World of Warcraft: Shadowlands looks like the darkest expansion to date

(Image credit: Blizzard)

There's a brand new World of Warcraft expansion coming next year - and it's darker than its predecessors. 

Officially announced at Blizzcon 2019, World of Warcraft: Shadowlands releases in 2020. The announcement was accompanied by a cinematic trailer which sees Sylvanas, the banshee queen, visiting Icecrown - the home of the Lich King. The fearless queen then has a showdown with the Lich King, which she ultimately wins, claiming his crown - before breaking it.

Check out the video below:

Shadowy secrets

The trailer didn't give a whole lot away but we expect Sylvanas is going to be Shadowlands' main villain. It also looks like this expansion will be darker than any we've seen before, both in aesthetic and content.

The Shadowlands is WoW's equivilent of the afterlife and it seems we'll be spending a fair amount of time there - which seems encountering some familiar faces from the series. Lovely.

In addition, there will be new dungeons and raids such as the Tower of the Damned. Apparently this expansion will be all about player choice and will focus on the Death Knight class.

We can't wait to get our hands on it next year.

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Vic Hood
Associate Editor, TechRadar Gaming

Vic is TechRadar Gaming's Associate Editor. An award-winning games journalist, Vic brings experience from IGN, Eurogamer and more to the TechRadar table. You may have even heard her on the radio or speaking on a panel. Not only is Vic passionate about games, but she's also an avid mental health advocate who has appeared on both panels and podcasts to discuss mental health awareness. Make sure to follow her on Twitter for more.