by Blizzard Entertainment

Pros
•  online play via Battle.net
•  adds RPG elements into the mix
•  beautiful graphics
•  well constructed missions
•  the four races are balanced
•  intriguing plot

Cons
•  upkeep tax
•  unit responses are too repetitive

The Bottom Line - Brings the entire RTS genre to all new heights. 

Link: Official Site

Review

Blizzard may take a few years before releasing a sequel to one of its franchise series, but it is definitely worth the wait when the games are finally released. Diablo 2 and, more recently, WarCraft 3 exemplify the phrase "good things come to those who wait". Unlike games like Tiberian Sun from the vaunted Command and Conquer series and games that appear to be released next century like Half-Life 2 and Team Fortress 2, WarCraft 3 rewards patient gamers with a great game and pushes the envelope for the whole real time strategy (RTS) genre. 

How does WarCraft 3 deliver the gaming goods? For starters, the game actually has an excellent story and that says a lot for a RTS game. Most RTS stories run together on the same ho-hum path, but WC3's story will keep you enthralled in the game until its conclusion. Why? Because the story walks a little on the dark side while diverting from the usual themes of most RTS games. 

The story gets strengthened further by the well structured missions that seem to gel with the plot perfectly. The missions also serve to boost the powers of your hero (characters with unique personalities and abilities) units, which adds a decided RPG flavor to the game. Cap all of that off with beautiful graphics and you have yourself a classic. 

However, that is just the single player aspect of WarCraft 3. The game's greatness goes up even further with its easy-to-use multiplayer capabilities. You can play up to 11 other players on a LAN or Battle.net. In a way, the multiplayer mode of WarCraft 3 is like chess because the heroes (your higher chess pieces like your queen, king, etc) play critical roles in your success or failure. Let's say you have amassed a sizable army of ground and air troops. You send out a scout to see if your opponent has built one too but you don't see even half the number of units of your army. Excited, you start moving your troops to slaughter your hapless opponent, but wait....3 heroes come out of nowhere and demolish your seemingly indestructible army. That's right, you might can outnumber your opponents with units but you better get some hero units and level them on AI opponents ASAP. Otherwise, you will be toast and your opponents will eat you for breakfast. The four different races may be balanced, but heroes versus average units is usually a no contest.

On the downside, WarCraft 3 does not leave a lot to complain about. The only two annoying aspects of this game are the upkeep tax and the repetitive unit responses. The upkeep tax requires too much micromanagement and the unit responses are funny but they can quickly get on your nerves. Besides those two minor complaints, WarCraft 3 represents a new watermark for not only the RTS genre but PC games as a whole. All PC games need to wrap their design around a compelling story like WarCraft 3 has. That said, Blizzard has patiently created a classic that all PC gamers should at least try, whether fans of the RTS genre or not.  

Game Ogre's Rating (out of 10):

9.25

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