When RTS games were still very popular more than a decade ago, there were 4 RTS games that were loved by players: Age of Empires 2, Red Alert 2, StarCraft and Warcraft 3. However, in these 4 games, whether it is popularity or popularity, Warcraft 3 is undoubtedly the highest, under the promotion of the e-sports event WCG, Warcraft 3 can almost be regarded as a national RTS game in the player group, and the number of Warcraft 3 on major battle platforms is far more than other RTS games.
The reason why Warcraft 3 has such a high popularity Many people think that it is inseparable from its unique hero design mechanism, because in so many RTS games, only it has added a gameplay mechanism that is only available in RPG games such as "Heroes", so this unique gameplay also makes Warcraft 3 stand out among many RTS games.
It's just that most players may not know that in Blizzard's early design scheme, Warcraft 3 did not have a "hero" unit, and their original plan was to design some elite classes with special skills. For example, the Terran Archmage was originally an elite class with Blizzard and Sheep Transformation skills, but could not be upgraded. Paladins are not originally heroes, but rather an upgrade option for knights, who can upgrade to paladins and learn the magic of light. It's just that when it comes to the final official version, the elite class is canceled and a separate hero mechanic is adopted.
I have also seen someone ask on the forum before, if Blizzard at that time adopted the original plan and canceled the "hero" mechanism, would Warcraft 3 still be as popular as it is now. Personally, I think that if there was no "hero" gameplay, Warcraft 3 would be more competitive, but it would never be as popular as it is now.
You can recall, Warcraft 3 is based on what popularity to the present, is it really just by relying on competitiveness to ensure that a large number of players will be playing in 20 years? The answer is actually no, Warcraft 3 has been popular for so many years, and it really depends on the unique gameplay of "heroes". Let me give you an example of how many classic gameplay styles have been derived from the hero setting:
1. The "hero" setting directly led to the fire of the Warcraft 3 campaign mode, why Arthas and Illidan have been the popular kings of the Warcraft series for so many years is because the four major races of Warcraft 3 have shaped them into the hearts of the people. And without the setting of heroes, then Arthas in campaign mode may only be a high-level infantryman, unable to level up, nor can he pick up equipment, players will lose the most important sense of character growth, and the impression of the character will not be as deep as it is now.
2. The "hero" setting allows many newcomers who have no RTS game experience to easily get started with the game, RTS games have always had a high threshold for getting started, like Blizzard's other RTS game StarCraft has high requirements for players' hand speed and operation, so that many players who have not been exposed to this kind of game will be daunted and dare not enter the pit, for fear of not having a game experience.
"Heroes" can greatly lower the threshold of the game, and players can improve the game's forgiveness by leveling up heroes to learn powerful skills and obtain powerful equipment items. In particular, high-level heroes have the effect of turning the tide of battle in many cases, such as a level 6 demon hunter or even a person can fight a small army on the opposite side, this setting can help players have the hope of turning defeat into victory when facing opponents stronger than themselves, so as not to be powerless like other RTS games.
3. The "hero" setting is also a necessary condition for various secondary maps and gameplay later, I believe we all know that Warcraft 3 can be popular for so many years in fact, it is more dependent on the various secondary creation gameplay after that, such as the famous Chenghai, 3C, tower defense gameplay, DOTA, etc. are all made with the map editor that comes with the game, and it is these colorful maps and gameplay that have allowed a large number of players to play until now.
And the core of so many map gameplay is the hero in Warcraft 3, no matter what gameplay is designed with the hero unit in the original game as the core, if there is no hero, then it is impossible to give birth to so many secondary gameplay. There will be no Dota maps, and even MOBA gameplay will have to be years late.
4. The "hero" setting is also one of the important reasons for the birth of "World of Warcraft", because many characters in the campaign have left a very deep impression on players, so they have also gained a particularly high popularity, on the basis of which Blizzard also came up with the idea of expanding Warcraft 3 into a larger world view. Thus came the milestone of the online game "World of Warcraft".
You can find that the most popular characters in "World of Warcraft" over the years are still those ones, such as Arthas, Illidan, Thrall, Gianna, etc., these characters are the main characters who have appeared in "Warcraft 3". If the hero settings in the game were canceled back then, then these popular characters would not be able to appear in the player's sight, and "Warcraft 3" is likely to be as obscure as the previous two previous games, and "World of Warcraft" will most likely not be available.
summary
In my opinion, the setting of "Hero" is the key reason for the success of "Warcraft 3", if this setting was canceled back then, then Warcraft is destined to be a niche game, it is impossible to have such a huge fan base as it is now, and the IP of Warcraft cannot be as famous as it is now. From my personal point of view, if it weren't for the setting of heroes, I guess I would have been a casual player in Age of Empires 2 back then, and it would have been impossible to try Warcraft, what do you think?