MoP Release Date Speculation

[Vidur]

September, methinks; hoping so at least. Gives me the whole summer to get my alts where I want them, pre-MoP...cause that's what cool people do with their summers. >.>

Given, I don't have a whole lot to do. Level 5 toons to 85 (1-2 weeks)...level mt 40 and 50 (another 1-2 weeks). Playing pretty easy, I need maybe 2 months...but now I'm off topic...SEPTEMBER.

[PandoraIsALady]

Most of the expansions have been released in the winter, so I'm guessing late November to early December 2012.

[Deleted]

July is too soon even if the beta starts within the next month, November is too far so I'd say August/early September. October if they meet unexpected issues.

[Lierial]

agree with that, or 2013
no way they gonna get it life before oct / nov

[Naposim1337]

16.7. 2012

[xanzul]

All expacs have been released from Nov-Jan timeframe and I suspect this will be the case with mists.

Why do people keep saying this? Blizzard has said numerous times that starting with Cata expansions would have a much shorter production cycle as in 18 months rather than 24 months. This puts Mop on track for a Q2 release. We won't be in DS for a year no matter how many times people parrot that nonsense.

---------- Post added 2012-03-13 at 06:58 PM ----------

I want it to be summer, but I honestly think they will delay it till November.

Why? What exactly is in Mop that would even cause a delay? Are people saying this to be contrary or do they have an actual reason for it?

[Zatheyll]

With how complete it already is as we saw months ago in Blizzcon I say the beta will be starting early April, especially with the NDA releasing next Monday (they might even start it then.) You won't see the beta out for more then 3-4 months, the game will be MUCH easier to balance with the new talent system and all the content is packed into one continent. It won't take anywhere near Blizzard as long to test MoP as it was to test Cata.

You can expect the game out easily by July, no later then August if they have to hold it back a bit. They can't afford to bring it back later then that, and they have no reason to. Past expansions shouldn't factor in in the slightest, nor holidays. They can't hold back a completed product months just for Christmas.

[xanzul]

Was on the phone with support the other day. Guy let it slip that it's looking like Christmas release.

Customer support and billing have nothing to do wth development. You are flat out lying.

---------- Post added 2012-03-13 at 07:02 PM ----------

October 2012...I think they will want to wait a few months after Diablo 3

I don't get why people are saying this either. They are 2 different games and 2 different genres and despite the nonsense posted on these forums people are quite capable of playing more than one game.

[Zatheyll]

Customer support and billing have nothing to do wth development. You are flat out lying.

This. Most customer support and billing have absolutely no idea when expansions or games release, a lot of them don't even hear until after other people hear about it. I would bet a lot of them don't even play the games.

[xanzul]

June 28th. As I speculate that Blizz speculates that will be the GW2 release date.

Or Blizzard will release it when it is ready realizing that GW2 isn't really competition as a mmo as it isn't subscription based. Again people are capable of playing more than one game.

[Zatheyll]

I don't get why people are saying this either. They are 2 different games and 2 different genres and despite the nonsense posted on these forums people are quite capable of playing more than one game.

You can expect them to put a slight pause between the two just so people who want to buy both can, but there is no reason for that to be longer then the average paycheck, meaning one month. If Diablo 3 releases the middle of April from the rumors and speculation we have been seeing then MoP could potentially release as early as May in that regard.

---------- Post added 2012-03-13 at 11:06 PM ----------

Or Blizzard will release it when it is ready realizing that GW2 isn't really competition as a mmo as it isn't subscription based. Again people are capable of playing more than one game.

I also doubt Blizzard will release it the week of GW2. They know they can easily overshadow it, despite how many people will buy GW2 and how popular it becomes, but they don't want to risk losing people buying the game just because they have to decide between one or the other. There is no reason for Blizzard to attack GW2 in that way at the expense of Blizzard themselves, with them being different payment models anyways.

[Aethilus]

People saying November are underestimating the marketing strategies of a big corporation. Specifically, they released the annual pass in October with the intent to make even more money selling MoP to the people who are in the annual pass for several more months (likely 3-4 because 4x$15=$60=cost of d3).

By that I predict the expansion release 3 to 4 months before the annual pass expires for the people who got it on release day or shortly after. It was released on Oct 21, 2011. I expect we will see the release of MoP at a window sometime between June 21, 2012 and July 21, 2012. Most video games/movies release on Tuesdays, if we use this, the date range would be June 26, 2012 and July 23, 2012.

I could also see that being 2 month minimum window before the annual pass expires, which would make it June 26, 2012 to August 21, 2012.

Just my viewpoint.

[reikoshea]

Even if Diablo released the same day as mists, i dont think it would hurt the wow player base that badly just because of the response to the year sub deal.

[Zatheyll]

Even if Diablo released the same day as mists, i dont think it would hurt the wow player base that badly just because of the response to the year sub deal.

Even then they wouldn't want to risk the few they might lose. Only 1-2 million did the annual pass, and they expect Diablo to sell far more then that.

[Jathro]

Any earlier than November '12 and i'll eat pandaren poo.

[Slotter]

Customer support and billing have nothing to do wth development. You are flat out lying.

---------- Post added 2012-03-13 at 07:02 PM ----------

No, I'm not lying. You may be right in that they don't know about development, but he does work for the organization so he knows more than any of us do. He may have said Christmas as a joke, but he didn't sound like he was kidding.

I'm hopeful it's before Christmas, but I would be shocked to see this expansion hit before November. My guess is late November, early December.

[Zatheyll]

Any earlier than November '12 and i'll eat pandaren poo.

We need that thread where people dared what they would do because they didn't believe MoP was going to be the next expansion pack.

[Catrilia]

I'm thinking Beta testing 2nd week of April, with a release of late June/early July. That's assuming no major problems during beta.

[Zatheyll]

No, I'm not lying. You may be right in that they don't know about development, but he does work for the organization so he knows more than any of us do. He may have said Christmas as a joke, but he didn't sound like he was kidding.

I'm hopeful it's before Christmas, but I would be shocked to see this expansion hit before November. My guess is late November, early December.

Absolutely no one knows when the game will truly release, not even the CEO of Blizzard. He might have an idea, but if he does barely anyone else will know, especially not some lowly CS guy.

It's the same thing as saying a family member is a designer for Blizzard and he knows the exact date the game is coming out.

[Kirsia]

Blizzard is too smart to let it go till Christmas. They admitted before that 12 months of ICC was a mistake -- they are not going to repeat that with Dragon Soul, an instance with half the number of bosses and, from what I've seen, not that loved even at the start. WoW would be hemorrhaging subscribers if they wait till then (keeping in mind that the first [and I assume most] of the annual passes will be up by then, so people have no reason to stick around).

I personally am going with August as a release. The DS debuff has 7 versions in the game files: 5-35%. 5% hit the end of January; 10% in February. Assuming another 5% each month, we get 15% in March, 20% in April, 25% in May, 30% in June, and 35% in July -- just in time to give as much help as possible for the MoP release in August.