Blizzard Entertainment announced Tuesday that The Burning Crusade, the long-awaited expansion for World of Warcraft, will be delayed until January, 2007. It had been expected to be released sometime in 2006, but Blizzard said it needs more time to ensure the quality of the content in the expansion.
"We appreciate the enthusiasm surrounding World of Warcraft: The Burning Crusade, and weire excited about putting the finishing touches on all of the new content," Mike Morhaime, president and cofounder of Blizzard Entertainment, said in a statement. "We feel confident that the extra time spent polishing the game will result in the high-quality experience that our players expect and deserve."
Expectations of a 2006 release were increased when the company officially unveiled The Burning Crusade in early October, making Collectoris Editions of the expansion available for pre-order in retail outlets.
In related new, a company representative said on the WoW forums that the company would be releasing the 1.13 patch before the end of the year. Specifics have not been announced, but Eyonix did say the patch would include, "Oh, you know, just a few small things such as a brand new honor system, as well as new talents and abilities along with dozens of other changes and improvements. ;)"