The start of the alpha and beta phases of the new expansion “Shadowlands” from World of Warcraft is drawing closer. MeinMMO provides you all the information you need to know about the testing phases.
The new expansion Shadowlands is steadily approaching. Blizzard is currently releasing new information about the upcoming content and the previous testing phases of the addon daily.
If you don’t want to experience the new information second-hand or even help find bugs or provide feedback, you can also participate in the alpha and beta test for Shadowlands.
In this article, we explain how to participate, when it starts, and what exactly you are supposed to test, that is, what is changing.
Sign up for the alpha and beta and participate
Signing up for the alpha and beta is quite easy. You only need to sign up for an invitation and then hope that you will be selected. How exactly this works has already been explained in detail in our guide to the beta registration. Here’s a brief summary:
- Visit the beta website
- Sign in
Make sure you are logged in with your Battle.net account in your browser or sign in.
- Click on “Sign up now”
Scroll down the page until you find the button “Sign up now”. Click it.
- Check if everything is correct
If everything worked, the button should be grayed out and it should say “already registered” under it.
You will then receive no code, but a notification that you have been approved if you get to participate. Generally, the option “Shadowlands Alpha” or “Shadowlands Beta” or something similar should then appear in your Battle.net client.
Then you just need to download the client and you can start testing. If you want to pre-order the expansion, you can find the differences between the versions of Shadowlands and which you should buy here.
Start of tests and release
There is no specific start date for the alpha and beta yet. The first waves of invitations for the alpha are currently being sent out, indicating that it will start soon. We expect the alpha to start by April 14, 2020 at the latest.
However, we cannot yet say how long the alpha phase will last. Initially, there will be little content available for testing, so it will likely be a few months until the beta is unlocked.
Shadowlands is unlikely to be released before October 2020. So there is still plenty of time to register for a test and help with the development. Until then, we have a survey about your favorite class in WoW and a series of activities to help pass the time:
The changes in Shadowlands
Shadowlands changes a lot about the gameplay and story of World of Warcraft. Sylvanas makes a deal with a powerful entity and deprives the Shadowlands of their “life force”, the Anima. Here, we explain in more detail what Shadowlands is actually about.
What new features are there? The Shadowlands are divided into five areas that you can visit:
- Bastion, an area of shining fields that is also open for the first tests
- Maldraxxus, a zone of rugged battlefields
- Ardenwald, a place of eternal twilight
- Revendreth, an area full of impressive fortresses
- The Maw, where the most wicked of souls suffer
Currently, we know that the special features of Shadowlands will include the Tower of the Damned and the Covenants as endgame content. The tower is supposed to offer increasingly challenging challenges.
The Covenants, on the other hand, are a kind of new reputation and grind system, where you team up with new allies and even learn entirely new abilities. Each Covenant brings its own story campaign. What you need to know about the Covenants has been explained in a special.
What is changing with the classes? Recently, Blizzard has already talked about changes to the classes, as each class is supposed to regain more of its original abilities. This will make them somewhat more diverse and will help them feel more like the respective class again.
However, please note that all information may still change. The innovations are not final and may change until the release of Shadowlands, which may also depend on player feedback. You can find current news about WoW on our overview page.
