Blizzard has put a date on the Talebound demo it promised for October, and it is open to more people than a normal test. The demo runs from October 30 to November 1 on the World of Warcraft Public Test Realm, and Blizzard says “no subscription is required to take part.” That makes it the first chance for lapsed players to try the spooky standalone mode without paying to come back.
Three tales, three classes, three difficulties
The demo is a slice of what we broke down in September. It opens with the Red Hollow introduction and then offers three of the mode’s tales: Darkhaven, Greenthistle Wood and Greywake’s Expedition. All three of the mode’s classes are playable, the Slayer, Inquisitor and Witch, across Normal, Veteran and Heroic difficulties. You can play solo or in a group.
Blizzard has not posted start or end times or a time zone, and the announcement does not mention rewards that carry over to the live game. Talebound’s progression runs through the Quillgrave vendors in the full version, so expect the demo to be about the moment-to-moment play rather than the grind. Blizzard is asking for feedback on its forums and reminds players that PTR content is unfinished.
Talebound is Midnight’s answer to Plunderstorm, and some players are tired of side modes
Talebound is the spooky standalone mode attached to World of Warcraft: Midnight, built around short cooperative stories with their own classes rather than the main expansion’s endgame. The first replies on the WoW subreddit were split along familiar lines: some players said they are more excited for this than for Plunderstorm, and others wished Blizzard would stop building side modes and put the resources into the main game. The demo is Blizzard’s chance to settle that argument with something playable, over a weekend when most people have a free evening or two.
To play, you need a Battle.net account and the PTR client, which installs from the Battle.net app under World of Warcraft’s version menu. The demo window closes on November 1.
