The9 Limited and Blizzard today announced that both companies have decided to use an authorized-CD-key system for World of Warcraft in China in order to provide a stable and fair game environment and top-notch customer service for all players.

The official date for the open beta testing of World of Warcraft in China will be April 26, 2005, earlier than the originally planned April 29, 2005. WoW's open beta testing date has been brought forward by three days to accommodate tremendous requests and strong expectations from players.

Blizzard Entertainment announced today that an additional 250,000 standard box copies of World of Warcraft, its successful massively multiplayer online role-playing game (MMORPG), will be available in retail stores across Europe on 15th April. This new shipment of boxes follows the sales of more than 620,000 copies in Europe since its launch on 11th February.

Blizzard Entertainment today announced that World of Warcraft, its massively multiplayer online role-playing game (MMORPG), has surpassed the 1.5 million subscriber mark.

"Over the recent weeks we have been investigating the activities of certain individuals who have been farming gold in order to sell it in exchange for real world currency. After researching the situation, we have issued permanent suspensions to over one thousand accounts that have been engaging in this practice. We do not condone such actions and will take decisive action as they are against our policy and damage the game economy as a whole. We will continue researching this matter. If you suspect someone of taking part in said gold farming, please eMail the report to wowgm@blizzard.com."

Blizzard today announced that World of Warcraft has become an overnight success in Europe, achieving record-breaking sales in its first 24 hours since the game launched on Friday, 11th February. World of Warcraft has sold-through an estimated 280,000 copies at retail on day-one, this figure rose to more than 380,000 units being sold-through by the end of the first weekend.

Rich in legend and filled with adventure, the World of Warcraft awaits! For the first time, players experience the lands of Azeroth from a new, in-depth perspective. As heroes, they explore familiar battlefields, discover new lands and take on epic quests and challenges in Blizzards massively multiplayer, on-line, role-playing game. Limited amount of slots, so go and sign up NOW!

Blizzard President Mike Morhaime has addressed the WoW community to shed some light on the recent downtime and apologies for the problems some of the players may have been experiencing on the servers. "I am sure that many of you are wondering what has been going on with the World of Warcraft servers, as there was another period of extended downtime during peak hours last night.... Last night, we took down 20 realms for emergency maintenance.... Players on these same 20 realms also experienced service interruptions earlier in the week... Therefore, in addition to the three days already credited to these players as a result of the server issues earlier in the week, players on these realms will be receiving an additional four-day credit to their accounts." Read the full statement on the official WoW forums...

Over the weekend Blizzard updated some of the World of Warcraft database hardware in order to improve performance. This update required extended downtime for certain realms as data was transferred from the launch servers to the new servers. Due to the extended nature of the server issues, Blizzard will be providing a free 48-hour extension of play time, which will show up as free extra time on your current billing period. You can read more about it on the official World of Warcraft website...

Blizzard Entertainment today announced that World of Warcraft will officially launch in Korea on January 18, 2005. Following a highly successful beta-testing period, the game is now being prepared for availability throughout the country. Once released, players can sign up for various subscription plans and experience the epic adventure of the Warcraft series in an immersive and continually evolving online environment.

Blizzard Entertainment today announced that World of Warcraft has sold through more than 600,000 units to customers in North America, Australia, and New Zealand. The fastest-growing massively multiplayer online role-playing game (MMORPG) has also shattered all previous concurrency records in North America, achieving over 200,000 simultaneous players during the holiday period.

On December 22 many players were unable to access World of Warcraft for approximately seven hours, due to server problems. Blizzard will address this issue by automatically extending the trial period of all players who created an account on or before December 22 (11:59 PM PST) for an additional day.

Blizzard is not only hunting down people using cheats in World of Warcraft but not also taking action against people selling items for real money of Ebay. "It has come to our attention that certain individuals are selling Blizzard's in-game property for cash on auction sites such as eBay and on personal websites. The World of Warcraft Terms of Use clearly state that all of the content in World of Warcraft is the property of Blizzard, and Blizzard does not allow "in game" items to be sold for real money." Read the full article here ...

Blizzard keeps its users on a tight rope as over 300 accounts have been banned so far. "We have recently verified that certain individuals were using third party "bot" programs to automate their characters in World of Warcraft. A bot is used to play an account non-stop, allowing its user to accumulate money, items, and experience without actually requiring the user to be physically present to play the game. The use of bots is a violation of the World of Warcraft Terms of Use and is absolutely prohibited. Therefore, the accounts identified as having used bots have been banned."

World of Warcraft is an online role-playing experience set in the award-winning Warcraft universe. Players assume the roles of Warcraft heroes as they explore, adventure, and quest across a vast world. Whether adventuring together or fighting against each other in epic battles, players will form friendships, forge alliances, and compete with enemies for power and glory.

Blizzard issued a small statement in which they reveal a serious hacking violation in World of Warcraft, one for which Blizzard obviously has zero tolerance. Certain individuals have been identified as using speed hacks to accelerate their characters. This goes against the theme of fair play that is instituted for the game, and is in clear violation of the World of Warcraft Terms of Use. Those individuals who were caught using the speed hack have been banned from the game and have had their accounts closed.

Blizzard Entertainment today confirmed that World of Warcraft has broken day-one sales records in North America, making it the most successful PC game launch ever. World of Warcraft sold through to over 240,000 customers at retailers in North America on Tuesday, November 23, selling more in its first 24 hours than any other PC game in history.

Blizzard today announced that World of Warcraft has become an instant success, achieving epic sales figures in less than 24 hours. Launched Tuesday, November 23rd, the company's subscription-based MMORPG sold-through to consumers an estimated 250,000 copies of the game.

Blizzard today announced that "World of Warcraft," its eagerly awaited massively multiplayer online role-playing game (MMORPG), is now available in North America, Australia and New Zealand. With a monthly subscription, players can experience the epic adventure of the "Warcraft" series in an immersive and continually evolving online environment.

The developers of "World of Warcraft" will be signing autographs at the Fry's Electronics in Fountain Valley on Tuesday, Nov. 23. For a special two-hour period starting at 12 AM PST on Tuesday morning, Fry's Electronics will open its doors to local gamers to give them the chance to be among the first to purchase a copy of the game and to meet the developers in person.

Rich in legend and filled with adventure, the World of Warcraft awaits! For the first time, players experience the lands of Azeroth from a new, in-depth perspective. As heroes, they explore familiar battlefields, discover new lands and take on epic quests and challenges in Blizzards massively multiplayer, on-line, role-playing game. A few months after our initial preview, an update was way overdue, so here it is ...

Blizzard Entertainment is proud to announce that the free open beta has begun. In preparation for the launch of World of Warcraft, we are now introducing the most complete version of the game, including a new patch with extensive content, including racial traits, raids, Hunter and Paladin talents, new quests for high-end zones, and much more. An initial run of open beta accounts is now available from FilePlanet, no registration requited.

Blizzard Entertainment today announced that its eagerly awaited massively multiplayer online role-playing game World of Warcraft will be in stores in North America on November 23, 2004. World of Warcraft will launch simultaneously in Australia and New Zealand, and is planned for release in Korea, Europe, and other countries throughout Asia shortly following.

Blizzard has started the initial fase of the World Of WarCraft open beta test, as you can now participate in a week long stress test over at Fileplanet, although only for subscribers. Next week Blizzard will open the beta test to all, but be prepared for a huge download as the client is over 2gigs large!

Blizzard send out a msg is to inform us that the beta servers will be coming down at 3:00 PM PDT on Friday, October 29 and will remain offline for a few days in preparation for another stress test. Accounts and characters will be active for this stress test, but a new client download will be required. After the game servers come down on Friday the 29th, you will be able to log in to the community site and download the new client.