For me, I started out with Warcraft II when it was actually popular and gradually moved onto WoW and Starcraft consequently. Through gaming, I’ve noticed that there are quite a few people who limit themselves to one of the two, believing the other might even be pure blasphemy. I’ll admit, my skills are still significantly greater when it comes to WoW, because I’ve been playing longer, but I am catching up with Starcraft. So what’s the difference?
Playing both, it can really feel like two different worlds. I’ve heard inexperienced players who have never played either game or only played one say that they are the same, but that’s definitely not so. The MMORPG and RTS gameplay are on completely different playing fields, but in addition, I find that the communities are vastly different!
You would think that the communities would be similar, and there are plenty of people who just look at us all as gamers, period, end of story. With the newer generations often turning to Starcraft though, things are changing drastically. If we weren’t competing communities who separate ourselves, we could definitely learn from each other. There are strategies and approaches I’ve learned from both games that I couldn’t have learned from the other. However, both communities are lacking because of our animosity or disinterest.
I don’t know that either community will change any time soon. These games have been around forever and the communities are set in their ways. There are very few of us who go between the two for a reason. However, news and competitions are always coming out for both games. The one thing I have noticed is that Starcraft sites tend to gather a lot of information in one places whereas Warcraft information is extremely spread out. I don’t know which is actually better or more comprehensive for that matter.
Either way, there is a major market out there for both of these games, and the competitions and excellence in playing continues. However, in Starcraft, I wouldn’t count on being the next champ unless you’re a dedicated 16 year old Korean boy (or younger). Based on the championship records, the rest of us just can’t seem to compete.