Blizzard unveiled Forever at BlizzConline on September 12 as a separate WoW branch: it launches on November 4 and runs alongside WoW Classic and WoW Classic: Vanilla rather than replacing them.

At BlizzConline on September 12, 2026, Blizzard introduced World of Warcraft: Forever as a standalone title within the WoW universe. In the studio's vision, Forever lives side by side with WoW Classic and WoW Classic: Vanilla instead of replacing them: all three branches run in parallel and are available under one subscription.

That positions Forever not as "another Classic," but as a fresh entry point into the universe — leaning on new content layered over the familiar vanilla-era foundation. At BlizzConline it was pitched exactly as a separate game in the family, not as an update to existing branches.

Switching between WoW Classic, WoW Classic: Vanilla, and Forever requires no extra fee — just pick the right branch in the launcher. So it's not an alternative to the subscription, but an extension of it.

In practice

• If you currently play WoW Classic or WoW Classic: Vanilla, your characters stay there — Forever doesn't touch them.
• The launch is less than five weeks away: the beta starts September 17 and runs through October 21.
• Endgame content arrives with the raids opening on December 9, 2026.