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Finding The Burning Crusade
The Burning Crusade is one impressive expansion with all sorts
of amazing and new features. It expands the already famous World
of Warcraft, a game with over eight million subscribers
worldwide and two million alone in North America. What happens
when you combine a highly anticipated (and nearly required)
expansion with a highly successful game? Chaos.
I feel confident that isnt a scenario like you see with major
consoles (Playstation 3 anyone). There isnt going to be nearly
as much hype, long lines, or insanity but there is going to
shortages and delays. The expansion isnt some kind of major
piece of technological machinery, it is software. Its much
easier to distribute and create copies. That doesnt mean its
going to be in stock or available everywhere.
If you havent pre-ordered yet, online or off, then you may find
yourself running short on options. eBay is in no way, shape, or
form a good method of obtaining the expansion due to not only
the scams and outrageous price the expansion is going to run.
With that said, you do have a few options that will lead to
victory in obtaining the expansion.
Video game retailers like EB Games have a policy in which they
dont release copies of games on or around their launch day
without a pre-order. I dont really understand the semantics, but
basically they generally only get in just enough copies to fill
all of their pre-orders when it comes to something as massive as
WoWs expansion. So unless you have a pre-order you most then
likely will not be finding a copy at any video game retailer.
You have until the day before launch in order to pre-order (with
most of the retailers) and after that it comes down to luck and
just waiting until they have a copy in stock to sale you.
EB Games will be holding a midnight opening sale at various
stores where you can pick up your pre-order at the stroke of
midnight (and participate in various WoW related games and
contests). Im not 100% sure, but some of these stores may have
walk-in copies available (but youll need a pre-order to get a
copy for sure) so you may want to call and see what arrangements
theyll have going. The full list is available here (including
phone numbers).
If video game retailers arent something that is available to you
(if they are all sold out for instance), then try some non-video
game retailers like Best Buy and Compusa. These stores will most
then likely have copies sitting on their shelves for a day or so
after the launch. Dont count on it though; they will not be
receiving as many copies as your major retailers and will be
prime targets for many WoW users.
Online retailers are in a different ballpark. Online stores
(trustworthy ones) will be receiving a large stock of games and
at a discounted price. For instance, the expansion is only $40
usd at Amazon with free (super slow) shipping. Online stores are
a good place to go if you arent in a hurry, just place your
order and wait.
For instance, Amazon promises to try their best to get the
expansion out the door on the 15th so that you get it as soon as
possible (16th if you paid for overnight shipping). Although,
with understanding how the mail works and the sheer demand you
may not see your copy for several days after launch. If you need
it day one then youll have to have a pre-order at a game
retailer.
If its the 16th and you havent got a copy and you cant find a
retailer with one then you have one solid chance at getting the
game. Superstores like Wal-Mart do not accept pre-orders and
will have a large stock on opening day in their dwindling
computer software isle. My local Wal-Mart even has banners up
around their store announcing the launch and confirming they
will have it in stock. Wal-Mart type stores will be your
absolute best bet for walking in and getting a copy, but do
realize that youll have to do some footwork and find a few out
of the way (as these places will get rushed on Tuesday for
copies).
If you havent pre-ordered and you cant find a copy anywhere,
dont worry! There will be others in your same situation and you
dont need to be in Outland on day one. Trust me on this, Ive
been to Outland its absolutely amazing. Its not get into a
street brawl over the last copy amazing though. The journey to
level seventy is a lengthy one and it doesnt matter if you start
opening day or a few days after. Youll be able to catch up to
your friends who will probably be hamstringed by the lag and
sever outages.
Blizzard has a pretty good history when it comes to adding stuff
to their game. The servers are going to lag (heck, even the
servers right now are lagging pretty badly at random) and there
will be outages and extremely long queues. Blizzard is doing
everything in their power to make things as smooth as possible
but when you have over eight million subscribers it can be very
difficult.
So, in summary, if you havent pre-ordered then hurry up and get
it done. There is still some time at most retailers to pre-order
and in a scenario like this you cant argue the ethics of
pre-ordering. There are just too many people wanting a copy of
the game. If you dont pre-order, order online, or have a store
near you that is carrying it opening day then dont worry. Just
sit back, relax, and rest up a few days before you can obtain a
copy. Outland will wait on you to pick yours up.
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