World of Warcraft expands

Flying mounts, new races, turgid fantasy back-story - yes, the first World of Warcraft expansion pack has it all. The Burning Crusade will be released next year and allow addicts - of which I am still just about one - to grind their characters up from a maximum of 60 to 70. There are also new areas to explore, new skills to learn and an even greater emphasis on grouped combat. The latter is a shame, as the real thrill of WoW is exploring the world itself with occasional small scale battles against the opposing faction. But the developers now seem to be focussing on large-scale combat which forces players to group and, most importantly to anyone playing who has managed to retain a stake in the real world, demands far more of your time to succeed.