World of Warcraft: Cataclysm Previews

Rather than attend this year’s E3, Blizzard Entertainment has apparently been inviting a few journalists to their offices to check out the latest build of World of Warcraft: Cataclysm. The result is a video tour of their campus at 1UP, as well as new hands-on previews at Shacknews and Eurogamer. An excerpt from Shacknews’ article:

All World of WarCraft players, however, will be able to experience the new look and lore of Azeroth as the game’s story explores life after Arthas, the Lich King introduced in WarCraft III: The Frozen Throne and finally defeated in World of WarCraft: Wrath of the Lich King. Cataclysm’s main adversary is Deathwing, the leader of the black dragonflight.

Deathwing, long thought to be dead, had been hiding and healing in Deepholm until finally emerging in a giant cataclysmic (get it?) event that scarred Azeroth, changing it forever. To this end, much of the old content has been redone, redesigned, and streamlined. If you to play the Goblins or Worgens, however, be prepared to pony up some change for this pack.

And a snip from Eurogamer’s article:

The new 80-85 zones are no less dramatic. In the demo in Blizzard’s cinema, we’re flown around Uldum’s monolithic, fantasy ancient Egypt where the Blood Elf Reliquary, Dwarven Explorers’ League and other less reputable looters are hoovering up the secret history of the Titans. Deepholm is a giant enclosed sphere in the centre of the world where Deathwing lived in exile, its vast central spire and ceiling raw and torn from his explosion back into the world. Orc airship Orgrim’s Hammer lies wrecked on the ground. It’s midnight blue in here, and studded with bright crystals, as otherworldly as anything in Outland.

Later we get to try two of the other new zones ourselves. Mount Hyjal, entered from Winterspring, is an immense, tortured spiral of rock with the World Tree Nordrassil at its summit and Sulfuron Spire, a robust flame-elemental fortress with a giant Sauron-style eye, at its base. But it’s Vash’jir that is the biggest departure of the lot.