Blizzard was cheered on by a fervent crowd when it announced Wrath of the Lich King, the next expansion for World of Warcraft (WoW). The upcoming expansion would finally cap off the story that was started in Warcraft III: The Frozen Throne, and players would have the chance to face Arthas, the Lich King himself with his newly assembled Scourge army. With the tremendous success of The Burning Crusade, the announcement of a new expansion was cause for celebration... and a time of despair for Warcraft fans.

No one is arguing against the global success of World of Warcraft, making it the most successful massively-multiplayer online (MMO) game of all time. Yet, some distinction needs to be made between WoW fans and fans of the original real-time strategy (RTS) game. Wrath of the Lich King will bring WoW players to the icy wastes of Northrend, but it will be players who made Warcraft a household name who will be left out in the cold. Sure, we're looking forward to new creatures, the Death Knight Class and watching all our epic gear instantly become obsolete as much as everyone else's, but there's the nagging feeling that Lich King should have been Warcraft IV, or at least released as some sort of late Warcraft III expansion.

After watching Arthas turn from a noble human prince to the heartless, all-powerful Lich King and commanding a combined Horde and Alliance army against the Scourge and their Burning Crusade, players deserve some kind of conclusion to their story. World of Warcraft has so far covered the post-Scourge reconstruction, which includes breaking through the Dark Portal and reclaiming some of the Outlands. But Wrath of the Lich King takes focus off rebuilding and puts both the Alliance and Horde factions back on the offensive. Warcraft fans have waited a long time for a confrontation with Arthas, but they won't get it.

Continue...