The Electronic Entertainment Expo kicks off this week in Los Angeles, Calif. Blizzard Entertainment today announced that E3 will be the venue where it will debut the single player campaigns for its forthcoming game Warcraft III: Reign of Chaos.
The battle-scarred land of Azeroth has long been a favorite testing ground for Mac and PC gamers alike. It’s the scene of Warcraft, Warcraft II and now Warcraft III: Reign of Chaos. The new Warcraft game is described as a “role playing strategy” (or RPS) game.
Instead of focusing just on troop creation and resource management as previous Warcraft titles have, Warcraft III zeros in on groups of warriors who support “Legendary Heroes,” mighty warriors who can advance and become more powerful as the game progresses, according to Blizzard.
It’s these heroes that serve as the underpinning for the single-player campaigns, four in all, which alternately feature the major races of the game: Humans, Undead, Orcs and Night Elves. You’ll first assume the role of Arthas, a Paladin and crown prince of Lordaeron, on a mission to investigate an uprising of Orcs and a mysterious plague that is sweeping through the northern part of the kingdom.
As the game progresses, the story moves on to other races, each campaign telling a separate part of a complete story. Heroes of other races appear alternate as enemies and allies, according to Blizzard.
A campaign editor for creating customized 3D maps and unique missions will also be included, and previous comments from Blizzard producer Bill Roper have suggested that these tools will be multiplatform for both Windows and Mac users.
In addition to the single player campaigns, Warcraft III incorporates extensive multiplayer support over Blizzard’s own Battle.net service. As with past games, Warcraft III will feature full compatibility between Mac and PC players while playing on Battle.net, too.
Blizzard indicated that Warcraft III: Reign of Chaos will be available this summer for $55-$60 from retailers nationwide. Minimum Mac system requirements for Warcraft III call for a G3/400, 128MB RAM, a 16MB ATI or Nvidia 3D graphics system, 700MB HD space, and a 4x or faster CD-ROM. It will run natively on Mac OS 9 or Mac OS X 10.1.3 or higher.