'This is WoW 2': Forever beta players call it a sequel, and Blizzard wants retail to learn from it

Five days into the beta, a phrase keeps showing up wherever WoW Forever is discussed: WoW 2.

What players are saying

GamesRadar collected the reaction. A widely shared post of Forever’s night-time lighting said simply that you can’t tell me this isn’t WoW 2. Reddit threads call it a smart way to build a sequel without calling it one, and posts on the official forums say Forever feels like WoW 2.0.

It is easy to see why. Forever keeps the 2004 world and pace, but adds new zones, dungeons, reworked talents, two new races, camps, the Legacy system and a modern engine with better water, fog and lighting. It is not a remaster and not quite Classic+. It sits somewhere in between.

Blizzard: no sequel needed

Blizzard’s own position, given around BlizzCon, is that it is not sure what a World of Warcraft 2 would give players that Forever does not already give them. Forever is not replacing anything, though. It will run alongside Classic and retail.

Retail wants some of Forever’s world

The more interesting part is what this means for retail. In an interview with Windows Central, game director Ion Hazzikostas was asked whether retail’s open world would be left behind now that Forever exists for players who want immersion. He said no:

• the weak, low-stakes outdoor experience in the modern game is a real problem the team wants to fix;
• Blizzard would like to offer a Heroic world tier in The Last Titan, the Northrend expansion: tougher outdoor enemies, more friction, and more purpose for players who want it;
• the idea builds on experiments in Legion Remix and recent instanced zones, where a harder mode removed flying and buffed enemies;
• Blizzard would never tell players to go play Classic if they want a dangerous world. Every version of WoW should have that.

Hazzikostas also admitted that retail’s new player experience needs another pass.

Why it matters for Forever players

Two versions of WoW now compete for the same design ideas. That is good for Forever: it is the proof that slower, social leveling still works in 2026. The risk, as Windows Central notes, is Blizzard spreading itself thin across two games.

For now, Forever has the attention. If you are deciding whether to jump in on November 4, our beta hub and FAQ cover what is actually in the game, and the class tier list shows which classes the beta favours.