Warcraft 3: Reign of Chaos and The Frozen Throne

A few years back I downloaded a game to pass time. I did not realize I will spend the next two years playing skirmishes and Defense of the Ancients for hours and hours. This review is a bit late but I feel that as a fan I have to write something about it.

Warcraft 3: Reign of Chaos and Warcraft 3: The Frozen Throne follow up on the story of the aftermath of the Burning Legion invasion. The game begins with a warning sent to Warchief Thrall through a dream. The Prophet delivers this message as well to the other armies. Fans of the Warcraft universe will soon find out the true identity of The Prophet. The Orc campaign is one of the many stages the player has to go through to unlock the other campaigns.

         Another campaign involves the humans. Prince Arthas Menethil is introduced. Later he would join Jaina Proudmoore to discover the source of the plague. The discovery led him to kill Kel'thuzad. The chase led him further into a trap that he would later willingly embrace. The change occurs when he pursues Mal'ganis and was forced to kill his friend Muradin Bronzebeard so he can acquire Frostmourne. His noble intentions became an obsession. In the end, his soul was poisoned by the blade forged by the Lich King. He then went home to kill his father King Terenas.

A new campaign begins with Arthas being a death knight. He resurrects Kel'thuzad then attacks Quel'thalas and destroys the Sunwell. It was here where he met Silvanas Windrunner whom he later changes into a banshee. Silvanas later has her own campaigns in the game.

Arthas discovers that Kel'thuzad is acting on behalf of the Lich King, who is helping the Burning Legion. There is a rift between the Lich King and the Legion however. Arthas and Kel'thuzad proceed to open a portal for Archimonde,  who later betrays them. At this point, the Lich King already plans to oppose the Legion.

Meanwhile Thrall's campaign continues. One of his friends, Grom Hellscream was trapped in Ashenvale and was forced to drink from a fountain corrupted with Mannoroth's blood to kill a demigod. Thrall was forced to join Jaina to purge Grom and his company with the corruption. Later Grom and Thrall would try to kill Mannoroth to free the former from the Legion's control. Grom succeeds but was slain in the process.

Another campaign involves the Elves. Tyrande Whisperwind awakens the Druids and frees Illidan Stormrage in order to stop the Legion. At this point in the story, Illidan consumed the Skull of Gul'dan and became a half-demon. He was later banished. Illidan also has his own campaigns in the game.

Through the Prophet, an alliance between Jaina, Thrall, Malfurion and Tyrande was made to oppose the Legion. The player has to hold out until Archimonde is destroyed by the ancestral spirits.

The first campaign for Warcraft 3: The Frozen Throne begins with Illidan's flight from his kin and his pursuit for power.  A bonus campaign involving Rexxar is a great addition.

The other campaign revolves around Kael'thas Sunstrider's journey. The players also meet the Naga here. Illidan has also revealed his plans of opposing the Lich King.

The players will meet Arthas again in one of the three campaigns. The undead at this point has three factions. The other two are led by Silvanas and the dreadlords. Silvanas defeats the latter. Illidan, along with the Naga, battle Arthas and the Lich King but fail.

***

I enjoyed playing through the campaigns. One of my favorites is the bonus campaign with Rexxar. I played it three times a few years ago. One of the things that made this game great is the role given to the Orcs. They are not just portrayed as mindless animals hungry for blood. I also enjoyed Arthas' campaigns and I was not surprised with how his journey ended. The game leaves hints but leaves just enough mystery to make it more exciting. I for one was not expecting that Grom will die. I felt sad because he was one of my favorites.

There are a lot of stories to follow that are not covered in this game. I think that is one of the things that makes the Warcraft enterprise so addictive. The races have their histories that is why the game is built well. It is not a simple good-defeats-evil story.

I enjoyed the skirmishes as well. It was fun exploring the potential of each of the four armies. The other mini games were fun as well. One of my favorites is Zero to Hero. But the most addictive would have to be Defense of the Ancients or DotA. There are many characters to choose from and it's more enjoyable than most RPGs. The campaign is simple but there is always something to look forward to because of the variety of the characters.

I recommend this game to those who want a game with a good story, music and graphics, and who is looking for replayability. Overall, I'd give it a 10 out of 10 rating.