BlizzCon tickets go on sale May 21 & 25

In February, Blizzard Entertainment announced that this year's BlizzCon would run from October 21-22, in virtually the same slot as last year's October 22-23 expo. However, the developer-publisher offered little other information on the annual convention dedicated to its various games, including World of Warcraft, Diablo, Starcraft, and Warcraft.

Today, Blizzard revealed when tickets to the eagerly awaited event would go on sale. Passes will be offered in two batches at $175 each, a $25 increase over last year. The first will be offered at Saturday, May 21 at 10 a.m. PDT and the second on Wednesday, May 25 at 7 p.m. PDT. Both will be offered via the official BlizzCon website, www.blizzcon.com. In prior years, tickets to the event, held at the Anaheim Convention Center, sold out in a matter of minutes.

In addition to regular admission tickets, Blizzard will be offering entry to the BlizzCon Benefit Dinner. Set to be held on Thursday, October 20, the dinner is being billed as an "exclusive event" that will let attendees mingle with Blizzard developers prior to the show. Tickets are $500 each and include a regular BlizzCon admission ticket, with proceeds from the event going to the Children's Hospital of Orange County. Only 200 passes to the dinner will be sold starting Saturday, May 28 at 10 a.m. PDT, also through the BlizzCon website.

Details on this year's BlizzCon are thin, other than it will feature tournaments, community contests, discussion panels, and other miscellaneous events. Last year's events included the unveiling of Diablo III's demon hunter class, sessions on pro tips on Starcraft II, Diablo III's design, and Starcraft II balancing. The event also featured a performance by Jack Black's rock duo Tenacious D, with emcee duties filled by comedian Jay Mohr.