Put on your troll-skin boots—it’s time to return to Azeroth, where the orcs are once again restless and in need of a lesson in etiquette. While Warcraft II: Remastered has seen a little more effort put into it than Warcraft I: Remastered, it still suffers from the same issue: cheap AI slop, masquerading as improvements. Now, to be fair, it runs better and much smoother than the original (I tried), but the new visuals and the upscaled CGI cutscenes are of poor quality. This means that the only part you pay for is the increased performance, as everything besides that is worse, or on the same level as the original.

I decided that I wanted to experience the canonical storyline of Warcraft up until World of Warcraft. Where else to start than the beginning with the first RTS game in this legendary franchise. Now, I’m not playing the original release, but a remaster simply called Warcraft I: Remastered—made by Blizzard themselves. While it left me with a disjointed feeling towards its presentation, it’s probably the best way to play the original campaign. Many mechanics have been made modern in terms of gameplay, like being able to select larger groups, and hot-key support. 

However, as mentioned, the presentation is questionable at best, with the “improved” graphics seemingly only getting a cheap AI upscaling instead of genuine care to keep the aesthetics and feel of the original game. So, is the remaster worth the trouble, or does it undermine its own legacy?