Everyone has their favorite expansion in World of Warcraft. For some it’s the first step into the unknown in The Burning Crusade, for others it’s the grand frozen narrative of Wrath of the Lich King. There’s probably even some who would point to Shadowlands as the series’ high point, though they may not number in the thousands. Mists of Pandaria, however, is an odd one that dealt mostly with smaller stories in a land filled with talking pandas. If it’s your favorite, however, then rejoice – as it’s coming to World of Warcraft Classic soon.
Announced as part of the Warcraft 30th Anniversary Direct held on Wednesday November 13, World of Warcraft Classic Mists of Pandaria is the next step in this ever-evolving retrospective of the legendary MMORPG’s past. It follows on from Cataclysm, one of the game’s most divisive expansions, and should provide a breath of fresh air away from world-shattering dragons with a lighter, broader set of adventures to play through.
Mists of Pandaria takes place on a hitherto-unknown continent located in the south of Azeroth. Deeply inspired by Chinese mythology, it’s one of the areas in the game that doesn’t just feel like a place to stand on while you kill enemies, it feels like a living, breathing world. Part of that’s helped by the smaller focus of many of the stories being told, they often deal with local issues rather than threats to the entire planet.
That feeling is also helped along by being immersed in Pandaria, by running your own farm or taking part in fishing quests along the continent’s south shore. Even the instances tend to just deal with a threat that affects a smaller scale thing like a brewery, though given the Pandarens’ reliance on ale, it is quite a large issue. Eventually, however, world-sized threats do make their appearance in Pandaria, but there’s plenty of time for farming and chilling with your new panda pals before then.
Just like Cataclysm before it, I expect the World of Warcraft Classic version of Mists of Pandaria will have some changes compared to the original retail release. Blizzard has yet to share the full lowdown on what players can expect, but if Cataclysm is anything to go by, the developer will be subtly making this classic expansion smoother to play.
World of Warcraft Classic Mists of Pandaria is set to launch in Summer of 2025.
Our guide to the best WoW addons will also help make sure your journey to Pandaria is as smooth as possible, and if you’re looking for something else, our best single-player MMOs guide will see you find exactly what you’re searching for.
You can also follow us on Google News for daily PC games news, reviews, and guides, or grab our PCGN deals tracker to net yourself some bargains.