Greetings!
Today I would like to talk about such an important topic as the further development of Warcraft II.
With the release of the new Combat 5.0, which is also a launcher (which is unheard of for Warcraft 2, you can read about it here:
https://forum.warcraft2.online/index.php?topic=7299.0 ), the smell of change is once again felt in the Warcraft II community. In addition, in 2024, the original creators of the game, the indie company Blizzard, also remembered Warcraft II by releasing without much effort a “Warcraft II: Remastered” -
https://forum.warcraft2.online/index.php?topic=7260.0 . A large number of new players arrived, the USA server closed, a new custom campaign was released -
https://forum.warcraft2.online/index.php?topic=7300.0 …
Such tectonic shifts cannot but affect the Warcraft II community. There is a need for discussion, there is a need for conversation. Change is coming, and that's a good thing!
If we talk about the administration's plans for the community and for Warcraft II, then this is, of course, a comprehensive improvement of the game. Its support at all levels: fighting against cheaters, releasing convenient and necessary software for a comfortable game, developing new technologies and, of course, creating new custom campaigns! We have been doing all this, and we do not think of stopping.
There are also tentative plans to change the balance of races in the game..., please do not throw tomatoes at us ahead of time!.. In fact, talk that Warcraft II needs a balance change has been going on for quite some time. That is why our initiative cannot be called unique or simply the first.
A few years ago we released experimental game modes (war2mod and war2rebalanced), which were only partially successful. Overall, although there was an attempt, the majority of people largely overlooked this initiative.
Largely due to the fact that the initiative itself was too experimental and unfinished. Partly because our community (especially the English-speaking part of it) is too conservative and does not allow changes to the balance of the game, even if it is experimental or temporary.
We respect that.
And yet time passes. One way or another, newcomers (sometimes young!) appear who are interested in Warcraft II, but they find it inconvenient due to limited functionality, unfair balance of races, etc.
Simply because these people were born later and met newer RTS with modern controls and balance, and they would like to see it here with us. In Warcraft 2. We also cannot ignore these desires, especially since they are repeated year after year and more loudly.
For a long time we couldn't figure out how to connect the "unconnectable". How to reconcile the opponents of innovations and the supporters of innovations. Conversations, persuasion, the introduction of new triggers into the game (through special modes) did not lead to almost any result - they only partly timidly introduced people to the fact that it could be somehow different in our favorite game.
The solution turned out to be simple… through the creation of custom campaigns!
No one forbids anyone to play on the server according to the old, classic rules. However, in custom campaigns, which we have made, in essence, as independent works, as independent mod games, people will play as they want... and with the help of the tools that the game provides them! Thus, Almost every player who launches our newest campaigns will have the chance to experience these new opportunities firsthand. Perhaps such players might change their perspective on these innovations.
Moreover, the recent release of the remaster and, in particular, its initiative to rebalance the game has opened up a unique window of opportunity for discussion for us. (
https://forum.warcraft2.online/index.php?topic=7295.0 )
Therefore, if we do not introduce changes to the main mode, then at least make an excellent new game mode, something like
War2Modern. Where new pleasant and comfortable mechanics will be present in the game.
Perhaps it's time for our gaming community to come together and decide what the future holds for our game.
The final decision could take many different forms. Everything will depend on the people themselves. We will let everyone speak out, and we will take each opinion into account. There's a huge amount of work ahead. But we believe that it is very important for the community.
The administration is ready for any outcome. Any outcome of the discussion will be accepted by us. And therefore we invite
EVERYONE to the discussion.
In order to ensure that all people interested in the discussion and general decision on Warcraft 2 are involved, for three months there will be a notification on our servers that in three months (06/01/2025) there will be a
Global Gathering of Warcraft II Players, which will last all summer. We will also actively advertise this on all resources under our control.
The article has been translated into English by ARMilitar.
