Evermore

The name is already leaking so whatever:

World of Warcraft: Evermore is the Classic+ project.

For what I know the nam 'classic+' will not be used by Blizzard this weekend. They want to define it more as a new project with original design styles but don't want to attach it to classic so they can also explore new design choices fully.

It’s a permanent branch after vanilla but will start with a changed/upgraded Vanilla world and a new Warcraft timeline, not TBC with changes.

The closest comparison I’ve heard for how content works is actually how adventurequest worlds (AQW) used to design game story, if people remember the online flash game.

Not mechanically, obviously. The idea is the way AQW kept adding story chapters, areas and events onto the same world over years. Evermore does that with Azeroth.

You keep the same realm and character. A season is basically another chapter in that realm’s history.

A faction can appear in an old zone, a storyline runs for a few months, new camps or buildings show up, inaccessible areas open, characters move around, and when the next chapter starts those events have actually happened.

The world gradually accumulates history instead of resetting or being abandoned for another expansion continent. They want to avoid big changes to the world lile in cata so it always stays familiar enough but at the same time new and exciting.

It isn’t just “Classic forever”. It’s the idea of taking the Warcraft world we knew and letting it continue indefinitely down a different path. Older chapters' content will sometimes be removed but never the origin for loot and such. Very horizontal progression on those. Breathing life into specs with new items without invalidating older ones. Big plays on certain resist gear types that are needed from different chapters for newer content. Older loot origins stay relevant this way.

Visually they’re using newer models and geometry, but rebuilt around a high poly design style rather than Retail’s current style. Basically the old Warcraft proportions, textures and silhouettes with modern fidelity.

Hyjal and Gilneas are in. Grim Batol matters. Karazhan/Deadwind is significantly expanded. Emerald Dream is later. Darkmoon fair plays a big story role.

Level cap is 60. No flying. No dungeon finder. Classes stay recognisably Classic, with bad specs being made properly viable. Prot pally etc.

The timeline divergence also gives them an excuse to bring Arthas back to the centre of Warcraft.

He has a much bigger role than people are expecting.

His story starts going somewhere else.

That’s apparently deliberate because this version of Arthas and the new continuity are supposed to lead into the ARPG project later in 2027.