Reviewed: July 17, 2003
Reviewed by: Mat Houghton
Publisher
Blizzard
Developer
Blizzard
Released: July 1, 2003
Genre: RTS
Players: 12
ESRB: Teen
9
10
10
10
10
System Requirements
Recommended System
Can’t wait for your next fix of RTS heaven, or is it just too painful to think of how long you still have to wait for the World of Warcraft? Well, Blizzard is not turning a deaf ear to your bellyachings of pain. Warcraft III: The Frozen Throne is in stores now so any of you who already own the original and for some unfathomable reason haven’t picked it up, GO GET IT!!! I appreciate your loyalty in waiting to see what GCM’s take on it will be, but come on. This is an expansion pack for Warcraft. It’s Blizzard. If it sucked I think one of the signs of the apocalypse would be fulfilled.
Anyway aside from the fact that this is really just an exercise in pretty words, because I’m telling you to get something that you should already own, I’ll give you a short recap of the game. You get to play three different campaigns (this is only an expansion you know) each with about eight missions and a plethora of in-game cinematics. There is also an RPG style bonus campaign with one mission that takes at least 5 hours to complete, and two more that you can download later and of course there are the usual map editor, battle.net, and single player options. Basically, take all the good stuff about Warcraft III and kick it up a notch.
If you’re reading this then either you’ve played Warcraft III: Reign of Chaos and are just wondering if you should shell out the cash, or you’re thinking about picking this up with WCIII (Blizzard will probably release a combo pack of them eventually). Either way you should know the basics of the controls and nothing has been radically changed so that’s the good news. You now expect bad news and sorry to burst your bubble, but there is none. If for some strange reason you are reading this review and have no prior knowledge of Warcraft or the style of gameplay I refer you to my review for the original title (which incidentally is required to play this expansion pack).
Not only are there new heroes and units for all four of the original races, but there are also four neutral heroes, and a neutral race or two in addition to all of the random creeps and creatures. It all balances pretty well though. While the Naga are really tough (they’re one of the new races) they lack a lot of the complexity of the other four so they aren’t quite as versatile. The other races are basically NPCs. The Drenai and the Forgotten Ones are only seen for a couple of levels and only the Drenai are ever under your control. There are a whole host of other little beasties, critters, creeps, demons, neutral characters and buildings, etc. so things never get boring.
Just when you thought it couldn’t get any better. Not only are these graphics a hefty step above those in WCIII (if you don’t believe me watch the credits despite the cheesy song and look at all the head shots) but also they added three new tile sets for the levels, and we’re not talking just dirt that’s colored green and it’s supposed to be a new planet or something. No try floating islands, or coral reefs that have surfaced. These levels are stunning. There are ruins, ruined buildings everywhere (yes there is a difference), trees, plateaus, even a mountain you climb to fight a giant harpy.
So alright, the settings are excellent. What about the characters? As mentioned above the head shots are much smoother as are the animations and line quality (in the expansion they are much smaller and smoother). The characters are highly detailed, each with unique idle animations, walking speeds, attack animations, etc. Each unit is truly a unique entity, and while the same units will eventually sync up there are even little variations in that.
The new effects that have been added are awesome. Fire pillars, and locust swarms, and healing waves oh my!! Almost all of the new hero abilities are useful in addition to just looking sweet. There are few things better than tossing enemies high in the air from spikes thrown by your hero, or watching them crumple under the claws of your bear familiar. All the other old classics look just as good as always too so I really have no complaints.
Alright all the nice little bangs and whistles aside, you want to know about the cinematics, because, I don’t know about you, but Blizzard the only company that produces movies of this quality. If they ever did a Final Fantasy style movie I’d sell my eyeteeth to see it. Hell, I’d sell my grandmother to see it. These movies are no disappointment either. The opening has got to have one of the best wave and storm animations I’ve ever seen, even if the whole thing is a little dark. The ending, well… I won’t give too much away, but they still do unbelievable textures and ripple effects and the lighting is absolutely stunning. Watch the chain in the foreground too. The only real complaint I have with the graphics at all is that opening is dark, and when you drop below the waves… lets just say I’ve seen better transitions.
Again Blizzard has pulled out all the stops with sound effects that no matter how often you hear them don’t ever really get old. The best illustration of this is the set phrases of the characters. With Rastafarian Trolls, Dwarves that shout “Mortar Kombat!!”, and other such creatures this is a completely original cast of characters. The heroes they added are no exception. Personally I never get tired of hearing a witch doctor tell me to “don’t worry, be happy” or the Pandaren Brewmaster who shouts “I bring Pandamonium!”
Bad humor aside the voice acting is kept up to par from the original, I even think they have the same cast members. Sound effects, etc. It’s all good. Pay very close attention to the music though. It does a very good of staying peripheral, but if you listen you will find something that sounds more at home in the “Lord of the Rings” or on the music stands of the London Philharmonic.
Twenty-six new levels, with two more on the way, an improved campaign editor, and numerous improvements to the battle.net experience, and all the variations on the game play and you still ask if this is a good deal. Ok, ok it does retail for something in the hood of $35.00, which is a bit high for these kinds of titles. But it’s nearly a complete game by itself, so quit your whining and shell out the cash because you know you’re going to anyway.
If all the features that come with the game aren’t enough value for your hard earned gaming dollar, well you’ll be playing for at least 60-80 hours on the campaign alone. Anything after that will have to depend on how interested you are in the game and how much you like whupping people online. Don’t forget the downloadable levels either because if they’re anything like the first one then that’s another ten hours at least for free.
You’ve wasted enough time here reading this. You already have the game so stop reading, get back to the conquest and don’t be surprised if this is all just set up to whet our appetites for World of Warcraft when that releases.