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Intro
 After
defeating the Scourge, the Alliance was left weak and scattered. Seeking vengeance
for his continuous imprisonment, the Elven demon hunter, Illidan, raised a force
to destroy the Night Elves and whomever else gets in his way of conquest. Now,
a battle emerges as Illidan and his new minions face off against the Humans, Night
Elves, and the Undead, as the player continues the story through a hero of each
campaign in Blizzard’s excellent, if off-beat, expansion to the stellar Reign
of Chaos.
Gameplay: 9/10
Expansion packs can be
tricky business; it seems as though there are expansion
packs, and then there are expansion packs. The former being a bare-bones
addition that does little more than toss the player a few items and units, with
the later feeling as if it could be a stand-alone title that could pass as a sequel.
Fortunately, for WarCraft fans, The Frozen Throne is definitely
of the emphasized persuasion; while not as strong as a true sequel, it does the
job of an expansion title perfectly.
Featuring campaigns for the Night
Elves and Naga, Humans (as Blood Elves), the Undead, and a bonus, RPG-ccentric,
Orc campaign, there’s plenty of game here. These aren’t hum-drum mini-missions
either, each set took me hours to complete. I’d estimate that it took about the
same amount of time to complete The Frozen Throne as it did for me to go
through Reign of Chaos - not too shabby. There’s also hidden goodies and
a secret level awaiting discovery, so there’s always this additional feeling of
exploration that’s just as strong, if not more so, than it was in the original.
I have feeling not everyone will enjoy spending so much time with these new
units since Frozen Throne takes the WarCraft universe even farther
out into left field with the newest, and more interesting race, the Naga. The
Naga were elves who were caught in a disaster and had their land sink into the
sea, there they adapted and became serpent creatures with enormous strength. It
took me a while to get used to the Night Elves and the Undead when playing through
Reign of Chaos, and even longer before I could accept the eccentric sea
units, but they really grew on me. Who needed no warming-up time were the Blood
Elves, a fraction of the Alliance who’ve lost their land and now have an insatiable
hunger for magic.
There were also the expected additions, such as new
units and structures. One building that all races acquired were their own merchant
builders, but instead of simple potions, these sell attribute-enhancing items
like shoes for increased speed and gauntlets for greater strength. Other goodies
would be a new Undead structure that continually replenishes hit and magic points
near those around it, known as the Obsidian Statue; it also launches the flying
Destroyers, which are able to attack land and sea units, but also require a constant
source of mana. On the defensive end, there’s a new ziggernaut upgrade that shoots
ice to slow down attackers. The Night Elves get the enormous Mountain Giants,
and the magic-immune Faerie Dragons. All get new heroes - with the giant Undead
beetle, Crypt Lord, being the coolest by far - with some having recycled spells,
like polymorph (hex); there are also a bevy of cool new spells, like chain healing
and impale.
The new races, the Naga and the Blood Elves, are both interesting
additions. The Naga have the ability to travel through water, regardless of depth,
and have the strength of the Orcs. They also have some shared attributes, like
the Orc’s net and the Human Water Element spell, which makes them formidable foes.
While they focus on magic, the Blood Elves are far from pushovers. The disillusioned
elves get Dragonhawk Riders, who can launch clouds to confuse towers, and Spell
Breakers, who are long-range warriors who are immune to spells and can also control
other units’ summoned creatures. Despite the Orc campaign focusing on the sole
unit, Rexxar, helping to found a new town, they also get some new units for multiplayer;
the Berserker (upgrade), Troll Batrider, Spirit Walker, and a new spear-tossing
hero, Shadow Hunter, round out their additions. A welcomed presence was the resurgence
of high seas combat; duking it out for good landing spots was something I sorely
missed from WarCraft II. Even though some of the new additions may initially
seem out of place, everything really falls into place after a mission or so.
Frozen
Throne didn’t bother messing with the proven formula, and as a result, it’s
like icing on the cake. If there was one thing I wasn’t too fond of, it would
have to be the dungeon missions. I didn’t like them much in the first WarCraft,
and I still don’t like them today. Although, for the most part, they’re used in
such a way so that the gameplay doesn’t get monotonous - some even feel a little
platformy - but there’s still a few too many for my tastes.
While I ended
up enjoying my time making another trip into the WarCraft universe, I can’t
help but think that the series may be spreading itself too thin. Call it nostalgia,
but I miss the days when it was just Orcs and Humans. As it stands now, I’d say
they’ve reached a level that’s just right. With Reign of Chaos and Frozen
Throne, there’s enough variety so that there’s enough to please just about
everyone.
Graphics:
9.5/10
Unlike Winter of the Wolf, the gorgeous graphics of WarCraft
stood the test of time and remain some of the best for the genre. I noticed one
or two of the newer characters seemed to have some sharper elbows and whatnot,
but that’s really about all. While I would have loved for there to have been more
cutscenes, there’s only two this time around, neither failing to impress. Some
of the new character designs, like the neutral Draenei, are fantastic, as are
the effects for all attacks and spells.
Sound:
9.5/10
Complimenting the graphics are phenomenal voice-overs, along with
fantastic music and effects. The new units sound great and there’s even some saucy
language this time around. Aside from some of the language, which seemed a bit
out of place, everything else is topnotch. There’s even a little arena rock during
the ending credits, which is both hilarious and awesome.
Control: 9/10
Surprisingly, I had a few more instances of units not
recognizing commands here than I did in Reign of Chaos. It isn’t a consistent
or constant problem, but I don’t really recall anything more than a handful of
incidents in the original. Everything else is pretty much the same, although,
some of the new abilities will have some gamers needing quicker fingers. Overall:
9/10
Despite its initial wackiness, Frozen Throne manages to come
full circle and bring a close, of sorts, to the Reign of Chaos saga. Despite
having a few too many dungeon crawling levels, and a feeling that the universe
will explode if anything more is added, the uniqueness of the new additions meld
well with the style, making a really complete package. I do wish that the Orcs
played a bigger role though, I'll always have a soft spot for 'the zug-zug'.
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