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==Story==
==Story==
The central plot of the expansion is the return of the evil [[dragon]] [[Neltharion|Deathwing the Destroyer]]. Last seen in ''[[Warcraft II]]'', Deathwing has spent that time licking his wounds, so to speak, and plotting his fiery return from the [[Parallel universe (fiction)|elemental plane]] of [[Deepholm]]. His return tears through the [[Parallel universe (fiction)|dimensional]] barrier with [[Warcraft#Azeroth|Azeroth]], causing a sweeping [[Doomsday event|cataclysm]] that reshapes much of the world's surface.
The central plot of the expansion is the return of the evil [[dragon]] [[Neltharion|Deathwing the Destroyer]]. Last seen in ''[[Warcraft II]]'', Deathwing has spent that time licking his wounds, so to speak, and plotting his fiery return from the [[Parallel universe (fiction)|elemental plane]] of [[Deepholm]]. His return tears through the [[Parallel universe (fiction)|dimensional]] barrier with [[Warcraft#Azeroth|Azeroth]], causing a sweeping cataclysm that reshapes much of the world's surface.


{{Refimprove|section|date=July 2010}}
{{Refimprove|section|date=July 2010}}

Revision as of 17:19, 29 July 2010

World of Warcraft: Cataclysm
File:Cataclysmlogo.png
Developer(s)Blizzard Entertainment
Publisher(s)Activision Blizzard
SeriesWarcraft
Platform(s)Mac OS X, Windows
Release2010[1]
Genre(s)MMORPG
Mode(s)Online

World of Warcraft: Cataclysm is the upcoming third expansion set for the massively multiplayer online role-playing game (MMORPG) World of Warcraft, following The Burning Crusade and Wrath of the Lich King. It was officially announced at BlizzCon on August 21, 2009; however details were discovered earlier.[2]

Much content is expected for release in the new expansion including two new races, Goblins for the Horde and Worgen for the Alliance, revamped zones, new quests and dungeons, new raids and newly accessible areas.

In a February 2010 Activision Blizzard investor call, Blizzard CEO Mike Morhaime revealed that Cataclysm would be released in that same calendar year.[1]

On May 3, 2010, it was officially confirmed that the Family & Friends Alpha phase of the testing process for Cataclysm had begun,[3] fuelling further speculation that the open alpha would commence within the coming months. Despite the non-disclosure agreement (NDA), much of the beginnings of the game were leaked onto various sources after the client was distributed across the internet within a few days of the alpha testing phase commencing. On May 11, 2010, it emerged that Blizzard had requested that at least one of these sites remove any alpha content[4] until the NDA is lifted.

In late June 2010, Cataclysm entered closed beta testing,[5] sending invitations to gamers who had signed up through their Battle.net account.

Story

The central plot of the expansion is the return of the evil dragon Deathwing the Destroyer. Last seen in Warcraft II, Deathwing has spent that time licking his wounds, so to speak, and plotting his fiery return from the elemental plane of Deepholm. His return tears through the dimensional barrier with Azeroth, causing a sweeping cataclysm that reshapes much of the world's surface.


New features

  • Level cap raised to 85
  • Redesigned and updated zones within Kalimdor and the Eastern Kingdoms
  • New towns and quests
  • Redesigned low and mid-level quests to accompany updated zones
  • Around 3000 new quests
  • Players will be able to use flying mounts inside Azeroth zones (flying mounts were previously restricted to Northrend and Outland)[6]
  • Nine new dungeons and six new raids (with more planned to be released with later patches)
  • Two previously released dungeons — Deadmines and Shadowfang Keep — will have an added Heroic Mode for level 85 players
  • New battlegrounds and a new world-PvP zone, Tol-Barad (similar to the Wintergrasp world-PvP zone introduced in Wrath of the Lich King)
  • A new secondary skill: Archaeology
  • A new type of glyph: [Prime]
  • A rated battleground system, along with associated new rewards
  • Newly accessible areas such as Uldum, the Sunken City of Vash'jir, the Twilight Highlands and Mount Hyjal (previously only featured as a time travel destination within the Caverns of Time)
  • Two new playable races, Goblins and Worgen
  • Players can choose expanded race and class combinations for their characters[7]
  • Revamp of the stat system, removing such stats as mana per 5 seconds (MP5), armor penetration and defense rating and integrating them in other ways such as talents
  • Introduction of new stats such as Mastery, which will enhance certain abilities (both active and passive) depending on the player's class and talent specialization
  • Changes to some major cities
  • New starting areas for Trolls and Gnomes at levels 1-5
  • Player talent trees have been reworked and players will have a total of 41 talent points at level 85. Consequently, the talent trees are being "trimmed", and will look (superficially) much like the talent trees players had available on WoW's launch.

In addition, Cataclysm is planned to utilize the dramatically revamped community platform [Battle.net] which is being integrated with other Blizzard games such as StarCraft II and Diablo III.[8]

References

  1. ^ a b Cite error: The named reference release_date was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  2. ^ WoW.com Staff (2009-08-14). "World of Warcraft: Cataclysm leaked by MMO-Champion". Dulles, Virginia: Weblogs, Inc. Retrieved 2009-08-21.
  3. ^ Jessica Citizen (2010-05-03). "WoW: Cataclysm Family/Friends Alpha now open!". GamePron. Retrieved 2010-05-03.
  4. ^ Jessica Citizen (2010-05-11). "Blizzard issues takedown on Cataclysm leak". GamePron. Retrieved 2010-05-11.
  5. ^ Jessica Citizen (2010-06-30). "WoW: Cataclysm closed beta kicks off". GamePron. Retrieved 2010-06-30.
  6. ^ "World of Warcraft: Cataclysm - FAQ".
  7. ^ "World of Warcraft: Cataclysm – Features". Blizzard Entertainment. 2009-08-21. Retrieved 2009-08-21.
  8. ^ Blizzard Entertainment. "BlizzCon Battle.net Panel Recap". Retrieved 2010-04-09.
Cite error: A list-defined reference named "release date" is not used in the content (see the help page).

External links

Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=World_of_Warcraft:_Cataclysm&oldid=376119637"