In a world before the world of warcraft there was only war. Before the MMO there was only war.
With that out of the way i feel it is time to look into the game at hand. A game of Warcraft III: Reign of Chaos takes place on a map of varying size, such as large plains and fields, with terrain features like rivers, mountains, seas, or cliffs. In Campaign mode, the map is initially covered with the Black Mask, an impenetrable covering. The Mask is removed from areas that have been explored, but those that are no longer within sight range of an allied unit or building are instead covered with the Fog of War; though terrain remains visible, changes such as enemy troop movements and building construction are unseen. So it is a good idea to scout out the map early to see what the map looks like and get an idea of which way the enemy could come at you from. During a game, players must establish settlements to gain resources, defend against other players, and train units to explore the map and attack enemies. There are three main resources that are managed in Warcraft III: gold, lumber, and food. The first two are required to construct units and buildings, while food restricts the maximum number of units the player may control at one time. So the more of each you can get the better you can be ready for the battles ahead.
Not only to you have to fend off the enemy and win the battle but also there are creeps which are computer controlled units that are hostile to all players. They guard key areas such as gold mines or neutral buildings and, when killed, provide experience points, gold, and special items to a player's hero. Warcraft III also introduced a day/night cycle to the series. Besides having advantages or disadvantages for certain races, at night most creeps fall asleep, making nighttime scouting safer; however, the line of sight for most units is also reduced. Other minor changes to the gameplay were due to the 3D terrain. For instance, units on a cliff have an attack bonus when attacking units at lower elevations.
In past Warcraft games there was only two playable factions the Humans and the Orcs. In Warcraft III: Reign of Chaos you get to pick from them as well as the Night Elves and the Undead with each side having a unique set of units, structures, technologies, and base-building methodology. Not only that but each side also gets hero units to play with. For each enemy unit killed, a hero will gain experience points, which allow the hero to level-up to a maximum level of 10. Progressing up a level increases the heroes attributes and also allows the hero to gain new spell options. Certain hero abilities can apply beneficial auras to allied units. All heroes can equip items to increase skills, defense, and other abilities. At level six, the hero can obtain an "ultimate" skill that is more powerful than the three other spells that the hero possesses. Heroes can also utilize the various natural resources found throughout the map, such as controllable non-player characters, and markets in which the hero can purchase usable items. This you could say could have been the start of the idea for a WOW game.
The game itself has five campaigns in total. The orcs get two while the Humans, Undead, and Night Elfs get one each. Each campaign is itself divided into chapters, which are like missions. Unlike previous Blizzard titles, such as Warcraft II or StarCraft, players are not directed to mission briefings in which plot exposition occurs and objectives are announced; rather, Warcraft III uses a system of seamless quests. Some plot development happens in an occasional cinematic, but most occurs in-game with cutscenes. Objectives, known as quests, are revealed to the player during the progress of the map. Main quests are those that the player must complete to proceed to the next chapter, but there are also optional quests which are not initially revealed, but can be discovered and completed alongside the main objectives.
With some of the gameplay looked at i feel it is only fair to look at the setting and a little of the story of Warcraft III: Reign of Chaos. The game takes place in the fictional world of Azeroth. Several years before the events of the games, a demon army known as the Burning Legion intent on Azeroth's destruction corrupted a race called the Orcs, and sent them through a portal to attack Azeroth. After many years of fighting, the Orcs were defeated by a coalition of humans, dwarves and elves known as the Alliance; the surviving combatants were herded into internment camps, where they seemed to lose their lust for battle. With no common enemy, a period of peace followed, but the Alliance began to fracture.
The game opens with the Orc leader, Thrall, waking from a nightmare warning him of the return of the Burning Legion. After a brief encounter with a man who is known only as the Prophet, and, fearing that his dream was more of a vision than a nightmare, he leads his forces in an exodus from Lordaeron to the forgotten lands of Kalimdor. Meanwhile, the Paladin and prince of Lordaeron, Arthas, defends the village of Strahnbrad from demon-controlled Orcs. He then joins Archmage Jaina Proudmoore, who aids him in investigating a rapidly-spreading plague, which kills and turns human victims into the undead. Arthas kills the plague's originator, Kel'Thuzad, and then purges the infected city of Stratholme. Jaina parts ways with him, unwilling to commit genocide, or even watch him do so. The Prophet, after previously trying to convince other human leaders to flee west, begs Jaina to go to Kalimdor as well. Arthas pursues the dreadlord, Mal'Ganis, who was the leader behind Kel'Thuzad, to the icy continent of Northrend, where he helps his old friend, Muradin Bronzebeard, find a powerful sword called Frostmourne. Meanwhile, Arthas begins to lose his sanity, burning his ships to prevent retreat, even when given an order to leave. Fortunately, Arthas and Muradin find Frostmourne. Muradin, however, learns that the sword is cursed. What will happen next is up to you the player to find out.
Warcraft III: Reign of Chaos came out for the Microsoft Windows, Mac OS, Mac OS X in north america on July 3, 2002 in europe on July 5, 2002 and in japan on 2003.
The System requirements for Warcraft III: Reign of Chaos are:
Minimum:
400 MHz Pentium II or equivalent, 128 MB of RAM, 8 MB 3D video card with DirectX 8.1 support, DirectX 8.1 compatible sound card, Windows 98 or newer.
Recommended:
600 MHz processor, 256 MB of RAM, 32 MB 3D video card, DirectX 8.1 compatible sound card, Windows 2000/XP/Vista/7.
Most people these days should have a PC that can run this game and realy if your a fan of WOW or you just like realy good RTS games then you can realy do no wrong with this game right here.