Blizzard rules out PS3, 360 WOW...again

Back in 2005 when World of Warcraft's population was blowing minds at just one half of its current levels, rumors abounded that a console version of Blizzard's massively multiplayer online game was all but inevitable. Over the years, that rumor reared its ugly head time and time again as the Vivendi-owned publisher/developer posted and reposted job listings hiring for various console-development positions.

Last August, the prospect of a Blizzard-produced console game was seemingly once and for all put to rest with the cryptic announcement that all console development had ceased and those working on console projects had been "redeployed." However, the company later revised that statement, claiming that its console-specific staff was merely evaluating current technology and that "any future console plans we might have will be announced at a later date."

Once again spurred on by job listings posted to the company's site, this April marked the latest expansion of the WOW-on-consoles rumor. According the listings, Blizzard was planning a "next-gen MMO," which led many to latch on to the next-gen buzzword associated with Sony's and Microsoft's latest consoles. Again, however, Blizzard representatives stonewalled the rumor, claiming only that despite having a number of unannounced projects in the works, no relevant announcements would be forthcoming.

With this mysterious "next-gen MMO" that may or may not pertain to consoles still looming in people's minds, rumors of a PlayStation 3 or Xbox 360 version of WOW persist. Earlier this week, though, Blizzard reaffirmed its position that its MMOG would be staying put on the PC and Macintosh. Posting to WOW's official forums, a Blizzard employee going by the username "Drysc" stated, "We're madly in love with the PC and Mac platforms, and there are no plans at this time to bring World of Warcraft to any other platforms."