What you need to know
- World of Warcraft is a legendary 20-year-old MMORPG from Blizzard Entertainment, now owned by Microsoft.
- The game is preparing for its latest expansion, The War Within, and is releasing a series of new trailers detailing the characters and setting of the story.
- This latest trailer shows Alleria Windrunner using dangerous Void magic to combat the various threats facing the game world of Azeroth.
- The trailer has led to calls for Warcraft to be tried out in an animated series in the style of Netflix’s League of Legends’ “Arcane.”
On August 26, 2024, World of Warcraft will release its latest expansion: The War Within.
World of Warcraft remains the most successful subscription-based MMORPG in the world, serving millions of players across a variety of game modes, including WoW: Classic and Season of Discovery. The highlight of World of Warcraft is the “retail” portion, which continues the game’s storyline that has literally been going on for 20 years. World of Warcraft: The War Within kicks off a brand new saga that Blizzard has officially dubbed “Worldsoul” for the first time. The saga will take place in three expansions over the next few years, but the first will focus on an underground region called Khaz’Algar.
We were recently treated to a trailer introducing Xal’atath, the new “villain” who plays a central role in the overarching storyline of World of Warcraft. The self-proclaimed “Harbinger” has begun to wreak havoc across Azeroth, and major political figures have begun to hear a piercing scream coming from within the planet. One such character is Alleria Windrunner, who is becoming increasingly important in the overarching storyline.
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Last night, Blizzard released a new animated trailer that focuses on Alleria’s backstory and her complicated relationship with the corrupting forces of the Void.
The Void is the source of shadow magic, which is commonly associated with evil, but some characters (including warlocks, rogues, and shadow priests) have managed to harness the energy and use it as a weapon. Other practitioners lose their minds in the process. Famously, the former dragon aspect of Earth Neltharion was driven mad by the Void and transformed into the apocalyptic mutant dragon Deathwing.
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In fact, shadow users of all kinds are still viewed with suspicion and even derision in the World of Warcraft universe. The Horde expelled a sect of Void researchers who eventually joined the Alliance and added playable “Void Elves” to the character roster. Their leader is the aforementioned Alleria Windrunner, who unleashed the powers of the Void. Anyone who imbues their abilities with shadow magic risks losing their minds. Alleria’s own husband Turalyon, a Paladin of the Holy Light, is devastated by her use of the Force in the trailer. Alleria is convinced that using the Void is the only way to truly combat the forces of the Void itself.
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A darker tone we haven’t seen in Warcraft for years
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Combined with the recent Xal’atath trailer, it feels like Blizzard is trying to reinforce the idea that the Void is not this fluffy, blue sparkling magic that you might misunderstand if you’ve played through the recent expansions. Xal’atath’s expressions and movements have a definite horror Here they have a very unique tone, reminiscent of the ghost in “The Ring”.
I feel like World of Warcraft has moved away from the dark tones after the reaction to the infamous burning of Teldrassil. Blizzard has also de-emphasized the war between the Horde and Alliance player factions, partly for gameplay reasons so players can play together more. Personally, I would argue that World of Warcraft has lost some of its identity, perhaps unintentionally.
The new trailers could be an indication that Blizzard is ready to ramp up the darkness again. The Void Lords are supposedly the biggest threat to the entire World of Warcraft universe right now, and not much has been said about why we should be so terrified of them. The Void Lords hurl bioweapons better known as Old Gods across the universe that slam into planets like asteroids and spread like a gigantic terrestrial, sentient cancer with tentacles. Players have already defeated the Old Gods on Azeroth, setting the stage for confronting the Void Lords themselves, but we haven’t really seen them yet beyond simple glimpses. Players are using shadow magic with no consequences, and the supposed harbinger of the Void, Xal’atath, hasn’t really played her cards yet either.
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With the Old Gods seemingly defeated, the Burning Legion scattered to the winds, and classic villain factions like the Scourge utterly destroyed, World of Warcraft needs to develop new, dangerous threats to be ready for the next 20 years of the storied franchise. Disney-style villains aren’t enough. It’s time to ramp up the horror. Based on the animated Alleria trailer, I wouldn’t say no to a Warcraft Netflix series either. Fantastic.
World of Warcraft: The War Within will be released on August 26, 2024 for Windows PC.
