Warcraft III: Reign of Chaos (War3 or WC3) is a real-time strategy computer game released by Blizzard Entertainment in July 2002.  It is the second sequel to Warcraft: Orcs & Humans, the third game set in the Warcraft Universe.  The game proved to be one of the most anticipated and popular computer game releases ever, with 4.5 million units preordered and over one million additional units sold within a month.  Warcraft III contains four playable races, including the Humans and Orcs, which had previously appeared in Warcraft: Orcs & Humans and Warcraft II: Tides of Darkness.  In addition to these are the Night Elves and Undead, which are new to the Warcraft mythos.  Warcraft III’s campaign is laid out similarly to that of StarCraft, being told through all four of the game’s races in a progressive manner.

Blizzard Entertainment released two versions of the game: the regular edition and a limited Collector’s Edition.  The collector’s edition box contained a Warcraft III cinematic DVD, including behind-the-scenes features and the cinematics of all prior Warcraft games; a Collector’s Edition Soundtrack; a Collector’s Edition instruction manual; The Art of Warcraft book; and Lithographic Prints.  Warcraft III won many awards including “Game of the Year” from more than six different publications.  An expansion pack, The Frozen Throne, was released in 2003.