After teasing aWarcraft-themed mobile release for several months, Blizzard announcedWarcraft Arclight Rumble. This fast-paced real-time strategy “Tower Offense” game puts players in control of miniature armies based on iconicWarcraftheroes, villains, monsters, and soldiers. The game will have a robust PvE campaign launching with 70 maps across Kalimdor and the Eastern Kingdoms, and will allow players to face off against familiar foes as they re-explore the world of Azeroth. The free-to-play game will also have co-op and PvP events, such as raids and head-to-head duels, allowing players to team up with - or battle against - their friends.
Game Rant spoke to technical director Monte Krol and executive producer/vice president Vik Saraf about the upcoming strategy game. The developers shared their passion for theWarcraftfranchise, starting from its earliest real-time strategy roots, and emphasized howWarcraft Arclight Rumbleseeks to pay homage to that history. They also discussed mechanics coming in the game, and its business model. Interview has been edited for clarity and brevity.
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Q: Please introduce yourselves and what your role is onWarcraft Arclight Rumble.
Krol: Hi, I’m Monte Krol. I’m the technical director forWarcraft Arclight Rumble.
Saraf: And I’m Vik Saraf, Executive Producer forWarcraft Arclight Rumble.
Q: The art style ofArclight Rumblestands out as distinctlyWarcraft, but with a charming twist. What was the inspiration behind this art style?
Krol: I love that you noticed it isWarcraftfirst and foremost, because it is very much aWarcraftgame. I’m one of the old timers on the team; I goall the way back toWarcraft 3. That was the first game I finished here at Blizzard way back in 2002. You’re familiar with the style, you know what it looks like. So this game definitely has that iconicWarcraftlook. Now, if you saw in the video, the fantasy in our game is that you’re actually playing a game ofWarcraft Arclight Rumbleon a machine hidden in the basements of the taverns of Azeroth, much the same way the fantasy inHearthstoneis you’re playing on the game box in those taverns. So what you’re seeing is the look of the game pieces - the minis - in aWarcraftuniverse, in aWarcraftstyle.
Q:Warcraft Arclight Rumbleis starting with 60 different characters to collect. Does that number include both the Leader characters and the Troop units seen in the trailer, and will we see any characters original toArclight Rumble?
Saraf: We’re introducing classic andlegendary characters that are famous in theWarcraftuniverse, but also some lesser-known characters. But the universe is huge, so we have a tremendous arsenal of characters we can pull from to include in the game. As for original units, I wouldn’t rule anything out right now. We have over 60 minis in the game right now, but obviously there’s certainly opportunities to add more, given the size of theWarcraftuniverse and how many characters there are. But for right now, we have the 60 we are planning right now.
Krol: You know it’s great when you’re seeing the game, and we’re telling you there’s 60, and you’re already asking, “Can we have more?!” But we hear you; we love them too, we’re excited for this.
Q: How will players unlock the different types of minis inWarcraft Arclight Rumble?
Saraf: With mobile games, there are a lot of ways to design it out. When our designers set forth to create this game - they are long-time gamers themselves, and they’ve spent a considerable amount of time playing mobile games more recently - they sought to create a balanced game you may play for free, without having to spend a dime. We talk about collecting minis - you can earn all of those through in-game achievements. By beating levels,you get gold coins, which is the currency in the game, and you can use the coins to acquire units within the shop. There are purchase options, but this is a game we designed so you can play for free, and really tap into your strategies and strengths as a player to get those units.
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Q: Do you buy specific units from the store inArclight Rumble, or is it a random pull or loot box?
Saraf: We have a rotating store design. One of the elements of that design is to give the player the agency to make the conscientious choice of what units they buy. When you look at the store, you’ll see a lineup of different units you may get. They will rotate every certain number of hours. But when you decide to buy a unit with your earned coins or through a purchase, you can make the conscientious choice to get a specific unit. So it’s not like you’reputting something down and randomly getting a unit based on that.
Krol: It’s gnomish engineering, so it works most of the time!
Q: Is the in-game gold currency the same type that is purchased with microtransactions, or is there a special currency bought with real money?
Saraf: You can earn the gold through natural gameplay and completing quests and different missions across the game modes, but you can alsopurchase gold from the in-game shop with real money. But it is all the same currency.
Q: Can you talk about the different kinds of units and how they become stronger?
Saraf: Going through combat helps with natural progression of those units. You also collect shards in the form of using XP Tomes to effectively upgrade your units as well. Those XP Tomes can be purchased through thein-game currency of gold itself. You can also partake in quests, which are side missions you can play at certain points that can offer you gold or XP Tomes that can be used towards upgrading your units. Once your units - both Leaders and Troops - get to a certain level, you unlock a unique ability for each mini called talents. Each unit in the game has a unique set of talents which further strengthen them and make them a lot better.
Q: Can you field members of different families together, and do they have interplay together?
Krol: Yeah! The families synergize together, so if you build your armyaround the family of your Leader, there are some bonuses you get. That said, you’re free to do what you want with your miniatures. you’re able to build your army in the way you want. There are other ways to synergies. For instance, some Leaders synergize with siege units. Some leaders synergize with flying units, some Leaders synergize with stealth units. Those cross families, so there are other ways to build your army, and ultimately you decide what your playstyle is. You can play within a family, or mix and match however you want.
Q: Is there a rock-paper-scissors mechanic, where certain families are innately more powerful against another family?
Krol: We didn’t want to have a situation like, “Well, you brought the wrong family to this map, so now you’re dead.” So it’s not reallya rock-paper-scissors element. It’s more of building synergies within your armies.
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Q: What are your favorite characters or mechanics you’ve experienced inWarcraft Arclight Rumbleso far?
Krol: I’m not nearly as skilled as Adam, who you saw in the video. He’s one of the designers of the game, so he’s quite skilled at it. In general, I gravitate towardsAlliance characters because that’s been my long-termWoWplaystyle. I love having an Alliance army if I can. Of course, I love any time I can play where there’s murlocs and I can sheep someone. It’s a victory for me.
Saraf: From aWoWperspective,I’ve always skewed Horde. But for this game, I definitely have favorites across the different families. From an actual mini perspective, I’m a big fan of Flamewaker. Especially with the work our artists and animators have done, the effects of what he’s able to do is amazing. He’s in constant rotation of my army lineup.
Q: During theArclight Rumblegameplay trailer, Adam Kugler, the developer showcasing the game, went into Overtime when a match went for too long. How does that mechanic work?
Krol: Now, remember everything is still subject to change, but right now, when you go into an Overtime period, its 30 seconds at the end of match where your income doubles, so the action gets faster.
Q: They also mentioned cooperative Raids in the trailer. Is there any information you can share about them?
Krol: The truth is we’re holding on to it for a bit. It’s still under active development, but we have some great ideas for it, and we think it’s going to be exciting. But there’s not a lot we can share quite yet.
Q: WillArclight Rumblehave an original story, or is it more of a nostalgic exploration of theWarcraftuniverse?
Krol: It is definitely a romp through the zones ofClassic WoW, and you’ll see a lot of familiar locations on over 70 maps that take us through a familiar journey if you’ve playedWorld of Warcraft. On the other hand, if you haven’t, there’s lots of fun stuff to see and explore. The story we introduced in there is our S.A.F.E. pilot is asking you forsome help against the dragon Onyxia. But remember; this is all played on a fantasy game machine! So I think the feel is going to be different from a big story you might be expecting in a narrative-driven game. But there’s still reasons to go out and defeat these bosses on every map!
Q: Blackrock Mountain, Stranglethorn Vale, and a few other locations were seen in the trailers. What other locations will players be visiting inWarcraft Arclight Rumbleon release and in the future?
Krol: You’re going to be visiting most of thezones ofClassic WoWacross the two original continents of Azerothin largely the same order you visited them inClassic WoW, so I think that is going to make it a familiar romp.
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As for future maps… is this like where you said we have 70 and you already want more again? But seriously, we’re not ruling anything out, and we understand we’ve gota lot moreWarcraftlore and a lot of places people loveand places we’ve explored in later expansions toWorld of Warcraft. We don’t quite know where we’re headed with it yet, but we definitely know there are locations that are near and dear to peoples’ hearts.
Q: What games were some of the biggest inspirations in the design ofArclight Rumble?
Krol: As I said earlier, this is aWarcraftgame first and foremost.Warcraftstrategy games are a deep part of our DNA. We go back toWarcraft: Orcs and Humans. I think a lot of the games we love and draw inspiration from go back to the early strategy genre. I think primarily, I still look at this as aWarcraftgame first, with familiar locations, familiar spells, familiar effects, familiar sounds, and familiar heroes - when else do you get to see Hogger on screen? I think you have to decide what you see in it, but I look at it, and I see aWarcraftgame.
Q: They referred toArclight Rumbleas a “Tower Offense” game. What does that mean forWarcraft Arclight Rumble?
Krol: A lot of people have called out that phrase and asked “What does that mean exactly?”Our strategy games have been about building a base, defending a strategic point with troops or buildings and emplacements, then building an army and making an offensive push. We’ve kept a lot of those strategic elements in there. The maps have defensive emplacements which you get as part of them, or you can take over. You can attack some siege towers and flip them around to turn them to your benefit. With that, we’ve retained those great strategy elements - you need to put together your group and make a push against the enemy’s defenses, which may be troops, but it may be emplacements. I think that’s a core essential element of strategy games. It hearkens back to our strategy roots, and I think it will feel very authentic when you get a chance to try it.
Q: As a mobile game produced by Blizzard, one has to considerHearthstoneas well. Are you concerned aboutArclight Rumbledrawing players away fromHearthstone, or are you hoping to overlap the audiences?
Saraf: I joined Blizzard about two-and-a-half years ago, and before that, I spent most of my career in the mobile game industry itself. One of the things at the top of my radar when working withwell-known brands likeWarcraft,Star Wars, orMarvel, you worry about over-saturation of products within the same ecosystem, especially in the mobile market, and whether they will be competing for airtime.
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I think we have a great opportunity ahead of us right now.Hearthstoneis the onlyWarcraft-based mobile productout there on the market, but I also think our games are very different, and that they can appeal to different audiences. At the same time, because both are mobile experiences, you can choose to play for long sessions, but you also have the ability to grab and go and play them in short bursts. I’m not too worried about cannibalization because I think there’s enough room for both games to coexist and succeed.
Krol: The ghouls do use Cannibalize, though, so you should watch out for that! We showed a big focus of the game - those 70 maps are PvE maps. That means you can pull out your phone anywhere and play a 3-minute match wherever you are. I think that strikes something different, similar to some single-player missions in Hearthstone. You could do it whileyou’re waiting to playWorld of Warcraft! We joked that you could pull it out and play a match while you’re waiting for a dungeon queue to pop. There’s a lot of opportunity to play, and we think it will bring this great experience to even more people.
Q:Hearthstoneis available for PC, andDiablo Immortalrecently announced it is getting a PC port. WillWarcraft Arclight Rumblesee a PC port, or is it staying on mobile?
Saraf: I don’t think we’re at a point where we can discuss that or commit to anything. I wouldn’t rule anything out, but this was made with the design in mind for a mobile experience. Our focus is to getthis game out to mobile devices on iOS and Android.
Q: There is a stigma among many that mobile gaming is not “real gaming.” How isWarcraft Arclight Rumblelooking to subvert that expectation?
Saraf: Everyone who has been followingBlizzard knows we have been a traditionally PC-rooted company. We’ve made games on console and have only recently forayed into mobile. But anyone who is following us also knows we are working on products across all gaming platforms. To us, mobile represents an opportunity to have one more platform to enjoy Blizzard experiences on. And even thoughWarcraft Arclight Rumbleis a mobile game, it’s not just a mobile game. We set forth to make a Blizzard mobile experience. We have an extensive PvE campaign rich in character depth and maps to play, but also various game modes like PvP and co-op.
We’re making something you may choose to sit down and immerse yourself in for multiple hours should you choose to, but also something you can play on the go as well. There’s no escaping this is a mobile game, but I don’t think that necessarily should be looked at as a bad thing. This is justanother platform you can experience Blizzard games on.
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Krol: Any platform you enjoy our experience on? That’s great. We love it. We want you to have a Blizzard experience. We want you to enjoy the games. We’ve always tried to bring our games to as broad a platform as we can, going all the way back to our early games. We have a big focus on trying to bring something to everyone’s PC. We’ve never required the latest-generation graphics cards or anything.
Our earliest roots were in console gaming, andwe returned to that in some games in theDiablofranchiseandOverwatch, bringing experiences everywhere we can. What we’ve found is we have more people we can welcome in to our universes. I think anywhere we can give you this greatWarcraftexperience? We want to welcome you in. We want you to have fun. We want you to feel that challenge.
Q: Blizzard often has crossover events, with campaigns to unlock content from one game by doing events in another. DoesWarcraft Arclight Rumblehave plans to do that?
Saraf: I wouldn’t rule anything out yet, but we’ve been focused on making the actual game itself right now. We haven’t gotten far into that thought, but it’s a great question. These are things that will probably naturally evolve and be considered over time. I wouldn’t rule anything out, but there’s nothing in the immediate future on that.
Krol: We enjoy those crossovers in other games too. I haveHearthstonecard back fromvariousWorld of Warcraftexpansions, theDiablocrossovers. We have all the pets. We love those crossovers ourselves. Too early to talk about it for us, but we love how that works too.
Q: Do you have a schedule for when a beta or release will be?
Saraf: Not yet. We’re not ready to communicate any release dates at this stage. We’re hoping it’s soon, but nothing we can communicate right now.
Q: Is there anything else you want to add?
Saraf: We’re super excited about announcing the game and getting it into players’ hands.Warcraftfans have been super valuable to the continuedevolution of all theWarcraftand Blizzard gamesthat have come out, so once we get a product into players’ hands in beta, we’re looking forward to their feedback to help us get this across the finish line and get it out to the world.
Krol: In my case, I’ve been at Blizzard for more than 20 years. Every year I’ve been here, every single year, I’ve worked on aWarcraftgame. Even when I was working on other games, I helped on aWarcrafttitle. I loveWarcraft. I love our roots in this. We have so muchDNA in strategy andWarcraft, and I’m so excited to bring this new experience. Also, I’ve got the coin from the Arclight machine in the trailer, so you may say I’m pretty excited, and I’m excited that you’re excited. I hope you love the game - and remember to play all Alliance minis!
Warcraft Arclight Rumbleis currently in development.
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