Introduction

Review Written By Jim@thezombiechimp.com

World of Warcraft (WoW) is currently celebrating it's 6th year and 3rd add-on. If you haven't started playing this then there is no better time. Blizzard have taken what they have learned over the past 4-5 years when they implemented both of the previous add-ons (Burning Crusade and Wrath of the Lich King), and used this information to go back to the original game and drastically change not only the fundaments of the gameplay, but the actual world itself.

Character Creation

The character creation is simple. When you create your character there is a choice of 10 different races (with Cataclysm introducing a further 2, Goblins and Worgen), spread over the 2 factions, Horde and Alliance. Once you have chosen your race you will need to decide which class you want to become. These classes follow the fairly stereotypical classes you would expect for a fantasy RPG game, mages, warriors, warlocks, priests etc.

Once you know what you are, you need to figure out what you want to look. The choices to personalise your character are not plentiful, with each race having only 5 different areas to choose pre-set options from, such as skin colour, facial features, earrings, hair style etc. which in comparison with other games of this type is relatively few. However, the different looks that can be achieved by these options as well as the many different looking types of armour/weapons means that there are more than enough options to make your character stand out. More character personalisation options are available if you visit an in-game barber with your character.

Once you've thought of a catchy name for your character, you're ready to start. For more information on the types of characters why no check out the following articles;

• A Brief Introduction To The Warcraft Classes Part 1

Gameplay

World of Warcraft follows the familiar concepts of Sword and Magic Roleplaying games. There are a great many parallels between WoW, and Dungeons and Dragons, Lord of the Rings etc. So ultimately, if you don't like fighting giant dragons with fireballs and large swords this game probably isn't for you.

When you start the game, you are guided carefully through the basic fundaments of the game via each starting race's storyline. As your level increases more gameplay options are unlocked, and the game really opens up. Through-out the entire game your character is pushed along by a vast array of quest storylines, that affect anything from single individuals through to the entire world.

The difficulty of WoW has been a great area of contention for a couple of years now. With the release of Wrath of the Lich King, the level of difficulty dropped which made things far more accessible for the younger or less experienced player. Of course, the older more experienced players started to object that things were too easy there was no more challenge and people often harked back to the good old days of 40 person raids.

Now that World of Warcraft has been revamped, the level of challenge has been re-introduced, and with that a much greater sense of achievement.

Graphics

Graphically, it is very nice to look at. The graphics are focussed on a quite cartoonish, bold and colourful style rather than going with a more realistic approach. This of course has worked in Blizzards favour, as the graphical styles are a lot less demanding on a standard PC and can therefore be played on lower specification machines.

The world itself is divided up into a myriad of different areas each with their own unique look. Whether this is the wintry tundra of Winterspring; the Nevada-esque look of the Barrens or the dark and foreboding feel of Silverpine forest.

Every effort has been made to bring these zones to life, whether its the small creatures that roam around the various zones or the weather effects that beat down on to the landscape.

Sound

Each zone is further brought to life by it's own music. The human city of Stormwind is accompanied by a tune quite regal in it's nature, but with a wonderful undertone of pomposity that mirrors the storyline of the human race. The lands of the Forsaken are filled with a hollow haunting melody, that almost peters off into silence at points. Again, making the death like qualities of their homeland a chilling mix of both familiar and deathly ideas.

These thoughts have gone into all of the zone sounds, further bringing them to life.

Updates / Monthly cost

Of course all of the above doesn't come free. It is worth noting that all of the add-ons only work on top of the previous ones. So, in order to use the Wrath of the Lich King content, you'll need both the original game and Burning Crusade; for Cataclysm content to work you will need all of the previous add-ons. Although, as you can get the game and all the add-ons for around £25 ( £50 inc Cataclysm) it doesn't stack up to all that much.

Once bought you do have the issue of the monthly cost. Again, not expensive at £8.99 per month and you do get a nice amount of updates and patches to justify it. But If you're under any doubt whether it's worth the money or not, each new game comes with a trial period of 30 days, which again isn't bad for the outlay of £5 for the game.

Conclusion

In my opinion there are very good reasons why myself and 30 million other people worldwide play this. It is easy to pick up, and not so easy to put down. Plus for a fiver, what have you got to lose..?

You can read more of Jim's games reviews By Clicking Here or alternatively why not check out Jim's Top Ten MMORPGs By Clicking Here