After three great strategy games, the Total War: Warhammer series has come to an end. While there is still loads of DLC to look forward to, it seems like Creative Assembly is ready to move on to a new setting. There is a strong likelihood that the studio focuses on more historical settings for the time being, but Total War: Warhammer showed that the series can also thrive in a pre-established fantasy IP. It would be a missed opportunity if Creative Assembly did not capitalize on that potential, and one of the best IPs for it may be Blizzard's Warcraft franchise.
The Warcraft franchise is one of the biggest fantasy video game franchises around, and it is showing no signs of slowing down. World of Warcraft just launched its ninth expansion, the series is preparing to explore the mobile market with Warcraft: Arclight Rumble, and multiple tie-in novels release every year. Its world has enthralled millions of people over the years, and it is just waiting to be further explored. It was already heavily inspired by Warhammer, and now it should follow in its footsteps with the Total War series.
Total War and Warcraft Were Made for Each Other
Total War is one of the most popular PC strategy series, and each entry seems to make it even more popular. Creative Assembly has been able to craft exciting large-scale battles across multiple different historical eras, and its Total War: Warhammer trilogy showed that the studio is not limited to real-world events. It has delighted strategy fans since its creation, so hopefully Creative Assembly is looking for a new fantasy series to adapt.
Warcraft started as an RTS series before Blizzard took it to a whole new level with the launch of World of Warcraft. For decades, it has been entertaining fantasy fans with its world, characters, and wild story. While it may have deviated from its roots immensely, the MMORPG that drew fans to the series has persisted for more than 18 years. Even through its rocky patches, the Warcraft brand has continued to be one of the strongest fantasy franchises in gaming today.
The success of the Total War series combined with the popularity of Warcraft seems like the perfect match. Warcraft is filled with dozens of unique factions all warring for a slice of Azeroth, and it is known for large-scale battles that shaped the landscape. The Warcraft RTS series put these battles at the forefront, and a Total War: Warcraft game could do that all over again. If Blizzard does not want to release a new RTS, then it should hand the reins to Creative Assembly.
Creative Assembly could do a lot with the Warcraft brand if it was given the chance. It could redo the events of the Warcraft RTS series with its Total War framework, explore major World of Warcraft events like Battle for Azeroth through the lens of the factions fighting to claim Azeroth, or adapt battles that the series has only talked about. The world of Azeroth is filled with centuries of war, and the Total War series would be the perfect place to showcase that.
There haven't been any rumors hinting at Total War: Warcraft, but the conclusion of Total War: Warhammer should pave the way for a crossover like this. Microsoft already seems to have a good working relationship with the studio since it worked on Halo Wars 2 and launched Total War: Warhammer 3 on Game Pass. If everything goes in Microsoft's favor, then it will soon own the Warcraft brand, and it should let Creative Assembly mess around with its characters. It could be a fantastic crossover between two of gaming's biggest brands.
Total War: Warhammer 3 is available now for PC.