Blizzard co-founder shoots down plans for a remaster of the original 'Warcraft'

By Gabe Gurwin November 7, 2016

Warcraft: Orcs and Humans Cinematic

Blizzard co-founder Frank Pearce had some unusually harsh words for one of the developer’s most famous games, the original Warcraft. Speaking at a Q&A at this year’s Blizzcon event, Pearce stated that the 1994 strategy game is “just not that fun anymore,” and that Blizzard has no interest in remastering it or its first sequel.

“We had some dedicated folks that were passionate about [remastering the game] dig up the Warcraft 1 assets and code,” Pearce said to a curious fan. “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 anymore.”

Apparently, Blizzard’s reverence for the original Diablo is much stronger than its feelings toward Warcraft. Blizzard announced during Blizzcon that a special The Darkening of Tristam update would essentially feature the entirety of the first Diablo inside Diablo III, complete with graphical options to get players in the old-school mood. The game was released just two years later than Warcraft, but time appears to have been on its side.

The last full sequel in the Warcraft series, Warcraft III: Reign of Chaos, was released more than 14 years ago, and deals in part with the story of Arthas, who would go onto become the evil, powerful Lich King featured in World of Warcraft‘s second expansion. Since then, the Starcraft series, and, in particular, the enduring Starcraft II, have been Blizzard’s strategy focus.

World of Warcraft: Legion is the most recent installment in the overarching Warcraft franchise, and was released to very positive reception. The recent film version wasn’t as well received, with the orcs’ and humans’ first encounter getting lost in a surprisingly serious narrative that didn’t embrace the games’ campy tone.

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Gabe Gurwin has been playing games since 1997, beginning with the N64 and the Super Nintendo. He began his journalism career…

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