14 DAY TRIAL // Blizzard Entertainment has announced that the Cataclysm expansion for the World of Warcraft MMO will be released on December 7 of this year, allowing players to experience all new races, zones and changing the way much of the in game world of Azeroth looks to both new and old players.
Fans of the MMO will be able to pick up the game via DVD, available for Windows versions from XP to 7 and for Mac, or can get it via digital distribution from the Blizzard Store.
Cataclysm will see the return of the powerful and evil dragon Deathwing, set to remake the world of Azeroth in his own image.
The new level cap is now set at 85 and players will be able to play as the Worgen and as the Goblins.
Speculation about the launch date had been going on for quite some time, with most industry watchers expecting Blizzard to make an announcement in about two weeks time at the BlizzCon event.
A e-mail for those pre ordering the Special Edition from Amazon suggested that the game could arrive in early January while fans reading the tea leaves of the official Blizzard forums countered that December 7 was a much more probable date given the start of the new Arena season.
Mike Morhaime, who is the Chief Executive Officer and a co founder of Blizzard Entertainment, stated, “Cataclysm includes the best content we've ever created for World of Warcraft. It’s not just an expansion but a re-creation of much of the original Azeroth, complete with epic new high-level adventures for current players and a redesigned leveling experience for those just starting out.”
He added, “With the help of our beta testers we're putting on the final polish, and we look forward to welcoming gamers around the world to enjoy it in just a couple of months.”
At the moment Cataclysm is still in beta stage, with players offering the developers at Blizzard curcial feedback.