With the news Blizzard is recreating the original Diablo in the Diablo III engine, fans have been speculating if the publisher will bring back other classic games from their vaults, like the original two Warcraft games. Now we’ve learned (via Eurogamer) that will probably never happen.
When speaking at a panel at this year’s BlizzCon, a fan asked if there were any plans to remaster the first two Warcraft games. Blizzard co-founder Frank Pearce quickly shot this down, saying they have limited resources, and are currently focused on other projects like World of Warcraft and Overwatch.
Blizzard president and co-founder Mike Morhaime said they’re very lucky to have access to the original games assets and source code, noting that it’s “really hard to access that stuff, unlock it, and figure out how it all works.”
“We had some dedicated folks that were passionate about the idea, dig up the Warcraft 1 assets and code,” Pearce elaborated.
“They got it working and they got it running in a window. And I played it. Warcraft: Orcs & Humans was awesome for its time. I promise you, in today’s world, by today’s standards, it’s just not that fun any more.”
Pearce also said that Blizzard would rather work on an entirely new project, to which Morhaime jumped in to say “At this time.”Perhaps there is still hope at a modern return to Warcraft’s roots?
“We totally appreciate your enthusiasm for those old games,” Pearce said in closing. “We love them, too.”
Would you guys like to see remakes of Warcraft: Orcs & Humans and Warcraft II: Tides of Darkness? Sound off in the comments below!
Burning Finger
November 10, 2016 at 10:14 amThese ivory tower dumbasses need to realize it’s not they who decide if a game is fun or not.
totenglocke
November 10, 2016 at 10:15 amFurther proof that modern Blizzard is shit and keeps getting worse since Activision bought them. The only “not fun” aspect of the original Warcraft is having to build roads before you can place buildings and they could easily remove that feature. I still play my old copies and they absolutely are still fun.
Arenegeth
November 10, 2016 at 10:15 amYeah guys, is totally no fun anymore, by ‘today’s’ standards, meaning we can’t shove microtransactions down your throat if we giving you a complete full game at day 1 like we used to.
Fuck off Blizzard.
Sergio Nacher Fernández
November 10, 2016 at 10:16 amThis is a gesture of highly symbolic value that means “We have forgotten what made us great. We are not the Blizzard you used to love anymore.”
NukeA6
November 10, 2016 at 10:34 amIf Sega or Nintendo thought the same way they do, they’d be dead.
vonSanneck
November 10, 2016 at 10:36 amDon’t care much about Blizzard and with this even less so. They seem to make Skinner boxes that run on money rather than games they really wish to play.
Noah Howard
November 10, 2016 at 10:50 amAt least they’re somewhat honest!
And to answer the question, Yes, I’d love to make play a remake of Warcraft 1 and 2! And with today’s tech, it would be extremely easy (or easier)! You can make a single engine for both games and the work would be cut in half!
Captain Vidya
November 10, 2016 at 10:50 amTL: “You think you want it, but you don’t.”
Didney Worl
November 10, 2016 at 10:59 amhttps://m.youtube.com/watch?v=XVCtkzIXYzQ
Didney Worl
November 10, 2016 at 11:07 amIn all seriousness, that is such a lame excuse. If you think the game hasn’t aged well, make improvements and change up the formula to make it feel fresh while still being able to retell the stories of Warcraft 1 & 2. That’s what Nintendo did with Metroid: Zero Mission, that’s what Capcom did with REmake, and that’s what Sega is going to do with Yakuza Kiwami.
WB1c_Marathon
November 10, 2016 at 11:13 amI’ve never played them and would have happily paid to try them out, then again I might actually see a story that hasn’t yet been filled with an endless cycle of corruption.
Slo
November 10, 2016 at 11:16 amLast time I checked, the controls on Warcraft and Warcraft 2 were somewhat clunky but that’s nothing a new engine can’t fix. Just update it to SC2 or whatever is latest, and you’re good to go.
Give me those naval missions, dammit!
Master Bating
November 10, 2016 at 11:53 amI still dont understand how can people defend this company.
No_Good_Names_Ever
November 10, 2016 at 11:56 am“Standards”
“Today”
Pick one and stick to it you sack of dung.
No_Good_Names_Ever
November 10, 2016 at 11:57 amToo big of a debt to quit and mai waifu.
UntamedLoli
November 10, 2016 at 12:07 pmWhy did I know it was him saying this before I even opened the page. He was telling everyone they didn’t need chat channels before too.
Feniks
November 10, 2016 at 12:07 pmIt’s not about fun. It’s about money.
Blizzard wants “games as a service” and micro transactions. Panda bears to get the Chinese market. Old Blizzard is dead.
MusouTensei
November 10, 2016 at 12:07 pmOh look, Blizzard tells gamers again that they actually don’t want what they are asking for, only think they do, fuck off.
No_Good_Names_Ever
November 10, 2016 at 12:10 pmI hope that offended the Chinese market; the thought that they’re a bunch of furrys.
ThatOneGuy
November 10, 2016 at 12:12 pmI’ve never really played Blizzard’s games, but holy shit, fuck them.
Madbrainbox
November 10, 2016 at 12:22 pmHere’s some ideas:
Make Warcraft 4.Or reboot the whole series.Warcraft 3 was awesome.
Make WoW in anther engine.The current engine is shit.
Make Diablo 4.A good Diablo game that is more like D2 or Path of Exile.
But of course they won’t.
Travis Touchdown
November 10, 2016 at 12:51 pmNot enough waifus out of ten.
Master Bating
November 10, 2016 at 1:29 pmSo not only did you buy Overwatch, but you also bought Overwatch at full price and bought skins for it?
All this besides having awful taste on fictional women and defending a company while being aware of how shit it is?
Change your name to No_Good_Video_Games_Ever
OSad
November 10, 2016 at 1:45 pmThere’s no reason for this to happen anyway so it’s hard to become upset over, but there’s no reason for it not to as well, with Blizzard remaking Diablo 1 in Diablo 3’s engine, which I imagine is one of the cheapest “remakes” you could possibly do to a AAA game.
The excuse is just bullshit though. This is why PR people exist, so you give a non-answer instead of a stupid one to a fan’s face.
gwadahunter2222
November 10, 2016 at 1:51 pmBlizzard doesn’t want people know all the plotholes in World of Warcraft
AnarKreig
November 10, 2016 at 2:09 pmThey’re not wrong. Even back in the day, WC1 and WC2 were awful games, and they’ve aged poorly.
Alex Drake
November 10, 2016 at 2:23 pmIf that’s the case then they shouldn’t try and stop any talented modders from making a remake then. Since clearly they’re not fun so no one wants them right?
Mr0303
November 10, 2016 at 2:31 pmThe “not fun” part is the only thing I have an issue with in his statement. He could’ve just stopped at “we don’t have the money for it” and it would’ve been perfectly valid reasoning.
They should make Warcraft 4 before doing any remasters, but knowing Blizzard they’ll go for WOW2.
Johnathon Tieman
November 10, 2016 at 2:47 pmThis really doesn’t make any sense at all. They have the original Warcraft working on modern systems, but they don’t want to sell it? I can certainly understand that the originals are not going to compare to modern games, but that isn’t the point – its nostalgia.
Since they already have Warcraft working, toss it over to the guys at GoG and let them sell it (unless it is one of those cases where it is *barely* working and needs polish). I can understand if they don’t want to spend company resources to update the old titles. The best option would be doing an entire remake, not simply releasing the old versions running on modern systems. That *would* be fun, and nostalgic at the same time.
orbo
November 10, 2016 at 2:57 pmThey don’t think they’re fun anymore? That’s sure funny, because that’s exactly what everyone is saying about modern WoW!
Madbrainbox
November 10, 2016 at 3:10 pmIf they are smart they will do both.The Warcraft RTS is beloved by many and it’s the biggest reason why they are so successful today. WoW on the other hand has a great world but the gameplay is shit so a new engine could make it the dominant MMO for the next 10 years.
Madbrainbox
November 10, 2016 at 3:16 pmThey aren’t stopping modders.
Warrior90
November 10, 2016 at 4:15 pmAnd what Square is doing with FF7 Remake :^)
AR7777
November 10, 2016 at 5:21 pmStill better than anything they’ve released in the past 10 years
Uncle Slick
November 10, 2016 at 5:22 pmLOOK, TO THE EAST!
Didney Worl
November 10, 2016 at 6:12 pmI knew I was forgetting something. But yes, FF7 remake and I also forgot about the upcoming RE2 remake.
Zombie_Barioth
November 10, 2016 at 6:13 pmSometimes “people don’t know what they really want” is true, this however is not one of those times.
I’m pretty sure the probably millions of people who still play classic/retro games would beg to differ, and they aren’t judging them by “today’s standards”. If that were true, how is it that the VC, GOG, or PS Classics are a thing?
People said the same thing about gen I Pokemon, yet here we are, with some of the best-selling VC games.
Slizzl
November 10, 2016 at 7:13 pmNot enough loot crates and garrison quests/daily chores right?
Thanks for once again telling me what to think instead of letting me form my own opinions Blizzard…
Tyrone Jackson
November 10, 2016 at 7:15 pmI’ve been over Blizzard for quite a while now, but it’s truly sad to see them sink lower and lower every year.
Guest
November 10, 2016 at 8:04 pmI’ve been playing these games on and off again since I was 5 years old, back in 1996, and they’re just as good today as the day they came out. ‘Fun’ does not have an expiration date.
Lea Pastillaroja
November 10, 2016 at 8:56 pmBizztard does not realize that Gamers are constantly yearning for “the good old days” no matter wich generation they’re from…
any nostalgia remake from popular franchizes like Warcraft is gonna sell like sugar flavored cocain
Zanard Bell
November 10, 2016 at 8:57 pmThey better not slander Warcraft 3 in ten years, because I’ll defend that shit to death.
Jade Blake
November 10, 2016 at 9:21 pmFuck you, Blizzard. I played some Warcraft the other day from abandonware and has blast. Limey cocksuckers.
Maria Maasaa
November 10, 2016 at 9:38 pmMore fun the WoW
E S T H E T I C 420
November 10, 2016 at 11:46 pmTHE EAST IS BURNING RED
No_Good_Names_Ever
November 11, 2016 at 4:15 amI’ve never bought a Blizzard game in my life; I’m just throwing out what I figure why people still put up with WoW and what I think is the only reason Overwatch was a success. I don’t even have a waifu and would never pay for any game that’s online only; especially when it’s down to the standards of today.
Master Bating
November 11, 2016 at 8:37 am“I was merely pretending to be retarded”
ElKonsolero
November 12, 2016 at 7:28 pmBlizzard has been shit since Blizz North got closed. Later then they went into the unholy alliance with “beating everything to a dead horse”-Activision. Blizzard isn´t the same company they used to be and can happily go fuck themselves.
Trouble Man
November 12, 2016 at 10:33 pmBlizzard games aren’t fun anymore? Sounds like they’re starting to catch on. *rimshot*
Zero Eternity
November 13, 2016 at 12:08 amSo say I’ve never played Warcraft, Should I buy Warcraft 3? Everybody dislikes blizzard here so that is why I’m hesitant.
Rocrack
December 16, 2016 at 7:01 pmCome on, see it in the Blizzard’s perspective, they are a company! they need to produce money, not remaking warcraft 1 and 2 is not saying “fuck those games” they are telling the truth, its not fun anymore, if you don’t believe me, go and fucking play it, do it, and you will fucking regret because blizzard its too busy trying to get new and exciting games instead of just remaking a game that only 100000 people will buy, because its a waste of time and money
paikinho
March 26, 2017 at 9:00 pmMy 9 year old son and I have been playing thru the old Warcraft 2 Scenarios. They are really fun and still a challenge. Good way to get someone into the newer versions while they are not so challenging to manage. “A gateway game”
Good to know how things started.