Gamescom 2025 is in full swing, and with it comes the full reveal of the upcoming shadow-filled World of Warcraft expansion, Midnight.
With a stellar cinematic showing the harbinger of the Void, Xal’atath, bringing her war of darkness to the very doorstep of Silvermoon City, we see that the forces of Azeroth can always turn to the light to chase off the creeping darkness:
It feels like a full-circle moment to see the matriarch of the Blood Knights, Lady Liadrin, essentially begging the light to aid her in their time of need – considering the relationship between her people and the light has been a pretty contentious one. But we know that Xal’atath doesn’t give up that easily – and always seems to have plans within plans for any setback that slows her progress.
Of course there is a ton more to the reveal than just a huge visual smorgasbord, with a gameplay trailer breaking down some of the most exciting features coming as part of the expansion – whether it’s a new spec for the Demon Hunter class, an entirely new allied race in the enigmatic Haranir or the exciting prospect of owning property (a proper fantasy by todays standards):
It’s an exciting new chapter to explore as part of the Worldsoul Saga, with an enormous breadth of exciting new stuff to do – but the shockingly cool thing is the idea of Blizzard turning Silvermoon City into an actual place that players want to visit. Nothing against the place, but it’s been a nothing burger for years.
It is also exciting to see such a fully realised new race in the Haranir – with their own unique druidic forms and glow-in-the-dark features. Sure, they are a hefty dose of Na’vi flavour within the world (of Warcraft) but I welcome any race that gives me more opportunities to sling green healing magic. That, and Orweyna is such a compelling new character I can’t wait to see what she offers the future of Azeroth.
The information page for the expansion shares a meaty overview of all the exciting new stuff that awaits players:
New Expansion Hub: Silvermoon
City
Rebuilt Silvermoon City includes new areas like the Sanctum of Light and Memorial Garden, and areas that remain accessible by Horde players only.
New & Updated Zones:
Eversong Woods: Lands that have healed in the years following the Scourge invasion now facing new threats in the mysterious lightbloom as well cultists serving the Void.
Zul’Aman: Explore beyond the confines of the original raid space to discover what lies in the surrounding forests and aid the Zul’Amani Trolls as they work to reconnect with their lost Loa.
Harandar: Return to the depths of the world to behold the convergence of the roots of Azeroth’s world trees in this primordial, fungal jungle.
The Voidstorm: the chaotic beauty is both wondrous and deadly as the forces of the Void break through from this land to invade Azeroth.
New System Feature: Prey
Opt-in hunting system led by Astalor Bloodsworn, based in Murder Row of Silvermoon City. This system adds an extra layer of outdoor world gameplay for players seeking more thrill and challenge as they adventure across Midnight’s zones.
New Allied Race: Haranir
Ancient hunters of a hidden land with glowing bioluminescent features, whom players first met in The War Within as they worked alongside Orweyna who sought
to discover what was happening on the surface that was impacting the home of her people. Available classes: Warrior, Hunter, Rogue, Priest, Shaman, Mage, Warlock, Monk, Druid.
New Demon Hunter Specialisation: Devourer
A mid-ranged DPS specialisation that forsakes the Fel energies that fuel the other specialisations and instead embraces the Void as a source of power.
This comes with a new race/class combination as Void Elves can join the ranks of the Illidari as Demon Hunters.
New Feature: Player Housing
After more than 20 years of thwarting world-ending threats, the Champions of Azeroth will now (finally) get a piece of Azeroth to call their own.
This robust evergreen system puts player creativity at the forefront with a potential for thousands of décor items that can be used to build the home players have dreamt of in Azeroth (much of which will be earned through natural gameplay).
Player housing has been detailed in a few posts by the developers now, and it is safe to say that it looks like an absolutely banger. World of Warcraft has been dominating the MMO space for an age now, and it feels like any system that was synonymous with the genre has been explored and implemented at some point – but never housing (no, Garrisons do not count).
We stand on the precipice of an exciting new era for the adventurers of Azeroth – facing their greatest challenge after years of defending their world from every threat you can imagine: Picking the perfect rug to tie the room together.
Are you on board with chasing away the darkness? Curious what Xal’atath has in store for Silvermoon city? Tell us all about it in the comments or on social media.
Known throughout the interwebs simply as M0D3Rn, Ash is bad at video games. An old guard gamer who suffers from being generally opinionated, it comes as no surprise that he is both brutally loyal and yet, fiercely whimsical about all things electronic. On occasion will make a youtube video that actually gets views. Follow him on YouTube @Bad at Video Games
