blizzard

Blizzard prepares for 'cataclysm'

It's safe to assume game developer Blizzard has some big deals on its slate of unannounced projects, but new filings with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office suggest one of them is particularly dire. Game industry sleuthing site superannuation on Wednesday unearthed a trio of Blizzard applications filed last Friday, each covering various uses of the word "cataclysm."

One filing covers the use of the term as it relates to computer games and mouse pads. The second seeks to lock up the name for use in entertainment services (specifically online games), and the third covers a … Read more

Blizzard chooses cloud over LAN for new game

Blizzard Entertainment has decided to forgo LAN support for the next version of Starcraft II and instead require users to connect to the new Battle.net cloud-based service.

"We don't currently plan to support LAN play with Starcraft II, as we are building Battle.net to be the ideal destination for multiplayer gaming with Starcraft II and future Blizzard Entertainment games," a Blizzard representative said in a statement. "While this was a difficult decision for us, we felt that moving away from LAN play and directing players to our upgraded Battle.net service was the best … Read more

Blizzard alerts press to prep for StarCraft II beta

Update: Blizzard informs us that if you'd like to a chance to be selected for the StarCraft II beta, this FAQ on Starcraft2.com has all the details.

Blizzard Entertainment sent out an e-mail this weekend imploring media members to set up an account with Battle.net, Blizzard's multiplayer service, in anticipation of the Starcraft II beta program. StarCraft II, of course, is the sequel to StarCraft, the wildly successful, still-popular 1998 sci-fi strategy game for the PC. Blizzard has set a Q4 2009 release window for the upcoming sequel, and a summer beta program would seem to … Read more

Guitar Hero 5 hitting stage September 1

The Guitar Hero franchise has traditionally seen flagship installments launch right around Halloween in the U.S., with Guitar Hero III and World Tour coming in about a week before and Guitar Hero and Guitar Hero II about a week after. Such will not be the case with Guitar Hero 5, however.

Activision Blizzard has revealed through the game's official Web site that the latest four-piece rhythm game will take to the main stage on September 1, exactly one week before archrival The Beatles: Rock Band strums its opening tune on September 9.

Along with revealing a release date, … Read more

Guitar Hero reality TV show, concert in works?

If friends and family don't make up a big enough audience for your at-home rock concerts, rumor has it you may get to parade your Guitar Hero skills before all of America one day. Asked about the future of the wildly popular Hero franchise, Activision Blizzard CEO Bobby Kotick told the Hollywood Reporter "it might make for a good TV show or a good concert tour."

We don't know exactly what a Guitar Hero reality TV show would look like, but if it sticks to the standard reality format, it will probably be full of backstabbing, … Read more

Hacking online games a widespread problem

SAN FRANCISCO--It will likely come as no surprise to anyone familiar with virtual worlds and online games that they can be hacked. But what might come as a shock is the sheer breadth of types of exploits that are possible.

That was the broad message of a Thursday panel called, appropriately, "Exploiting Online Games" at the RSA 2009 security conference here.

Moderated by Gary McGraw, CTO of software security consulting firm Cigital and an author of several books, the panel took the audience on a deep dive into the diverse ways that hackers and others have figured out … Read more

'WoW: Wrath of Lich King' sets sales record

World of Warcraft: Wrath of the Lich King, the second expansion to the mega-popular online game, sold 2.8 million copies in its first 24 hours last week, setting what its publisher said is an all-time record for PC games.

According to Blizzard Entertainment, Wrath of the Lich King, broke the one-day PC game sales record of 2.4 million copies, which was set 22 months earlier by The Burning Crusade, the first WoW expansion.

The new expansion was launched simultaneously in North America, Europe, Chile, Argentina, and Russia.

And at $40 a copy, the game would have brought in $… Read more

Initial 'Wrath' impressions (or why I suck at leveling)

My name is Eric Franklin and I am a World of Warcraft slacker. You wouldn't know it, however, judging by the weekend I had. From Thursday morning until Sunday night I collectively played more than 40 hours of the new WoW expansion, Wrath of the Lich King.

I played whenever I could, but with household responsibilities, a guest in town, and annoying necessities like eating, bio breaks, and sleep, I am unsatisfied with my progress after four days.

I decided to level one character straight from 70 to 80 and forgo creating a Death Knight for now. I thought maybe I could get to 77 by the end of the weekend and earn the use of my flying mount. Especially since by Saturday afternoon Death Knights--which start at level 55--were running around at a higher level than my Warlock, who started at 70!

Did I mention that I'm on a PVP server and that I mostly only quest by myself? That may have something to do with my slow progression. As much as I wanted to level quickly it was not always up to me. No, guys with names like Foodfoodz would kill me constantly and then offer food to my still warm body. Seriously. … Read more

'WoW' launch: Sleepy old grandpa geek comes out at night

To paraphrase the immortal Sergeant Roger Murtaugh, I'm getting too old for this stuff.

I started noticing it last summer while standing in line for The Dark Knight's midnight showing. For one, I took note that a good 70 percent of the participants were in the 18-22 age bracket, which as a mid-30s guy standing in line at 11 p.m. on a weekday night tends to make me feel just a tad old. Especially when I start getting sleepy eyes while most around me are positively brimming with vim and vigor.

It was virtually no different a few hours ago at the San Francisco launch party for Blizzard's much-anticipated second expansion to World of Warcraft--Wrath of the Lich King. Even as I type this, I'm fighting sleep as it's way past ol' grandpa here's bedtime. I really don't have many midnight launches/premieres left in me. I'm thinking Watchmen and The Hobbit. Then I retire from these types of things.

It's funny. Years ago, I would have been mixing it up with more of my fellow geeks, talking about WoW to no end. Don't get me wrong, there was quite a bit of that going on, but once I actually got in line, I went into, "Don't talk to me, get out of my way, and just give me my friggin' game. No seriously, you need to get the hell out of my way and give me my game" mode.

OK, enough complaining. This event was basically like a miniature Blizzcon. There was face painting, a dance contest, a costume contest, and developers on their feet for hours on end being constantly interviewed.

Then there was the ridiculous three-block-long line. As you can see from some of the pics, there are some real hardcore fans who take the time they put into this game seriously. Most were there with friends, and for them WoW is basically a social network. A useful way to keep in touch while pwning nubs.

The most impressive thing of the night was a woman dressed as a Night Elf Druid. It wasn't her incredibly detailed and well-thought-out costume that impressed the most, but her admission that she'd once played WoW 28 hours straight. That beats my record by about eight hours.

Lots more geeky pics after the jump. … Read more