World of Warcraft Cataclysm Classic is just around the corner, and you might be wondering what’s in store in the third expansion. Here’s everything we know about WoW Cataclysm Classic and some of my estimates.
What to do before WoW Cataclysm Classic launches
Just because Cataclysm Classic is still months away doesn’t mean you have to wait months to try the game out. You can sign up for the Cataclysm Classic beta right now and see what the game will look like when it releases in Summer 2024. By my estimate, the beta will start somewhere in February, right after phase two of Season of Discovery begins.
If you’re playing Wrath of the Lich King Classic, you can also take part in the Cataclysm pre-patch event, where you can play as the two new races (Worgen and Goblins) and enjoy new features like account-wide collections, the new Transmog features, and the improved guild system. These were a huge deal back when Cataclysm first launched. I think the pre-patch event will start in mid-April and continue until June 1, 2024. There could be a delay of a couple of days, sure, but these expansions are familiar to Blizzard, so I’m pretty confident there won’t be any major setbacks.
When does WoW Cataclysm Classic launch?
According to the roadmap, the expansion is set to launch in early summer 2024. By my estimate, I think WoW Cataclysm Classic will launch on June 7, 2024. Why that date specifically? Because it’s the first Friday of June, and Blizzard will want to have as many players as possible during launch week. And what better way to get many players than to launch the game when most of us finish work and have the whole weekend to ourselves? Of course, I could be wrong, and the game launches Monday afternoon, but I digress.
WoW Cataclysm Classic is going to be a beefy one. New level cap, New zones, seven new dungeons, four new raids, two heroic dungeons, and even the Darkmoon Island. I have fond memories of Cataclysm. I originally thought it would be the last official WoW expansion when it first came out, but, boy, was I wrong. The best and arguably the worst thing about Cataclysm was how they brought flying mounts to all zones, including WoW Classic zones.
WoW Cataclysm Classic post-launch content
The Rise of the Zandalari will drop around Autumn 2024—I’m guessing Aug. 15-ish. This was a big deal then because Zul’Aman and Zul’Gurub became heroic dungeons while they were previously full-on raids. I really liked that, as I never got to experience either raid when they were relevant. There was also a plethora of new quests and activities on Stranglethorn Vale.
Finally, in mid-Autumn 2024, I’m guessing sometime around Oct. 1, Rage of the Firelands will come out. Firelands added a new questing zone, raid, and tier of armor. A pretty good content patch, even though it flocked most of the player base to just one small zone.
While I am happy that I get to re-experience WoW Cataclysm again, I’m also sad that Wrath of the Lich King Classic servers will be shutting down. Still, I am glad that I’ll be able to fly around any zone when WoW Cataclysm Classic
