When it began it was just a computer game. Now it is seen as a cultural force that sparks love affairs, breaks marriages and creates "sweat shops" to satisfy a black market in virtual goods.
开始，它还只是一款电脑游戏。现在，它则被视为一股文化力量，既可以点燃爱的 火花，也可以破坏婚姻，甚至催生“血汗工厂”，以满足虚拟物品的黑市交易需求。
World of Warcraft marks its fifth birthday as something more than just an online role-playing game where users become wizards, warriors, orcs and elfs.
“魔兽世界”游戏迎来了第五个生日，而它已经不仅仅只是一个让玩家在其中化身为术士、战士、兽人和精灵的角色扮演类网络游戏了。
An estimated 12 million people play the game. They spend many hours taking on quests and doing battle with each another, building up their character-- or "levelling up" as it is known in the game--to gain powers and abilities.
这款游戏的玩家估计有1200万。这些人把大量时间花在完成任务和彼此打斗上，增强人物能力——游戏里称作是 “升级”——以获取天赋和技能。
But it has a dark side. A thriving black market for virtual goods to use in the game, such as swords and animals, has emerged. Some top-level goods take thousands of hours to earn, and impatient players are willing to pay up to $5,000 on eBay to get them.
但是，它也有黑暗的一面。专门买卖游戏中所使用的虚拟物品——如刀剑好动物等——的黑市应运而生，而且生意兴隆。有些顶级物品需要花上数千小时才能获 取，而一些急不可耐的玩家宁愿在eBay上花高达5000美元予以购买。
The real financial rewards on offer have created an underground industry, where players play in slave-like conditions to obtain the items and sell them on. "You effectively have sweat shops in China," Mr Chatfield said. "If you were to visit one of these gold-farming things, you'd find a building with maybe 20-40 people in it, playing in shifts on banks of computers. They do it because they can earn more money doing that than producing garments in factories."
既然有人能提供真金白银的回报，于是一个地下产业就诞生了。玩家们像奴隶一样玩游戏以获得物 品装备，然后再卖出去。查特菲尔德说：“实际上中国就有这样的血汗工厂。要是你想去参观这样一个打金之处，会看到一个房间，里面大约有20到40人轮流在 一排排电脑上玩游戏。他们这样做是因为他们靠这个赚的钱要比在工厂里做衣服更多。”
The addictiveness of the game has been accused of destroying relationships, creating "Warcraft widows" as players set it above anything else.
游戏成瘾的一大罪状是 破坏夫妻关系。它制造了“魔兽寡妇”，源于玩家玩游戏胜过一切。
One "widow" told The Times: "We've had to enter into some heavy negotiation to work out the nights and weekends when he can play without me nagging to stop. Because it's not just the odd half-hour. Sometimes if he's locked into a group he'll break only to eat and visit the loo."
一个“活寡妇”对《泰晤士报》讲述说：“我们已经到了不得不严 肃地进行谈判的地步，只有在双方讲定的晚上和周末，他才可以玩游戏，而我也不会唠叨和阻拦。因为这不只是临时玩上半个小时的问题。有时候，如果他加入一个 队伍，他只在吃饭和上厕所的时候才有片刻停息。”
Blizzard Entertainment, which owns the game, will not reveal the average time that players spend on it, but academic research estimates that it is between 25 and 40 hours a week.
“魔兽世界”的开发商暴雪娱乐公司拒绝透露玩家平均在游戏上所花的时间，但学术研究估计，玩家每周的游戏时间在25至40小时之间。
This obsessiveness has even led to violent consequences. Last week, police in France said that they had thwarted a plot by a boy, 13, to murder his school teachers. He was allegedly addicted to Warcraft. He was found by officers with his father's shotgun and cartridges.
这种痴 迷甚至导致暴力性后果，法国警方上周表示，他们挫败了一个13岁男孩企图谋害本校老师的阴谋。据称这名男孩沉迷于“魔兽”。他被警察发现时身上带着他父亲 的猎枪和子弹。
In 2007, two parents were arrested for allegedly killing their child after becoming obsessed with the game.
2007年，两名 家长因沉迷于“魔兽”，涉嫌杀害自己的孩子而遭逮捕。
However, fans say that the game's popularity stems from the social atmosphere that it has created. In the game, people often have to join together to compete quests. Mr Chatfield said: "I know of several people who have got married through meeting in games. I even play the game with my wife."
然而游戏迷们称，“魔兽”受欢迎的原因来自它所缔 造的社交氛围。在游戏中，人们往往要联合起来去挑战任务。查特菲尔德说：“我就知道几个人，他们是在玩游戏过程中认识而后结婚的。就连我和我的妻子也在一 起玩游戏。”
Blizzard said that they would mark the 5th anniversary by introducing surprise elements into the game, such as the "Onyxia Brood Whelpling Pet" as well as new "bosses" for players to battle against.
暴雪公司表示，为了庆祝五周年纪念，他们将在游戏中引入一些出人意料的元素，如“奥妮克希亚巢穴雏龙宠物”和 新的“大怪”让玩家来打。
Fans are also awaiting the latest "expansion", which is an update to the game. Cataclysm is likely to be the biggest release of next year.
游戏迷还期待着最新的“资料片”，也就是它的升级版。“魔兽世界·大灾难”很可能是明年发布的最 畅销游戏。
Mike Morhaime, the president and co-founder of Blizzard, said: "We never expected the series would grow into a social and pop-culture phenomenon. We've always simply made the games that we wanted to play ourselves and I hope that approach will continue to serve us well in the years to come."
暴雪公司的总裁兼创始人之一迈克·莫海姆说：“我们从没想到这个系列游戏会 发展成一种社会和大众文化现象。我们一直只是想做一款我们自己也想玩的游戏，我希望这种态度在未来几年能给我们继续带来帮助。”