World of Warcraft is huge. After nearly fourteen years and seven expansions, there’s no other way to describe it. And while this makes it a wonderful game to lose yourself in, it can also be more than a little overwhelming. Even veteran players returning after a long hiatus know what it’s like to start playing again, only to feel utterly lost.
One place where you can find your feet (or even just keep up-to-date) is YouTube. Here are some of my favourite channels.
You remember how old that Xbox One Duke controller article made you feel? Well, how’s this for a shocker – it’s been 20 years since the original StarCraft was released on disc. That’s right, two whole decades. In that span of time, the series has become one of the strongest franchises in gaming history, and it’s only spawned a handful of games. To celebrate the game’s anniversary, Blizzard Entertainment is preparing a series of in-game giveaways, several live streams on Twitch, and a short film has been commissioned for the franchise, among a dozen other little things.
The original StarCraft was the first game I ever reviewed for NAG magazine, all the way back in 1998. That’s the same year Unreal, Gran Turismo, Spyro the Dragon, Grim Fandango, Baldur’s Gate, and Half-Life were all released. What would you give to see a line-up like that coming out within the space of a single year? It’s definitely not something you see these days. Speaking of things you don’t see these days, StarCraft: Brood War was released later that same year, expanding and polishing the classic StarCraft experience to a lustrous shine that’d go on to last over a decade.
Without question, Overwatch may be one of the finest competitive multiplayer games of recent years. It also helps that it is continuously growing, adding new maps, modes, and heroes every few months. The next piece of explosive content is the upcoming Junkertown map, an escort mission taking players to Roadhog and Junkrat’s old stomping grounds.
You might’ve seen the news this morning that the original StarCraft is getting a makeover, sporting new 4K textures, support for modern display resolutions, alongside some other enhancements, bug fixes and tweaks. For people who won’t be buying the 4K remaster, an upcoming patch from Blizzard will allow anyone playing the original, unaltered version of the game to play online with those who own the remastered version. It also makes the game free, forever.