The Burning Crusade in stores Jan. 16

Blizzard Entertainment has announced that World of Warcraft: The Burning Crusade will be in stores on January 16th in North America and in Europe. The expansion to the world's leading subscription-based multiplayer online role-playing game will allow players to advance characters up to level 70, add two new playable races -- the Blood Elves and the Draenei -- as well as flying mounts and new talents & abilities to all character classes. The update includes a new jewelcrafting profession, new magical weapons and armor, and numerous player-versus-player enhancements. Lead veteran players are taken through the fabled Dark Portal and into Outland, the former homeworld of the Orcs and site of a series of cataclysmic events that helped shape the history of the Warcraft universe. World of Warcraft: The Burning Crusade is priced at $40, offering compatibility to Mac as well as Windows systems (specific system requirements were unavailable).

The title is expected to ship in Korea, Australia, New Zealand, and Singapore in a simlar time frame to the U.S., with availability for mainland China and the regions of Taiwan, Hong Kong, and Macau to be announced in the near future, according to Blizzard.

"In this shattered world, players will encounter new challenges and dangers in the form of new outdoor zones, quests, dungeons, never-before-seen monsters, and much more. Over the course of their new adventures in The Burning Crusade, players will grow in experience and power as they uncover the rich lore and mysteries of Outland and do battle with the demonic forces of The Burning Legion."

The upgrade requires the original World of Warcraft game ($20) to play, and the limited-edition package includes the expansion on both CD-ROM and DVD with the Art of the Burning Crusade 'coffee table book.' Each limited package also ships with an exclusive in-game pet, a behind-the-scenes DVD, two World of Warcraft trading card starter decks with three exclusive cards, a map of Outland mouse pad, and the official soundtrack CD.

Filed under: gaming