Blizzard has officially announced the beginning of the Cataclysm closed beta test. Some invites were sent out today; make sure to opt-in with your Battle.net account.
Keep an eye on Lore Hound for more news and potentially beta keys! (As soon as, you know, we get some for ourselves).
In addition, this likely means the end of the alpha NDA, so expect a lot of sources to have a flood of Cataclysm information.
Cataclysm Beta
IRVINE, Calif. – June 30, 2010 – Blizzard Entertainment announced today that the closed beta test for Cataclysm™, its highly anticipated new expansion for World of Warcraft®, has begun. The company has started issuing invitations to participate in the testing process to a wide range of players from around the world who signed up via their Battle.net® accounts. While enjoying an early look at the game, beta testers will provide valuable feedback to help Blizzard Entertainment find bugs, address balance issues, and polish the new content.
“Our focus with Cataclysm has been to build on the knowledge we’ve gained through the previous expansions to deliver the best, most compelling World of Warcraft content for our players to date,” said Mike Morhaime, CEO and cofounder of Blizzard Entertainment. “Gathering focused feedback during the beta test will go a long way in helping us reach that goal when we launch Cataclysm later this year.”
Cataclysm is the third expansion for World of Warcraft, the most popular subscription-based massively multiplayer online role-playing game in the world. The first two expansions, The Burning Crusade® and Wrath of the Lich King®, each shattered PC game sales records upon their release. In Cataclysm, the face of Azeroth will be forever altered by the return of the corrupted Dragon Aspect Deathwing. Players will explore once-familiar areas of the world that have now been reshaped by the devastation and filled with new adventures. In an effort to survive the planet-shattering cataclysm, two new playable races — worgen and goblins — will join the struggle between the Alliance and the Horde. As players journey to the new level cap of 85, they’ll discover newly revealed locations, acquire new levels of power, and come face to face with Deathwing in a battle to determine the fate of the world.
For more information on World of Warcraft: Cataclysm, please visit the official website athttp://www.worldofwarcraft.com/cataclysm. To set up a Battle.net account and sign up for a chance to participate in the World of Warcraft: Cataclysm beta test, please visit the official Battle.net website at http://www.battle.net.
You guys have any plans to showcase Cataclysm raid content, or the like?
Once we have beta access, we will have lots and lots of content.
I just hope I might be apart of that! I normally don’t get lucky in drawings. More on pure skill (like getting this ‘job’).
Soooo happy Cataclysm Beta started.
SO excited!! Do you know if they are going to be releasing a date soon? Can you already pre-order it?
They’ll release that when they feel like it.
And yes, Bronakk Confirmed the NDA Has been ofcially lifted.
But be discrete. There still things that are spoilers to people.
I got into the wrath beta 2 years ago, hopefully my luck is still hanging around. :)
I sure hope I get picked! Does anyone know if there are certain qualities Blizzard looks for in their testers?
Non-Mac users with previous gaming experience and/or a community/following.
@ Barugaara
Not really.
Blizzard does both Mac and Windows users. When you go to your battle.net account, above all the games tied to the account there is a row of links. At the far end should be a “Beta Opt-In Settings”. Clicking on that will bring you to the page.
On the right is the different games they offer that you would like to be selected for in Beta testing. Click all of the ones you want (Diablo, Starcraft, Warcraft). On the bottom left is a computer specifications item. Click on that and follow the instructions to gather your computer information and upload it to your battle.net account.
Make sure to keep that updated. After that, it’s at Blizzard’s discretion for selecting you.
Blizzard is going to select people from a wide range of computer strength. Not everyone with the best computers.
If 25 people have the best computers out there, only about 3 will get selected. If only one person has the worst computer out there, they will for sure be selected for Blizzard to see if the games being tested can run on that slow, and crappy, of a computer.
The above is only an example, but it’s the general way to explain the selection process.
Of course, there’s always you know, contests and other ways of getting into the Beta, but it normally requires effort and/or knowing people in high places.
:( I don’t know anyone in high places …