At Blizzcon 2026, Blizzard officially announced World of Warcraft: Forever, a new standalone version of the popular MMORPG. Developers are returning to the first year of Azeroth’s existence, but instead of simply repeating familiar content, they’re offering an alternative evolution of the “vanilla” era with new territories and stories.
In World of Warcraft: Forever, players will be able to explore three new zones, complete more than 1,000 new quests, nine dungeons, and two raids. There will also be new Skyborne races added to the game. The world’s level of development will still be tied to the “vanilla” era, and events will unfold in an alternate timeline that begins to deviate from the history of the original World of Warcraft in the first year of the game. Blizzard calls this version the third experience of “World of Warcraft”, existing side by side with “Current” and “Classic”.
“World of Warcraft: Forever” will be released on November 4, 2026, and beta testing will begin on September 17. Purchasing one of these special packs will give you access to the beta, and that version will be included with the main World of Warcraft subscription from the moment of full release.
