London's Chinatown was taken over by Chinese dragons, anthropomorphic pandas and an army of gaming fans for the launch of World of Warcraft: Mists of Pandaria.

Mists of Pandaria is the fourth major expansion to the hugely popular massively multiplayer online role playing game for PC and Mac.

World of Warcraft, or WOW, has players create a character from a whole host of fantasy races and set out to explore the lands of Azeroth, teaming up with other players over the internet.

Fans queued for hours to be the first to get their hands on the title, with the most dedicated players camping out for over a week to secure a spot at the front of the line.

The event was held at Café de Paris in Picadilly Circus, where those inside were shown exclusive interviews with the game's developers, participated in games of Warcraft trivia to win prizes and met actors dressed as the new Pandaren characters.

Aside from the Pandaren, a playable race of anthropomorphic pandas, Mists of Pandaria also introduces a new region to explore and a new Monk class.

The expansion should also cater to long term Warcraft players by raising the level cap to 90, adding in 'challenge mode' and a pet battling-system.

WOW's developers Blizzard live streamed the entire European launch, including a traditional Chinese parade through Chinatown, on YouTube.