Hardcore realms possibly coming to World of Warcraft

Blizzard Entertainment may be considering the addition of "hardcore" realms in World of Warcraft, according to recent findings by two players. Hardcore mode, inspired by Diablo's game mode of the same name, would permanently delete a character once they die. The discovery of this mode was found in the Blizzard interface on the Public Test Realm for Dragonflight Patch 10.1 by Twitter user Meorawr and shared by Solanya.

Currently, the hardcore mode exists in Classic World of Warcraft but is enforced by the player, similar to Nuzlocke runs in Pokemon. Last year, 40 extreme players cleared the iconic Molten Core raid in World of Warcraft with only two characters dying, and the in-progress Hardcore Allstars event has players speedrunning dungeons on hardcore characters.

While there are no official announcements from Blizzard regarding the introduction of hardcore realms, the discovery of the new code in World of Warcraft's 10.1 PTR has many players excited about the possibility. Hardcore realms would offer players the ultimate challenge in World of Warcraft and attract a small yet extremely dedicated community.

With the recent closure of Season of Mastery realms in World of Warcraft Classic, many players are eager for new content. If Blizzard decides to introduce official hardcore realms soon, it could be exactly what Classic WoW needs to keep it fresh. While it is currently unknown whether the new realms would be intended for retail or Classic WoW, players are hopeful that subsequent builds will reveal more information.