season 15.

The Hellfire Torch is a new Unique Charm that came with the current season. Between serving as a Set Charm and a number of powerful bonuses, it's a particularly worthwhile bit of equipment that was even better than Blizzard bargained for.

In execution, players found they could get the bonuses of having three Unique Charms and a complete five-set of them at once through the Sea of the Golden Epiphany and the Seal of the Diamond Mind. This has rippled through the community pretty heavily, leading it to be a dominant force in the action-RPG's landscape. As such, players have been quick to feed this back to Blizzard, who're just rolling with it for now.

"While we've confirmed that this interaction is resulting in behavior beyond what was originally intended, we’ve decided not to make changes to it during the current season," Dan Tanguay, design director on Diablo 4, says on the official forums in a statement published by Rich 'Filthierich' Bantegui, a senior community manager for the Diablo series.

"We know many players have spent significant time earning the Hellfire Torch and building characters around it," he continues. "Because of that, we want to be thoughtful about making adjustments mid-season that could disrupt those investments."

It reads to me like the solutions right now involve either damaging people's builds in a way the devs dislike, or causing further disruption in a flailing house of cards sort of way. Tanguay asserts this will change, just not for the time-being.

"We’d like additional time to investigate the underlying issue and ensure that any future changes are implemented correctly and behave as intended," he says. While this may be frustrating, the acknowledgement demonstrates complaints haven't gone unheard. While you wait for a patch, see if the Hellfire Torch has any other quirks you're unaware of.

Diablo 5 "won't be ready for spring 2029," Path of Exile co-creator says, and "Blizzard money" won't change that

World of Warcraft: Forever fans have worried about the potential of real-money trading since Blizzard first unveiled the new MMO during BlizzCon 2026 – but, thankfully, it appears that the studio is cracking down on it prior to the full release.

Now that the World of Warcraft: Forever Beta is out in full force, some players have begun to suspect certain content creators for engaging in, well, real-money trading for in-game gold.

The suspicions have risen to an all-time high after fans spotted the gold that Twitch streamer Ziqo ("ziqoftw" on the platform) supposedly accumulated naturally – or at least not via any illicit means – as he somehow boasted some 380 gold or so.

That's a lot… so much so, in fact, that it comes in at $200 or so in real-life money, as one user points out over on X (that is, if you use shady websites to purchase it – websites I will not be linking to here).

Players immediately called for Ziqo and others they suspect like him to face in-game bans or some other form of punishment from Blizzard. In the words of the linked fan above, "I call for a 12 months ban, including the tournament."

They add that the developers "promised us even 20 year old accounts would get banned," referencing how Blizzard previously stated that World of Warcraft: Forever's economy is "something we're taking very seriously" – which, honestly, it seems it is.

That's because the studio did indeed take action against Ziqo, as a separate thread with a clip of the streamer attached points out. It actually took back his gold.

In it, Ziqo confirms as much, saying, "Blizzard did sweep up all my gold." He goes on to describe how "they cleansed it; they left me with nine silver," showing his inventory – and, yep, he's no longer rich… that's for sure.

So, there you have it, Blizzard is cracking down on fans likely engaging in real-money trading, and it's a welcome sight. Some players think the devs should be even more strict, though.

Comments show calls for "permabans" and the like – but Blizzard itself hasn't done so, as far as I can tell. Will they? Perhaps. They've been targeting inappropriate names recently as well, so it's not outside the realm of possibilities.

WoW: Forever dev says quest drops aren't changing in the MMO, but Blizzard has added " a bit of under-the-hood functionality" that makes them fairer

As of now, the release of Diablo 5 is set for 2029. That may seem like plenty of time for Blizzard, and it is, since it's three years away, but one of the co-creators of Path of Exile believes we'll likely be waiting at least a little bit longer for the next installment in the iconic series.

In a YouTube video discussing the game's announcement, Chris Wilson, lead designer on Path of Exile, provided his thoughts on Blizzard's plans. "They've announced they're targeting spring 2029, which is both quite specific and quite soon," he says.

He notes that Diablo 4: Lord of Hatred arrived in April of this year, indicating that development then shifted toward a sequel rather than another full-on expansion, a pivot similar to what Blizzard did at the end of Diablo 3's lifespan as well. Using this as a speculative benchmark, Wilson believes Diablo 5 has only been the team's central priority for around five months so far.

"This would explain why they did not show gameplay at BlizzCon, and mostly had concept art, design plans, and a short announcement cinematic," he reasons. "So how long will it take them to finish the game? Well, conveniently, in my past life, I ran a studio that was developing a similar-sized game."

He then points out that although Grinding Gear Games has "mature content pipelines and a custom engine specifically designed for that genre," development on Path of Exile has been going for eight years and counting. "Diablo 5 realistically needs around as much content at launch to be competitive, and they've even said that they have more character classes than any previous Diablo game, including expansions," he mentions.

"Their three-year timeframe feels like a very tight deadline to me," he adds. He concedes that, yes, they have "Blizzard money" and can pump up the team's numbers, but with rampant layoffs and budgeting concerns, that'd be a precarious strategy. Throw in the desire for in-depth playtesting before launch, especially for fine-tuning drop rates and balancing, and you have a cycle that could easily take longer.

"My best guess here is the game won't be ready for spring 2029," Wilson concludes. "But that's OK, delays happen and are normal in this industry. I can't count the number of times I had to delay a Path of Exile league release, and players were OK with it."

An underlying question here is why Blizzard made the announcement at all. Revealing plans too early can be troublesome; just ask Todd Howard about The Elder Scrolls 6. Wilson pins it on "Blizzard management," because Microsoft "wants more frequent releases for their core game series."

Around BlizzCon, Johanna Faries, the president of Blizzard, told Bloomberg that the company is "going to ship, and ship big, and ship on time." This was regarding both the new Diablo and the upcoming StarCraft, which is set for 2030.

Whatever the reason, we know this is coming. The release just mightn't reach our keyboards and mice before the 2030s roll around - but hey, patience is a virtue.

Diablo 5 director responds to concerns the action RPG is more action than RPG: "Any challenge can be overcome with the right build"

With a spring 2029 release window, Diablo 5 is still a ways off and presumably early in development, and as such there's a lot we don't know about it. We know it takes place about 100 years after Diablo 4 and that it won't have towns or safe zones outside of a Baldur's Gate-style caravan of traveling companions, but most of the sequel's core design pillars remain a mystery. Chiefly, we know next to nothing about how combat will work in Diablo 5, and considering Diablo games are almost exclusively about clicking demons to death, the ARPG community is waiting eagerly for more details.

Waiting right there alongside us is Chris Wilson, Grinding Gear Games co-founder and original Path of Exile designer. Wilson recently published a video on his YouTube channel in which he gives his in-depth reaction to the announcement of Diablo 5. Wilson says he's "tentatively hopeful" about Diablo 5 overall, but goes over a number of concerns he has about the direction Blizzard may or not be taking it. One of those concerns is the combat, which he says has been trending more and more "arcadey and actioney" since Diablo 3. His hope is that Diablo 5 goes back to the completely build-centric combat favored by his beloved Diablo 1 and 2, but he predicts it'll move even further into action territory.

I mention this in the context of a new tweet from Diablo 5 senior game director Joe Shely, which sounds like a response to Wilson's questions on combat even if it isn't intended as such.

"While Diablo V will continue to feature some DEX (moment-to-moment execution) mechanics, on balance the game will be an INT/STR game (planning and investment)," Shely says. "We are designing to the core tenet of ARPGs that any challenge can be overcome with the right build."

I've listened to Shely talk enough to know he's incredibly media-trained, so it's no surprise that his written remarks here don't actually reveal anything specific and substantive about Diablo 5's combat beyond some level of "moment-to-moment" mechanics. That could literally just mean you'll have to position your attacks in the direction of enemies and get out of the way of incoming attacks, or it could suggest a deeper embrace of action-like combat, but it's reassuring that the focus is still on build composition instead of, as Wilson puts it, "a dexterity player focus."

As a Diablo player from the very beginning, I'm not too worried about Diablo 5 having a slightly more intricate combat system so long as the fantasy is still about constantly iterating synergies between gear and abilities to make killing monsters easier and easier, and it sounds like that's still the case. I do agree with Wilson that monster scaling should probably be ditched or at least dramatically scaled back to make the world feel uncompromising and dangerous, but I suspect I'll be waiting a while longer for nittier, grittier details like that.

Diablo 4 seasons will continue after Diablo 5 launches "similar" to Diablo 2 and 3, Blizzard confirms

There's another version of Azeroth on the way in World of Warcraft: Forever. This iteration goes back to the first year of the MMORPG's timeline, but with extra flourishes and contemporary design elements, in contrast to how WoW: Classic brings back the old school gameplay. As a result, a fan-favorite quest from an old expansion isn't available, but Blizzard's remedying the situation.

Almost 20 years ago, a special mission was added in The Burning Crusade, known as Kyle's Gone Missing. You're tasked with helping Ahab Wheathoof find his dog. That's cute and sweet as is, and it only becomes more so when you know that it was the result of a Make-A-Wish request from one Ezra 'Ephoenix' Chatterton.

He designed this questline for Blizzard, and provided the voice work for Ahab, cementing himself as part of World of Warcraft eternally. It's been a rite of passage for players ever since. The Burning Crusade isn't in Forever, but there have been enough requests to include Chatterton's work that the devs are going to anachronistically make it happen.

"We're working on it," reads a response from community manager Randy 'Kaivax' Jordan to a comment thread on the official forums asking for the mission. "Stay tuned."

The thread was started by one player who was asking on behalf of their partner, who managed to get some beta time. Forever is currently in a closed preview for members of the community, before going fully public on November 4. The area containing Kyle's Gone Missing, Mulgore, is accessible, making this a smaller leap than you might think.

I find it distinctly heartening to see so many rallying behind maintaining this commemoration. Even after 19 years, they're keeping Chatterton's memory alive. May we all enjoy such a legacy.

WoW: Forever dev says quest drops aren't changing in the MMO, but Blizzard has added " a bit of under-the-hood functionality" that makes them fairer.

With the surprise announcement of Diablo 5 at BlizzCon 2026, some fans of the series are left with a bittersweet feeling. Sure, a new game sounds great, and with Diablo 5 looking like the darkest entry in the series since OG Diablo, it does look great. But what does that mean for Diablo 4, which is only three years old? Well, Blizzard itself has confirmed it means no more Diablo 4 expansions, but the developer has made it clear seasonal updates will continue despite Diablo 5 being the apparent main focus within Blizzard's Diablo team. But with Diablo 4 seasons being as meaty as they are these days, complete with miniature remakes of legacy Diablo campaigns in the case of season 15, how long can Blizzard really keep that going? Apparently, as long as players keep showing up.

"We are planning on supporting seasons as long as the community continues to show up for D4," game director Brent Gibson tells Icy Veins. "Similar to what we have in D2 and D3. There are still people who play those games, and as long as you're showing up, we’re going to continue to be making content."

As Gibson alludes, this isn't a huge surprise considering Diablo 2 and 3's seasonal structures still haven't been abandoned, not to mention Diablo 2 getting a whole new class as recently as this year. That said, those games aren't really getting new seasons as in actual new content; they're essentially on maintenance mode with old seasonal themes on a rotating schedule. It seems to me Gibson is suggesting Diablo 4's seasonal updates will take a similar structure once Diablo 5 is released, which makes sense. I can only imagine the resources required to consistently update two mainline Diablo games with whole new storylines, regions, items, etc. at the same time. Not even the Xbox-owned Blizzard has pockets that deep.

Diablo himself is the reason Diablo 5 is coming instead of more Diablo 4 expansions, says project lead: "We needed to give him his own game"

We haven't seen much of Diablo 5 yet beyond the cinematic announcement we got at BlizzCon 2026, but Blizzard has been leaving a trail of breadcrumbs indicating a dramatic departure from previous entries in the series, and in other cases, a return to its roots. I've written at some length about how Blizzard is doubling down on the Diablo series' trademark darkness and why that's the best way to pay tribute to the original 1996 action RPG, and now Path of Exile co-creator Chris Wilson is pointing out a few more clues that seem to suggest Diablo 5 is taking inspiration from its early forbearers.

Of course, Path of Exile wouldn't exist without Diablo 1 and 2, so Wilson has a thoroughly documented obsession with those iconic ARPGs. He's also been outspoken about not having clicked with Diablo 3 and 4 for various reasons, and in a new video, he explains why he's "tentatively hopeful" that Diablo 5 will be closer in spirit to the first two games in the series.

"I felt the Diablo series had just moved on from the type of game that I loved, but when I watched the Diablo 5 announcement, I felt a glimmer of hope," Wilson says. "This wasn't just due to the words they were saying, but also what they intentionally chose to show." Wilson points out that the Diablo 5 logo features the letters of the title engulfed in flames similar to Diablo 1 and 2, and decidedly not similar to Diablo 3 and 4's flameless logos. Similarly, inventory concepts revealed in Diablo 5's announcement show items with distinct sizes and inventory management just like Diablo 1 and 2, something that was ditched in favor of uniform item sizes in Diablo 3 and 4.

"These are specific signals to players like me that there's a chance they're taking things back to basics and learning from the original games that established this franchise to begin with," says Wilson.

Those might seem like small details to draw any significant implications from, and indeed, Wilson says there are much bigger questions waiting to be answered that'll decide whether Diablo 5 is the return to form he's hoping for, or another evolution that drifts further from the core design ethos that inspired him to form his own studio and start making games for a living.

Crucially, in Wilson's view, Diablo 5 needs to ditch the enemy scaling that ensures Diablo 4's mobs are proportionate power-wise to the player's leveling. He says, "In my opinion, Diablo 5 absolutely must use a traditional system where the world has progressively more powerful monsters and you can choose how fast you progress through it and where to grind based on your current capabilities."

But Wilson also thinks Blizzard's decision to go back to linear world structure is a positive indication that Diablo 5 will, in fact, abandon monster scaling, pointing to a PC Gamer interview in which game director Joe Shely said the sequel will take a "somewhat different approach" to level scaling.

Maybe the strongest evidence yet that Diablo 5 is embracing earlier games in the series is its confirmed return to procedurally generated environments in dungeons and the overworld, something Wilson is "very excited about."

And yet, Wilson still has some serious concerns about the direction Blizzard is taking Diablo 5; including whether it'll be online-only or include an option for offline single-player; how item trading will work; and whether the combat system will be designed to reward physical dexterity, i.e. via a dodge and attack system, or well-composed character builds.

Again, Wilson's a big fan of the different sized items, but he also says the 84 inventory slots, compared to Diablo 2's 40, could mean you'll be returning to town a lot less in Diablo 5. And of course, by "town," he's referring to your mobile caravan of traveling companions, which coincidentally was inspired by narrative director Jennifer Hepler's time at BioWare.

Wilson also says the early Diablo games were full of obscure mechanics and obtuse interactions that made them endlessly interesting to unpack even as years passed, which contrasts with the much more polished systems in Diablo 3 and 4, which he says are easier to get into but lack that same depth.

"I'm tentatively hopeful for Diablo 5," Wilson concludes. "I wasn't expecting to be, but they've said enough of the magic words and picked the right font for the logo. I have my fingers crossed that they'll do a good job with it."

As for why he wants Diablo 5 to succeed when he has his own unannounced ARPG in the works, Wilson says, "Every other action RPG developer" benefits when the genre's ecosystem is thriving – and it certainly would be with a banging new Diablo game.

As someone with a similar love for Diablo 1 and 2, I agree with most of Wilson's points, especially the stuff about monster scaling. There was an uncompromising danger in those early games' exploration that made getting back to town thrilling and satisfying, and I'd even go further and say Blizzard should bring back open PvP outside towns, or caravans, like the Wild West that was Diablo 1 multiplayer. That last feature was left behind as early as Diablo 2, though, and I'm not expecting that level of embrace of unhinged online gaming culture.

Diablo 4's 30th anniversary event is "pretty distasteful," Path of Exile co-creator says: "Games should have respect for their core storylines."

This year's BlizzCon brought the announcement of Diablo 5. Although we're still a few years out from the sequel, development is already winding down on Diablo 4, to the point we're not getting any more major expansions. One of the co-creators of fellow action-RPG Path of Exile isn't enamored by Blizzard's strategy here, believing it undermines the series and the fanbase.

Chris Wilson, one of the central designers of Path of Exile, made these points in a YouTube video. "It feels like they're abandoning Diablo 4," he says of the announcement. "They even clarified there would be no more expansions developed for Diablo 4, but there would be some content released, I assume by the small team left running it."

He finds the proposed roadmap disappointing, to say the least. "One of those pieces of Diablo 4 content is a 30th anniversary event called Season of Hell's Legacy," he comments. "To be honest, this event feels pretty distasteful to me. I feel that games should have respect for their core storylines, and treat their antagonists with the respect that they deserve."

As you might have guessed, he doesn't believe the proposed gameplay additions or their presentation manage this. "Diablo 4 was slowly building up to you eventually getting to fight the Prime Evils, and then they introduce them all at once in this special event that isn't really tied into the game's storyline," he observes.

"They brought back Deckard Cain for the event, even though he was canonically killed in Diablo 3," he adds. In his mind, this makes it seem like "causality and story events" don't hold the appropriate weight, and "that we shouldn't take them seriously."

This is compounded by Blizzard calling Diablo, the big bad himself, "the birthday boy" on-stage. "If your franchise is called Diablo, and you've made billions of dollars from games that sell a fantasy of players working towards getting to confront and defeat Diablo, the Lord of Terror, then you should treat him with the utmost respect," Wilson states.

Not really the place for kiddy nicknames, is it? Despite all of this, Wilson is "tentatively hopeful" for Diablo 5. It's going back to more RNG-heavy world design, it has a truly desolate worldview, and he's pleased by the font choice for the logo. Hopefully Blizzard stays the course in its decision-making.

Diablo 5 tells "three stories" across the past, present, and future, and biomes will change shape depending on which of Diablo's minions is in charge

World of Warcraft: Forever has made rounds online for seemingly standing as Blizzard's own take on Classic+ – but how faithful does the new MMO truly stay to its 2004 predecessor?

Well, as showcased during BlizzCon 2026, it does feature some quality-of-life improvements alongside its cozy revamped visuals. One of these, according to senior game designer Josh Greenfield, has to do with the way that quest-related items drop for players in groups.

He explains as much in a new post over on X, first stating that drops aren't totally changing – but that doesn't mean they're not improving at all, per se.

"Someone asked me something earlier about how quest drops work in WoW: Forever and if we are changing that," writes Greenfield. "The short answer is no; however we did do something cool that we haven't really had a good opportunity to talk about yet. In the interest of our Pro-social approach, we added a bit of under-the-hood functionality to quests to more predictably round-robin quest items to people who are grouped."

Thank the Light – if there's one thing I think we all hate, it's feeling left behind while every other player in your group is getting drops left, right, and center… and Greenfield gets it.

"There's nothing worse than killing a million furbolgs and having one guy in your group have 8/10 furbolg butts, and the other guy has 1/10. In WoW: Forever we've got something in place that makes it a bit more consistent that everyone in the group will get drops evenly."

The World of Warcraft: Forever Beta's ever-changing, though. As Greenfield puts it, "We are still dialing in this system" – but folks should still give it a go.

"If you are afraid to group on drop quests, I'd encourage you to give it a try. It's still going to take time, just like vanilla WoW, but it'll be less feast or famine, and you'll definitely kill things much faster." And, again, the developers aren't completely overhauling the old in favor of the new.

"A bit of grind on these drop quests are part of the vanilla magic we are maintaining, but we can do small things to help it feel more natural and encourage grouping while still maintaining that original design, and that's our goal," as Greenfield concludes.

He expands on this in the comments, too: "There's still some randomness, but it's more like a bad luck protection if you haven't seen a drop in a while and others are pulling ahead."

Honestly, I'm fairly pleased with group play in the Beta myself so far. Drops do feel even enough, and if one person does get a lot more of something than another, they can trade.

Here's why we think World of Warcraft: Forever gives old school fans nearly everything they could want after spending just 20 hours in the stunning MMO.

Following Blizzard's big reveal of World of Warcraft: Forever at BlizzCon 2026, the MMO's official Beta release went live – and it's almost too popular.

So much so, that senior game designer Josh Greenfield said he was witnessing "the craziest numbers I've seen in 17 years working at Blizzard" as the studio's servers kept breaking thanks to the WoW: Forever Beta.

The developers remedied the issue by, you know, simply increasing the MMO's population cap – something they've just had to do again over the weekend, because folks apparently can't get enough of it.

World of Warcraft executive producer and vice president Holly Longdale reveals as much in a new post over on X, writing, "So… we had to increase the WoW: Forever Beta population cap again. The wild ride continues." It continues, indeed.

Although Longdale doesn't specify whether Blizzard lifted the population cap for EU or US players, I'd wager it's for both. Despite costing at least $59.99 to access, the Beta boasts plenty of fans worldwide from what I've seen.

Heck, the initial launch was a bit of a debacle itself, as senior game producer Tom Ellis dubbed it "a bit excessive" as countless fans struggled to get into the game.

Although the devs figured the release out eventually, it seems as though the World of Warcraft beta is just as popular as before – or even more so, seeing as Blizzard is actively raising the population cap over time. It spells a good future for the MMO, honestly.

Its popularity makes sense, too. Devs previously described World of Warcraft: Forever as an edition of Blizzard's decades-old MMO that's "for the millions of people who have had their accounts lapse" in Classic – and I'd say that resonates.

Not only that, but it's managing to reach entirely new audiences as well, like myself… and after spending all weekend playing the Beta, I can safely say that it's also succeeding there.

Here's why we think World of Warcraft: Forever gives old school fans nearly everything they could want after spending just 20 hours in the stunning MMO.