The first Warcraft television ad is up on YouTube

Warcraft

The long-awaited Warcraft film trailer debuted at BlizzCon in November, and it was more impressive than I expected. Now the first television spot is out, and it's... well, shorter. But still good!

We opined in our analysis of the BlizzCon trailer that the story seems “geared toward drawing us toward parallels with the orcs' plight and illegal immigration in the United States and the refugee crisis in Europe,” and the television ad would appear to reinforce that.

Orc: “We come in peace.”

Human: “Orcs are beasts!”

Other Human: “What to do?”

Orc: “Behold our savage nobility, as the dream of a better future for our children clashes headlong with a deeply-rooted fear of the unknown, wrought in a long history of thralldom and betrayal and manifest in this KNUCKLE MEGA-SANDWICH!” Kapow!

Okay, maybe that last bit doesn't fit perfectly well with the real world analogy, but you can see where it's headed. Cue misunderstanding, reconciliation, a spot of Orc/Human smoochies, a CGI-fueled rumble in the jungle writ large, and a happy ending, with just a slight whiff of sequel-setup hanging in the air, like that faint smell of smoke that makes you wonder if you left the stove on.

The Duncan Jones-directed Warcraft movie hits screens on June 10.

Andy Chalk

Andy has been gaming on PCs from the very beginning, starting as a youngster with text adventures and primitive action games on a cassette-based TRS80. From there he graduated to the glory days of Sierra Online adventures and Microprose sims, ran a local BBS, learned how to build PCs, and developed a longstanding love of RPGs, immersive sims, and shooters. He began writing videogame news in 2007 for The Escapist and somehow managed to avoid getting fired until 2014, when he joined the storied ranks of PC Gamer. He covers all aspects of the industry, from new game announcements and patch notes to legal disputes, Twitch beefs, esports, and Henry Cavill. Lots of Henry Cavill.