This article may require cleanup to meet Wikipedia's quality standards. Please discuss this issue on the talk page or replace this tag with a more specific message. This article has been tagged since February 2007.

Warcraft II: Tides of Darkness
Developer(s)	Blizzard Entertainment
Publisher(s)	(PC), (Mac) Blizzard Entertainment Ubisoft (Saturn), (PS) Electronic Arts Electronic Arts Victor
Designer(s)	Ron Millar, Blizzard Entertainment
Release date(s)	(PC), (Mac) December 9, 1995 1996 (Saturn), (PS) August 31, 1997 November 27, 1997
Genre(s)	Strategy game
Mode(s)	Single player, Multiplayer
Platform(s)	Macintosh, MS-DOS, Sega Saturn, PlayStation, Windows, (with Stratagus) BSD, Linux, Mac OS X
System requirements	Windows 95, Pentium 60 MHz, 16MB RAM, 2xCD-ROM Drive for Gameplay (4xCD-ROM for Cinematics), Local Bus SVGA Video Card (DirectX Compatible), Microsoft Compatible Mouse, DirectX Compatible Sound Card (For Audio)
Input	Keyboard and mouse

Warcraft Portal

Warcraft II: Tides of Darkness (usually simply Warcraft II or Warcraft 2; sometimes abbreviated to WCII, WC2 or War2) is a sequel to the popular real-time strategy game Warcraft, developed by Blizzard Entertainment and released in December of 1995. Users play as either orcs or humans in a fantasy medieval world full of swords and sorcery. It was originally written for MS-DOS, though it had a Windows launch screen and played well under Windows 95; there was also a Macintosh version of the game. Blizzard also released an expansion pack, developed by Cyberlore Studios, known as Warcraft II: Beyond the Dark Portal on April 30, 1996. Blizzard re-released WarCraft II, combined with its expansion, in 1999, under the name WarCraft II: Battle.net Edition. Changes made for this release included porting the game to Windows, fixing a few minor bugs, and, as the name implies, enabling multiplayer support via Blizzard's online matchmaking service, Battle.net. By using the Stratagus game engine through Wargus, it is also playable on BSD, Linux and Mac OS X. Image File history File links Broom_icon. ... Image File history File links Download high resolution version (661x650, 142 KB)Game cover to Blizzard Entertainments video game, Warcraft II: Tides of Darkness. ... A video game developer is a software developer (a business or an individual) that creates video games. ... Blizzard Entertainment is an American based computer game developer and publisher. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... Blizzard Entertainment is an American based computer game developer and publisher. ... Image File history File links European_flag. ... Ubisoft Entertainment (formerly Ubi Soft) is a computer and video game publisher and developer with headquarters in Montreuil, France. ... Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... Image File history File links European_flag. ... EA redirects here. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Japan_(bordered). ... Electronic Arts Victor is a Japanese-only branch of Electronic Arts. ... A game designer is a person who designs games. ... Ron Millar is the lead designer of Black & White 2, the computer game. ... Blizzard Entertainment is an American based computer game developer and publisher. ... Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... December 9 is the 343rd day (344th in leap years) of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... 1995 1995 in games 1994 in video gaming 1996 in video gaming Notable events of 1995 in video gaming. ... Image File history File links European_flag. ... 1996 1996 in games 1995 in video gaming 1997 in video gaming Notable events of 1996 in video gaming. ... Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... Image File history File links European_flag. ... August 31 is the 243rd day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (244th in leap years), with 122 days remaining. ... See also: 1996 in video gaming, other events of 1997, 1998 in video gaming, history of video games Events 3rd annual E³ (Electronic Entertainment Expo) October 4 - Gunpei Yokoi (1941-1997) dies after a double car accident. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Japan_(bordered). ... November 27 is the 331st day (332nd in leap years) of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... See also: 1996 in video gaming, other events of 1997, 1998 in video gaming, history of video games Events 3rd annual E³ (Electronic Entertainment Expo) October 4 - Gunpei Yokoi (1941-1997) dies after a double car accident. ... Video games are generally categorized into genres. ... Chess, one of the most well-known and played strategy games ever. ... In computer games and video games, single-player refers to the variant of a particular game where input from only one player is expected throughout the course of the gaming session. ... This article does not adequately cite its references or sources. ... The Macintosh 128K, the first Macintosh computer, introduced in 1984, upgraded to a 512K Fat Mac The Macintosh, or Mac, is a line of personal computers designed, developed, manufactured, and marketed by Apple. ... Microsofts disk operating system, MS-DOS, was Microsofts implementation of DOS, which was the first popular operating system for the IBM PC, and until recently, was widely used on the PC compatible platform. ... The Sega Saturn ) is a 32-bit video game console, first released on November 22, 1994 in Japan, May 11, 1995 in North America and July 8, 1995 in Europe. ... The Sony PlayStation ) is a video game console of the 32/64-bit era, first produced by Sony Computer Entertainment in the mid-1990s. ... Microsoft Windows is the name of several families of proprietary software operating systems by Microsoft. ... Stratagus (created in 1998) is a free cross-platform real time strategy game engine used to build other games. ... BSD redirects here; for other uses see BSD (disambiguation). ... Linux (IPA pronunciation: ) is a Unix-like computer operating system family. ... Mac OS X (official IPA pronunciation: ) is a line of proprietary, graphical operating systems developed, marketed, and sold by Apple Inc. ... Windows 95 is a consumer-oriented graphical user interface-based operating system. ... Super Video Graphics Array, almost always abbreviated to Super VGA or just SVGA is a broad term that covers a wide range of computer display standards. ... A video card, (also referred to as a graphics accelerator card, display adapter, graphics card, and numerous other terms), is an item of personal computer hardware whose function is to generate and output images to a display. ... Microsoft DirectX is a collection of APIs for handling tasks related to multimedia, especially game programming, on Microsoft platforms. ... Microsoft Corporation, (NASDAQ: MSFT, HKSE: 4338) is a multinational computer technology corporation with global annual revenue of US$44. ... A computer keyboard is a peripheral partially modeled after the typewriter keyboard. ... Operating a mechanical 1: Pulling the mouse turns the ball. ... Image File history File links Portal. ... Real-time strategy, often abbreviated RTS, is a genre of computer games characterized by being wargames which take place in real-time, where resource gathering, base building, technology development and direct control over individual units are key components. ... Warcraft: Orcs & Humans is a real-time strategy computer game developed and published by Blizzard Entertainment in 1994. ... Blizzard Entertainment is an American based computer game developer and publisher. ... 1995 1995 in games 1994 in video gaming 1996 in video gaming Notable events of 1995 in video gaming. ... Male and Female Orcs as seen in the World of Warcraft. ... Humans are one of two races which appear as playable in every game of the Warcraft franchise. ... Fantasy is a genre of art that uses magic and other supernatural forms as a primary element of plot, theme, or setting. ... The Middle Ages formed the middle period in a traditional schematic division of European history into three ages: the classical civilization of Antiquity, the Middle Ages, and modern times. ... It has been suggested that War-sword be merged into this article or section. ... Magic (also called magick to distinguish it from stage magic) is a supposed way of influencing the world through supernatural, mystical, or paranormal means. ... Microsofts disk operating system, MS-DOS, was Microsofts implementation of DOS, which was the first popular operating system for the IBM PC, and until recently, was widely used on the PC compatible platform. ... Microsoft Windows is the name of several families of proprietary software operating systems by Microsoft. ... Windows 95 is a consumer-oriented graphical user interface-based operating system. ... The first Macintosh computer, introduced in 1984, upgraded to a 512K Fat Mac. The Macintosh or Mac, is a line of personal computers designed, developed, manufactured, and marketed by Apple Computer. ... An expansion pack is an addition to an existing game. ... Cyberlore Studios was a developer of computer games. ... Warcraft II: Tides of Darkness (usually simply called Warcraft II; sometimes abbreviated to WCII or WC2) is a sequel to the popular real-time strategy game Warcraft, published by Blizzard Entertainment in December 1995. ... April 30 is the 120th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (121st in leap years), with 245 days remaining. ... 1996 1996 in games 1995 in video gaming 1997 in video gaming Notable events of 1996 in video gaming. ... 1999 1999 in games 1998 in video gaming 2000 in video gaming Notable events of 1999 in video gaming. ... In computer science, porting is the process of adapting software so that an executable program can be created for a computing environment that is different from the one for which it was originally designed (e. ... Microsoft Windows is the name of several families of proprietary software operating systems by Microsoft. ... Battle. ... Stratagus (created in 1998) is a free cross-platform real time strategy game engine used to build other games. ... Wargus is a Warcraft II port that allows you to play Warcraft II with the Stratagus engine, as opposed to play it with the original Warcraft II one. ... BSD redirects here; for other uses see BSD (disambiguation). ... Linux (IPA pronunciation: ) is a Unix-like computer operating system family. ... Mac OS X (official IPA pronunciation: ) is a line of proprietary, graphical operating systems developed, marketed, and sold by Apple Inc. ...

The game has a linear single-player campaign for each side, and a multiplayer option via a LAN or the Internet), using existing or user-created maps. The former's storyline is basically a frame tale for combat and devoid of plot development during missions, which is usual for early RTS games but in contrast to some later ones, including Warcraft III and Starcraft. The game is set six years after the fall of Azeroth. The Orcs have decided to conquer the lands to the north and add Lordaeron to their empire, and the battles to follow would later be known as the Second War. Local area network scheme A local area network is a computer network covering a small geographic area, like a home, office, or group of buildings. ... A frame story (also frame tale, frame narrative, etc) is a narrative technique whereby a main story is composed, at least in part, for the purpose of organizing a set of shorter stories, each of which is a story within a story. ... Warcraft III: Reign of Chaos, released by Blizzard Entertainment in 2002, is a real-time strategy computer game // Overview An in-game screenshot of humans (blue) fighting orcs (red). ... StarCraft is a real-time strategy computer game by Blizzard Entertainment. ...

Story

It had been four years since the Great War. Those who escaped the orcs conquest of Azeroth had fled to the North, where they had warned and sought shelter with the humans of Lordaeron. While the kings of the seven human Kingdoms bickered, some refusing to join into a united front against the orcs, the Horde had constructed a vast navy and were preparing to attack the southern coast of Lordaeron and Quel'Thalas. The dwarfs of Khaz Modan reported that the Horde had laid siege to their capital Ironforge, and were eager to provide the humans with weapons with which to use against their newfound common enemy. With this new act of orcish aggression, it was clear the Horde was still a very real threat and was not content with it's current holdings. Most of the conflicts dissipated in favour of an alliance, to take up arms and prepare for the oncoming Horde. The Alliance of the kingdoms of Lordaeron, Ironforge, Kul Tiras, Stromgarde, Alterac, the survivors of Azeroth, and wizards of the city-state Dalaran was born out of this dark hour to defend against this destructive foe that had ruined the Kingdom of Azeroth and run its people off their own lands.

The first Alliance.

Ogrimm Doomhammer, having slain Gul'dan's pawn Blackhand, now sought to conquer the remaining Kingdoms, and ordered the assault to begin, unleashing several clans upon the new Alliance. The first waves of the orcs were of Ogrimm's own clan, the Blackrock, which landed on the Southern shores of Lordaeron as scouts and monitors, to see the strength of the human resistance. A more significant portion were dispatched to the Northern half of Khaz Modan and Stromgarde, the Black Tooth Grin clan and the Bleeding Hollow, to secure oil deposits to fuel the fleet's demands. The Alliance managed to sabotage the main refineries at Grim Batol and discovered the Horde's secret base on Zul'dare, but the war with the Horde took its toll upon the coastline, the towns of Southshore and Hillsbrad raided and left heavily damaged, and significant victories such as the destruction of the Alliance's Third Fleet, the heir to the throne of Kul Tiras lost. Image File history File links Alliance-first-formed-warcraft-ii. ... Image File history File links Alliance-first-formed-warcraft-ii. ...

Stormreaver Clan

The war effort intensified around Quel Thalas when the Horde set alight to the forests there, and captured and defiled a sacred runestone. While the city of Tyr's Hand, a major center of gold mining operations for the Alliance, was trying to raise funds for the Alliance and defend itself from an increasingly brazen Horde presence, there was a revolt in the peasantry, caused by mysterious circumstances. During a trip by the Paladin Uther the Lightbringer to the region, his convoy came under assault by humans, some of whom were captured and taken for trial in Stratholme. The evidence given was disturbing. The Alliance had been betrayed, the nation of Alterac had been giving the Horde troop movements and key information the whole time, sabotaging the war effort by unjustly holding members of the Kirin Tor prisoner, and had been both responsible for the assassination attempt and the peasant's rebellion. The armies of Lordaeron could not stand for this. While Azerothian forces kept the Horde at bay, Teranas ordered the city of Alterac scoured, pillaged, and burned; any who resisted would forfeit their lives. Image File history File links Image of Stormreaver clan flag, from Blizzard Entertinments video game series, Warcraft. ... Image File history File links Image of Stormreaver clan flag, from Blizzard Entertinments video game series, Warcraft. ...

Orcs in battle.

While the discovery of Alterac's treachery and duplicity with the Stormreaver clan had been some small victory, the major cities themselves came under siege, most of the Alliance's forces bottled up in their own capitals with no chance of relief. Silvermoon, Lordaeron City, Ironforge, and Bolarus were all under seige by Horde forces, and none were able to break thier seige to go help fight off the Horde efforts at another capital. It looked hopeless with the Horde in complete domination of the countryside of Northern Lordaeron; when Gul'dan the warlock broke the Warchief's commands and took his clan, the Stormreaver, and the Twilight's Hammer clan away from the beseiging cities off on a personal quest to find the Tomb Of Sargaras. Ogrimm Doomhammer, Warchief of the Horde, saw this disobedience as a final insult from the warlock and ordered loyal clansmen of the Blackrock clan to pursuit Gul'dan and his followers and ensure their deaths. This left the Horde armies surrounding Silvermoon in a very weak position, which the elves exploited to break out and relieve Lordaeron from their Horde oppressors. The Horde found themselves on the defensive, a major force of elves and humans now moving Southwards with speed, and with thier numbers severely depleted, Ogrimm Doomhammer had no choice but to pull his forces back, or watch them being slaughtered by the new momentum of Alliance forces. Image File history File links Download high resolution version (537x696, 111 KB)Image of Orcs from Blizzard Entertainments video games series Warcraft II. File history Legend: (cur) = this is the current file, (del) = delete this old version, (rev) = revert to this old version. ... Image File history File links Download high resolution version (537x696, 111 KB)Image of Orcs from Blizzard Entertainments video games series Warcraft II. File history Legend: (cur) = this is the current file, (del) = delete this old version, (rev) = revert to this old version. ...

A critical mistake was made however, in pulling the forces back ships that were keeping the Alliance's main naval forces locked in their docks in Bolarus, the capital of Kul Tiras, were used for the evacuation. With the blockade over, these battleships sailed out, and destroyed the majority of the Horde sea convoys, countless warriors lost without any chance to fight back. What remained of the Orcish navy was obliterated at Crestfall, the Alliance holding domination over the Great Sea used this advantage to start landing troops in Azeroth, the fallen home of the people who had fled with Lord Loathar at the end of the First War. With the tables clearly turned, Ogrimm consolidated his forces at Blackrock Spire, but in the process took the pressure of Ironforge, which was still under seige at the time. In turn, the dwarfs of Khaz Modan were able to provide arial support in the form of Gryphon riders to counter the Horde's drakes, and to give the Azeroth forces moving in on Blackrock Spire more force.

Alliance emerges victorious.

Lord Loathar, seeking an end to the bloodshed, rode out with a small escort of knights and paladins to meet Ogrimm Doomhammer in order to arrange a form of surrender that would allow both sides to leave unharmed. However, Ogrimm Doomhammer decided to ambush the convoy and tried to assassinate Loathar, prompting a huge counter attack from the Alliance army. Unfortuantly, Ogrimm managed to slay the leader of the Alliance, Loathar had fallen before him. However, far from demoralising the enemy as he hoped, this only made the Alliance soldiers more determined in the battle. A paladin named Tularyon rallied the forces of the Alliance and won the day, scouring many orcs from the area and capturing the warchief of the Horde himself. The remaining orcs tried to rally around the Dark Portal to try and secure the route from thier world of Draneor into Azeroth, but they too fell beneith the momentum of the Army, and the few that remained saw the Dark Portal destroyed by Khadgar. The second war was over, no way home and no chance of reinforcements left the few orcs remaining on Azeroth with two choices, to be captured by the Alliance or to go into hiding. Meanwhile, the Alliance set about rebuilding the war damage, and built two great cities, New Stormwind and Nethergarde, to ensure the saftey of the rest of the Alliance by watching over the portal's remains. Image File history File links Download high resolution version (607x796, 95 KB)Image of a Human in battle from Blizzard Entertainments video game seris, Warcraft II. {{Fairuse}] File history Legend: (cur) = this is the current file, (del) = delete this old version, (rev) = revert to this old version. ... Image File history File links Download high resolution version (607x796, 95 KB)Image of a Human in battle from Blizzard Entertainments video game seris, Warcraft II. {{Fairuse}] File history Legend: (cur) = this is the current file, (del) = delete this old version, (rev) = revert to this old version. ...

Units and structures

Like in Warcraft, the game makes use of two opposing sides and with immediately clear counterparts among the races’ units. For example, the basic fighting unit of the Humans is the Footman whose immediate Orc counterpart is the Grunt. Like the first game, the mouse-clickable controls for the units is located to the left side of the screen. The number of units has also been increased, and the units themselves have more elaborate abilities. As an aesthetical change, both sides are now allied with three minor races. The original box art for Warcraft: Orcs & Humans. ...

Units

Gul'dan bowing before Orc chief Orgrim Doomhammer.

Image File history File links Image of GulDan bowing before Doomhamer, from the video game series, Warcraft II. Art by Chris Metzen. ... Image File history File links Image of GulDan bowing before Doomhamer, from the video game series, Warcraft II. Art by Chris Metzen. ... Orgrim Doomhammer is a fictional character in the world of Azeroth in Warcraft, a game series by Blizzard Entertainment. ... It has been suggested that this article or section be merged with combat engineering. ... A suicide bombing is an attack using a bomb in which the individual(s) carrying the explosive materials composing the bomb intend(s) and expect(s) to die upon detonation (see suicide). ... Warcraft: Orcs & Humans is a real-time strategy computer game developed and published by Blizzard Entertainment in 1994. ...

Playable characters in the Tides of Darkness campaigns include Uther the Lightbringer, a Paladin, Zul’jin, an axethrower, and Cho’gall, an Ogre Mage. They have increased unit statistics (depending on the character) in comparison to their normal counterparts, will end a mission if killed, they each have a unique picture and identity of their own, and they set up the introduction of their unit type.

In Dark Portal, hero units take greater part in several missions and their survival is critical in completing each mission. Hero units are basically stronger and more powerful versions of the regular units.

The hero units of Beyond the Dark Portal are:

• Humans – Danath (Footman), Alleria (Elven Ranger), Turalyon (Paladin), Khadgar (Mage) and Kurdran and Sky'ree (Gryphon Rider)
• Orcs – Deathwing (Dragon), Kargath Bladefist (Grunt), Grom Hellscream (Grunt), Dentarg (Ogre Mage), and Teron Gorefiend (Death Knight)

The units are quite balanced by virtue of being almost identical, the only real differences can be found in the spells used by Paladins, Ogre-Mages, Mages, and Death Knights. Paladins have no equivalent for the Ogre-Mages' bloodlust spell, which serves to double the damage dealt by a unit [1] while Ogre-Mages can't heal other units. While the Mage's slow spell halves a units movement and attack speed, the Death-Knight's equivalent, haste, only increases attack speed in the case of dragons. Furthermore, Death-knights have no equivalent for the Mage's polymorph, which disables a unit indefinitely.[2] [3]. The other non-cosmetic difference is that Elven Rangers can learn the Marksmanship ability (so that they deal more damage) whereas their counterparts, Troll Berserkers, can acquire Regeneration (which slowly heals their wounds). Another difference is that the melee damage upgrades in the Blacksmith of Humans cost more gold than that of Orcs, though lumber is required in the latter. Finally, the Death Knight's attack range exceeds the Mage's by 1 space, however the Death Knight is susceptible to the Knight's Exorcism spell while the mage is not. In the fictional Warcraft universe, Archmage Khadgar was one of the most powerful wizards to have ever lived, and one of the greatest heroes of the Alliance. ... Neltharion the Earth Warder, later called Deathwing the Destroyer, is a fictional character in the Warcraft universe — a fictional universe in which a series of games and books are set. ... This article or section may need to be cleaned up and rewritten because it describes a work of fiction in a primarily in-universe style. ...

Buildings

Utilities, modifications and conversions

Warcraft II was an unusual game for the time because a large number of third-party utilities were written for it. Among the first things, Daniel Lemberg reverse-engineered the Warcraft II map file (*.pud) format and created the first third-party map editor, War2xEd, which could do numerous things the bundled map editor could not do, such as editing unit attributes. Although Lemberg did not make the source code for War2xEd public, he did publish the complete Warcraft II map file format, which led to a wealth of new tools, including a Macintosh version of the tool called PudMaster. More importantly, Blizzard began to use War2xEd internally, and it influenced them to bundle a feature-rich editor with their immensely popular game StarCraft. StarCraft is a real-time strategy computer game by Blizzard Entertainment. ...

The next important breakthrough came when Alexander Cech and Lemberg broke the encryption used in the base game data files. Cech went on to create a program called Wardraft, which allowed users to browse and modify the contents of the game data files, allowing comprehensive modifications. The spawn of extensive alterations became known as "Total Conversions", and a great many projects were in motion for a good long while. Some of the more prominent were "DeathCraft: Twilight of Demons" by Dirk "The Guardian" Richartz, "War of the Ring" by Gurthaur, "Editor's Total Conversion" by Fronzel Neekburn and the whole of the Warclan, "Elfcraft" by Ace Calhoon, and the noteworthy "Rituals of Rebirth" spearheaded by Kalindor, Kosmous, and Commoner.

There was also a reverse engineered free software game engine called Freecraft, which allowed users to import the actual game data from Warcraft II and play the game on different platforms and with additional features like queuing unit production, finding idle workers, an improved AI and network connectivity for up to 16 players. In addition to being compatible with Warcraft II, it could also be used with a set of artwork and scenarios made by the Freecraft Media Project (FcMP). Although the actual Freecraft program and FcMP used no art or code from Warcraft II, the project received a threatening cease-and-desist letter from Blizzard, apparently due to similarity to the Warcraft trademarks. Not willing to fight Blizzard, the maintainers cancelled the whole project, later rekindling it under the name of Stratagus. Reverse engineering (RE) is the process of taking something (a device, an electrical component, a software program, etc. ... This article is about free software as defined by the sociopolitical free software movement; for information on software distributed without charge, see freeware. ... A game engine is the core software component of a computer or video game or other interactive application with real-time graphics. ... Stratagus (created in 1998) is a free cross-platform real time strategy game engine used to build other games. ...

Many of the utilities and conversions have faded into the depths of obscurity, but the appeal of feature-rich editors and total conversions has lived on.

Special features

• Humorous unit quotes are a feature of Warcraft II, following the tradition of the original Warcraft. If a single unit is clicked on several times in a row, his or her voice samples change from regular to longer, emotional ones. He or she may start getting angry at the player, or quote lines in reference to movies or games. For example, a footman would say, "don't you have a kingdom to run?" or "are you still touching me?" These phrases differed in the game's demo for the Footman and Grunt units, and were mostly exhortations to purchase the full version.

• Clicking on a non-playable critter such as a sheep enough times causes it to blow up, an exploding sheep reference.

• If the disk for Beyond the Dark Portal is inserted into a CD player, the orchestrated music from the game can be played. In addition, there is a bonus 13th track called "I'm a Medieval Man" which features remixed sound bites from the game. "Medieval Man" is also a cheat code in StarCraft to obtain all unit upgrades for free or in Warcraft II to play the song as background music. Also, in Starcraft, if one clicks on an observer while playing as the Protoss, a clip of the song will be played.

Demo disc released with a magazine. ... An NPC from the video game The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion. ... Species See text. ... An exploding sheep in the computer game Revenge of the Mutant Camels. ... Cheat codes are codes that can be entered into a video game to change the games behavior. ... StarCraft is a real-time strategy computer game by Blizzard Entertainment. ...

Warcraft II: Battle.net Edition

Screen shot of game play.

Warcraft II: Battle.net Edition is an online-enabled version of Warcraft II: Tides of Darkness, with the expansion Warcraft II: Beyond the Dark Portal built in. This is essentially a Windows version of Warcraft II which allows for usage on Battle.net, and, unlike its offline counterparts, does require a CD Key to install. Warcraft 2 screenshot available on the official battlenet site This is a screenshot of a copyrighted website, video game graphic, computer program graphic, television broadcast, or film. ... Warcraft 2 screenshot available on the official battlenet site This is a screenshot of a copyrighted website, video game graphic, computer program graphic, television broadcast, or film. ... An expansion pack is an addition to an existing computer game. ... Battle. ... In telecommunication, the term off-line has the following meanings: 1. ... Counterparts can refer to: Counterparts (album), an album by Rush Counterparts, a short story from Dubliners by James Joyce Counterparts, a jazz & pop a cappella group at the University of Pennsylvania website This is a disambiguation page: a list of articles associated with the same title. ...

Currently, Warcraft II enjoys little attention from Blizzard's management, shown by the fact that there are serious unaddressed issues with the Battle.net interface and Mac OS X & Windows XP compatibility. The average number of users playing Warcraft II online at any point is between 600 and 1200. Mac OS X (official IPA pronunciation: ) is a line of proprietary, graphical operating systems developed, marketed, and sold by Apple Inc. ... Windows XP is a line of proprietary operating systems developed by Microsoft for use on general-purpose computer systems, including home and business desktops, notebook computers, and media centers. ...

The bulk of the remaining Warcraft II players has switched to a private server, and some migrated to the us.west battlenet server instead.

Online play

Although the Battle.net Edition wasn't released until 1999, online play was widespread from the game's release using IPX Emulators such as Kali. Warcraft II (along with Command & Conquer) was one of the first Real-time strategy games to be played widely online, and spawned several leagues, including the International Warcraft League (IWL) and singles and teams ladders on Case's Ladder. Internetwork Packet Exchange (IPX) is at the Network layer of the OSI model and is part of the IPX/SPX protocol stack. ... Kali is a piece of software namely a game browser created by Jay Cotton (originally under OS/2 system) enabling online multiplayer in DOS IPX compatible games over a TCP/IP network. ... Command & Conquer, often shortened to C&C 95, is the original game in Westwood Studios Command & Conquer series of real-time strategy (RTS) computer games. ... Real-time strategy, often abbreviated RTS, is a genre of computer games characterized by being wargames which take place in real-time, where resource gathering, base building, technology development and direct control over individual units are key components. ...

The Mac release allowed multiplayer games over TCP/IP. The IRC channel MacWarCraft served as a gathering place for online play, before Battle.net was created. There was also a popular league created by the Macintosh community, that provided a ranking system and helped players find opponents, called MaG League (short for Macintosh Gaming League).

The depth of strategy of the game was found to be immense and evolved over time. But for every tactic, subsequent countermeasures were developed and matches eventually played out like complicated games of rock, paper, scissors. What was once considered odd eventually became routine, and established players were forced to adapt. It has been suggested that Janken be merged into this article or section. ...

Unlike the later game, StarCraft, there were few Warcraft II competitions played for money or prizes. However, the level of competition was fierce, with many players devoting most of their spare time to learning the dynamics of the game. StarCraft is a real-time strategy computer game by Blizzard Entertainment. ...

While a small base of competitive Warcraft II players still exists, most moved on to newer games, such as StarCraft and Warcraft III. As the game grew older, the population of active players diminished, as did the viability of the leagues. Warcraft III: Reign of Chaos, released by Blizzard Entertainment in 2002, is a real-time strategy computer game // Overview An in-game screenshot of humans (blue) fighting orcs (red). ...

Console ports

Tides of Darkness and Beyond the Dark Portal were released together for Sega Saturn and PlayStation under the title Warcraft II: The Dark Saga in 1997 by Electronic Arts. There is also a version for PSP with an improved control interface, so the legacy lives on. The Sega Saturn ) is a 32-bit video game console, first released on November 22, 1994 in Japan, May 11, 1995 in North America and July 8, 1995 in Europe. ... The Sony PlayStation ) is a video game console of the 32/64-bit era, first produced by Sony Computer Entertainment in the mid-1990s. ... EA redirects here. ... PSP most often refers to: PlayStation Portable, a handheld game console produced by Sony Computer Entertainment Corel Paint Shop Pro, a graphics editor for Microsoft Windows, distributed by Corel Corporation PSP may also refer to: Pacifist Socialist Panda, a Dutch political party Palm Springs International Airport, IATA airport code Paralytic...

Warcraft II Alpha

Warcraft II Alpha was an early version of the game given to magazines for early reviews.^[1] Most of the graphics appear the same as those in the final version, but certain elements had not been finalized. An example of this is the mix of Warcraft II units and Warcraft I units available; necromancers and wolf-riders were still a part of the Orc units.

Notes

ArenaNet is a computer game developer and part of NCsoft Corporation, founded by members that played important roles in developing the highly successful computer games Warcraft, StarCraft, Diablo, Diablo II, and the Battle. ... 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the Anno Domini (common) era. ... March 25 is the 84th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (85th in leap years). ...

See also

• Warcraft II: Beyond the Dark Portal
• Warcraft: Orcs and Humans
• Warcraft III: Reign of Chaos
• World of Warcraft
• Wargus, an open-source engine for Warcraft II available for Linux and Windows
• Warcraft Universe

Warcraft II: Tides of Darkness (usually simply called Warcraft II; sometimes abbreviated to WCII or WC2) is a sequel to the popular real-time strategy game Warcraft, published by Blizzard Entertainment in December 1995. ... The original box art for Warcraft: Orcs & Humans. ... Warcraft III: Reign of Chaos, released by Blizzard Entertainment in 2002, is a real-time strategy computer game and the second sequel to Warcraft. ... World of Warcraft (commonly abbreviated as WoW) is a massive multiplayer online role-playing game (MMORPG) developed by Blizzard Entertainment and is the fourth game in the Warcraft series, excluding expansion packs and the cancelled Warcraft Adventures: Lord of the Clans. ... Wargus is a Warcraft II port that allows you to play Warcraft II with the Stratagus engine, as opposed to play it with the original Warcraft II one. ... The Warcraft universe is a fictional universe of the Warcraft series. ...

External links

Official

• Warcraft II Battle.net Edition Home
• Warcraft II Strategy

Reviews

• Warcraft II: Tides of Darkness at MobyGames
• Warcraft II: Battle.net Edition at MobyGames

Fansites

• Warcraft II at WoWWiki, a World of Warcraft wiki
• Warcraft II Occult fan site
• Warcraft II preservation site