Hold on to your helms, Azerothians, because things just got a little confusing. A marketing email snafu from Microsoft has sent the World of Warcraft community into a frenzy. Rumors are sparking that the granddaddy of MMOs might just be heading to Xbox Game Pass. Microsoft is now saying "whoops, our bad," but the internet, as always, is having a field day.
The Email That Launched a Thousand Speculations
It started with what had seemed to be an innocuous marketing email. This email advertised Activision Blizzard games coming to Game Pass. Fair enough, right? Except this one did have one subject line. This subject line got eyebrows higher in record speed than a goblin glider on rocket power.
"Play Call of Duty, Diablo IV, World of Warcraft, and more of Activision's biggest hits with Game Pass"
World of Warcraft, you say? Alongside Game Pass? Screenshots of this email went wildfire across the Xbox subreddit in nanoseconds, courtesy of user sendcaffeineplz. This immortalized the moment. It was not some text mention either. The email included promotional art for WoW's "Plunderstorm" event, decked out in classic Xbox and Game Pass branding. It looked at best deliberate.
Microsoft's Swift "Correction" - Or Was It
This hype train was not about to stop anytime soon. Visions of raiding Orgrimmar on lunchbreak via cloud streaming danced in the heads of gamers everywhere. Leave it to Microsoft, ever pragmatists, to throw cold water on such speculation. Via tweet-a X post, if you must-an official statement came out.
"This was an error on our part. Apologies for the confusion Blizzard's World of Warcraft was mistakenly listed in a Game Pass email to customers, although it is not available with the service - an email to rectify this will be sent to affected customers shortly."
Accidentally included? Complete with promo art? Hmm. The replies to Microsoft's tweet were, predictably, a mix of disappointment and playful (and not-so-playful) demands to just make it happen already. Some fans even claimed to have already tested controller support in WoW and declared it "worked just fine." In addition, the internet - never one to let a good rumor die easily - remains unconvinced.
Suspiciously Specific "Mistake"
Let's be real. "Accidentally" revealing World of Warcraft-plete with theme promotional art-just seems a bit more than a typo. It is like accidentally ordering a whole pizza when you were really just after a slice. Sure, mistakes happen, but this one feels elaborate. Was it a real mistake, prematurely pulled back, or just a really, really unfortunate slip-up from the marketing department?
The Dream Lives On.For Now
Given the official denial from Microsoft, it is unlikely the WoW on Game Pass rumor is going to disappear anytime soon. The email put an idea out there. The pure, unadulterated hope of the player base will see it through. Could World of Warcraft ever come to Game Pass? Never say never in the constantly changing world of gaming. For now, though, Microsoft is firmly saying "no," even if a part of the internet is still whispering "maybe?"
