WoW--Burning Crusade--Release information

In preparation for Burning Crusade, Blizzard released Patch 2.0.1 in North America and Europe on December 5th, 2006. The patch introduced some Burning Crusade content prior to the expansion itself - including a revamp of the honor system, skirmish Arena matches and a new Looking For Group interface.

The expansion was released in standard as well as Collector's Edition packages. The Collector's Edition of Burning Crusade includes a bonus Behind-The-Scenes DVD, an in-game Netherwhelp pet and many other exclusive extras. Installing the expansion does not break backwards compatibility — players are still able to log on to non-BC accounts using a Burning Crusade client.

System requirements for both editions remained virtually unchanged compared to the original World of Warcraft, with the notable exception of the increase in the required network bandwidth (from 56k dialup to a "broadband connection"). Blizzard has stated that the change was due to the size of the future patches, and that it will continue to offer tech support to players with dialup, except for patching issues.