"Warriors of the night, assemble!"

Thus goes that ever-familiar battle cry from the original single-player version of Warcraft. Whoever thought that this game would have reached literally massive proportions and blossom into the phenomenon that it is now?

At the moment, World of Warcraft reigns supreme in the MMORPG world with its familiar environment that was based on a well-loved RTS game, great graphics, a system that's easy to grasp, and gameplay that millions the world over have found enjoyable. Everywhere, gamers fork over money to buy the game and then willingly pay their monthly dues in order to keep their WoW fix going high. Truly, the game's developer Vivendi has found the magic formula that has saved them from going under.

But with all the new MMORPG titles that have recently been popping up, one can't help but wonder just exactly how long WoW will be able to maintain its grasp on the industry?

Over at Bit-Tech.net, Ryan Garside tries to answer that question by dissecting the phenomenon that is Warcraft. He also points out potential threats to its supremacy as new games are being developed and the MMO experience is being stepped up at every turn. Potential competitors that were named included Age of Conan, Lord of the Rings Online: Shadows of Angmar, Pirates of the Burning Sea, Warhammer Online: Age of Reckoning, and Tabula Rasa.

Could Garside be correct in his analysis? Will WoW endure or will it be usurped? Got your own predictions? Let us know via the comments!