The World of Warcraft Website announces that the Mists of Pandaria expansion is now live in Blizzard's MMORPG, allowing players opportunities to get in touch with their inner kung fu pandas. There were launch events last night to led up to the launch, and the website has coverage of the North American launch party, which includes a nearly five-hour(!!) video of the festivities, and there are galleries with launch coverage on Gaming Illustrated and Hardware Heaven. Here's one last official preview covering professions in the expansion, and here's word on the release:

For millennia, the continent of Pandaria has remained hidden, veiled from the rest of Azeroth behind a wall of impenetrable mists. Now the fog is lifting just as warships of the Horde and the Alliance clash off the coast of the lost continent. As heroes from both factions venture onto Pandaria’s shores to explore its ancient forests and cloud-ringed mountaintops, they soon make contact with the mysterious denizens that dwell there… heralding the start of a new era of discovery and conflict for all of Azeroth.

World of Warcraft®: Mists of Pandaria™ is now live and available in a store near you! You can also click here to upgrade to the digital version directly through Blizzard. Featuring a new playable race (the pandaren), a new character class (the monk), and an exotic new continent to explore, the new expansion offers a huge variety of content for new and returning players.

Mists of Pandaria is available in a standard edition, Digital Deluxe edition, and retail-exclusive Collector’s Edition. For more information, read the press release, visit the Mists of Pandaria info page, or check out the game guide to learn how to get started on your journey. Returning players might also want to read our recent pre-Mists of Pandaria survival guide to catch up on some of the major changes to classes, talents, and other game systems.

Once you’ve upgraded, level-85 characters will automatically receive a quest pointing the way to Pandaria upon logging into the game. Safe voyage, travelers -- a new world awaits!