WoW Cataclysm sells 3.3 million in 24 hours to become "the fastest-selling PC game of all time"

Blizzard just announced that World of Warcraft expansion Cataclysm "sold through" more than 3.3 million copies as of its first 24 hours of release, making it "the fastest-selling PC game of all time."

The claim is based on "on internal company records and reports from key distribution partners" and "includes digital pre-sales."

This milestone beats the previous record of more than 2.8 million copies sold in 24 hours, set in November 2008 by Blizzard’s second World of Warcraft expansion, Wrath of the Lich King.

Cataclysm was simultaneously released in the US, Canada, Mexico, Argentina, Chile, Europe, Russia, Southeast Asia, Australia, and New Zealand on December 7, and shipped in Korea and the regions of Taiwan, Hong Kong, and Macau on December 9.

Blizzard said today that more than 10,000 stores throughout the world opened at midnight for the launch.

Approximately 15,000 players attended official launch events in the US, Canada, France, Germany, Russia, Sweden, the Netherlands, Spain, the UK, and the region of Taiwan, according to the publisher.

The MMO's subs based currently stands at 12 million.