World of Warcraft First Look

Setting a deeper pace in the gaming industry with each project, Blizzard Entertainment is now aiming to carry out the intricate task of creating a MMORPG. The coming months will be packed with competitive massively multi-player online titles, most of which have already established a considerable reputation thanks to impressive demonstrations at the E3 (titles like Star Wars Galaxies and Dark Age of Camelot). The popularity of such games is increasing with each passing day and that's largely due to games like EverQuest, Asheron's Call, etc.

As the very title of the game indicates, players are going to receive the opportunity to explore the vast worlds of Warcraft (which denotes almost all of the regions from the popular game series). The whole game plot was intended to go in accordance with the Warcraft saga - the story continues, as four years have passed since the aftermath of Warcraft III: Reign of Chaos, and a great tension smolders throughout the ravaged world of Azeroth. As the battle-worn races begin to rebuild their shattered kingdoms, new threats, both ancient and ominous, arise to plague the world once again.

World of Warcraft will be allowing gamers to participate in exciting quests spiced-up with a few story elements and dynamic events followed by a 'flexible reward system'. The initiation of each game includes a character selection during which the player can alter almost everything from the hairstyle and facial appearance, to gender and the color of his skin. Competing against a vast number of opponents you'll get to advance your skills in any area of expertise you wish. A crucial aspect here is that your character can evolve in a less-constrained fashion, allowing him to master the ways of spell-casting as well as hand-to-hand combat. Unsurprisingly, characters with an aptitude towards physical skills will have a greater chance of improving their hand-to-hand combat abilities, than those who are more committed to the ways of magic (the principal of character advancement is similar to the one we've seen in Diablo II).

PvP will, naturally, be an accessible feature, although is will not be obligatory. Somewhat like EverQuest, players can choose whether they want to participate in such duels or not. Although no additional info on the Player vs. Player combat mode was divulged from the development team at Blizzard, they have promised it will be definitely a built-in game facet.

Another crucial issue of the MMORPG genre was left undisclosed for the time being - in-game death. How will my character die in the game? And will I loose everything I've gained? These questions are often going through the minds of most MMO gamers. The sole thing that was unveiled by the developers concerning 'player death' is that once the player's character dies he/she keeps all of the items and gained skills (of course, it was pretty clear that they didn't want to ruin the game experience with extreme penalty measures). However, the real penalty for character life-loss will exist and it remains yet to be determined.

Graphics are, or rather seem, to have a great advantage when compared to other MMORPG's we've seen developed thus far. The environments are embellished with a substantial spectrum of colors and textures, which mutually shape an opulent world just waiting to be surveyed. Once you've eyed the screenshots and the trailer, you will recognize that the game possess a great resemblance to the designs and artworks of Blizzard's upcoming RTS - Warcraft III. This means that all of the models have that special cartoon-like appearance. As we've ascertained many times in the past, the games from Blizzard Entertainment always point towards a first-class animation system; especially when it comes to portraying life-like and self-motivated character models. What's more, they are set to be distinctive, so it will never occur that players run into mirror-matched opponents. Creating characters comprises a commendable technique that allows characters to actually substitute polys, as opposed to merely replacing skins. The method applies to the moments when you change the characters armor and clothes. World of Warcraft also utilizes a powerful 3D game engine which gave the developers freedom to induce all sorts of imposing environment effects (sky alterations like mist, shifting clouds, and so on), as well as visually impressive water surfaces. Various shadow and lighting effects were also incorporated allowing an eye-catching color change in the environment as the day and night cycle passes.

Not only will the game enable players to venture through the extensive realms of the Warcraft series, but it is also going to feature a continuously streaming world that doesn't bother you with zone-to-zone shifting. Although, it was uncovered that a few in-game areas will oblige players to switch servers which may result in a brief load time. Also (an important note), playing World of Warcraft necessitates a monthly account sign-up (rather like any MMORPG). The official web site will be notifying all of ya who are interested to take part in the upcoming BETA testing. As for the release date, nothing was disclosed one the subject so far. However, it is a well-known fact that the game was in production for a year already, giving it, say another year or so to finalize all of the essentials for a successful and fully functional MMORPG.