Ever since battle.net debuted two years ago, fans across the world have begged for battle.net support for WarCraft II. Those fans have finally gotten their wish.

　　Blizzard will announce later Monday morning WarCraft II Platinum, a new title in the WarCraft line that will replace WarCraft Battlechest. This is not WarCraft III, but it is an updated version of WarCraft II. Included in the game will be the original WarCraft II, the Dark Portal expansion set, and two new campaigns.

　　Each new campaign will have new music and cinematics. GameSpot has learned that each campaign will have at least eight scenarios. These new campaigns will be advanced ones with scenarios to challenge even the most seasoned WarCraft II veterans.

　　One thing Platinum won't have is updated graphics. Instead, the biggest focus of the game is battle.net support. Blizzard's Susan Wooley says, "The main reason we decided to release WarCraft II Platinum is because we wanted to offer WarCraft II over battle.net. It's not our intention to do a full-blown expansion set or a new version of the game. We basically wanted to create a Win95 version of the game that could be playable over the internet. But we wanted to give our customers more value than just internet play. We wanted to give them whole new campaigns. We're not only reviving the multiplayer, we're reviving the single player as well. But we are too busy working on other projects to redo the entire game. We wanted to move forward."

　　Owners of WarCraft II Platinum will be able to play WarCraft II games over battle.net, with full ladder and tournament support. The new WarCraft II will be a native Windows 95 application, a necessary move since battle.net won't work with the DOS version of WarCraft II.

　　Blizzard is setting WarCraft II Platinum's price point at approximately US$35, but will offer owners of the original WarCraft II or Battlechest a rebate of up to $20. The exact pricing model is still being determined.

　　WarCraft II Platinum is slated for a Christmas release date.