Warcraft: Orcs & Humans
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| Warcraft : Orcs & Humans | |
|---|---|
 The original box art for Warcraft: Orcs & Humans |
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| Developer(s) | Blizzard Entertainment |
| Publisher(s) |  Blizzard Entertainment Interplay Entertainment |
| Designer(s) | Blizzard Entertainment |
| Engine | Custom |
| Latest version | 1.21(PC)/1.06(Mac) |
| Release date(s) | January 15, 1994 1995 |
| Genre(s) | Real-time strategy |
| Mode(s) | Single player, Multiplayer |
| Platform(s) | DOS, Macintosh |
| System requirements | Intel 80386 CPU, 4MB RAM, VGA graphic card, CD-ROM |
| Input | Keyboard and mouse |
Warcraft: Orcs & Humans is a real-time strategy computer game developed and published by Blizzard Entertainment [1] in 1994. The real-time strategy genre had been pioneered by Dune 2, among other games, but Warcraft (along with Westwood Studios' Command & Conquer) is widely credited for the genre's rise in popularity. Warcraft and its sequels went on to become one of the most successful franchises in computer gaming history.
The game is set in the Kingdom of Azeroth, part of the fictional Warcraft Universe. The events that take place in this game are known in Warcraft lore as the First War or the Great War.
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[edit] Story
There was little or no warning for Stormwind when the orcs took seige. At that time, the orcs were unknown to the Kingdom, the armies unassembled and the King unworried. Nobody knew where the orcs came from or what they wanted. But on that day, they made themselves known. The Orcish Horde attacked the Kingdom of Azeroth's capital, Stormwind Keep, hoping to break it's fortifications and brutally murder its populace before the whole Kindom could be mobilised. The defenders, although taken by suprise, took up arms and began a defence of the city, holding the orcs at bay until the Knights of the realm could reach the city and quell the beseiging orcs. While the humans did not know what these beasts were, they now knew of their existence and that they were in danger. Taking up weapons, the people of Azeroth took to war, the First War, between orcs and man. Though they bravely stood in defence of their homeland, the orcs proved to be brutal and relentless, without sympathy. The ferocious attacks left the Kingdom quickly without any money with which to pay their soldiers, and the food supplies were being ravaged by constant orc harrassment of the villages and towns. In the end, the outcome of the First War was inevitable.
The King was assassinated, and the humans of Azeroth, disheartened and facing destruction, fled across the Great Sea, the Kingdom was abandoned and the refugees fled to Lordaeron, another Kingdom which so far had no interaction with the orcish threat. The Horde took Stormwind and celebrated, bringing the city to ruin and looting all valuables. This would be the first war of many battles the orcs had in mind, for the humans of Azeroth were not the only Kingdom in this land, for others stood across the Great Sea, to the North. The Horde began constructing a vast navy on the coast, in preparation for the one day where they will wage war upon all the human kingdoms. The First War ended in defeat, but a sharp warning to the other human kingdoms also, to force them to recognise the threat of the orcish Horde, and the need to band together to fight this new and most threatening foe.
[edit] Units and structures
As with most real-time strategy computer games at the time, Warcraft featured two opposing factions, the noble Humans and the savage Orcs. Warcraft was unique in that it dealt with fantasy settings and archetypes, including melee battles and spell-casting. Again, as in other games of this genre, each faction’s units and buildings have a counterpart within the other faction. With the exception of some spells, each unit is basically the same as its counterpart, with only slight variations. For example, orc spearmen do slightly more damage than human archers while having a slightly reduced range.
[edit] Movie
In May 2006, production company Legendary Pictures acquired film rights to adapt Warcraft for the big screen with the game's publisher, Blizzard Entertainment. Blizzard had originally considered hiring a scribe for the film adaptation before teaming up with Legendary Pictures.[2] The companies plan to create a film that would not follow any of the Warcraft games' storylines, but still take place in the fantasy universe.[3] According to Blizzard's Chief Operating Officer Paul Sams, the film's budget would be over $100 million.[4]
[edit] Related products
There are several games and products related to Warcraft:
- Four sequels:
- The MMORPG World of Warcraft
- A set of four books (simply titled Warcraft), related only by their placement in the Warcraft Universe
- Warcraft: Day of the Dragon, Richard Knaak
- Warcraft: Lord of the Clans, Christie Golden (adapted from the storyline of the cancelled Warcraft Adventures)
- Warcraft: The Last Guardian, Jeff Grubb
- Warcraft: Of Blood and Honor, Chris Metzen
- A trilogy of novels, Warcraft: War of the Ancients, Richard Knaak
- 1)The Well of Eternity
- 2)The Demon Soul
- 3)The Sundering
- A trilogy of manga, Warcraft: The Sunwell Trilogy, Richard Knaak (with illustrations by manhwa artist Jae Hwan Kim)
- Several lines of action figures
- A Warcraft tabletop role-playing game (Warcraft the Roleplaying Game)
- A Warcraft strategy board game
- A World of Warcraft adventure board game
- A World of Warcraft Trading Card Game(TGC)
- Various other merchandise
[edit] Trivia
- Bill Roper provided all the voices for the game.
- Individual characters in the game give amusing responses when clicked repeatedly. Blizzard Entertainment has maintained this feature in all of its strategy games, and many other companies have copied it.
[edit] References
- ^ Warcraft: Orcs & Humans (Blizzard Entertainment)
- ^ Pamela McClintock, Ben Fritz. "Brave new 'World'", Variety, 2006-05-08. Retrieved on January 31, 2007.
- ^ Borys Kit. "Legendary enters world of 'Warcraft'", The Hollywood Reporter, 2006-05-09. Retrieved on January 31, 2007.
- ^ Tal Blevins. "GC 2006: Warcraft Movie Update", IGN, 2006-08-24. Retrieved on January 31, 2007.
[edit] External links
[edit] Lore
- Official Lore: The Dark Portal and the Fall of Stormwind.
- Game Manual History on Warcraft's game box
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Computer and video games developed by Blizzard Entertainment
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