World of Warcraftisone of the longest running and most popular MMOs on the market. Players from across the globe have been exploring the expansive fantasy world of Azeroth for years, dating all the way back to 1994 withWarcraft: Orcs & Humans. However, some players are not fond of multiplayer games or do not have access to reliable internet, and so they are barred from experiencing Blizzard’s storytelling; a singleplayer RPG in the same universe could fix that.
The story ofWorld of Warcraftbegan with three real-time strategy games before it entered the MMO genre. These RTS games could be played singleplayer or against other players and provided hours of fun for strategy fans. WhenWarcraftentered the MMO genre, it left behind RTS fans and singleplayer fans alike. Now as Blizzard plans substantial content for theWarcraftfranchise, it should consider giving singleplayer fans a way to check out the world.
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A Warcraft RPG Could Follow the Events of WoW
World of Warcrafthas existed for 18 years, and in that time it has received eight different expansions that expanded upon the story and characters of Azeroth. Players have grown alongsidecharacters like Anduin Wrynnand Thrall as they fought back against world ending crisis. Expansions likeWrath of the Lich KingandLegionhave been critically acclaimed for their storytelling, and characters like Illidan Stormrage and Arthas Menethil have become icons for many players.
With theimpressive storytelling thatWorld of Warcrafthas showcased, Blizzard could create a singleplayer RPG in the same vein, stripping out all the MMO mechanics and instead allowing players to go through the expansive story by themselves. The game would still allow for the customizability thatWorld of Warcrafthas to offer, but it would just be given the RPG treatment. Already, questing inWoWfeels very much like a singleplayer RPG, as a majority of quests and story can be completed alone.
The rest of the game would need to be reworked, as a lot of the endgame content is heavily catered towards multiplayer, players cannot even participate in max level raids or dungeons without a party. An RPG would have to either make the endgame content easier or replace party members with NPC companions. The auction house, guild feature, community feature, and chat would all have to be removed unless Blizzard could find a way to fit it into a singleplayer title.PvP could still remainas an optional bit of online content for players to get their aggression out on each other.
A Warcraft RPG Could Supplement WoW
An RPG that takesWorld of Warcraftand turns it into a singleplayer title could hurt theWoWplayer count, as many players may just choose to play the singleplayer version. As such, instead of a singleplayerWoW, Blizzard could craft a unique singleplayer RPG that simply serves to supplement theWoWstory.Hearthstoneutilizes the same charactersbut is a different game entirely, and aWarcraftRPG could follow that formula.
AWarcraftRPG could tell the story of what is happening in-betweenWoWexpansions, it could follow some characters during an expansion, or provide some backstory on famous lore characters. Each of those choices would add context toWoWstory elements and helpbuild up the world of Azeroth. For those who want extra story, they could find it in the RPG, and those who do not care could just ignore them entirely.
Riot Games has been releasing gamesand content that supplementsLeague of Legends. In 2019, it unveiled several games that were directly connected toLeague of Legendscharacters. It releasedTeamfight Tactics,Legends of Runeterra, League of Legends: Wild Rift, andRuined King: A League of Legends Story. It is also working on its own MMORPG involvingLeaguecharacters and its own third-person adventure game,Song of Nunu: A League of Legends Story. Each title serves as a way to build up characters inLeague of Legends, and each hopes to bring players to the mainline title. AWarcraftRPG should seek to accomplish the same thing forWorld of Warcraft.
AWarcraftRPG could bring more playersto the world of Azeroth and raise the player count ofWorld of Warcraft, or it could serve as a way to provide players who are not interested in MMOs access to the characters of Azeroth. It could also allow the story ofWarcraftto continue pastWorld of Warcraftand help build a more expansive and lived-in world.
