Which Version Of World Of Warcraft You Should Start With (& Why)

New players interested in the idea of playing World of Warcraft can feel a bit lost when looking at this game that already has twenty years of history, particularly with so many different varieties of servers and game styles to choose from. Even people who have played in the past but stepped away for a while may be overwhelmed when trying to decide where they should jump in. Between the modern, retail version of WoW and the numerous WoW Classic realms, there is a wide selection of very different versions of this same game available.

As World of Warcraft celebrates its 20th year anniversary, there has been a lot of excitement around this long-running game. The epic Worldsoul Saga with its trilogy of expansions has started in the modern version of WoW, while the WoW Classic community is enjoying new Anniversary Realms and anticipating the upcoming Mists of Pandaria Classic expansion. In truth, there are numerous versions of the game available, each with some striking differences for players to try to choose from. In a game that can be as much of a time commitment as this MMORPG is, it is good to do a little research and decide what sounds best on a personal, case-by-case basis.

Modern (Also Known As Retail) World Of Warcraft

Currently In The War Within Expansion

For many people, World of Warcraft means the modern/retail version of the game. This includes all the growth, content, and lore from expansions from its original release in 2004 up to the current day. At the time of writing, this means the servers that are in The War Within expansion, which are looking forward to the upcoming Midnight expansion that is teasing player housing. It is the main version of the game and is constantly evolving and adding to its twenty years of content.

As the main version of World of Warcraft, this can be where a lot of players want to begin playing. While it can still be a truly enjoyable experience, there is a lot going on in this massive world and so many expansions have muddied the waters a bit for story progression. However, beginning at level one, players can still find their way and uncover the secrets of Azeroth at their own pace, even in this landscape rich with history.

Classic Progression Servers

Cataclysym Classic, Soon To Enter The Mists Of Pandaria Classic Expansion

When logging into Battle.net to begin playing WoW, players have a choice between downloading World of Warcraft, which is the version detailed above, or World of Warcraft Classic. Clicking on WoW Classic can then bring up a menu for “Game Version” where players choose between World of Warcraft Classic or what is currently Cataclysm Classic.

The Cataclysm Classic servers are what developers often refer to as the progression realms. This is the version of the game that began in 2019 as a fresh, vanilla form of the game, returning to WoW‘s 2004 story and world, but with some quality-of-life upgrades for modern technology. Through the years since 2019, this version of the game has slowly been progressing through the expansions as they had been released more than a decade earlier.

Although Cataclysm Classic is less of an overload of lore than modern WoW, it still offers quite a bit of change that players need to catch up on and can feel as though one is jumping into the middle of a story. Particularly as it is set in the timeline after the world-changing cataclysm that Cataclysm Classic gets its name from.

Classic Era WoW Realms Have Been Around A While, And Need A Fresh Start

Available As Either Regular Or Hardcore

If a person was to choose World of Warcraft Classic from the Game Version menu, rather than Cataclysm Classic, then there is yet another menu that appears to let people choose which set of servers to launch. Two of the choices on this menu include the Classic Era and Hardcore.

Both Classic Era and Hardcore are servers set in the original 2004 iteration of World of Warcraft, with some very minor quality-of-life tweaks to them. Content here does not progress beyond the vanilla game, not even to The Burning Crusade expansion. These servers would be a good version to start with, if not for the fact that these realms have been around for quite a while. The strange nature of these long-running servers is that they are simultaneously overcrowded and can feel like a bit of a ghost town, particularly in the starting areas.

Related

World Of Warcraft Classic Hardcore Developer Interview: “This Challenge Isn’t Necessarily For Everybody”

World of Warcraft Classic devs talks to Screen Rant about the new Hardcore realms based on community-made rules, where death equals delete.

World of Warcraft Classic Hardcore is the same as Classic Era, although with Hardcore rules, which means a character only has one life. Upon death, they have a choice of being able to transfer their character to a non-Hardcore realm, or letting the character truly be dead and gone, only existing as a ghost.

Classic Season Of Discovery Offers A Twist On WoW Mechanics

Not The Best For Newcomers To Start With

Further in the drop-down menu for World of Warcraft Classic is the option of “Season of Discovery”. Season of Discovery is essentially WoW Classic with unique tweaks. With rotating seasons that introduce some new focused content and fresh rewards, it can include new mechanics such as unique class-altering abilities and a rune engraving system.

The Season of Discovery content was created as a way to allow WoW Classic players to engage with new content that varies frequently to keep things from becoming too stagnant. This could prove to be confusing for anyone who is new to the game, however, as some features in Warcraft‘s SoD do not carry over to the main game.

Why The Anniversary Realm Is The Best Version Of WoW To Start With

Available As Either Regular Or Hardcore

As part of the Warcraft 30th Anniversary Direct event in November 2024, developers announced fresh, new Anniversary Realm servers coming to WoW Classic. These Anniversary Realms are already active, and are currently similar to the Classic Era realms, only as a brand-new start.

Unlike the Classic Era realms, however, these new Anniversary servers will progress into The Burning Crusade and possibly on into other expansions, giving a fully fresh start to the “classic” Classic experience, but even better. When designing these servers, developers added in a couple of additional quality-of-life extras such as removing the debuff limit, adding dual spec, and more.

Whether someone wants the nail-biting experience of Hardcore or not, these two Anniversary Realm options are the ideal place to start for a newcomer to the game. As new servers, there are more players who are also going to be starting around the same level, and the market values for the auction house is still fluctuating.

Anniversary Realms start players out at the beginning of the story and over time will begin to take them through the expansions, at least The Burning Crusade. Newcomers will be able to learn the story at a slower rate, similar to how players who began playing 20 years ago experienced it. This offers a much less confusing and overwhelming experience of jumping into World of Warcraft for the first time.

Source: World of Warcraft/YouTube

Systems

Released

November 23, 2004

Multiplayer

Online Multiplayer

Engine

Unreal Engine

ESRB

T for Teen: Blood and Gore, Crude Humor, Mild Language, Suggestive Themes, Use of Alcohol, Violence (online interactions not rated)

Expansions

World of Warcraft: Wrath of the Lich King Classic

How Long To Beat

X|S Optimized

yes

Steam Deck Compatibility

yes

Cross Save

yes

Cross-Platform Play

pc, ps

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