World of Warcraft: The War Within kicks off the MMO's Worldsoul Saga in August

A screenshot from World of Warcraft: The War Within's release date trailer.
(Image credit: Blizzard Entertainment)

World of Warcraft's next big expansion, The War Within, finally has a release date, and it's surprisingly soon.

During today's Xbox Games Showcase, World of Warcraft fans were treated to a dramatic new cinematic trailer setting the scene for the upcoming expansion, which serves as the first chapter in the MMORPG's Worldsoul Saga. As exciting as that all is though, the best part definitely came right at the end, with the news fans have been waiting for – The War Within is set to hit PC on August 26, meaning there's little over two months to wait for it. Let the countdown begin. 

The War Within is quite a monumental expansion, being the 10th one since World of Warcraft launched almost 20 years ago, so there's no doubt that hopes for it are high. Although still aimed at newer fans, it sounds like it's going to be particularly exciting for veterans who've been keeping up with all of World of Warcraft's lore to date, with a post on Xbox Wire teasing that it'll weave "narrative threads from the past two decades together in a way that will captivate players both old and new."

After The War Within, we can look forward to Midnight and The Last Titan, the next two parts of the Worldsoul Saga trilogy. Last year, it was confirmed that Blizzard is already working on Midnight, with the team hoping to wrap up the entire saga by 2030. Ahead of The War Within's launch, it's impossible to tell if that will end up happening, but regardless, there's plenty for MMO fans to be excited about. 

Be sure to check out our roundup of all the news out of today's Xbox and Bethesda event so you don't miss a thing.

Catherine Lewis
News Writer

I'm one of 12DOVE's news writers, who works alongside the rest of the news team to deliver cool gaming stories that we love. After spending more hours than I can count filling The University of Sheffield's student newspaper with Pokemon and indie game content, and picking up a degree in Journalism Studies, I started my career at GAMINGbible where I worked as a journalist for over a year and a half. I then became TechRadar Gaming's news writer, where I sourced stories and wrote about all sorts of intriguing topics. In my spare time, you're sure to find me on my Nintendo Switch or PS5 playing through story-driven RPGs like Xenoblade Chronicles and Persona 5 Royal, nuzlocking old Pokemon games, or going for a Victory Royale in Fortnite.