World of Warcraft: History

During 2004 the gaming company Blizzard released their MMORPG (Massively Multiplayer Online Role Playing Game), World of Warcraft, to the public. Few, if any, could have predicted the success this game would achieve and it's impact on the industry. Nearly three years later, World of Warcraft has 8 million subscribers, controlling over 50% of the MMORPG market share. It has shattered boundaries and taken this genre and the gaming industry as a whole to a different level.

If there were a survey done asking people whether they would spend $70 and then $15 a month for a game, few would say yes. Yet 8 million people pay this fee in order to play one of the greatest games ever created. World of Warcraft is a computer-based online game where people can set up a virtual character and then adventure through the world of Azeroth. There are 9 various classes, 8 different races, and two conflicting factions to choose from. The game's endless possibilities begin with the long journey of leveling. Your character starts as level 1 and must work his way to level 70 by killing mobs, completing quests, and grouping with other people to enter instances (enclosed areas with very tough beasts that drop exceptional gear for your character). The grind to level 70 takes days of actual time spent, meaning it takes weeks to get to level 70.

The grueling time spent to reaching level 70 is not only an adventure but also a stepping stone to a whole different experience. Once one reaches the maximum level they enter a whole new phase of grueling work to obtain gear suitable for their level. A player must spend many hours working to obtain gear through various means that are usually separated into two categories: PvE and PvP. PvE stands for Player versus Environment, meaning characters join guilds filled with other players and work together in tough instances in order to obtain better gear. PvP stands for Player versus Player, where characters either fight the opposing faction in Battlegrounds (large areas where both Factions clash for valuable resources and flags) or both factions in Arenas (small scale, and very organized, battles where players create teams and face other teams for valuable points. Eventually you start to gear up and are then able to access more competitive and harder areas of the game.

Many people wonder why a person would be willing to invest so much time just to be able to be competitive and to have fun. The time spent leveling and gearing up is grueling and frustrating, but the reasons people do it are endless. Both PvE and PvP can be related to team sports (PvP has actually started to become an e-sport, which I will talk about in another article), where people work together to either defeat bosses (extremely hard beasts found in PvE instances) or to kill the opposing faction. Most people not only do it for the experience but also the respect you receive from other players when you become one of the best. The best PvE guilds and best PvP teams are renowned throughout the World of Warcraft Community and players would give up anything to play on them. The experience someone gets from playing World of Warcraft is hard to describe to a non-player, but I can attest to that it has been more fun for me than most activities I have done. World of Warcraft is currently the most popular game in the United States and will continue to be for quite some time.

World of Warcraft is now an online sport!

E-sports (electronic sports) have been around for quite some time. Quake and Counter-Strike were the two most popular E-sports, with online leagues and tournaments with tens of thousands of dollars in prizes. Starcraft is another popular E-sport in Korea where the top players earn over 200k a year! With World of Warcraft growing larger and larger, it was only a matter of time before competitive gaming came to it, in the form of Arenas.

When Blizzard released the first expansion for World of Warcraft (The Burning Crusade) they introduced a whole new aspect of PvP (Player versus Player) called Arenas. Arenas were special locations where organized teams of 2, 3, or 5 faced each other in order to get more gear. Arenas use an advanced rating system, similar to chess, that instantly made it the most competitive part of the game. Teams fought against each other day after day trying to get to the top 10 (out of thousands of teams). Blizzard then announced that they would be hosting a tournament for 5v5, and the top 3 teams from each bracket would be invited. This not only ignited the spark in some teams to climb even further but it also drew interest from many top E-Sport sponsors, such as Pandemic and Check-Six. Now not only were teams competing for a $10,000 grand prize but also to be sponsored by many of the top teams. It was a very competitive tournament, with Power Trip winning and Pandemic coming in 2nd, and really opened the doors for WoW to become an E-sport.

Very soon after, Blizzard made an agreement with the E-Sport tournament company WSVG (World Series of Video Games) to allow them to host 3v3 tournaments at their events. With $10,000 first place prizes, many teams practiced all season in World of Warcraft and then would travel to these WSVG tournaments. The 3v3 bracket is often the most popular one for spectators as it is very fast paced and there are fewer players on the screen then a 5v5. There have been 3 tournaments so far with many more scheduled and WoW is only getting more popular because of this. WSVG recently signed a deal with CBS to bring their tournament onto national TV.

A little over three weeks ago, Blizzard signed a deal to allow CGS rights to their last Arena Bracket, 2v2. CGS is a competitive gaming league that pays salaries (yes, real money) to professional gamers in their league. A player can currently make 30k a year just playing in this league. The CGS tournament is currently underway and there are many top contenders vying for a spot. CGS has a contract with Comcast and is often shown on their channels.

World of Warcraft started out as an online game with a very nerdy appeal to it but has very rapidly turned into a very well known game, growing not only in membership but in the E-Sports area. With the prizes dwarfing those of other E-sports, many players are crossing the river over to World of Warcraft.