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    World of Warcraft: Wrath of the Lich King

    Game » consists of 10 releases. Released Nov 13, 2008

    Travel to the arctic continent of Northrend in Blizzard's second expansion to the most popular MMORPG ever made.

    roguea's World of Warcraft: Wrath of the Lich King (PC) review

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    • 3 out of 3 Giant Bomb users found it helpful.

    The One True King

    [Note: Giant Bomb's formatting system is currently destroying the format of this review. If anyone knows how to get page returns to actually stay, please PM me.]

    Reviewing a World of Warcraft expansion is a little like reviewing a new kind of cheesecake. Of course it's got a different type of topping, but in the end, its the delicious center that continues to bring you back. Thus is the same for the Wrath of the Lich King. Unlike the Burning Crusade, Blizzard have actually outdone themselves. Considering how massive the scope of the game actually is, I'm going to break this review down into a few categories.


    Graphics

    Let's get the most noticeable part out of the way first. Blizzard's art design for Lich King has gone above and beyond to make the game look beautiful, even if it's still running on a nearly five year old engine. They've made many, many improvements with not only the art direction, but the overall style. In all honesty, they've raised the bar so much that one nearly groans with the prospect of going back to the old world to do nearly anything. To sum it up quickly, Lich King is pretty. I'm sure there are better words to describe it, but it is too difficult to come up with the perfect definition. You'll understand what I'm getting at the minute you take your first zeppelin/boat to Northrend, and you'll never want to go back.

    WoW has never looked this beautiful before.
    WoW has never looked this beautiful before.

    Gameplay

    At the core of it, Lich King still has the main gameplay style that has made World of Warcraft so addicting over the past few years. The classes are still teetering on imbalance, however Blizzard plans to fix this with the upcoming 3.1 patch. Each class has been expanded to once again gain new abilities and talents with the level cap's increase to 80, but each also retains their unique sense of style that keeps them different. With the expansion, Blizzard has also released the Death Knight hero class. While I had my doubts, they have managed to create a new class that does truly feel new and unique, even with all the others still remaining. The Death Knights themselves also have one of the single most epic quest chains at the beginning your play as one. 

    Speaking of quests, it looks like Blizzard has learned a lesson or two from the past few years. Quests have evolved from "Bring me 10 bear asses" to much more fun variants. Of course there are the standing cut and dry MMO types (Escort, Kill X, Bring back Y, Talk to Z), but they have also added in some pretty awesome quests. For example, a quest in the Storm Peaks has you jumping between flying dragons with a harpoon, kicking off their riders, or a series of quests in Icecrown for a eerie little boy, that lets you experience some of the best moments in Warcraft Lore. That's not to say that the fun quests are only available at the higher areas, as even Borean Tundra has its own share of them.

    Arthas has made some preparations for your arrival.
    Arthas has made some preparations for your arrival.

    Gripes

    Like any good game, Wrath of the Lich King still has its problems. There are the standard bugs, exploits, and rude players, but it does come with its own unique issues. Death Knight overpopulation is a big one, with any /who search usually providing 50% or more of the results as Death Knights. Then, you have the unbalanced PvP part of the game, where currently, player front end (or burst) damage is so large, that most healers don't even stand a chance, and are rendered near useless. There's also the gripe that the current PvE content is too easy, but considering it is supposed to be entry level content, one should not expect it to be too difficult.

    Sit down, have a drink.
    Sit down, have a drink.

    Last Word

    Wrath of the Lich King is a very compelling addition to what was already an excellent game, if you're already a fan, go and get it, you won't have any regrets. For everyone else, now is a great time to jump in and see what WoW is all about. Oh, and those of you who left due to the story of the Burning Crusade? This one is much more memorable, and it doesn't need space paladins.

    0 Comments

    Other reviews for World of Warcraft: Wrath of the Lich King (PC)

      The crack...gets stronger. 0

      Good - Questing. 100 percent more enjoyable AND memorable. This time not only are you poisioning the aldor party punch you are hosting the party, setting up the tables and calling the cops in to end it. Your role is almost one of a hero as you fit into the story and development of the game, especially in dragonblight and the Wrath Gate event. They did fall back into old habits in Grizzly Hills and parts of Sholazar Basin with kill 20 things but you do need this in a mmo with 1.5 million xp. Ques...

      1 out of 2 found this review helpful.

      Money Worth 0

      Very good value for the money, adds alot to the core game.    Many Wow/Warcraft players have been wanting to start this story line since Fronze throne, and now finally they get the expansion pack and the abliity to continue the story line.  Pros:Addicting game. Graphics enhancements, more great in-game music, more items, dungeons to explore and lands to see.  New Hero class THE DARK KNIGHT and new professions.  Easly adds hours (or MONTHS/YEARS) to the game.   Cons:Addicting game  If you have a ...

      0 out of 0 found this review helpful.

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