Blizzard announced today that World of Warcraft: The Burning Crusade has sold nearly 2.4 million copies worldwide during its first 24 hours of release. Blizzard supplied more than 4 million units to retailers across the globe, including North America, Europe, Singapore, Thailand, Malaysia, Australia, and New Zealand. Sales during the period are estimated to be 1.2 million copies in North America and 1.1 million in Europe. By the end of the day, more than 1.7 million players had upgraded to the expansion pack and begun playing–nearly one quarter of the recently announced 8 million subscribers the game has.
Mike Morhaime, President and co-founder of Blizzard Entertainment, exclaimed his excitement for the release when he said, "The Burning Crusade has already exceeded even our most ambitious expectations. We’re pleased that so many players are eager to see all of the new content that the expansion has to offer, and we look forward to seeing everyone online as additional players continue to upgrade in the days ahead."
World of Warcraft: The Burning Crusade adds many new features to the MMORPG, including the new continent of Outland, flying mounts, a level cap of 70 (increased from 60), new talents, hundreds of new quests and monsters, new dungeons and raids, 2 new races, new jewel crafting profession, socketed items, and enhanced PvP features.
During an interview with Empire, Blizzard’s Vice President of Development, Itzik Ben Bassat, revealed that Blizzard is interested in doing another MMORPG–and that it wouldn’t be a new World of Warcraft. "When we announce our next MMORPG it’s not going to be another WoW–we’re not a company that tends to tread the same ground. It’ll be something innovative and new that really brings entertainment to another level." Starcraft or Diablo, anyone?
World of Warcraft has become nothing short of a phenomenon in the world of PC gaming. Not only has it shattered sales records and achieved tremendous success, the game has already made the transition to other forms of entertainment. A South Park episode was built using World of Warcraft footage, and a full-length movie is also being created. Given WoW‘s success in the gaming market, it seems only natural for it to look to other markets to dominate.
