{
  "id": 8421139,
  "title": "As Fans Flood the World of Warcraft: Forever Beta, Dev Says It's Putting Up 'The Craziest Numbers I've Seen in 17 Years Working at Blizzard'",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/19/as-fans-flood-the-world-of-warcraft-forever-beta-dev-says-its-putting",
  "topic": "tech",
  "section": "Tech",
  "published": "2026-09-19T08:19:37.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "IGN",
    "slug": "ign",
    "url": "https://www.ign.com/articles/as-fans-flood-the-world-of-warcraft-forever-beta-dev-says-its-putting-up-the-craziest-numbers-ive-seen-in-17-years-working-at-blizzard"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "World of Warcraft: Forever's beta launch has been a resounding success, dwarfing expectations and leaving even Blizzard executives astounded. The \"Classic Plus\" MMO, developed by the World of Warcraft Classic team, is set to launch on November 4th. Despite the beta's premature release, the game attracted an overwhelming number of eager players, causing numerous disconnects and lag issues. World of Warcraft Classic developer Josh Greenfield expressed his excitement on Twitter, stating that the beta numbers were \"crazier\" than anything he'd seen in 17 years working at Blizzard. Senior game producer Tom Ellis explained that the surge in players stems from the game's age, as betas typically don't see such overwhelming interest. Ellis clarified that the beta environment is not a production stack, resulting in limited capacity. Blizzard swiftly addressed the issues, and the Forever beta is now running smoothly. Players have praised the game's new visuals, sound effects, and the nostalgic journey through the first year of World of Warcraft.",
  "summary": "World of Warcraft: Forever looks like it could be a smash hit after the launch of the beta was overrun with eager fans, surprising even Blizzard itself.",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}