WarCraft II

Summary

Genre: Strategy
Number of players: 1

Review

When I was first introduced to the world of WarCraft, I wasn't quite sure what to expect. It's a real time strategy game, and featured two teams: Orcs and Humans. OK, only two teams. But bear in mind plenty of other decent RTS's only have two teams - Dark Reign, Total Annihilation, and so on. So that's not a bad thing necessarily. There are plenty of units, each with their own different styles of attack; what's more, you can attack by air, land or sea, which opens up a whole new list of strategies that can be employed while you play the game. So just how good is it?


Gameplay: One of the things that first hit me when I first played WarCraft II was that the two teams are actually quite similar. Grunts are obviously the same as Footmen. Elves shoot arrows, and Trolls throw axes, doing much the same thing. The list goes on and on. For every unit the humans have, the Orcs have one that does exactly the same thing. Until you get right the way up the tech-tree and are creating the most powerful units, Death Knights and Ogres for the Orcs and Mages and Knights for the humans. In these lie the only major differences between the two teams. After playing a game like StarCraft (which was the very next RTS made by Blizzard after WarCraft II) it is a real disappointment not to have more unique teams.

The gameplay itself is very good indeed. Every unit has its strengths and weaknesses, so attacking in vast groups of the same type of unit is not advisable. It makes for a more enjoyable game, really, when there is no super-powerful unit that has no weaknesses at all, making it necessary to devise a strategy to win instead of simply pumping out huge numbers of the same unit. An example of this is the original WarCraft, in which the most powerful elemental was just TOO darn powerful, taking on entire armies by itself and often winning outright.

Attacking by sea is not often used in strategy games, which is a real shame, because I personally believe it adds a whole new element to the game. You could completely surround an island stronghold, and keep them locked in with a strong naval fleet, whilst at the same time creating a decent flight team to tackle them from the skies. Brilliant. Well, it wouldn't be if you were the person trapped in the island, admittedly, but those are the breaks.


Challenge: There are two very different campaigns, one for the orcs, one for the humans. Well, I say different, but the story line is the same, you only decide whether or not you're on the Orcs' team fighting for them, or the humans' team. Unlike StarCraft, you don't have to play with both teams to win the game, but it does last longer if you do. The game starts off easy, as most strategy games tend to, but some of the later stages are actually quite difficult, and will have you trying to win them over and over again. Trust me, I know... You won't get bored with it in a hurry, unless you are an extremely impatient person; but then, if you are, all RTS games will tend to tick you off slightly.


Graphics: Much more cartoony than StarCraft, although I have the feeling that in this case the makers weren't really going for the 'serious' type of strategy game. The characters all look very different, and well-done, and the landscapes are also very varied, too. It does lack the polish of StarCraft, but it is an earlier game, after all, so this is to be expected.


Sounds: WarCraft II has some fairly amusing sounds in it, it has to be said. Repeated clicking on the same unit brings different responses and they slowly start to get annoyed with you if you keep doing it. They're all well done, and what's more gives each unit their own unique character, from the rather simplistic Grunt - "Ooh, that tickles!" - to the sinister Death Knight - "When my work is finished, I'm coming back for you..." Not bad at all. The music is adequate, nothing special, but it certainly won't put you off the game, or force you to switch off the sound. But you won't get it stuck in your head either. Hey, maybe that's a good thing...


Summing up: An extremely enjoyable game, worth considering even if you have StarCraft, although don't expect it to be quite as good. That said the game is fun, and if you like RTS games, you are more than likely to enjoy this.


Gamesmark: 83%


Reviewer: Tangycheese


Maverik's opinion: Well, it's certainly not up to the high standards of StarCraft, but this was the game that paved the way for that classic. It's still got a lot going for it, and the upgrade system is great. The feel of the game is quite light-hearted, but there's a serious and deep strategy game underneath the bright colours and pleasant carnage. Roll on WarCraft III...