World of Warcraft's fifth expansion pack is already approved and in development at Blizzard's Irvine, California HQ, the company's confirmed.
Speaking to CVG during a visit to see latest WoW entry, Mists Of Pandaria, Blizzard COO Paul Sams not only confirmed the next expansion is in development, but said Blizzard's WoW team already knows what it's going to do for "multiple expansions ahead".
Asked if he saw potential for more expansions beyond Pandaria, Sams replied: "Absolutely, because I know what the next one is. So, that being said, I think there's a lot of opportunity.
"I got the pitch from Chris Metzen of what they plan for 6.0 and I'm pretty geeked up about it. They already know what they're going to be doing for multiple expansions ahead."
On WoW expansion 5, he added: "They have an idea - a general framework. They're these lore creators. They're the ones who drive what the world looks like today and what it'll be like tomorrow and beyond.
"I think the future of World Of Warcraft continues to be bright and I think Mists of Pandaria is going to breathe huge life into what I believe is the best MMO out there. I think the number of people we have playing and the level of enthusiasm they have for the game suggests that to be the case."
He concluded: "This is the next of many ways in which we're going to grow and improve and evolve this game."
It was suggested that Blizzard could move full focus over to its next-gen MMO project Titan following the release of Pandaria, but clearly this won't be the case.
Hit the link for the latest World of Warcraft: Mists of Pandaria gameplay footage, and look out for the full Blizzard interview shortly.