The Warcraft series were already successful on the market and their strength came from years of game-like experiences. While other titles usually go from movie experiences to the MMORPG environment, or simply create the world out of nothing, Blizzard did things differently. There is one clarification to be made concerning the Warcraft franchise. The old guardians of Kalimdor retreated to the western reaches, towards Darnassus, trying to cope with the destruction of The World Tree. Elves and their troubles were far from the Eastern Kingdoms. Facing troubles of their own in Gnomeregan, gnomish ingenuity was harnessed by the Alliance along with their able-bodied men and women to fight for their cause. Dwarves were left almost unscathed by the war and held strong within the walls of Ironforge and the surrounding areas. Humans gathered the remaining forces and rebuilt around the capitol city of Stormwind. Once hailing from seven great kingdoms, the Alliance lays in ruins as old allegiances are reforged. Thus the undead Forsaken and the Orcs joined forces, both being former outcasts from the world of man. In Lordaeron, The Scourge left many scars upon land and souls alike, but under the leadership of the Banshee Queen Sylvanas Windrunner, the Forsaken arose to challenge the sins of old and find a cure for the undead plague. Horde's dominion was strengthened by allying themselves with Vol'Jin's Trolls and the native Tauren, ruled by Cairne Bloodhoof from the peaks of Thunder Bluff.
Orgrimmar saw recognition as a great capital city. The Horde thrived in Kalimdor, where Thrall and his Orcs consolidated the newly found home. When the devastating war against the Burning Legion came to an end, the following years brought a convenient truce as the races of Azeroth craved for peace and time to rebuild. World of Warcraft sold 1 million units and thereafter, all subscriber thresholds fell one after another. It quickly became apparent that Blizzard surpassed even their wildest expectations. Well, after a furious three month beta test, the game was released in the United Stated during fall 2004. Apart from the Warcraft fantasy setting and lore, little could have been discerned since players were used to Blizzard's hack&slash or real time strategy games. The quality of their work was undeniable yet many were surprised when World of Warcraft development was announced. Not even three years ago, Blizzard was synonymous with quality multiplayer oriented games and had already launched franchises that were doing great on the market, with Warcraft, Starcraft and Diablo being the most important.
Writing about World of Warcraft ? where should one begin? It's truly a title that needs no ample introduction, as the game shed enough ink on paper to drown a nation.
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