No one wants to be Zaboo'd...or do they?
(Credit: The Guild)What effects do Facebook, other social networking sites, and today's media on have on young people? We have no idea. Neither of us have been young for a very long time. I think we think we know and like always, we're not afraid to discuss it.
Dong goes in for a job interview. Did I say job interview? I meant guild interview. Dong is evaluated and dehumanized in his attempt to join a new World of Warcraft guild.
Dong and I talk more about Windows 7. Dong spouts his first impressions--kinda weird, seeing as he's been using it for months. I don't know. We attempt to make it interesting.
Also, before I forget, contest! Listen to the episode to find out about the rules. Listen quick though!
To subscribe to this podcast, visit us at our main page and click the podcast link on the right. Don't forget to leave us voice mail at 1-800-947-6399 or e-mail us at insidecnetlabs@cnet.com.
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Time is money, friend.
(Credit: Blizzard Entertainment)Well, BlizzCon 2009 came and went quicker than a Death Knight murders a "clothie"--especially when said "clothie" is me. While I'm a fan of all of Blizzard's games, I was most excited about the World of Warcraft announcements from the event.
Yes, of course the new expansion was "revealed" at the event, but thanks to leaks days before, many of the overall details were already known.
Luckily, Blizzard took some time this weekend to dive into more detailed changes and additions to WoW. Remember that all of these details are subject to change. Here are my favorites. Enjoy.
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Pretty much exactly as predicted, Blizzard Entertainment announced the next expansion for World of Warcraft Friday afternoon during the opening ceremonies for its annual Blizzcon convention in Anaheim, Calif.
(Credit:
Blizzard Entertainment)
Called Cataclysm, the next expansion will, among other features, raise the character level cap to 85, introduce two new playable character races, and involve a wholesale refresh of Azeroth, the setting for the original World of Warcraft game released back in 2004.
Specifics were hard to come by during the opening ceremony. As is customary, no release date or pricing for Cataclysm was mentioned. Blizzard did detail the new player races (goblins for the horde, the werewolf-like worgen for the alliance) and listed a few new race and class combinations that weren't allowed previously. And of course players can expect new dungeons of varying sizes to explore. You can read GameSpot's live blog of the official presentation, which includes more details about Cataclysm as well as Blizzard's forthcoming Diablo III. Blizzard will also be hosting numerous panel discussions as Blizzcon proceeds throughout the weekend, and we expect more information will emerge.
We'll let GameSpot do what they do best and handle the nitty-gritty details of Cataclysm, Diablo III, and Blizzard's other in-development game, Starcraft II as they're revealed, especially since, unlike us, they're actually at the event. We'll keep an eye on the big picture stuff, and report back accordingly.
In non-Logitech or Microsoft mouse news, we have to hand it to Razer for its ability to read an audience. If you've played World of Warcraft, Warhammer Online, Eve Online, or other MMOs, you've most likely felt overwhelmed by the number of hot keys required to attack, communicate, and manage your inventory.
Razer's new Naga gaming mouse targets MMO gamers by incorporating a 12-button keypad into the side of the device.
The Razer Naga gaming mouse targets MMO gamers with a built-in 12-button keypad.
(Credit: Razer)Aside from the keypad, the Naga looks like a wired version of the Razer Mamba from earlier this year. Like the Mamba, the Naga has all of the speeds and feeds common to high-end gaming mice, including a 5,600 dpi laser sensor and 1,000MHz polling rate. You won't really need those high-precision settings to master the assisted targeting and timed-attack mechanics in a MMO, but it's hard to find a gaming mouse these days without such crazy settings, so you might as well have them.
Razer also boasts in-game configuration add-ons for World of Warcraft and Warhammer Online for the Naga, which will hopefully simplify mapping the various key commands. And if the Naga is reasonably comfortable and intuitive to use, we can see how it might appeal to other gamers, digital media artists, or users of any other hot key-heavy software.
Razer lists the Naga for $79.99 on its Web site, and says it will be available online "soon."
This is the last time we let Wilson choose the show title. Good news--The 404 Wikipedia page is BACK! Edit away, but please don't redirect the page. Today we talk about a fake bus stop in Germany, a "green" iPhone app, the iPhone 4G prototype, the "World of Warcraft" movie, and Jake Gyllenhaal as the Prince of Persia.
That's right folks, our Wikipedia page is back up, and we're praying it's permanent this time! Big ups to our buddy Darth Paxton for helping us out, so go ahead and edit it all you like (we can't edit it ourselves) with inside jokes, characters, guests, etc., but please don't edit the redirections, those need to stay in place. Whoo! We're notable!!!
Also, do not attempt to adjust your monitor, the photo to the left is indeed our first look at Jake Gyllenhaal as the Prince of Persia. With those two swords in his hands and that red sash around his waist, he looks more like a chef at a Chinese restaurant than the video game hero.
Speaking of bad video game movies, we're afraid to see what Sam Raimi has in store for the "World of Warcraft" movie adaptation, although it'd be pretty funny to just have a half an hour of peons mining and chopping wood.
A quick disclaimer: there are two stories in today's rundown that some might deem offensive, but although they're both a little dark, the beauty of The 404 is being able to find a lighthearted (and sometimes tasteless) joke in everything! For example, here's a funny story about a fake bus stop in a clinic that's designed to keep its Alzheimer's patients from escaping. Sounds awful, right? I agree--maybe all the money they spent on building this "net" could have been used to pay more nurses and doctors to determine the reason why the patients are trying desperately to escape in the first place!
Anyway, that's the first story. You'll have to listen to the full episode, which also includes news about an eBay auction for an original Sony PlayStation signed by Michael Jackson and a very "green friendly" iPhone app
EPISODE 387
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Will Arthas make an appearance in the "Warcraft" movie? Probably not the first one...
(Credit: Blizzard Entertainment)Last Friday, as I sat through the lame movie trailers before the latest "Harry Potter" movie, I was saddened to realize there are only a few films in development that I'm anticipating with extreme amounts of fanboy excitement.
As I watched multiple trailers for movies I had absolutely no interest in--like the latest "Twilight" movie--and heard the sold-out crowd lose their freakin' minds for each movie previewed, I felt that other than the upcoming "Hobbit" films, there was really no movie trailer I was prepared to embarrass myself over with an unbridled geekout in front of hundreds of people.
Today, I was reminded of one more reason to stay alive for the next few years.
On Wednesday, Blizzard Entertainment and Legendary Pictures announced that Sam Raimi has been tapped as the director of the forthcoming "Warcraft" movie.
Raimi, who previously directed all three "Spiderman" movies, as well as the "Evil Dead" movies, is a huge catch. He's also a director who's shown he can take a well-established property and make an incredibly successful movie based on it.
That in itself doesn't guarantee a good movie, but listening to the guys from Blizzard and Legendary Pictures talk about their movie plans two years ago--via the video below--it seems they have the right team in place to really do this right. Let's hope so at least.
No release date for the movie has been announced, but I wouldn't expect it before 2011. Lets just hope we get a trailer next year because I can feel my obsession coming on and it will need to be satiated...soon.
Goin' bad, 'cause good is dumb.
(Credit: Wildstorm/Blizzard)Eric's finally going Horde. With Blizzard's recent announcement that it will allow faction changes in the World of Warcraft, Eric is seeing this as an opportunity to inject some excitement back into the game. Dong, of course, disagrees.
Then we awkwardly inject some technology into the episode with discussions about wireless router stress testing and GamutVision.
Finally, some dating advice for our loyal readers. Don't say we never did anything for you.
To subscribe to this podcast, visit us at our main page and click the podcast link on the right. Don't forget to leave us voice mail at 1-800-947-6399 or e-mail us at insidecnetlabs@cnet.com.
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The 404 crew goes to see the new "Star Trek" film by director J.J. Abrams. It's a reboot of the venerable Star Trek television series that most geeks grew up watching. Our good buddy and Photoshop contest winner Jacky W. Chen came with us, along with Edouard, our new bouncer.
(Credit:
Jacky W. Chen)
We try to keep the show spoiler-free today, but in case you didn't know from the movie poster, Tyler Perry is in the movie. Overall, we think it's a great, fun film, but there are some deep plot holes you could fly the Enterprise through. Check out our video wrap-up from the opening here in New York on CNET TV.
On today's show, we find out the origins of the name Twitter. Apparently, its etymology is whale-based. The Natural History Museum Whale also follows us today. In more crazy news from the Web, "DJ Hero" comes out soon to ensure that the next generation of children will not know how to play a single real musical instrument.
In more video game news, Super Robot Taisen OG Saga: Endless Frontier is rated T for teen, but on the box, it contains "alcohol references, fantasy violence, mild language, partial nudity, and suggestive themes." We wonder what you have to do to get a M-rating now. Finally, if you're still living your mother's basement and playing World of Warcraft, we've got a gadget for you that will ensure that you will never get a girlfriend. It is a hut that will let players isolate themselves from the outside world, feed them, and possibly even wipe their butts. We're not sure if the last one is really a feature, but it's definitely in the same vein.
Keep calling into the show at 1-866-404-CNET (2638). We love your voice mails. Next week, we've got Molly Wood joining us on the show along with the equally lovely @LizMoney from the Gadget411 and Anna David!
Episode 338
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Episode 30 of the Digital City, where we discuss the new multi-camera setup in the studio, how to fight the swine flu online, how one of us ditched cable for online TV, and the crossroads of Twitter and World of Warcraft.
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Combining two of the most addictive things about the online universe--Twitter and World of Warcraft--seems like a good way to bring productivity in the Western world to a screeching halt.
If that happens, you can blame PlayXpert, a maker of various in-game widgets for PC gamers. The company today announced the PlayXpert Twitter Widget, adding Twitter functionality to the existing PlayXpert software, which works with WoW and other online PC games.
In-game widget engines such as PlayXpert (which bills itself as an "in-game operating system") run alongside PC games, offering voice chat, Web browsing, and other tools for players, without the need to quit or ATL+TAB out of the game to launch another app (popular examples include Xfire and Steam).
Besides allowing normal Twitter messages ("Proc on healing spells to get a buff for 15sec that adds a 15% shield to all healing spells!"), the Twitter widget can also automatically post when you enter or leave a game.
The PlayXpert software and various add-on widgets (including the Twitter widget), are available for free at playxpert.com.
