World Of Warcraft Shadowlands Animated Series Premieres This Week

Blizzard Entertainment has announced that a brand-new original animated series based on World of Warcraft will debut this Thursday.

Shadowlands Afterlives, the first original animated series by the company, will premiere during Gamescom 2020's Opening Night Live, which starts on August 27 at 11 AM PT / 2 PM ET. Little is known about the series. Blizzard did share a teaser trailer, which is embedded below. It gives off some Castlevania vibes.

According to the trailer's brief description, Shadowlands Afterlives will take us through the expansion's main four realms: Ardenweald, Bastion, Maldraxxus, and Revendreth.

"Just as our choices determine who we are in life--they pave the paths we take in the afterlife," the description reads. "Prepare to delve into four realms of the Shadowlands--Bastion, Maldraxxus, Ardenweald, and Revendreth--and discover the journeys souls take once they cross the eternal veil."

In World of Warcraft, your allegiance to whatever Covenant you choose was as a permanent choice. With the release of Shadowlands, however, Blizzard may finally allow you to change your Covenant at will.

While this may be the first original animated series Blizzard has developed, the company has experimented with animation in the past, especially for games like Overwatch and World of Warcraft. These shorts were often used to expand the game's lore and introduce new characters, as well as a host of other things.

In other World of Warcraft news, Blizzard immortalized the late Byron "Reckful" Bernstein, whose untimely passing shook the Twitch and WoW scene.