EPIC Trailer Music for World of Warcraft - Old Composer Video Game OST Reviews

[@dragonsafterdark1]

It's been almost 15 years, and this trailer still gives me chills.

[@tomaszpaz5189]

Every single time. Yes.

[@whipdan674]

And that was the last critically acclaimed title Blizzard released, after that was all downhill. Every franchise a shadow of what they once were.

[@MaraBlaine]

The best cinematic! My top 3 wow cinematic : 1.Lich King, 2. Shadowlands, 3. Mists of Pandaria! Of all time)

[@hordenallimaniafan2565]

It's almost 15 years and I still know this exact words with the right timing in English and German xD

[@hordenallimaniafan2565]

@@MaraBlaine For me it is 3. Legion (Love the Voice over from Varian and the tense background music), 2. Cata (Pain.... Agony... the power behind this voice and the hammer beats in the background and the breaks are great) 1. WotLK

[@SpookyStu]

It’s a song heralding the coming reign of a truly tortured, but malignant ruler. The story of Arthas is wild. Been coming back to this for years.

[@Supernatpy]

Story of Arthas is literally copy of Darth Vader's story

[@fargoth391]

@@Supernatpy SHUT UP!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[@TheOnlyGBeast]

@@Supernatpy no it's not

[@Supernatpy]

@@TheOnlyGBeast Yes it is

[@TheOnlyGBeast]

@@Supernatpy if ur delusional enough to believe that then ur hopeless broski

[@deemer3918]

This is still the best trailer they've ever done for this game. Nothing else has come close, not even all these years later.

[@mrShade-sb1th]

Well it's the only trailer done for THIS game xD

[@mithren1358]

The WoD comes really close. The only reason this is better is because of the lore/hype surrounding the lich king. I mean people knew he was coming for years before this trailer dropped so the hype was insane

[@Nollis]

@@mithren1358 TBC, Black Temple & Zul'Aman trailers hold special places in my heart, though WotLK trailer is GOAT.

[@Korksbebig]

@@mithren1358 WoDs trailer was amazing and truly Warcraft feeling. Back then I honestly thought we would get the "Reset" of WoW that everyone is saying now and have been, I genuinely thought we would return to Warcraft... but I digress, that trailer was amazing.

[@hanswurst6742]

I stopped playing wow many years ago, but this intro still gives me goosebumps. I love the pauses in the narrative "You....shall be....King!!"

[@BraveSteelDragon]

The trailer's first part's motif is shared with another track, 'Invincible', which is more representative of Arthas before his fall and rise as the Lich King. The track of the trailer is also listenable separately, titled 'Arthas, My Son'.

[@deployed246]

The original version of that motif is called 'O Thanagor' which is part of 'The Ascension' cinematic from Warcraft 3, and I think the composer was Jeff Chamberlain. Recently learned that the version used at the start of 'Arthas, My Son' was originally going to be a male tenor before they changed it to a boy soprano.

[@slinttu1378]

@@deployed246 Jason Hayes was the composer for the Warcraft 3 original, Arthas My Son was composed by Neal Acree, using that same melody and creating lyrics for it. Then later, Russell Brower and Jason composed Invincible for patch 3.3 based on Arthas My Son, with new lyrics by Derek Duke and Neal.

[@Tofutomo]

There's actually a behind the scenes of making this masterpiece on youtube. The singer is actually a young boy. They decided to use him as a tone of the (once) innocence of Arthas, the character in the cinematic.

[@heather9857]

Oh wow, do you have the title of that exact KZbin video? ❤

[@Tofutomo]

@@heather9857 WOTLK - Making of - Music or something like that. Just search wotlk music making of. It’s a video released like 14 years ago haha.

[@mrrodgers0]

That choice is also specifically an evocation of a narrative device in the books and games. Arthas' conscience (or what remains of it) is always represented by the image of his child self.

[@IDKFA1D]

The Danish National Symphony Orchestra has a great live version on YT of the song Invincible, that is used at the beginning of this piece (The boy singer). The song is about Arthas' horse named Invincible, which he had before he became the Lich King from this trailer.

[@JD-qq8fz]

One thing that always gets me about this trailer is how it heavily features "Invincible", a motif that follows Arthas throughout the story. 'Invincible' is the name of Arthas' childhood horse, whom he found and resurrected once he began his transformation into the Lich King. Dude is an egotistical abomination of undeath but still mourns the loss of his steed all this time later-- but now they can be together again, albeit in a twisted and tragic way much like Arthas' whole arc. "Last to retreat, even so in death/ Alas I have lost a part of myself/ Long live the King/ May he reign forever" Yeah Arthas is the King in several senses but to him, his King is his horse. The composer really gets you to feel like this isn't just a generic evil megabad, but actually a tragic part of a larger narrative. The darkness and heaviness is accented by a forlorn sadness, that he's made a massive mistake and ruined everything-- his naive passion was easy to manipulate and now he is nothing but a puppet of evil, sitting all alone on a frozen throne. M M M M MUSICK MAKES YOU FEEL THINGS

[@existential_sad_boi]

Arthas is and will always be my favourite WoW villain. I followed his story though Warcraft 3, firts through gameplay videos and then firsthand, and had played WoW for years by that point, and Wrath is my absolute favourite. No king rules forever.

[@MrDudeshutthehellup]

@JD-qq8fz I'd argue Invincible isn't Arthas' king, but rather his kingDOM. In the story Arthas does some horrible, awful things in what he believes is to advance his goal of saving his kingdom, much like how raising his horse in undeath, while a mockery of life, and an affront to many of the things he stood for, he believes is to deliver his horse to him, reuniting in his crusade into the culmination of becoming the Lich King.

[@toreetotz6661]

If it's invincible, why can I still see it?

[@TheSyncos]

I love that the first half of the Lich King trailer isn't even what I would call dark, it's more melancholy. Introspective and sad. Which is really fitting for the character, if you understand how we got here.

[@datsawesome3241]

i tear up watching this ... The voice of he's father is sooooo gooooood.

[@Mesos92]

The opera singer Marcomeatball did a great video on this song, "Arthas, my Son." He gives the basic idea of the story behind the song as well if you'd like to check it out. It is frequently paired with "Invincible" as a companion piece as they have similar, yet contrasting themes. Composer Neal Acree talks about being able to be involved in the whole process with creating cinematics in a gamemusic article.

[@Jults]

when you talked about how much a few frames could throw it off just makes me appreciate it more,thank you for elaborating , never thought of that

[@mgormley7530]

I can't believe how much the graphics hold up. this is from 2008.

[@rogoth01themasterwizard11]

this trailer was made back in 2007 to be precise.

[@fredflintstone5356]

You guys make me sound old. I got into WoW a year into BC what was a year before WotLK, and this brings back so many good memories. I stopped playing the expansion after mists of pandaria. WotLK was the best couple years playing WoW. I wish I could rewind time to back then.

[@rogoth01themasterwizard11]

@@fredflintstone5356 if it helps i got my first proper job when WOTLK came out, and my boss at this job was a massive WoW fanatic, he was the one that convinced me to get back into after I quit playing around 6 months after TBC release because of school.

[@rammie1976]

i beleive it was remastered and a 4k version was made and released er 2? years ago

[@kamilblk]

@@fredflintstone5356 Feeling the same, and I'm only (?) 32 ;D Started playing WoW a month prior to WotlK prepatch. Quit few months into Cata though. I have so many nostalgic memories from this game. I would like to play it again so much but I know that it's impossible for me to get into it so deeply as I was back then. I remember WoW was such a massive time consumer and I just no longer can afford that with job, family and household duties...

[@brometheus4509]

Would love to see Totems of the Grizzlemaw at some point on your WoW exploration. It's a zone soundtrack and in many peoples opinions one of the best tracks they've ever made.

[@VikingWeShallGo]

+1

[@zrakcin]

1:24 - Your reaction sent chills through my body, because the same feeling you felt, I felt it too back in 2008, and I still feel it hearing it again this day. Always will.

[@Spitx]

Those were my years of wow... Had such great times together with family and friends...

[@heather9857]

You just made my day. Subscribed.

[@DennisVlaanderen]

The song in the trailer is called "O Thanagor", which translates into "O King". Various different motifs of this song are used throughout the entire OST for the Wrath of the Lich King expansion. It even appears in the main theme music "The Shattering" of the following expansion Cataclysm after the story of the Wrath of the Lich King expansion ends due to how much it resonated with the community. Neal Acree really hit it home with the compositions for this entire expansion pack. If I put on a random playlist of WoW soundtracks, anytime something of this era of WoW comes on it sends chills across my body and at times even a tear to my eye depending on what song is playing. So many memories tied to these songs for a lot of WoW players.

[@SrChr778]

Longtime Warcraft fan here, and... I get so teary-eyed hearing Arthas' theme. 😭😭(any other fan could say the same)

[@searchingforasecret]

your insight is really cool. love the reaction

[@AlexKurilovMusic]

Fellow composer here, albeit not as experienced, and I really like your breakdown of what gets you going in the particular music. Agree on all accounts here. Absolute dream for every composer to work on something like that. I would add another element that I really like in this trailer music is how the melody syncopates as well, i.e. moves past the strong beat instead of landing on it. This actually nicely culminates when it finally lands on the strong beat right before he plunges the sword in the ice. That always give me goosebumps.

[@PrecursorLegend]

For me, this is the greatest cinematic trailer of all time. Film, video games, you name it.

[@mephisto_333]

Never played WoW but DAMN does the Blizzard cinematic team know what they're doing! And of course the score is top-tier! ❤

[@Kraakesolv]

Yeah, ever since WC3 they made such ace cinematics. They never let you down, do they?

[@leonbishop7404]

they KNEW, back then. now they have only marketing and sales team

[@Micah_4D]

This is original Blizzard, not the Blizzard of today.

[@epimetheus8243]

@@Micah_4D Come on. Diablo 4 cinematics were absolutely insane.

[@Foxxyownz]

@@epimetheus8243 The cinematics team is hard carrying activision blizzard

[@deployed246]

Neal Acree (the composer) has done all of World of Warcraft's opening cinematics except for the one from the original version of the game. Every single one of them is amazing and I think you will enjoy them all. However, there are a few WoW tracks I would like to recommend that aren't attached to cinematics. Canticle of Sacrifice by Russell Brower and Derek Duke. Malach, The Angel Messenger by Eimear Noone. A World Divided/Anduin's Theme by Neal Acree. While there are many other "scores to scenes" that are impressive, there is something about the emotional resonance of these three songs that really impresses me.

[@Ren3gaid]

it's so wholesome to see you literally feeling the music at 5:10 - 6:02 :D

[@rockingmaniac1808]

This is the only game trailer / cinematic, that always gives me chills.

[@icu3349]

The second part of Argent Tournament Day Music is a masterpiece imo and always cheer me up no matter how bad my day is

[@mikkdc]

This was peak World of Warcraft for me. Arthas My Son and Invincible are two of the best pieces of music from any game soundtrack. Ever.

[@hermansen123]

This is perhaps the greatest gametrailer ever made you reviewed here

[@Resonaze]

you should listen to the Nightelf´s or Warlords of Dreanor music as well!

[@BramGaunt]

THIS!

[@Heinrick192]

To understand the context with the monologue, Arthas is basically Darth Vader. Chosen prince that fell into darkness by a powerful warlock and that sword, Frostmourne. This and the Halo 3 trailer are among the greatest of all time! Check out that one too.

[@JD-qq8fz]

lol he really is. There's a reason why the tragic hero is a trope that goes back thousands of years! It's super effective

[@Sinewmire]

Darth Vader with a generous helping of Elric!

[@tsj8726]

Now thats what i waited for

[@TheDarthpsi]

The whole buildup of the previous game and 2 expansions leading up to this was a very epic experience for everybody who lived through it.

[@Nastyn1nja808]

Such a good cinematic. I bet it must be fun to create music for something . I cant imagine seeing it with no music and trying to create .

[@ozmega]

BEST video game trailer ever made, no other trailer has given so much hype.

[@satur9dreamer]

This gives me chills, even after all these years. Blizzard knows how to make trailers for their games, and the WOW cinematics are always insane, but the music for this particular trailer is incredible, and I can listen to it whenever, and I always get frisson all over my arms and legs.

[@Rallarberg]

People can say what they want about World of Warcraft as a game, but the music and cinematic departments have always been on point! A little bit of background: The vocals you hear is a call-back of a piece called Invincible - the trusted steed of this fallen Prince. I highly recommend that piece as well, especially with translated lyrics, and then watch the 'ICC end cinematic' - the theme goes through the entire story, and it is a very emotional journey in my opinion. The lyrics translates to something like "Long live The King, may he reighn forever. May his strength never fail him, never fail him".

[@l4zrh4wk]

Greatest video game trailer and soundtrack of all time, period.

[@O-sa-car]

yeah I've always liked that part where the solo line comes down (so-fa-me) to and the horns ascend (do-re-me) to an octave unison

[@WambwneD]

Hey man, really apprechiate your reactions :). I know taking suggestions from comments isn't really feasable anymore, but I wanted to ask if you could look into the OST of Ridge Racer 4. Specifically tracks like "Move Me", "Nacked Glow" or "Your Vibe". It's such an underrated soundtrack that barely anyone looks into on youtube. It's honestly a work of art. I promise it's worth it, even if you just listen to it in private.

[@hellspawnal]

With this trailer its also very important to remember what this meant for people who also played the frozen throne in warcraft 3. This is nostalgia on the highest level. Because this trailer reminds me of finishing the campaign from the frozen throne. the campaign ended with Arthas on the icecrown throne. So the composers have included the music from years before. The boy singing was the ending of warcrft 3 the frozen throne expansion pack. I will never forgett when you finished the campaign, the evil Arthas actually wins. And we se him climb the throne, release nerzul and then join him in mind and spirit. Then the chamber explodes and we come back to the menu now showing us the chamber gone and just the throne high up in the skies with just winter and ice around. And the boy singing. So serene and peacefull, but knowing evil won in the end.

[@mrrodgers0]

Part of why the video and score pair so perfectly here is that Russel Brower was (is?) the in-house composer for Blizzard, and so he was able to part of the creation process for the cinematic from start to finish. (Blizzard does not hire outside studios for their cinematics. They have a dedicated animation team whose only job is trailer cinematics.)

[@mathieustoll2529]

one of the best game trailer I ve seen and heard

[@Dsrapchile]

O Thanagor is one of the best pieces of art i listened in my life.

[@Vekuyo]

Arthas My Son and Wrathgate will always be peak Warcraft osts for me. I know it’s mostly nostalgia but those years were the best of my life. Played since the original release but wrath fell right at the end of high school when i actually had a solid friend group and the free time to really devote to the game. As such the songs from those years just hit harder than anything else

[@adamcarter8981]

Still get goosebumps to this soundtrack...

[@toreetotz6661]

.... Ok so I know the trailer word for word. I prolly have a Warcraft problem. Thanks for the reaction to one of the greatest games ever.

[@Themoozah]

A few wow songs / cutscenes to take a look at. -Invincible (this one is about Arthas' horse. You hear a part of this song in the beginning of this trailer. There is a version with Lyrics if you're interesed in that.) - The Wrathgate -Nightsong -Legion Theme -Broken shore Cinematic(there is an Alliance and Horde version, but only the first part is diffrent.)

[@norXmal]

Age of Conan have a lot of good songs, one that even won an award for best video game music; "The Coast of Ardashir" is the one that won the award.

[@NewCandyCane]

This trailer still gives me goosebumps even after 13 years when I first saw it and was so hyped for this expansion! Truly one of the best expansions they ever made to this day.

[@robertrijkers947]

when hdtv led's were replacing crt tube tv's i installed this intro into the hdmi generator at the electronics store and this was playing on all the screens in the shop ;p

[@rickdaniel7341]

A truncated version of this song was used in the trailer for “Knights of the Frozen Throne”, an expansion for the Warcraft digital card game Hearthstone. It also features Jaina Proudmoore the mage narrating, and becoming corrupted during her narration. “Do not fear power, fear those who wield it.”

[@rumblebeast08]

My absolute favorite trailer/video from WoW...

[@Sindraelyn]

Pretty sure this was from a stream, but I’m wondering if you listened to both the trailer version and just the musical score. I’m wondering if there is a benefit to listening to one before the other. Would it be if any benefit to listening to the music without the SFX and visuals before watching the entire composition of the trailer together, or watching the complete trailer and stripping away the SFX and visuals to see if there was anything new that was overshadowed in the arrangement?

[@017renegade]

What I also loves about World of Warcraft, is that key characters have their specific music themes and they have been conistent with those for over 20 years now.

[@AndrevusWhitetail]

Fun fact : There is a narrationless version of this song on the soundtrack for the game. It's called "Arthas, My son", as well as a completely different song called Invincible in the Battlecry Mosaic for the part that was sung at the start.

[@xRichhhx]

Yesss more of WoW!

[@Tiucaner]

For only the music, search for "Arthas My Son (Cinematic Suite)". For the song featuring the chorus search for "Invincible". There's a lot of amazing music from World of Warcraft I could recommend, it has a great breath of work.

[@DerDathes]

every time i hear WoW soundtracks i get insant goosebumps

[@BringDHouseDown]

The visuals of the trailer show how all those words from his father were warped into an unintended reality, his "people" are "undead" his knowledge of exercising his great power properly turned into going all out with using it to attack everyone and everything.

[@pirategoku6238]

Best expansion ever to play with my mom and her guild :D when I was 11

[@MW-bs1nb]

there is soooooo much you can react to, the whole wow ost is a whole treasure, i might say there is no other game that has this many legendary tracks and they're all unique ..wow ost also plays a lot with leitmotifs in different areas, over the years etc which just make you feel unbelievably nostalgic as an old player of this game ..i can highly recommend you listening to wow's ost ..you should listen to the login screen music/main themes of each expansion, wrath of the lich king is my favourite, you should listen to eversong woods ost, totems of the grizzlemaw etc etc etc

[@AMTRAX]

This music is absolutely brilliant, and I’ve always adored it (and I’ve never played WoW)

[@MetalGearSolid234]

World of Warcraft has some of the best and most epic sounding music for a video game of all time. Keep doing WoW man! You should check out "Times Change" from the Warlords of Draenor cinematic.

[@RatelRegalement]

On the Dark part - yes, very much deliberate contrast with the narration of Hope and Righteousness. This guy IS corrupted and has fallen, but still his Father's words apply, albeit in a seriously twisted form. He does inspire his people, he has become King after his Father's days have ended.. just, not quite exactly how the narrator envisioned.

[@jinhyeongkim8205]

This has been a long time coming

[@Barrsie]

I LOVE this intro cinematic. The only one that tops it for me is the one from the expansion immediately after - Cataclysm. That makes the skin on my arms and neck stand on end EVERY time.

[@Alarycia]

I was introduced to wow right around when wrath came out, I made a blood elf mage, got to level 9, died to one of the robots in the starting zone area and only came back during Legion to play for real lmao. But damn, Arthas My Son still makes me sob despite never hearing it back then and only hearing it much later before I even really know how tragic Arthas' story was. Also Nightsong made me bawl my eyes out when Ysera died in Legion, and I cried in DF when she sees her daughter again! Highly recommend reacting to that one if you haven't already

[@jemaliazmar9185]

Dude aint lookin at the screen and the sound effects from the dragon breaking the ice make him frown and wonder wtf is this sound? Loooool 😁

[@Aang_L._Jackson]

Please do other World Of Warcraft cinematics as well.

[@hully2690]

one of the best game trailers ever) Btw, voice of the Lich King in the game itself is VERY cool sounding. Not just some voice acting, they put some work into it.

[@Tomha]

This was easily the best of the cinematics imo. Everything was just perfect. WoW in it's prime, beautiful music, the imagery just fantastic, and THE Villain everyone wanted to fight.

[@Thoroughmas]

I know this trailer is beloved and very cool, but really it's all about the music for me. I prefer listening to the music on its own, letting it take me places, all the loud SFX removed! :))

[@Z3ROR]

I believe (I thought this was said in some interview years back) Blizzard Entertainment has some audio/video producers/composers who worked previously at Disney/Dreamworks. That might explain the tremendous quality of their cinematics.

[@BioDestiny]

Arthas was my favorite character he was good and evil but we all remember him like a good paladin of justice and light.

[@PaulGuy]

The composer, Neal Acree, has a great resume. He's basically _the_ guy for Blizzard's games, as well as having done music for all the Stargate shows and direct-to-video films, The Legend of Vox Machina, and a good number of films.

[@nielsliljedahlchristensen4924]

This is truly the best part of the expansion

[@invader2867]

If i had to mention some of the best tracks these would be a few: Main OST: Wolf at the Gates - Thaurissan Reach - Night Warrior - Secondary BGM: Malevolent Mystique - Sholazar Basin

[@dr.zoidberg8666]

Everybody loves this trailer because of how iconic it is. But WoW has lots of beautiful (& diverse) music if you want to dig a little deeper! I recommend "Warbringers: Jaina", "World of Warcraft: Cataclysm Cinematic Trailer", and the original "World of Warcraft Cinematic Trailer". All posted under those titles by the official World of Warcraft KZbin page.

[@enigmabis.]

theres no trailer ever thats been sooooo ahead of its time

[@adamwarlock3530]

All of the cinematic trailers are so good in every way. "World of Warcraft Cinematic Trailer" is the first. Then "World of Warcraft: The Burning Crusade Cinematic Trailer". Wrath was the 3rd.

[@trollied]

Video Games Live have done a few concerts (full orchestra!) with just Warcraft music - there’s some videos on KZbin - might be good for you to do a reaction video on. The composer conducts :)

[@HmmWelp]

Fantastic reaction, you would probably enjoy reacting to the themes from Pathfinder Wrath of the Righteous. They're fairly short so you could easily fit a few into one video. Dmitry V. Silantyev - Wrath Of The Righteous Aeon Theme is probably my personal favorite, but they're all very well done.

[@Dark-uj2jq]

This channel is underrated. Wish my parents were as cool as thus dude.

[@ManWithoutThePants]

Still don't mock your parents even if their interests are somewhere else. I'm sure you didn't mean it that way though. :)

[@kipz]

such an odd comment. why your parents? why not you?

[@valethemajor]

In your previous WoW video, your listened to Legends of Azeroth, the main theme. The interesting thing about it is that with each expansion's release, a new take on that same theme is made. I would highly recommend listening to some of those other themes: The Burning Crusade Login Theme Wrath of the Lich King Login Theme Cataclysm Login Theme Mists of Pandaria Login Theme Warlords of Draenor Login Theme Legion Login Theme (after these themes, the main composer changed hands and the quality severely dropped)

[@MyndZero]

Warcraft 3 is full of great music as well.

[@Allexstrasza]

Its surprising, but it is actually a young boy that is doing the vocals in this piece 😮

[@Gromash26]

gosh, so good

[@CaptainCed]

3:39 I didn't expect to have to correct this for a professional, but that's definitely not a she! The vocals for the start of this (the part that corresponds to the track Invincible) is 100% a boys' choir/soloist.

[@JockenN]

World of Warcraft doesn't get enough praise for its music. If you want to hear a track inspired by scandinavian folk music, the "Grizzly Hills" theme is wonderful.

[@Red_Bull_Fan1985]

i find thes reactions very interessting thanks

[@Cyboogie.the.Cyborg]

You just watched the highest moment in gaming history

[@phoenixlich]

Oh it takes me back.... i'll never be so carefree again....

[@Voxrar]

Would love to see you analyze the companion piece to this, Invincible.

[@YeIsCorrect]

yes you do have to dive into some more! go to your old video for recommendations!! your commentary is interesting.

[@Novacification]

Blizzard has made some legendary trailers both in terms of cinematography and sound design. The WoW Warlords of Draenor trailer as well as the first Diablo IV trailer are definitely ones you should take a look at/listen to. Basically all their trailers are great though

[@tarmok3756]

And NOW you should go for an orchestral version

[@XxAverageJoexX]

That was great.

[@balditohashshashin2058]

STILL ONE OF THE BEST OST!

[@Itzatez]

damn... The memories...