The cost of buildings has been decreased as well, allowing for a quicker start of the game. The food limit and the upkeep requirements, which dealt a penalty on resource gain when too many units were active at the same time, have both been increased slightly, leading to the ability to mobilize somewhat larger and more powerful forces. The expansion fine-tunes the gameplay of the main game rather than changing it. Warcraft III: The Frozen Throne is a real-time strategy video game that puts players in control of a group of units and buildings in order to achieve a variety of goals. Main article: Warcraft III: Reign of Chaos § Gameplay By August 15, 2003, it had sold more than one million copies. The design and audio of the new units was generally considered fitting, though a few critics bemoaned the graphics and some of the voice-acting. Most reviewers praised the mission design of the single-player campaign for positively deviating from the standard real-time strategy game formula. The Frozen Throne received generally favorable reviews from critics. Support continues even after release, with Blizzard adding new content and balancing changes as well as support for newer hardware. Public beta tests allowed 20,000 players in two waves to try the new features. powered multiplayer was expanded by the addition of clans, automated tournaments and new maps and custom scenarios.ĭevelopment began in October 2002, shortly after the release of the main game and the expansion was announced on January 22, 2003. Sea units were reintroduced which were absent in Reign of Chaos. The expansion adds new units, buildings and heroes for each faction, two new auxiliary races, five neutral heroes (with three more later added by patches) as well as a number of tweaks to the gameplay and balancing. Additionally, the expansion contains Act I of a separate Horde campaign that is independent from the main storyline with Blizzard releasing Acts II and III via patch in December 2003, taking in player feedback of Act I when developing these chapters. The single-player unfolds from the perspective of two new protagonists-the Night Elf warden Maiev Shadowsong and the Blood Elf prince Kael'Thas-as well as returning protagonist Arthas Menethil. The Frozen Throne builds upon the story of Reign of Chaos and depicts the events after the main game's conclusion. It was released worldwide on Jfor Microsoft Windows and Mac OS X. Warcraft III: The Frozen Throne is the expansion pack for Warcraft III: Reign of Chaos, a real-time strategy video game by Blizzard Entertainment.