- Game
- World of Warcraft: Forever
- Release date
- November 4, 2026
- Release time
- 3:00 p.m. PST (23:00 UTC), one global launch
- Platforms
- Windows, Mac (Battle.net desktop app)
- Price
- Included with a WoW subscription or Game Time ($14.99 for one month on the US Battle.net Shop); optional upgrades $29.99 to $79.99
- Developer
- Blizzard Entertainment
- Publisher
- Blizzard Entertainment
- Source
- Blizzard News launch and pre-purchase posts, Battle.net Shop listings, Blizzard Gear Store
Blizzard's own table splits launch night across two dates: the Americas, Brazil and the UK get WoW: Forever on the evening of November 4, while Central Europe, Taiwan, Korea and Australia wake up to it on November 5. Everyone logs in at the same instant, and there's no realm list waiting on the other side. You pick a Ruleset instead, and your character's two-part name has to be unique across your whole region.
What is the WoW Forever launch time?
The WoW Forever release date is November 4, 2026, and the WoW Forever launch time is 3:00 p.m. PST, a single worldwide unlock that Blizzard puts at 23:00 UTC in its launch announcement. Rows marked "Blizzard" come straight from Blizzard's table; the rest are our conversions from 23:00 UTC.
| Region | Launch time | Date | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| US Pacific (PST) | 3:00 p.m. | Wed, Nov 4 | Blizzard |
| US Mountain (MST) | 4:00 p.m. | Wed, Nov 4 | Our conversion |
| US Central (CST) | 5:00 p.m. | Wed, Nov 4 | Our conversion |
| US Eastern (EST) | 6:00 p.m. | Wed, Nov 4 | Our conversion |
| Brazil (BRT) | 8:00 p.m. | Wed, Nov 4 | Blizzard |
| UTC | 23:00 | Wed, Nov 4 | Blizzard |
| UK (GMT) | 11:00 p.m. | Wed, Nov 4 | Blizzard |
| Central Europe (CET) | Midnight | Thu, Nov 5 | Blizzard |
| Eastern Europe (EET) | 1:00 a.m. | Thu, Nov 5 | Our conversion |
| Taiwan (CST) | 7:00 a.m. | Thu, Nov 5 | Blizzard |
| Korea (KST) | 8:00 a.m. | Thu, Nov 5 | Blizzard |
| Japan (JST) | 8:00 a.m. | Thu, Nov 5 | Our conversion |
| Perth (AWST) | 7:00 a.m. | Thu, Nov 5 | Our conversion |
| Brisbane (AEST) | 9:00 a.m. | Thu, Nov 5 | Our conversion |
| Sydney, Melbourne (AEDT) | 10:00 a.m. | Thu, Nov 5 | Blizzard (ANZ) |
| New Zealand (NZDT) | Noon | Thu, Nov 5 | Our conversion |
The "PST" is accurate: US daylight saving time ended on November 1, so the East Coast gets in at 6:00 p.m. Japan has no row in Blizzard's table, and the Battle.net Shop lists only four regions (Americas & Oceania, Europe, Korea, Taiwan), so the JST line is our arithmetic. The slot suits the Americas; Europe starts launch night at midnight.
Do you need a subscription to play WoW Forever?
Yes. WoW: Forever has no box price: Blizzard's pre-purchase post says access "will be included with your World of Warcraft Subscription or Game Time", and the Battle.net Shop says the same. On the US subscription page, one month is $14.99, three months work out to $13.99 a month and the six- and 12-month offers to $12.99 a month. That subscription also covers modern WoW and WoW Classic.
The only free route is temporary. Every upgrade edition comes with Invite-A-Friend Launch Codes, and a friend who redeems one can play without a subscription from November 4 through November 11, 2026, PST, per Blizzard. Gift purchases don't earn codes.
How much do the WoW Forever upgrades cost?
The three optional upgrades cost $29.99, $59.99 and $79.99 on the US Battle.net Shop (€29.99, €59.99 and €79.99 on the EU store), and the cheapest is all you need for the new Skyborne race.
| Edition | US | EU | What it adds |
|---|---|---|---|
| Skyborne Heroic Pack | $29.99 | €29.99 | Skyborne race and Zephras Isle starting zone, Early Name Reservation, Cerulean Prideclaw ground mount, a transmog set, back item and toy, Skyborne housing decor for modern WoW, one Invite-A-Friend code |
| Skyborne Epic Pack | $59.99 | €59.99 | Everything in Heroic, plus 30 days of Game Time added at launch, a bear mount and transmog set, two tabards, four pets, three Invite-A-Friend codes in total |
| Warcraft Forever Collection | $79.99 | €79.99 | Everything in Epic, plus Warcraft III: Reforged, the Forsaken Kingdom campaign and two figurine decor items; on sale through January 11, 2027 |
The Early Name Reservation window is October 27 to November 3, 2026, PST, for up to three characters, first come, first served. The Epic Pack's beta access is spent: the beta ran from September 17 to October 21. Upgrade items don't carry over to WoW Classic, and the decor needs Midnight's Housing in modern WoW.
The physical Collector's Edition is $150 on the Blizzard Gear Store, a Warcraft Forever Collection code plus a Dwarf and Bear statue and other extras; orders placed from September 24 onward ship in February 2027, and Blizzard's updated Collector's Edition post lists retailer stock in the UK, Europe, Australia and New Zealand.
What is WoW Forever, and what's new in it?
WoW: Forever is a separate version of World of Warcraft alongside modern WoW and Classic: a level 1 to 60 game on the original continents, set after Warcraft III Reforged: Forsaken Kingdom and before Molten Core, per Blizzard. It isn't a straight re-release. Blizzard lists more than 1,000 new quests and new destinations at Mount Hyjal, Shen'dralas, the Riverglades and Zephras Isle.
The headline addition is the Skyborne, a new race that starts on Zephras Isle (levels 1 to 12) and picks a faction at character creation. Horde Windshapers can be Shaman, Alliance High-Order Skyborne can be Mages, and both can be Druids, Hunters, Rogues and Warriors, per Blizzard's returning-player guide. Six new race and class pairs also open up: Human Hunter, Dwarf Shaman, Gnome Priest, Orc Mage, Troll Warlock and Undead Paladin.
- Nine new five-player dungeons for levels 13 to 60, six in the Eastern Kingdoms and three in Kalimdor.
- Three raids on December 9 for level 60 characters: Barrow Deeps, Hyjal Summit and Onyxia's Lair.
- Darkspear Islands, a new 15 versus 15 battleground for levels 30 to 60.
- The Legacy System, account-wide horizontal progression.
The new Camping system turns the Cooking profession's Basic Campfire into a shared campsite where up to three nearby players each add a profession-crafted Camp Feature for buffs.
Blizzard's launch trailer, "Warpath", is on the official World of Warcraft channel.
What do you choose when you first log in?
Your first login asks for an Experience Preset (Classic or Enhanced), then a Ruleset. Classic keeps standard-definition models and fewer modern interface features; Enhanced turns on HD models, quest markers, one-bag and transmog. Blizzard suggests Enhanced if you're unsure, and both can be changed later in Options.
Normal, PvP, Roleplay and Roleplay PvP Rulesets open at launch; Hardcore comes "sometime after launch". Agree on one with friends first: Blizzard's new player guide says characters can group, guild, run dungeons and raid only with players on the same Ruleset and faction.
Can you pre-download WoW Forever?
Blizzard hasn't announced a pre-download date, but its returning-player guide explains the install: open the Battle.net app, choose WoW: Forever under Game Version and click Install. Players on Blizzard's official forums report the option appearing on October 22, some only after switching to an account that had bought an upgrade. Blizzard hasn't confirmed either point.
Will WoW Forever run on my PC or Mac?
WoW: Forever runs on Windows and Mac only, through the Battle.net app with an internet connection, per the Battle.net Shop. There's no console version, and our November 2026 release calendar lists it under November 4 with the month's other PC games.
Blizzard's hard line is the graphics card. Its GPU requirements post requires AMD Graphics Core Next 1 (2012), NVIDIA Maxwell (2014) or Intel Skylake (2015) or newer, so a GeForce GTX 760, 770 or 780 won't run it. The full sheet is on the Battle.net Shop; per Timesaver's copy of that listing, the Windows minimum is Windows 10 64-bit, a 4-core 3.0 GHz CPU, a 4 GB DirectX 12 card in the GeForce GTX 10-series class, 8 GB of RAM and 128 GB free on an SSD. Controller support is still in beta.
What we don't know yet
- When the Hardcore Ruleset opens.
- The official download size, and whether Blizzard will announce a pre-download window.
- The recommended PC spec: guides quoting the Battle.net Shop disagree, so check the shop page before buying hardware.
