World of Warcraft
World of Warcraft (also commonly abbreviated as WoW) is a Massively Multiplayer Online Role-Playing Game (MMORPG) that was released in North America in 2004 by Blizzard Entertainment.[1] It is the fourth full game released by Blizzard Entertainment in the Warcraft universe. The game is available to play in North America, Europe, China, Korea, Australia, New Zealand, Singapore, Taiwan, Hong Kong, and Macau and there are currently more than 9 million subscribers to the game.[2]
Gameplay
Characters
You start out playing World of Warcraft, once an account is created, by creating a character. This avatar represents the player, a standard in most RPGs. Each character has its own set of traits, and in World of Warcraft most of this character data is stored server-side to avoid hacking attempts. Each character in World of Warcraft has a race, class, and gender. Other aesthetic changes can be made to the character before creation, such as hair color and style, facial hair, and accessories. As of now, once the character has been created these attributes may not be changed.
Races
The races in World of Warcraft are split into two opposing factions (or forces), the Alliance and the Horde. Each faction has five races available to it. They are split up as follows:
| Alliance | Horde |
|---|---|
| Human | Orc |
| Gnome | Undead (Forsaken) |
| Dwarf | Trolls |
| Night Elf | Tauren |
| Draenei (Expansion Only) | Blood Elf (Expansion Only) |
Classes
There are nine classes available in World of Warcraft. Each race has a maximum of six different classes available to it. The nine classes currently available are: Warrior, Paladin, Warlock, Hunter, Druid, Priest, Shaman, Rogue, and Mage. Every class can be played without the expansion, however without it Shamans may only be play by Horde, and Paladins by Alliance.
Servers
There are four types of servers on World of Warcraft: PvE (Player versus Environment), PvP (Player versus Player), RP (Role-playing), and RPPvP (Role-Playing PvP). PvE and RP servers share the same core functionality, as do PvP and RPPvP. In the first set, PvE and RP, players can only attack one another when "flagged" for doing something against the opposing force. The areas of the map share the same rules. On PvP and RPPvP servers, players are allowed to attack each other more often. The standard flagging rules apply, however there are three types of "zones" a player can be in. When starting out, a player is put into a zone controlled by his or her faction, either "Horde" or "Alliance". As levelling progresses (Somewhere usually around level 10), characters move into "Neutral Zones". While in a zone belonging to your faction, you must flag yourself to be attacked by the opposing faction. While in a neutral zone, everyone is flagged until they leave the zone. Lastly, when you're in an Enemy's zone, you are always flagged, but the opposing force is not unless they flag themselves for PvP.
References
- Citations
- ↑ Blizzard Entertainment® Announces World of Warcraft® "Street Date" - November 23, 2004, http://www.gamershell.com/companies/blizzard_entertainment/185269.html
- ↑ World of Warcraft® Surpasses 9 Million Subscribers Worldwide http://www.blizzard.com/press/070724.shtml
External Links
- Official World of Warcraft Websites
- World of Warcraft - The Official World of Warcraft website for North America
- WoW Forums - The Official World of Warcraft North American forums
- WoW-Europe - The Official World of Warcraft website for Europe