Virtual Worlds

World of Warcraft jumps into print

You might think that starting a brand-new, high-quality, full-glossy magazine in one of the worst publishing environments in years would be a suicidal business idea. After all, take a look at just about any magazine you can think of, and, thanks to the veritable collapse of advertising, odds are it's about as thin as can be.

But to the folks at Future--a leading games media publisher--the time couldn't be better to launch World of Warcraft: The Magazine, a new quarterly title that is expected to be unveiled at this weekend's BlizzCon event--the world's biggest World of Warcraft fanfest--in Anaheim, Calif. The magazine will be the "official" WoW magazine, and is both endorsed by and produced with the editorial cooperation of WoW publisher Activision Blizzard.

And, indeed, the timing for the forthcoming magazine is clever: The first issue is planned for sometime this fall, just as WoW celebrates its fifth anniversary. And with an astounding 11.5 million players of the game now spread out around the world, Future is hoping that by promising potential readers stunning artwork, behind-the-scenes looks at ongoing development, deep dives into the game's lore, and perhaps even occasional scoops about new features or other WoW elements, it will offer fans an invaluable experience. In fact, Future sees this magazine as something along the lines of a collectible coffee table book.

Still, Future has chosen a difficult business model for the new publication. Each issue is expected to be 148 pages long, with precisely zero ads, which means that the title is shut off from traditional magazine revenues, and therefore will rely entirely on subscription fees. On the other hand, that same dynamic also means that it should be shielded from the vagaries of the advertising market, something that is currently taking down one magazine after another.

According to Future, World of Warcraft: The magazine will be offered for subscription only--no single copy sales--with U.S. readers paying $40 annually, those in continental Europe 35 euros and the British 30 pounds. The magazine will be published in English, French, German, and Spanish.

"The magazine market is suffering a rough time," said John Gower, the international director of FuturePlus, the title's publisher, "but only those magazines that are based on advertising models. We've seen our magazines increasing across the board, especially the hobbyist" titles.

That may be true, but in order to support what the publishers say will be a costly blend of commissioned art, in-depth articles written by veteran journalists and behind-the-scenes access, Future will have to convince a great deal of its players that it's worth their while to pony up $40 on top of their $15 monthly game subscription fees, even as those same players can find an enormous amount of WoW-related information online.

And that proposition is clearly not for everyone, even some of the most passionate WoW players. … Read more

Spore to hit Nintendo this fall

Nintendo gamers anxious to grow Spores will find relief in October.

Electronic Arts announced Monday that its Spore Hero for the Wii game console and Spore Hero Arena for the Nintendo DS handheld will reach store shelves in the U.S. on October 6 and international outlets on October 9.

In Spore Hero, players can transform into heroic alien creatures on a mission to save their home worlds from certain destruction. By battling evil forces, solving puzzles, and collecting clues, heroes evolve over time. And using the Spore Creature Creator, gamers can build their heroes with assorted alien body parts.… Read more

Exclusive: Getting up close and personal with Natal

REDMOND, Wash.--One of the reasons that Microsoft got such buzz for Project Natal is because it is so easy to see how the technology could change the face of gaming.

But it's even easier to appreciate once you get a chance to try the gesture recognition technology yourself. When I was in Redmond, Wash., last week, I got a chance to do just that.

Playing Ricochet, a 3D breakout-like game, I found myself wanting to do whatever I could to stop the balls from passing me. It felt less like a traditional video game and more like I … Read more

EA to take Sims 3 on new adventures

Sims players will soon be able to journey to countries such as China and Egypt, search for hidden treasures, and meet fellow Sims along the way.

Electronic Arts announced Monday that it's developing the first expansion pack for its popular Sims 3 game. The new pack, Sims 3 World Adventures, will take players on a journey to real-world locales, says EA, from ancient tombs in Egypt to romantic getaways in France. While trekking across the globe, players can take on new challenges, develop different skills, and interact with other Sims.

"We're thrilled with the global success of … Read more

Wielding the Xbox 'banhammer'

In his role heading policy and enforcement for Xbox live, Stephen Toulouse is widely known for wielding the "banhammer"--that is being the guy who comes down on cheaters and those who harass people over the online service.

Toulouse said he is starting to shy away from the banhammer moniker, given that he and his team employ a range of punishments, from the temporary suspension of a feature all the way up to permanent ban of all users of a particular console. But, he said, as an avid gamer, he is enjoying his role trying to keep Xbox … Read more

Metaplace virtual worlds now blog-embeddable

Metaplace is a massively multiplayer online role-playing game, or MMORPG, that runs in Flash. It doesn't have nearly as many users as Second Life, nor the cult following of World of Warcraft.

But in an announcement that could go a long way in helping the service expand beyond its 6,000 active users, Metaplace worlds can now be embedded into a blog.

Once that embed is complete, Metaplace users can play in the world right on the blog. If the blog author adds multiple embeds of different worlds, the gamers can be in each of them simultaneously.

Is Metaplace really the kind of service that would make you want to create a world and embed into your blog?

I had the chance to try out Metaplace. And although it has some issues, for the most part, the service is well worth a gamer's time.… Read more

Spore variations grow on Nintendo

Aliens beware. Nintendo gamers will now be able to transform into galactic Spore heroes with the release of two new games for the Wii and DS.

To be unleashed this fall by Electronic Arts game studio Maxis, Spore Hero and Spore Hero Arena, are new additions to the Spore universe created exclusively for the Nintendo platforms. Spore transports players to a virtual galaxy in which players create entire civilizations, explore new worlds, and befriend or battle alien creatures.

In Spore Hero, created for the Wii, players take on the role of hero to defend their planet from a dark alien … Read more

Making an Internet list, and checking it twice

NICE, Calif.--Over the last few days, I spent hours with my wife's parents, Tyler and Donna, helping them adapt to the first Internet connection they've ever had. For them, living on top of a mountain at 4,000 feet, in the middle of a national forest, and entirely off the grid--this has been a big step.

For my wife and I, it's also been a big project, at least in terms of teaching them the basics, and helping them get ready to learn on their own. While their Internet proficiency is still low, they are learning … Read more

Big progress for off-the-grid Net-newbie in-laws

NICE, Calif.--As a San Francisco-based Internet junkie, I can't count the number of times I've been in groups with almost as many wirelessly connected Mac laptops as people.

So the scene in front of me shouldn't be new: four people, three connected Mac laptops.

But there's something completely novel going on: I'm visiting my in-laws at their off-the-grid, mountaintop house in Northern California, about four hours northeast of San Francisco. And I can say with absolute certainty that this is the first time such a scene has played out here.

How do I know? Because it's been less than two weeks since my in-laws, Tyler and Donna, had Internet installed on their property for the first time--in their case, the only available option was satellite--and it's been just hours since I personally set up their wireless network. In other words, Wi-Fi is a newly arrived house guest, and judging by the concentration on their faces, the occasional smiles, and the superlatives coming from their lips, it's a very welcome one.

For years, my wife and I had been trying to get her parents to cotton to the idea that their lives, at 4,000 feet, surrounded by national forest and steeped in the necessities of growing most of their own food, could be improved by getting online. But they'd gotten by just fine, thank you, for more than 30 years, without even a television.

Now, suddenly, there is a Wi-Fi network set up in their house, and I could see my in-laws' lives changing before my eyes.

For example, Tyler said excitedly to me one morning during my visit that he'd figured out how to use e-mail and the Web to do many of the things that used to require him to stop at the post office and get stamps.

"That's the end of snail mail for me," Tyler told me. And, he added, no more catalogs would be cramming their P.O. box.

Yesssss!

Working so much better now My wife and I had conveniently--and coincidentally--managed to time our last visit to the mountain with the HughesNet satellite installation. But as I wrote previously, those first baby steps didn't go so well.

Thanks to glacially slow initial download speeds, the unexpected realities of a 200MB daily download limit, and the necessity of loading countless Windows updates onto their 2-year-old, Internet-chaste PC, we had retreated the mountain almost embarrassed by how badly it had gone.

So, I set out to make it all better by bringing them a refurbished MacBook, pre-configured at home with everything they'd need for a happy Internet life. I even unhooked my home Wi-Fi network and donated it to the cause. … Read more

Getting my in-laws online, at last

NICE, Calif.--This was truly a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.

Imagine getting to introduce to the Internet a couple of otherwise-normal 60-somethings who, having lived off the grid at 4,000 feet in the middle of national forest, have missed more than 30 years of media innovations.

That's what I did earlier this week, with my in-laws, Tyler and Donna. They're perfectly nice people. They just have never used the Internet before, haven't watched TV, really, and even their cell phone is turned off most of the time to conserve their limited solar power.

I've been coming to … Read more