How to play the Warcraft games timeline

Each card is something from Blizzard's Warcraft universe: the strategy games, the MMO and its expansions, Classic server launches, card game sets, a mobile spin-off and the film. A one-line description is printed under every title. You're placing them by release year. The first card is already on the line with its year in view; after that, every card needs a gap. If you pick the right one, the year appears. If not, the card is moved to where it belongs and you lose a life, three being all you get.

The strategy games have the early part of the line nearly to themselves, and after that the MMO's expansions give you a steady backbone to hang everything else on. The hard part is the recent stretch, when re-releases of old content arrive alongside new expansions, card game sets and remasters. Read the description closely: a Classic server returning to an old region is not the original expansion that introduced it. Knowing the expansion order is the best tool you have.

Want a longer game? On the deck tree you can tick this deck alongside any other one measured in release years and dates, and they shuffle into a single timeline together.

What's in the deck

Here are 28 of the 37 cards you might be dealt, with 9 more in the deck. Their values stay hidden until you place them.

Warcraft: Orcs & Humans Blizzard real-time strategy for MS-DOS
Warcraft II: Tides of Darkness RTS: the Horde invades Lordaeron
Warcraft II: Beyond the Dark Portal Expansion pack: the Alliance marches on Draenor
Warcraft II: Battle.net Edition Windows release with online play
Warcraft III: The Frozen Throne Expansion: Arthas and Illidan clash
World of Warcraft Blizzard's massively multiplayer RPG
World of Warcraft: The Burning Crusade WoW expansion: Outland, blood elves and draenei
World of Warcraft: Cataclysm WoW expansion: Deathwing reshapes Azeroth
World of Warcraft: Mists of Pandaria WoW expansion: pandaren and monks
Hearthstone Free-to-play digital card game
World of Warcraft: Warlords of Draenor WoW expansion: an alternate Draenor and garrisons
Blackrock Mountain Hearthstone adventure against Ragnaros and Nefarian
Warcraft (film) Duncan Jones live-action film
World of Warcraft: Battle for Azeroth WoW expansion: Kul Tiras and Zandalar
World of Warcraft Classic Vanilla WoW rebuilt on modern servers
Hearthstone Battlegrounds Eight-player auto battler mode
World of Warcraft: Shadowlands WoW expansion: the realms of the afterlife
Burning Crusade Classic Classic servers progress to Outland
Hearthstone Mercenaries Roguelike party mode
World of Warcraft: Dragonflight WoW expansion: Dragon Isles and dracthyr
March of the Lich King Hearthstone expansion adding death knights
Warcraft Rumble Mobile action strategy game
Season of Discovery Classic servers with rune engraving
World of Warcraft: The War Within WoW expansion: underground Khaz Algar
Cataclysm Classic Classic servers progress to Deathwing
Mists of Pandaria Classic Classic servers progress to Pandaria
Into the Emerald Dream Hearthstone expansion in the dream realm
World of Warcraft: Midnight WoW expansion: Quel'Thalas and player housing