It’s a festive time for Blizzard Entertainment. At the beginning of November, the American publisher celebrated 30 years of Warcraft. This November 23rd it is the turn of world of warcraft to blow out your candles. Twenty on the clock for the massively multiplayer online role-playing game (MMORPG) that has managed to stand on its own to become one of the most influential titles in video gaming.
And yet, not everything was so easy for whom we affectionately call Wow for two decades. At that moment, he was an emanation of Warcrafta medieval fantasy universe created ten years earlier that finds its inspiration in the mechanics of Dune IIbut especially in Dungeons and Dragons or even the lord of the rings.
Players, who were waiting for the fourth installment of the successful real-time strategy (RTS) game franchise, are faced with a new proposal that will change the benchmarks. It must be said that it arises as a result of Warcraft III: The Frozen Throne (2003) and takes place four years after the events of this one.
But this time, its developers want a new approach to the Azeroth universe where it takes place. Warcraft. They want to immerse their players among the humans, orcs and other races that populate it. It will always be a matter of choosing your character among eight races and nine classes, divided between two emblematic factions (the Alliance or the Horde). It’s up to everyone to form their 40-player battalion to raid the Heart of Magma or the Blackwing Lair. The rest changes the approach that the players have Warcraft.
A living world where we sympathize with strangers
Because Blizzard has had the idea of an online game for a long time, taking advantage of the (small step) growth of the Internet and taking inspiration from games like everquest EITHER Last online. This would be the perfect means to create this long-awaited virtual world, in which to undertake a mission, meet other players, exchange, explore and improve. The world will become dynamic, alive and enriched over time, with social activities and challenges. Wow introduces the notion of an open and persistent world (permanently evolving) that will continue to take root in video games from then on.
At its launch on November 23, 2004, Blizzard did not anticipate the high demand from players: the servers crashed, causing long queues and unstable connections in the first few days. It must be said that the publisher planned to reach one million players in four months. It will be done in a month.
An economical model and a style that will set a precedent
It is also its gameplay that makes it famous. world of warcraft is very easy to tackle, even if some of its missions and certain raids are aimed at experienced players. It is intended to be more intuitive. Its rather cartoonish aesthetic is extremely attractive, as is the variety of its characters, its story that involves the player much more in their choices and decisions. A visual style that will be copied multiple times.
Probably more than any other game, Wow gives rise to the notion of community. That will be your strength. Millions of people meet, sympathize, have adventures, and chart their path together in Azeroth without ever having met in the real world. Friendships that will last for years and some still last. The game had over 12 million active subscribers during its glory years, around 2011-2012.
With a unique and perplexing model: buy the game, then pay a monthly subscription (about 10 euros) to access this virtual world and, sometimes, pay a few extra euros for additional game elements. One more time, Wow will be emulated and will follow in its footsteps to other titles that see the unexpected financial benefit that this represents (Final Fantasy XIV EITHER The Elder Scrolls online). Because Blizzard will make billions of dollars with its model.
the force of world of warcraftis to captivate the players and make them lose track of time in a certain way. We are in a moment where Habbo Hotel and others Second life They have established the codes of the virtual life that we share with complete strangers who have become “friends.”
Except here there is the notion of video games, of companionship in adventure, of a strong community that is recognized even in real life. Blizzcon, a convention that pays tribute to Blizzard games, becomes a meeting point for each guild.
A pop culture hit
With its different approach to the games of the time, world of warcraft becomes the most played MMORPG in the world. Connect the expansions, strengthening the bonds between players by encouraging more and more exploration that becomes extensive and epic with each addition until The internal wartenth expansion released in summer 2024. And the game also follows technical developments to beautify Azeroth and Kalimdor, the game’s other continent, over time.
But it is really thanks to the phenomenon of communities, their unifying side – although their popularity has decreased slightly – and their ability to renew themselves without losing the emotional bond of their players that Wow built his success.
The title will continue to be the one that popularized online multiplayer gaming, influencing other games with its mechanics and its ability to bring together and build relationships between players.
To the point of also becoming a pop culture phenomenon, inspiring books, advertisements, movies and series. In 2006 an episode of South Park will be dedicated to him.. 20 years later, world of warcraft has made a name for itself, even among non-gamers, surpassing its progenitor in the minds.
Source: BFM TV
