The Wrathgate booster set for the tabletop game based on the World of Warcraft series is slated for May release, followed by Class Decks in June.The fate of the World of Warcraft Trading Card Game’s license has finally been unveiled. Cory Jones, former Upper Deck Director of Brand and New Product Development and Blizzard Entertainment Director of Global Business Development and Licensing, and John Nee former Senior Vice President of Business Development at DC Comics have partnered to found Cryptozoic Entertainment.“Having been fully involved with the development of the World of Warcraft TCG from day one, I’ve always been passionate about taking it into the future,” said Cory Jones, Cryptozoic’s President and Chief Creative Officer, and formerly Blizzard Entertainment’s lead business and development liaison for the TCG. “I’m pleased to say that the players have a lot to look forward to as we continue developing and evolving the game to match the action and spirit of World of Warcraft.”The company hopes to launch a continental championship in North America and Europe in June 2010, and will host the 2010 World of Warcraft TCG World Championship at GenCon 2010 through August 5 – 8.Organised Play Details
BattlegroundsRelaunching this April, weekly Battlegrounds will offer players exclusive prizes that they can only win by playing at their local game store. Prizes include exclusive Extended Art promos, playmats, and Badge of Justice crafting cards.Darkmoon FairesThese traveling festivals will once again be found all across the globe, and feature a huge variety of both competitive and fun tournaments. New venues are being booked now, and locations and dates will be announced as each one is finalized.Continental ChampionshipsThis June, Cryptozoic Entertainment will host two Continental Championships for both North America and Europe, each featuring a prize pool of over $50,000 in prizes. These Championships will take place over three days and are open to all players. Dates and locations for the Continental Championships will be announced in April.World ChampionshipsThe top players from Continental Championships and Realm Championships will earn an invite to the World of Warcraft TCG World Championships held at Gen Con Indianapolis this August. These players will battle for their share of over $250,000, and the last one standing will take home $50,000 in cash.Among their To-do list of priorities over the next 60 days are:Finalize locations for the Continental Championships in North America and Europe. Get Battleground kits back on track in April. Focus on supporting hobby shops.Launch a brand spanking new web site for the World of Warcraft TCG. Start to rebuild their support in Europe, China, Korea, Southeast Asia, and Australia. Launch a new volunteer program to help promote and support the TCG. Launch the Wrathgate Booster expansion. (Class decks will follow shortly after) Finalize the design of a super top-secret new product. Schedule Darkmoon Faires around the world. Update their blog at least 3 times per week. “This is an exciting time for us and for players of the trading card game,” said John Nee, Cryptozoic Entertainment’s CEO. “Our first priority will be to maintain the current programs that the community has come to expect and then build from there. The game itself is fantastic, and will not change. The community can rest assured that we are committed to providing them with the high quality product and organized play that they deserve, worldwide.”
“It’s important to us and to our players that every entertainment experience set in a Blizzard Entertainment game universe matches the standards we’ve established with our games,” said Paul Sams, Chief Operating Officer of Blizzard Entertainment. “We’re proud of the quality and accessible gameplay that the World of Warcraft TCG has offered to date, and we’re confident that Cryptozoic is the best team to help us continue that tradition.”
