Although someone at Blizzard pulled the trigger on the press kit a bit too early, the developers of World of Warcraft officially announced The Burning Crusade Classic. This first expansion for WoW was launched back in January 2007, and it remains one of the highest-selling PC games ever released. Fans are already eager to explore the origins of the Blood Elves and Draenei, but when will Blizzard let us travel back in time and open up the servers for Burning Crusade Classic?
Right now, we know that the retro expansion will launch some time in 2021. Although Burning Crusade was a January launch 14 years ago, Blizzard has become consistent with their release dates for WoW expansions since that time. Wrath of the Lich King, Cataclysm, Mists of Pandaria, and Warlords of Draenor launched during the Autumn season, while Legion and Battle for Azeroth debuted in August. Blizzard released Shadowlands in November, although the expansion would have come out sooner had it not been for shifting work environments due to the pandemic.
Given that WoW Classic was released in August, it’s a safe bet to assume that Burning Crusade Classic will likely launch before Fall 2021. Unlike Shadowlands, all the existing code and content for Burning Crusade already exist, and it’s just a matter of porting it to available servers. If we’re lucky, we could be looking at a steady schedule of expansions and Classic releases for years to come.
