Position 17,170 in the queue, 36 minutes announced. That’s what one player’s screen showed on September 17, 2026, minutes after she reached first place and got kicked back to the login screen. The WoW Forever beta opened that evening, and its first day looked like a 2004 launch: queues, disconnects, then surprisingly positive impressions. For European players, one detail matters more than the rest: the test servers are in the United States.
Position 17,170 in the queue, a 36-minute wait
The most detailed account of the WoW Forever beta’s opening comes from MMORPG.com, published by Joseph Bradford that same evening. Site contributor Len Hafer started with more than 7,600 players ahead of her. After reaching first place, she got booted and placed back at 17,170th, with a 36-minute wait. One player quoted by the site summed up the scene: « Genuine 2004 experience. »
PC Gamer picked up the comparison in its own headline, citing hour-long queues. Holly Longdale, the executive producer, saw something else in the numbers. Her message, relayed by Warcraft Tavern, fit in four words: « Forever Beta setting records… »
US-only servers, and what that means in Europe
The queue was only the first hurdle. Once in the game, some testers found a world that barely worked: severe latency, spells that wouldn’t cast, items impossible to loot. Val Hull, at Warcraft Tavern, named the cause on September 18: « the core of these issues lies with there only being US servers for the beta. »
A VPN is the suggested workaround, software that routes the connection through another country. Set to a New York server, it delivers « a consistent 100ms » from Europe, and spells and items start responding again. The author warns that this doesn’t remove lag during peak hours. The article cites no Blizzard announcement about European servers for the WoW Forever beta. For a French player, the takeaway is simple: opening-night slowdowns say nothing about the state of the game, they say where the servers are.
What’s in the WoW Forever beta this week
The official announcement sets the boundaries of the test. The level cap sits at 20 for the first week, then rises to 30 later. Testers get to try the new race, the Skyborne, and their starting zone, Zephras Isle. Two dungeons are open: Hall of Thanes, for levels 13 to 18, and Ruins of Lordaeron, from 15 to 20. More zones, more dungeons and the new battleground will follow.
Blizzard also promises a « Server Slam »: a few hours during which the servers will open to everyone, no invite needed. The beta closes on October 21. Nothing carries over, as Icy Veins points out: « All progress is wiped. » The game launches on November 4, with a level 60 cap set in stone for good.
« 9/10 »: one player’s verdict after twelve hours
The most complete report on the WoW Forever beta sits on the official forum, posted by Summerslight. The score: 9 out of 10. The first point is surprising for a project that leans on Classic: « The new lighting is incredible. I would go as far as to argue that it looks better than retail. » The post also mentions hearing rain fall from inside the tavern, and nowhere else indoors, which looks like a bug.
Classic veterans will recognize the rest of the list. The new talent trees and racials move past the old binary choice, the one where you had to play Human or Orc « or else you’re trolling. » The new Tirisfal Glades quests went down well. A setting lets players toggle between old and new character models. And the world stays dangerous: one mob is manageable, two call for a potion, three lead to death.
On the campfire system, the verdict is cooler. Another player, Andarre, spells out how it works: the campfire hands out scaled-down versions of class buffs missing from the group, based on which professions are present. First Aid grants Stamina, Skinning grants crit, Leatherworking grants rested XP.
The Skyborne and the UI, the two sore points
Even this won-over tester puts the Skyborne in the negative column. The race itself isn’t the problem. The complaint is about the choice: many players were expecting High Elves or Ogres, closer to Warcraft III, and the post calls it a « huge oopsie daisy. » Another participant, Yhvh, claims Blizzard unofficially confirmed that High Elves and Quel’Thalas are coming later. We found no official source that establishes this.
The other complaint targets the UI. Sithari, who played a Skyborne Shaman then an Orc Shaman, found the first zone gorgeous but too close to retail, and the second far more faithful to Classic. Their one real gripe: « I do not like the retail UI at all. » The topic ties into the addon restrictions already announced: the less latitude addons get, the more the original interface will matter.
The WoW Forever beta has passed its most visible test, then: the one about desire. Nobody queues 17,000-deep for a game that leaves them cold. It has until October 21 to sort out the rest. The bump to level 30, the Server Slam and the battleground’s opening will give three chances to check back in before November 4.
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