Blizzard Entertainment has officially announced that the release date for World of Warcraft's latest expansion, Cataclysm, is set for December 7, 2010. The game will retail for $39.99 via box or digital download from the Blizzard store. The collector's edition will retail for $79.99.

"Cataclysm includes the best content we've ever created for World of Warcraft," said CEO and co-founder Mike Morhaime. "It's not just an expansion, but a re-creation of much of the original Azeroth, complete with epic new high-level adventures for current players and a redesigned leveling experience for those just starting out.

"With the help of our beta testers, we're putting on the final polish, and we look forward to welcoming gamers around the world to enjoy it in just a couple of months."

The release date for locations outside North America have yet to be announced.

Read more about Cataclysm on the official here.