World of Warcraft "exploring the possibility" of an in-game real money store

Pesky dataminers have been combing through the World of Warcraft test server updates, and found references to a real-money item purchase. The spell, called Enduring Elixir of Wisdom, was added to the Public Test Realm in patch 5.4, offers a 100% XP boost, and mentions an "in-game store". Community manager Zarhym confirmed that Blizzard were considering microtransactions, albeit while using the softest, most player placating phrasing possible.

"We are currently exploring the possibility of adding a way for players in certain regions to make purchases directly within the game," Zarhym wrote . As part of this process, elements related to this will be appearing on the PTR. We'll provide additional updates on our plans as development progresses."

The key part seems to be "certain regions", potentially making this a planned solution for areas where the subscription model has struggled to hold. (Although, technically that's every region.)

Beyond that, would it matter for an XP boost. Levelling quicker doesn't provide an massive advantage over other players - it's just a way of speeding the ascent to the end-game. And it's important to remember that we've no idea what items would be made available, even if they did come to Western regions.

Thanks, Polygon .

Phil has been writing for PC Gamer for nearly a decade, starting out as a freelance writer covering everything from free games to MMOs. He eventually joined full-time as a news writer, before moving to the magazine to review immersive sims, RPGs and Hitman games. Now he leads PC Gamer's UK team, but still sometimes finds the time to write about his ongoing obsessions with Destiny 2, GTA Online and Apex Legends. When he's not levelling up battle passes, he's checking out the latest tactics game or dipping back into Guild Wars 2. He's largely responsible for the whole Tub Geralt thing, but still isn't sorry.