I never would have noticed it unless it were pointed out to me, but there’s a certain puzzling trend with Blizzard’s cinematics that started around Warcraft III. They show you something awesome about to happen, and then they cut away before it does.
This proud tradition continues on in the newly released opening cinematic for World of Warcraft: Wrath of the Lich King.
“He just raised an undead dragon! Oh man, I bet stuff is going to get wrecked now! He… oh, we’re done.”
Same with that Starcraft II teaser from last year. I bet whatever that guy did after he put on his armor was totally sweet.
Of course, these are teasers, but the same thing started in Warcraft III. Two guys about to fight a huge burning demon? Cut. Two tremendous armies about to clash? Cut. Son about to kill his father? Cut to shadows. Demon about to destroy a city? Cut to the end.
I realize the dramatic potential of such a move, but geez, it would be nice to see something once in a while. Remember how at the beginning of Diablo II all those demons leaped out of the fires of the inn and torched the place while the narrator looked on, helpless? It was a nice little anecdote with a beginning and ending, but it still set up the promise of even more awesome things to come.
Take a look at this trailer for the Warhammer MMO. The ending is textbook Blizzard, but the difference is, a bunch of awesome stuff has already happened. Did you see when that little gobliny guy planted a squig, beat on it until it was huge, taunted it into eating him and then controlled it by tugging on its insides? Now that gets me excited about playing.
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