World of Warcraft: The God of MMORPG

For most gaming-freaks around the world, there are two things in life which matter the most- Games and work almost in that order of preference. This choice becomes all the more obvious when the game in question is ‘World of Warcraft’ which is a gaming Mecca in itself. World of Warcraft is multiplayer online role playing game which has a literally massive scale. It was released by Blizzard Entertainment which is a subsidiary of Vivendi SA at the ECTS trade show in September 2001. This game which many people also dub as another separate world altogether commands an audience of more than 10 million players world wide and is continually growing and expanding every passing day.

Anatomically speaking, ‘World of Warcraft’ is a virtual world that combines mythical creatures, a real economy, and a sense of purpose for the in-game characters which for most gamers have a real life analogy. The game was designed to be an open environment where players are allowed to do what they please while customizing appearances and controls and installing add-ons and other modifications. This is precisely the reason why so many people around the world play World of Warcraft while ignoring their real physical environment. World of Warcraft has been serving as an escape route from reality for a lot of people over the years and the market seems to be growing.

Blizzard’s Warcraft fantasy universe was first seen in the 1994 game, Warcraft: Orcs and Humans, and was made famous worldwide by its sequel, Warcraft II: Tides of Darkness, about a year later. Warcraft’s fantasy world is instantly accessible. The concept behind World of Warcraft is similar to that of games such as Ultima Online, EverQuest, Asheron’s Call, and Anarchy Online–all of which are often referred to as massively multiplayer online role-playing games (MMORPG). These games allow for thousands of human players to coexist in a single game world, exclusively available over the Internet.

source: journal.transformativeworks.org

World of Warcraft’s stunning visuals are just as much a testament to the technical prowess of the game’s 3D engine as they are to the artistic abilities of the designers. Adding even further to this effect is technology that claims to change the physical appearance of the users’ characters. From a technical standpoint, the environments are impressive to say the least. But the graphics aren’t the only immediately engrossing aspect of World of Warcraft. Players also have easy access to their inventory, skills, and more–these respective interface panels are all collapsible and will never overlap each other or obscure the entire screen.

In particular, the fast pacing of the combat immediately stands out. If you’ve ever played other online role-playing games, you’ll know that the combat is generally characterized by how slow it is.  World of Warcraft, aside from its striking perspective, looks essentially similar in style to Warcraft III. Gameplay in World of Warcraft hinges on cooperation and guilds. Many missions require several players to complete them. The game primarily focuses on intense social interaction, and has benefits tremendously from players who move large parts of their social lives to the game. The new expansion pack called Cataclysm has shaken up the venerable World of Warcraft world as was proclaimed by Blizzard Entertainment prior to its launch. In the words of Chris Metzen, the Vice President of development at Blizzard, “It is nothing less than earth-shattering.  It has literally changed the world of Azeroth as you know it”.

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The trailer, which comes after much speculation following Blizzard’s trademarking of the Cataclysm name, also depicted the churning Maelstrom between the two continents, the Eastern Kingdoms and Kalimdor. Features include new race-class combinations, monsters, dungeons, raids and achievements. The secondary skill of Archaeology, heroic settings added to the classic dungeons and Shadowfang Keep.

The World of Warcraft begins several years after the conclusion of Warcraft III: The Frozen Throne. With the defeat of the Scourge and their tainted influence, the fragile bond formed between the Horde and Alliance has all but dissipated. With the new peace, old prejudices between these faction races began to resurface, dividing them once again.

source: world-of-warcraft-talent-calculator.smartcode.com

The objective of World of Warcraft is to create, control, and grow a character in an adventurous, dynamic world filled with lots of other players. It often takes days, weeks, and even months to develop connections with other players, and possibly join a guild of like-minded individuals with whom to play. Usually you form a bond with your character, since you have almost complete control over what he says and does, what he looks like and how he acts. When you start the game, you can choose between nine different classes and eight races. Four of the races are on the Alliance side (Human, Dwarf, Night Elf, and Gnome), and four on the Horde side (Orc, Troll, Tauren, and Undead). Each side has access to seven common classes (Warrior, Priest, Mage, Hunter, Druid, Warlock, and Rogue) and one side-specific class (Paladin for Alliance and Shaman for Horde).

Those gamers familiar with the Warcraft universe will understand that the Alliance and Horde have a long history of not getting along very well. This is reflected ingame in that players on the Alliance and Horde sides do not typically interact with each other in any way other than fighting. In fact, they do not even speak the same language, which makes it impossible to communicate with someone on the other side. Players can customize their characters through the use of a talent point system starting at level 10, and for every level after that, each character receives one talent point that he or she can use to purchase addition skills and abilities from one of three specializations for their class.

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Overall, World of Warcraft is a real beauty. The experience is rich in detailed artwork, vibrant color and smooth animation. The game relies on stability, scalability and style for its graphics punch – which is more than enough for such an enchanting world. The community for World of Warcraft is also one of the most active. Thanks to the flexibility of the programming many independent coders have made their own Add-Ons to the game. These range from simple revisions to the Graphic User Interface (GUI) to raid interface enhancements that help with coordination of attacks. In fact, many of the most popular add-ons that were used in the early months of the game’s release have been integrated into the game by the developers.

As for the fans, they believe that Blizzard has done what every MMORPG should be trying to do – it’s ticked all the right boxes and really tried to forge the link between the heart and the head in a hugely immersive virtual space. This is what creates the stories in your imagination. These aren’t just battles, they’re adventures. Now that’s what role-playing should be all about.

Want to know what to expect in the game? Check out this video