Blizzard's latest controversy is a multifaceted one: A number of major problems are plaguing Warcraft 3: Reforged's release, which has led to it earning the lowest Metacritic review score ever. Remakes and remasters are bound to upset some fans, but players are particularly angry about Warcraft 3: Reforged's missing features, glitches, and policies.
Blizzard has been quite the controversy-prone corporation for the last several years. The company most recently came under fire for banning Hearthstone player Blitzchung after he supported Hong Kong's liberation on a Hearthstone broadcast, but Blizzard has been the subject of criticism for years because of Overwatch's role in popularizing loot boxes. Before Warcraft 3: Reforged, Blizzard's last game-specific controversy was the Blizzcon 2018 Diablo Immortal response, which consisted of fans angered by Blizzard's decision to make the next of the Diablo game a mobile one.
The main source of the Warcraft 3: Reforged controversy comes from Blizzard's policy regarding player-created content. Warcraft 3: Reforged's custom games belong to Blizzard under the remaster's new policy, which feels particularly slimy given the game's history. The popular MOBA franchise Dota began as a mod for the original Warcraft 3, so it appears Blizzard is asking players to sign over"moral rights" so that it won't lose out on a potential money-making fan idea again.
It's not just legal policies that fans are taking issue with, though. Players are also upset about Warcraft 3: Reforged features missing from what Blizzard showed off at Blizzcon 2018 (as seen in the comparison below, via YouTube's LeystTV). Rather than actual cutscenes with dynamic camera angles as shown at Blizzcon, the remaster's conversations more closely resemble the original game's, with zoomed-out views of character models talking to each other.
Players are also reporting bugs, graphical issues, freezes, and game crashes, but perhaps Warcraft 3: Reforged's biggest problem is its removal of features from the original. With the release of Reforged, players of the original Warcraft 3 are forced to download the remaster's game client and play with the original graphics (which fans say are also glitched, now) through it. Not only does this mean the new custom games policy also applies to content created for the original, but a number of original-game features are no longer accessible, including cross-region play, custom campaigns, clans, and more. All of this controversy led to Blizzard offering automated refunds for Reforged, but fans - especially those who want to play the original game again - will likely remain angry until Blizzard reverts the changes.
Warcraft 3: Reforged released for PC on January 29, 2020.