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WoW: Forever Beta Overwhelmed by Massive Queues and Disconnects

Blizzard says it is scaling backend services to fix login queues, reduce regional latency and resolve disconnects ahead of the planned November 4 launch.

Overview

  • The public beta opened Thursday and immediately saw tens of thousands in login queues, frequent disconnects and many players repeatedly sent to the back of the line.
  • Developers and community managers acknowledged the overload on Thursday and have publicly said engineering teams are increasing server capacity to bring more players in.
  • Paid beta access through the Epic Edition intensified frustration because the initial test ran largely on US servers, producing high ping and poor play for non‑US buyers.
  • Players reported workarounds such as VPNs and network tweaks and some purchasers are seeking refunds after hours of downtime and lag.
  • The beta will run through October 21, giving Blizzard time to scale services before the November 4 launch and leaving the company’s ability to prevent a repeat outage at full release as the key near‑term risk.