<s>
Warcraft	B-Application
II	I-Application
:	I-Application
Tides	I-Application
of	I-Application
Darkness	I-Application
is	O
a	O
fantasy	B-Application
real-time	O
strategy	O
computer	O
game	O
developed	O
by	O
Blizzard	O
Entertainment	O
and	O
released	O
for	O
DOS	B-Device
in	O
1995	O
and	O
Mac	B-Application
OS	I-Application
in	O
1996	O
by	O
Blizzard	O
's	O
parent	O
,	O
Davidson	O
&	O
Associates	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
A	O
sequel	O
to	O
Warcraft	B-Application
:	I-Application
Orcs	I-Application
&	I-Application
Humans	I-Application
,	O
the	O
game	O
was	O
met	O
with	O
positive	O
reviews	O
and	O
won	O
most	O
of	O
the	O
major	O
PC	O
gaming	O
awards	O
in	O
1996	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
1996	O
,	O
Blizzard	O
released	O
an	O
expansion	O
pack	O
,	O
Warcraft	B-Application
II	I-Application
:	I-Application
Beyond	I-Application
the	I-Application
Dark	I-Application
Portal	I-Application
,	O
for	O
DOS	B-Device
and	O
Mac	B-Application
OS	I-Application
,	O
and	O
a	O
compilation	O
,	O
Warcraft	B-Application
II	I-Application
:	I-Application
The	I-Application
Dark	I-Application
Saga	I-Application
,	O
for	O
the	O
PlayStation	B-Device
and	O
Sega	B-Device
Saturn	I-Device
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
Battle.net	B-Operating_System
edition	O
,	O
released	O
in	O
1999	O
,	O
included	O
Warcraft	B-Application
II	I-Application
:	I-Application
Beyond	I-Application
the	I-Application
Dark	I-Application
Portal	I-Application
,	O
provided	O
Blizzard	O
's	O
online	O
gaming	O
service	O
,	O
and	O
replaced	O
the	O
MS-DOS	B-Application
version	O
with	O
a	O
Windows	B-Application
one	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
Warcraft	B-Application
II	I-Application
,	O
as	O
in	O
many	O
real-time	O
strategy	O
(	O
RTS	O
)	O
games	O
,	O
players	O
collect	O
resources	O
to	O
produce	O
buildings	O
and	O
units	O
in	O
order	O
to	O
defeat	O
an	O
opponent	O
in	O
combat	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Warcraft	B-Application
II	I-Application
was	O
a	O
commercial	O
hit	O
,	O
with	O
global	O
sales	O
above	O
3	O
million	O
units	O
by	O
2001	O
;	O
roughly	O
two-thirds	O
were	O
sold	O
in	O
the	O
United	O
States	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
game	O
strongly	O
influenced	O
the	O
company	O
's	O
next	O
successful	O
RTS	O
,	O
the	O
futuristic	O
StarCraft	B-Application
(	O
1998	O
)	O
in	O
gameplay	O
,	O
and	O
in	O
attention	O
to	O
personality	O
and	O
storyline	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
1996	O
,	O
Blizzard	O
announced	O
Warcraft	B-Application
Adventures	I-Application
:	I-Application
Lord	I-Application
of	I-Application
the	I-Application
Clans	I-Application
,	O
an	O
adventure	O
game	O
in	O
the	O
Warcraft	B-Application
universe	O
,	O
but	O
canceled	O
the	O
project	O
in	O
1998	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Warcraft	B-Application
III	I-Application
:	I-Application
Reign	I-Application
of	I-Application
Chaos	I-Application
,	O
released	O
in	O
2002	O
,	O
used	O
parts	O
of	O
Warcraft	O
Adventures'''	O
characters	O
and	O
storyline	O
,	O
but	O
extended	O
the	O
gameplay	O
used	O
in	O
Warcraft	B-Application
II	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
Warcraft	B-Application
II	I-Application
one	O
side	O
represents	O
the	O
human	O
inhabitants	O
of	O
Lordaeron	O
and	O
allied	O
races	O
,	O
and	O
the	O
other	O
controls	O
the	O
invading	O
orcs	O
and	O
their	O
allied	O
races	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
game	O
is	O
played	O
in	O
a	O
medieval	O
setting	O
with	O
fantasy	B-Application
elements	O
,	O
where	O
both	O
sides	O
have	O
melee	O
,	O
ranged	O
,	O
naval	O
and	O
aerial	O
units	O
,	O
and	O
spellcasters.WC2	O
Tides	O
:	O
Manual	O
Alliance	O
&	O
Orc	O
Units	O
,	O
pp	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
editor	O
runs	O
under	O
the	O
Mac	O
and	O
also	O
under	O
either	O
Windows	B-Application
95	I-Application
or	O
,	O
if	O
the	O
WinG	O
library	O
was	O
installed	O
,	O
under	O
Windows	B-Application
3	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
DOS	B-Device
version	O
initially	O
provided	O
multiplayer	O
games	O
by	O
null	O
modem	B-Application
cable	O
,	O
modem	B-Application
or	O
IPX	B-Protocol
,	O
and	O
Mac	O
players	O
could	O
also	O
play	O
via	O
TCP/IP	B-Protocol
or	O
AppleTalk	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
Blizzard	O
quickly	O
released	O
a	O
facility	O
to	O
connect	O
with	O
Kali	B-Protocol
,	O
which	O
allows	O
programs	O
to	O
access	O
the	O
Web	O
by	O
means	O
of	O
IPX	B-Protocol
.	O
</s>
<s>
Units	O
and	O
buildings	O
can	O
be	O
selected	O
by	O
clicking	O
or	O
bandboxing	B-Application
(	O
i.e.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
First	O
War	O
brought	O
the	O
Fall	O
of	O
Azeroth	O
,	O
following	O
the	O
Orc	O
campaign	O
in	O
Warcraft	B-Application
:	I-Application
Orcs	I-Application
&	I-Application
Humans	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
game	O
's	O
narrative	O
is	O
continued	O
in	O
the	O
expansion	O
pack	O
Warcraft	B-Application
II	I-Application
:	I-Application
Beyond	I-Application
the	I-Application
Dark	I-Application
Portal	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
After	O
seeing	O
the	O
excellent	O
response	O
of	O
Warcraft	B-Application
:	I-Application
Orcs	I-Application
&	I-Application
Humans	I-Application
,	O
released	O
in	O
November	O
1994	O
,	O
Blizzard	O
Entertainment	O
started	O
working	O
on	O
Warcraft	B-Application
II	I-Application
:	I-Application
Tides	I-Application
of	I-Application
Darkness	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
Development	O
began	O
in	O
February	O
1995	O
and	O
the	O
game	O
was	O
released	O
in	O
December	O
for	O
MS-DOS	B-Application
and	O
in	O
August	O
1996	O
for	O
the	O
Macintosh	B-Device
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
response	O
of	O
Warcraft	B-Application
:	I-Application
Orcs	I-Application
&	I-Application
Humans	I-Application
also	O
allowed	O
Blizzard	O
to	O
recruit	O
additional	O
top-class	O
developers	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
company	O
's	O
initial	O
design	O
combined	O
modern	O
and	O
fantasy	B-Application
elements	O
,	O
such	O
as	O
fighter	O
pilots	O
ambushed	O
by	O
a	O
fire-breathing	O
dragon	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
However	O
,	O
they	O
found	O
that	O
this	O
was	O
unsatisfactory	O
,	O
and	O
that	O
there	O
was	O
plenty	O
of	O
content	O
for	O
a	O
fantasy	B-Application
RTS	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
initial	O
release	O
of	O
Warcraft	B-Application
II	I-Application
:	I-Application
Tides	I-Application
of	I-Application
Darkness	I-Application
ran	O
over	O
a	O
local	B-General_Concept
area	I-General_Concept
network	I-General_Concept
using	O
IPX	B-Protocol
but	O
not	O
over	O
the	O
Internet	O
communications	O
protocol	O
TCP/IP	B-Protocol
.	O
</s>
<s>
Kali	B-Protocol
,	O
which	O
used	O
the	O
Internet	O
as	O
if	O
it	O
was	O
a	O
local	B-General_Concept
area	I-General_Concept
network	I-General_Concept
,	O
became	O
very	O
popular	O
and	O
Blizzard	O
quickly	O
provided	O
to	O
players	O
a	O
program	O
that	O
made	O
it	O
easy	O
to	O
set	O
up	O
multiplayer	O
Warcraft	B-Application
II	I-Application
games	O
using	O
Kali	B-Protocol
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
1996	O
Blizzard	O
published	O
Warcraft	B-Application
II	I-Application
:	I-Application
Beyond	I-Application
the	I-Application
Dark	I-Application
Portal	I-Application
,	O
an	O
expansion	O
pack	O
initially	O
contracted	O
out	O
to	O
Cyberlore	O
Studios	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Later	O
that	O
year	O
the	O
company	O
released	O
Warcraft	B-Application
II	I-Application
:	O
Battle	O
Chest	O
,	O
a	O
compilation	O
of	O
Tides	B-Application
of	I-Application
Darkness	I-Application
and	O
Beyond	B-Application
the	I-Application
Dark	I-Application
Portal	I-Application
,	O
for	O
DOS	B-Device
and	O
Windows	B-Application
3	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
1997	O
Electronic	O
Arts	O
released	O
Warcraft	B-Application
II	I-Application
:	I-Application
The	I-Application
Dark	I-Application
Saga	I-Application
for	O
the	O
Sony	B-Device
PlayStation	I-Device
and	O
Sega	B-Device
Saturn	I-Device
,	O
which	O
combined	O
the	O
campaigns	O
of	O
Warcraft	B-Application
II	I-Application
:	I-Application
Tides	I-Application
of	I-Application
Darkness	I-Application
and	O
Warcraft	B-Application
II	I-Application
:	I-Application
Beyond	I-Application
the	I-Application
Dark	I-Application
Portal	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
Dark	O
Saga	O
also	O
allowed	O
players	O
to	O
automate	O
upgrade	O
of	O
buildings	O
and	O
production	O
of	O
units	O
,	O
and	O
to	O
select	O
more	O
troops	O
at	O
once	O
,	O
facilities	O
that	O
were	O
not	O
extended	O
to	O
the	O
DOS	B-Device
and	O
Mac	O
versions	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Early	O
betas	O
of	O
The	O
Dark	O
Saga	O
included	O
a	O
working	O
two-player	O
mode	O
which	O
utilized	O
the	O
consoles	B-Device
 '	O
respective	O
link	O
cable	O
peripherals	O
,	O
but	O
Electronic	O
Arts	O
eliminated	O
this	O
feature	O
before	O
the	O
final	O
release	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
1999	O
Blizzard	O
published	O
the	O
Warcraft	B-Application
II	I-Application
:	I-Application
Battle.net	I-Application
Edition	I-Application
for	O
Windows	B-Application
and	O
Mac	O
,	O
which	O
combined	O
the	O
original	O
game	O
and	O
the	O
expansion	O
pack	O
,	O
retained	O
the	O
Macintosh	B-Device
facilities	O
and	O
replaced	O
the	O
DOS	B-Device
version	O
with	O
a	O
Windows	B-Application
version	O
that	O
included	O
Blizzard	O
's	O
online	O
service	O
,	O
Battle.net,	O
for	O
multiplayer	O
games	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Battle.net	B-Operating_System
Edition	O
included	O
some	O
user	B-Application
interface	I-Application
enhancements	O
from	O
StarCraft	B-Application
–	O
a	O
hot	O
key	O
to	O
center	O
on	O
events	O
,	O
assigning	O
numbers	O
to	O
groups	O
of	O
units	O
,	O
and	O
double-clicking	O
to	O
select	O
all	O
units	O
of	O
a	O
type	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
SalesWarcraft	O
II	O
debuted	O
at	O
#2	O
on	O
PC	O
Data	O
's	O
monthly	O
computer	O
game	O
sales	O
chart	O
for	O
December	O
1995	O
,	O
behind	O
Myst	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
Warcraft	B-Application
II	I-Application
achieved	O
worldwide	O
sales	O
of	O
500,000	O
units	O
within	O
three	O
months	O
of	O
release	O
,	O
and	O
of	O
over	O
1.2	O
million	O
by	O
November	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
the	O
United	O
States	O
,	O
it	O
was	O
the	O
second-best-selling	O
computer	O
game	O
of	O
1996	O
,	O
again	O
behind	O
Myst	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
To	O
capitalize	O
on	O
this	O
success	O
,	O
Blizzard	O
released	O
the	O
Warcraft	B-Application
Battlechest	O
on	O
November	O
11	O
,	O
which	O
bundled	O
Warcraft	B-Application
:	I-Application
Orcs	I-Application
&	I-Application
Humans	I-Application
with	O
Warcraft	B-Application
II	I-Application
and	O
the	O
Beyond	B-Application
the	I-Application
Dark	I-Application
Portal	I-Application
add-on.Warcraft	O
II	O
claimed	O
position	O
13	O
in	O
PC	O
Data	O
's	O
monthly	O
sales	O
rankings	O
for	O
January	O
1997	O
,	O
while	O
the	O
Warcraft	B-Application
Battlechest	O
SKU	O
took	O
sixth	O
place	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
Warcraft	B-Application
Battlechest	O
was	O
the	O
United	O
States	O
 '	O
17th-highest	O
computer	O
game	O
seller	O
of	O
the	O
year	O
,	O
with	O
sales	O
of	O
262,911	O
units	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
By	O
April	O
1998	O
,	O
Warcraft	B-Application
IIs	I-Application
basic	O
SKU	O
had	O
sold	O
1.02	O
million	O
units	O
and	O
earned	O
$39.8	O
million	O
in	O
revenue	O
in	O
the	O
United	O
States	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Warcraft	B-Application
II	I-Application
as	O
a	O
whole	O
reached	O
2	O
million	O
global	O
sales	O
by	O
July	O
1998	O
,	O
and	O
passed	O
2.5	O
million	O
by	O
year	O
's	O
end	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Sales	O
continued	O
the	O
following	O
month	O
,	O
when	O
the	O
Warcraft	B-Application
II	I-Application
Battle.net	B-Operating_System
Edition	O
SKU	O
finished	O
20th	O
for	O
October	O
in	O
the	O
country	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
As	O
of	O
2001	O
,	O
worldwide	O
sales	O
of	O
Warcraft	B-Application
II	I-Application
had	O
surpassed	O
3	O
million	O
units	O
,	O
with	O
two-thirds	O
derived	O
from	O
the	O
United	O
States	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Critical	O
reviewsWarcraft	O
II	O
:	O
Tides	B-Application
of	I-Application
Darkness	I-Application
earned	O
enthusiastic	O
reviews	O
,	O
elevating	O
Blizzard	O
to	O
the	O
elite	O
along	O
with	O
Westwood	O
Studios	O
,	O
id	O
Software	O
and	O
LucasArts	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
rivalry	O
between	O
Blizzard	O
's	O
series	O
and	O
Westwood	O
Studios	O
 '	O
Command	B-Application
&	I-Application
Conquer	I-Application
series	O
fueled	O
the	O
RTS	O
boom	O
of	O
the	O
late	O
1990s	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
1996	O
GameSpot	O
,	O
Next	O
Generation	O
,	O
and	O
Computer	O
Games	O
Magazine	O
regarded	O
the	O
AI	O
as	O
better	O
than	O
in	O
Warcraft	B-Application
:	I-Application
Orcs	I-Application
&	I-Application
Humans	I-Application
,	O
and	O
Computer	O
Games	O
Magazine	O
also	O
said	O
that	O
Warcraft	B-Application
II	I-Application
"	O
surpasses	O
the	O
original	O
game	O
in	O
almost	O
every	O
way	O
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Next	O
Generation	O
said	O
that	O
the	O
new	O
units	O
and	O
resources	O
open	O
up	O
a	O
multitude	O
of	O
strategic	O
possibilities	O
,	O
but	O
that	O
the	O
game	O
's	O
greatest	O
improvement	O
over	O
the	O
original	O
Warcraft	B-Application
is	I-Application
its	O
intuitive	O
new	O
control	O
system	O
which	O
allows	O
players	O
to	O
select	O
multiple	O
units	O
at	O
once	O
and	O
access	O
command	O
menus	O
by	O
right-clicking	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Andy	O
Butcher	O
reviewed	O
Warcraft	B-Application
2	I-Application
:	I-Application
Tides	I-Application
of	I-Application
Darkness	I-Application
for	O
Arcane	O
magazine	O
,	O
commenting	O
that	O
"	O
Warcraft	B-Application
2	I-Application
is	O
a	O
great	O
game	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
"	O
PC	O
Gamer	O
US	O
named	O
Warcraft	B-Application
II	I-Application
the	O
best	O
game	O
of	O
1995	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
editors	O
called	O
it	O
an	O
"	O
easy	O
"	O
choice	O
,	O
and	O
wrote	O
that	O
"	O
Warcraft	B-Application
II	I-Application
stand[s]	O
out	O
—	O
way	O
out	O
—	O
as	O
the	O
most	O
impressive	O
,	O
most	O
entertaining	O
,	O
game	O
of	O
1995	O
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
magazine	O
also	O
presented	O
Warcraft	B-Application
II	I-Application
with	O
the	O
award	O
for	O
1995	O
's	O
"	O
Best	O
Multi-Player	O
Game	O
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
It	O
also	O
won	O
Computer	O
Game	O
Reviews	O
1995	O
"	O
Military	O
Sim	O
of	O
the	O
Year	O
"	O
award	O
,	O
tied	O
with	O
Steel	B-Application
Panthers	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
same	O
year	O
,	O
Next	O
Generation	O
listed	O
it	O
as	O
number	O
10	O
on	O
their	O
"	O
Top	O
100	O
Games	O
of	O
All	O
Time	O
"	O
,	O
explaining	O
that	O
"	O
The	O
strategy	O
is	O
complex	O
,	O
the	O
classy	O
SVGA	O
graphics	O
keep	O
the	O
player	O
in	O
touch	O
with	O
everything	O
that	O
's	O
going	O
on	O
,	O
and	O
WarCraft	B-Application
II	I-Application
features	O
the	O
best	O
use	O
of	O
sampled	O
speech	O
we	O
've	O
ever	O
experienced.	O
"	O
</s>
<s>
Warcraft	B-Application
II	I-Application
was	O
a	O
runner-up	O
for	O
Computer	O
Gaming	O
Worlds	O
1995	O
"	O
Strategy	O
Game	O
of	O
the	O
Year	O
"	O
award	O
,	O
which	O
ultimately	O
went	O
to	O
Command	B-Application
&	I-Application
Conquer	I-Application
and	O
Heroes	B-Application
of	I-Application
Might	I-Application
and	I-Application
Magic	I-Application
(	O
tie	O
)	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
editors	O
wrote	O
that	O
Warcraft	B-Application
II	I-Application
"	O
will	O
keep	O
you	O
glued	O
to	O
the	O
computer	O
for	O
hours	O
on	O
end	O
"	O
,	O
and	O
noted	O
that	O
it	O
"	O
could	O
have	O
won	O
had	O
the	O
competition	O
not	O
been	O
so	O
strong.	O
"	O
</s>
<s>
MacUser	O
declared	O
Warcraft	B-Application
II	I-Application
one	O
of	O
1996	O
's	O
top	O
50	O
CD-ROMs	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
1996	O
,	O
Computer	O
Gaming	O
World	O
declared	O
Warcraft	B-Application
II	I-Application
the	O
28th-best	O
computer	O
game	O
ever	O
released	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
IGN	O
review	O
considered	O
WarCraft	B-Application
II	I-Application
in	O
general	O
a	O
well-balanced	O
game	O
,	O
but	O
GameSpots	O
retrospective	O
review	O
regarded	O
Ogre-Mages	O
with	O
the	O
Bloodlust	O
spell	O
as	O
too	O
powerful	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
WarCraft	B-Application
II	I-Application
won	O
most	O
of	O
the	O
major	O
PC	O
gaming	O
awards	O
in	O
1996	O
,	O
and	O
sold	O
millions	O
of	O
copies	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Players	O
were	O
still	O
playing	O
in	O
2002	O
,	O
on	O
DOS	B-Device
or	O
using	O
the	O
Battle.net	B-Operating_System
edition	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Retrospective	O
reviews	O
by	O
IGN	O
and	O
GameSpot	O
emphasized	O
the	O
ability	O
to	O
join	O
multiplayer	O
games	O
on	O
local	B-General_Concept
networks	I-General_Concept
or	O
using	O
Kali	B-Protocol
,	O
and	O
the	O
simple	O
but	O
effective	O
map	O
editor	O
,	O
with	O
which	O
some	O
users	O
published	O
maps	O
on	O
the	O
Web	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
2006	O
,	O
Warcraft	B-Application
II	I-Application
was	O
inducted	O
into	O
GameSpot	O
's	O
list	O
of	O
the	O
greatest	O
games	O
of	O
all	O
time	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
Dark	O
SagaGameSpot	O
described	O
the	O
ports	O
of	O
the	O
consoles	B-Device
Sony	B-Device
PlayStation	I-Device
and	O
Sega	B-Device
Saturn	I-Device
,	O
combining	O
Warcraft	B-Application
II	I-Application
:	I-Application
Tides	I-Application
of	I-Application
Darkness	I-Application
and	O
Warcraft	B-Application
II	I-Application
:	I-Application
Beyond	I-Application
the	I-Application
Dark	I-Application
Portal	I-Application
,	O
as	O
practically	O
identical	O
to	O
the	O
PC	O
version	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Absolute	O
PlayStation	B-Device
,	O
in	O
contrast	O
,	O
regarded	O
the	O
graphics	O
as	O
impressive	O
and	O
the	O
console	O
buttons	O
as	O
easy	O
to	O
use.Absolute	O
PlayStation	B-Device
,	O
Sega	B-Device
Saturn	I-Device
Magazine	O
,	O
Electronic	O
Gaming	O
Monthly	O
,	O
and	O
GamePro	O
commented	O
that	O
the	O
console	O
versions	O
have	O
no	O
multiplayer	O
capability	O
,	O
but	O
were	O
impressed	O
with	O
the	O
number	O
of	O
campaign	O
and	O
skirmish	O
maps	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Most	O
reviews	O
of	O
the	O
Saturn	B-Device
version	O
criticized	O
the	O
lack	O
of	O
support	O
for	O
the	O
Sega	B-Application
NetLink	I-Application
peripheral	O
,	O
which	O
could	O
have	O
enabled	O
online	O
multiplayer	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Most	O
reviews	O
for	O
the	O
PlayStation	B-Device
and	O
Saturn	B-Device
versions	O
suggested	O
that	O
players	O
with	O
PCs	O
should	O
not	O
buy	O
the	O
console	O
versions	O
,	O
but	O
recommended	O
the	O
game	O
to	O
those	O
who	O
use	O
only	O
consoles	B-Device
.	O
</s>
<s>
Electronic	O
Gaming	O
Monthly	O
gave	O
the	O
Saturn	B-Device
version	O
their	O
"	O
Game	O
of	O
the	O
Month	O
"	O
award	O
and	O
later	O
named	O
both	O
console	O
versions	O
a	O
runner-up	O
for	O
"	O
Strategy	O
Game	O
of	O
the	O
Year	O
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Absolute	O
PlayStation	B-Device
omitted	O
comparisons	O
with	O
the	O
PC	O
and	O
praised	O
the	O
console	O
versions	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Sega	B-Device
Saturn	I-Device
Magazine	O
called	O
it	O
"	O
a	O
highly	O
enjoyable	O
and	O
compelling	O
strategy	O
warfare	O
game	O
"	O
and	O
praised	O
the	O
Saturn	B-Device
version	O
as	O
superior	O
to	O
the	O
PC	O
original	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Battle.net	B-Operating_System
EditionGameSpot	O
thought	O
the	O
AI	O
was	O
predictable	O
but	O
very	O
efficient	O
and	O
the	O
multiplayer	O
facilities	O
,	O
while	O
four	O
years	O
old	O
,	O
made	O
it	O
more	O
enjoyable	O
than	O
at	O
least	O
half	O
the	O
new	O
RTS	O
games	O
released	O
in	O
1999	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
Battle.net	B-Operating_System
service	O
was	O
already	O
reliable	O
after	O
being	O
refined	O
through	O
experience	O
on	O
Diablo	B-Application
and	O
StarCraft	B-Application
,	O
and	O
the	O
fact	O
that	O
it	O
was	O
free	O
would	O
be	O
attractive	O
both	O
to	O
new	O
users	O
and	O
those	O
of	O
earlier	O
editions	O
.	O
</s>
