Blizzard has announced that Warcraft III: Reforged will be released at the end of January 2020.

The game is a remaster of 2002’s hit strategy title Warcraft III: Reign of Chaos, and will also include the Frozen Throne expansion.

The original was a huge commercial success and is considered to be a big influence on the contemporary real-time strategy (RTS) genre.

It also spawned what would become a massively-popular multiplayer spin-off in the form of its Defence of the Ancients (DOTA) mod.

Delayed launch

The company previously said that the reworked version will be launched “sometime in 2019”, but explained in a blog post that it wanted to ensure a polished final product was launched.

“Though we’ve been working hard to get Reforged in your hands before the end of the year, as we started approaching the finish line, we felt we’d need a little extra development time for finishing touches. As always, our goal is to honor the high standards you hold us to,” Blizzard said.

The refreshed game will not only feature much-improved graphics and audio, but a number of changes to its multiplayer component, including rebalanced online play and contemporary social and matchmaking features.

The game will be available in South Africa from 29 January 2020.

Pre-orders for Warcraft III: Reforged are now open, with the standard edition priced at $29.99 (R430).

A special Spoils of War bundle, which includes skins and other extras for Warcraft III and Blizzard titles like Overwatch and Diablo III, is also available at $39.99 (R570).