Wrath Of The Lich King Release Date

Possible Confirmation On Lich King Release Date?

Well it looks like we’re narrowing in on the official release date for Wrath of the Lich King. Over the course of the last week or so, most of the online retailers have quietly updated their ship dates to November 4th. With the upcoming 3.0 patch apparently hitting public test servers in the near future, that would line up pretty well, based on how the previous expansion was launched.

Of course, Blizzard could delay the whole thing if they decide it’s too buggy or they want to revamp content. But it’s nice to have a more accurate estimate.

Online retailers point towards a November 4 release for Wrath [WOWInsider]

What do you think? Rumor? Or fact?

Via Possible Confirmation On Lich King Release Date - GayGamer.net

On Shopping For Games

From …on pampers, programming & pitching manure comes an interesting point on where we find games and the growing popularity of casual games.

I found myself at Target recently.

Holy balls! Look at the PC game shelf! Approx 1/3 traditional PC hardcore fare (not shown), 1/3 kids & adventure (e.g. Dora, Nancy Drew, etc - also not shown) and 1/3 $20 casual download titles.

Once the domain of Mumbo Jumbo and a couple others, now every downloadable title to have proven itself beyond a given threshold (not sure what that might be - 100k units? half that maybe?) graduates to physical retail.

I wonder whether this is a nice secondary market or whether it’s “the big leagues”. I’m guessing the former, but who knows!?

Via …on pampers, programming & pitching manure: Evolution of retail

Running Through WarCraft

I saw this funny experiment today on Gamertell

The primary means of travel in World of Warcraft is running. You run pretty much everywhere, and some fans became curious as to what it would be like to physically experience that same amount of running in real life. The result was Aaron and Elijah’s RL Race Across Azeroth.

These guys even worked out the how the running in WoW would correspond to running in the real world. They built a treadmill which would work with WoW, set it up so they would run at six mph and prepared to run from the gates of Shadowglen to the sentries of Darnassus. They also dressed up like their characters - for scientific purposes of course.

Check out the whole article for pictures + video!

Via A new way to run through World of Warcraft - Gamertell

Win A Trip To BlizzCon!

I almost don’t want to share this and reduce my chance of winning… but there’s a sweepstakes at SteelSeries to win a trip for 2 to BlizzCon 2008! No purchase required, no credit card number, and even if you don’t win the BlizzCon tip, there are smaller prizes like T-shirts and swag.

Free Mazeg Shirt

Quick note to let you all know that Mazeg, the free online games site, is giving away free T-shirts! We all know how much geeks like free stuff! To get yours, fill in the details on this page.

Via Mazeg.com - Free Online Games - Free T-shirt -

Wizard 101

Simpson’s Paradox on Wizard 101

I was predisposed to like the new Wizard 101
game. It’s not exactly a secret that I love Harry Potter, and the game
promises to be a wizard school MMOPRG. The game is adorable from the
first loading screen. They’ve got a Wizard 101 gallery
on the website, but it doesn’t do justice to the fantastic sketch
drawings and handwritten notes, or the cheery game characters.

I was asked not to post screenshots, as the game’s still in beta, so
you’re just going to have to believe me that one teacher is a
qipao-clad animated cow. And there’s an attack leprechaun. Even the
menu screens are draw like clickable classroom doodles. If I could post
just one screenshot, it would be the stick figure cartoons on the map
and in the margins… a girl and a boy who are always getting into
mischief. Also, I would put a pair of glasses on the girl!

The Wizard 101 quests are flavored with mixed-up fairy tales and
subtle puns for adult players. While the quests themselves are the
usual fare of “kill 5 baddies” or “return this item to an NPC”, they’re
mixed with a Fairground of minigames. The minigames are quick casual
games, a bit like the puzzle games in Neopets.
The point of the Fairgrounds is to recharge your mana and make a few
coins, but I really liked Potion Motion. (Ok, I should come clean about
this. If I’m talking on the phone, I’m probably playing a casual game
at the same time. Thus, Neopets.)

Usable items don’t give a visual sign on mouseover, which made it
hard to tell if I could open doors or pick things up. I got frustrated
as I tried to pick up items that were just part of the scenery. Games
have changed… when I was a wee lass, we pocketed everything not nailed
down! You can, however, tell whether you can enter a building based on
the color of the windows. If they’re dark, no one’s home. If they’re
yellow, come on in! Bluish lights indicate an errand for you inside,
usually the location of your quest or battle.

Combat is animated magical attacks, in turns between players and bad
guys. The villains disappear when they’re thwarted, players are
teleported home to recoup. I think the bloodless combat caters to tween
girls, without going the annoying all-pink route.

The combay system is based on learning spells and adding them to
your deck, collectible card game style. When I’ve played card games, I
can never remember what all the little symbols describing the card
mean. Icons are just the nature of squeezing a complicated system on to
card, so I’m frustrated that a computer game doesn’t allow you to click
the icons and find out what they mean. There is a help section for
looking up the icons when you’re not actually in combat, but Wizard 101
seems to be missing what makes computer games superior to card games,
it seems like a huge oversight not to have clickable card info.

Maybe the plan is to branch out into a collectible card game, some
of the some of the “gold” cards as random rewards really seem like
specials in sealed packs.

The game is intended for tweens, and I was a little annoyed by all
the safety controls. Users must be over 13 to even have access to chat.
Also, you can’t pick your own name, there’s a spinner that chooses a
first name and a two-part last name (something like Starspinner or
Whitethorn). You can set the spinner to your favorite combination, but
there’s no chance to make up your own name. While it does eliminate the
players running around cleverly named “YOURMOMSUCKS”, it’s billed as a
safety feature, forbidding kids to use their real names and identifying
information, and I think it’s taking ‘net safety a bit too far.

In general, I think internet safety programs are a waste of time,
they’re treating the symptom and not the disease. Sadly, there are bad
people who’ll hurt children. Kids should learn general safety rules,
like not telling strangers their address and what time Mommy isn’t
home, and then be reminded to apply those rules in the game as well.
There are potential problems with wee ones playing online and
innocently telling the wrong person their address, but a chat filter
can’t substitute for good parents teaching their kids about stranger
safety and making sure those rules are followed. I haven’t seen a chat
filter that you can’t get around if you’re really determined to swear,
you could probably get around this one as well.

I’ll stop here before getting into my usual rant about how game
companies shouldn’t be expected to parent. Occupational hazard of being
a twentysomething gamergirl, I guess.

Via Simpson’s Paradox » Blog Archive » Wizard 101

The Onion Does it Again

‘Warcraft’ Sequel Lets Gamers Play A Character Playing ‘Warcraft’

Via ‘Warcraft’ Sequel Lets Gamers Play A Character Playing ‘Warcraft’ | The Onion - America’s Finest News Source

WarCraft and Weddings

Mixing two things I love — World of WarCraft and wedding gossip.

Scep told me that our highschool friend Garan got engaged a few days ago! Garan’s living in Korea (it’s amazing how many of our old friends moved to Asia), so I immediately emailed him to get the details.

Meg to Garan: I heard a rumor about you. Is it true!?!?!?
Garan to Meg: Yeah, I’m getting married. And I’m playing WoW again… Snidsworth, Alliance NElf Druid, Bwahahaha!
Meg to Garan: Yay! No serious gamers ever play Alliance! SCORE ONE FOR THE GOOD GUYS! What are your profs? Level? I’m a dwarf/war on Malorne, and –
Wait, don’t think you can get me off topic that easily. How did you propose? When’s the wedding?

Via Simpson’s Paradox — WarCraft and Weddings

BlizzCon Is Coming, October 10-11

It’s too far for me, I’ll be home playing WoW!

Blizzard Entertainment, Inc. today announced plans for its third BlizzCon™ gaming convention, to be held at the Anaheim Convention Center in Anaheim, California on October 10 and 11. BlizzCon is a celebration of the global player communities surrounding Blizzard Entertainment®’s Warcraft®, StarCraft®, and Diablo® franchises. In response to the demand to accommodate more attendees, this year’s event has expanded from two convention halls to three.

“Whenever we’ve been able to meet and interact with Blizzard gamers from around the world, it’s been a great experience for us,” stated Mike Morhaime, CEO and cofounder of Blizzard Entertainment. “We’re looking forward to seeing even more of our players at this year’s BlizzCon and delivering another entertaining and informative event for them.”

BlizzCon will offer a wide variety of activities to help all attendees get the most out of the two-day event. In addition to serving as a gathering place for the different Blizzard Entertainment gaming communities, attendees will be able to enjoy:

* Hands-on play time with upcoming Blizzard Entertainment releases
* Discussion panels with Blizzard Entertainment developers
* Competitive and casual tournaments for players to showcase their talents
* Areas and activities devoted to licensed products such as the World of Warcraft® Trading Card Game
* Costume, machinima, and character sound-alike contests with great prizes
* Commemorative merchandise based on the Blizzard Entertainment franchises
* A silent auction
* More exciting activities to be announced

Tickets for BlizzCon will go on sale in the next few weeks at a price of $100 USD per person. As the event draws closer, further details will be announced on the official BlizzCon website: www.blizzcon.com.

Via Blizzard Entertainment

Clone Wars

It may be a stereotype to assume that all video gamers are also into Star Wars — but it’s a stereotype that’s usually true! If it’s true for you, go here Wizkids: Star Wars PocketModel TCG and enter your zip code (no name or credit card required!). You’ll get a printable coupon for a free Clone Wars sample pack! It will also tell you a list of stores near you where this coupon is redeemable.

Dork Toys!

A popular game most of us play at one time or another is: imagine you have a million dollars and no one to please but yourself. What would your home look like? For a gamer, it would of course be full of games. The latest consoles, computers, and electronics. But what about the rest of the house? You have to have furniture and fixtures, so you might want to “game” those, too!
111space-invaders-door-mat.gif

You know something is different about this house as soon as you get to the front door and see this LED Space Invaders doormat. Yes, it lights up! But only when someone is near, thanks to a motion-sensor.

There are loads more! Check out the Mental Floss post for game-inpired shelves and quilts and more!

Via mental_floss Blog » The Retro Fun and Games House