There are few video game properties more well known than Warcraft, a franchise that redefined MMOs forever. Outside of expansions for World of Warcraft, it’s been nearly eight years since the franchise and property has seen an original release. That’s where Warcraft Arclight Rumble comes in, a brand new mobile strategy experience from Blizzard that collects famous heroes and characters from across the franchise. Here’s everything you might need to know about Blizzard’s latest Warcraft game.
When might Warcraft Arclight Rumble release?
Warcraft Arclight Rumble was announced with a slew of information, but one of the details not given was an actual release date. However, because of the nature of mobile game releases, a date is likely not far off. Players can now pre-register for the game on the Google Play store. Fans on iOS will be able to pre-order the game early, but as of the time of writing the store page for Warcraft Arclight Rumble isn’t up on Apple’s store. Pre-registration for games typically opens 1-3 months before release, so we should expect some kind of date in the near future.
Is there a Warcraft Arclight Rumble trailer?
Three different videos were released alongside the announcement of Warcraft Arclight Rumble; a cinematic announcement trailer, a gameplay trailer, and a developer overview. You can watch all three in the presentation above, and the developer overview gives the best look at the new game.
What is Warcraft Arclight Rumble’s gameplay?
Warcraft Arclight Rumble is described as an “action strategy combined with meaningful progression and customization.” You’ll take control of an army of miniature characters that include the likes of Jaina Proudmoore and Tirion Fordring. The game is essentially a boiled-down RTS, similar to something like Clash of Clans.
In a match, you’ll use gold to deploy minis, who will move toward the enemy’s side on their own, with the goal of defeating the enemy leaders. You’ll gain gold passively over time but can gain more by mining it on the battlefield and opening chests. As you advance across the field you can capture areas like Guard Towers and Metting Stones, which will allow you to deploy minis further in the field. Strategy comes into play by deciding which minis to deploy, as certain types have advantages against others. The official website lists examples like flying troops being strong against melee troops, and siege troops dealing additional damage to Guard Towers.
Minis all have their own skills, but you can also support their advance by using spells. Between matches, you’ll be able to level up your minis using experience, and the website says there’ll be more than 65 unique minis. There’s also a focus on using different “Leaders” that bring unique skills and buffs. Here are the five different types of leaders and what they focus on.
- Alliance - Alliance leaders support defense, healing, stealth tactics, and spells.
- Horde - Horde leaders get bonuses on earning additional gold, have fast attacking troops, and can use area of effect stuns.
- Beast - Beast leaders excel at disabling enemy defenses and supporting troops.
- Blackrock - Blackrock leaders have deadly elemental magic and reward players for using heavy flying units.
- Undead - Undead leaders have unique abilities, like growing stronger with every spell, or calling hordes of undead units to the battlefield.
While we don’t know the full details yet, Blizzard has confirmed that Warcraft Arclight Rumble will have raids, dungeons, guilds, and co-op play.
Does Warcraft Arclight Rumble have a story?
While the focus is clearly on multiplayer, Warcraft Arclight Rumble will actually have a lengthy single-player campaign that spans 70 different missions. The idea of Arclight Rumble is actually an in-universe tabletop game that the people of Azeroth play, using miniatures of famous heroes from across the realm. It’s similar to Hearthstone, which is a card game based in the Warcraft universe that is also part of the franchise’s lore.
While Blizzard hasn’t detailed a story or narrative, theres’ likely going to be at least some structure that provides details for fans of the franchise.
Will Warcraft Arclight Rumble have microtransactions?
Warcraft Arclight Rumble is free-to-play which, like in most cases, means the game will have microtransactions. It’s hard to say exactly how purchases will work right now, but previews from outlets like Android Central have confirmed that there are indeed microtransactions. Considering the structure of the game you’ll likely be able to purchase characters and/or currency, but we’ll have to wait until at least the beta to see how necessary the microtransactions are to the core experience.
