WoW 2.2 Mac client in-game video capture

It really seems like Blizzard is taking leaps and strides in their efforts to support some of the fun things we've been doing outside of the game and putting them actually *in* the game.

When I read the patch notes and saw that the Mac client was getting in-game video recording, I immediately started my PTR client download. I was not to be disappointed.

With the new "Mac Options", I can choose the resolution to record at (600x400 in this case), the framerate, and the compression. I left these as defaults, but chose to turn off the UI, cursor, and sound.

Click through for a little more about the process for making the video, or just watch the video above to get an impression of what in-game recording is like.

So, here's a quick display of the settings you can choose. Keep in mind that even if you elect to NOT record the interface, cursor, or sound, you'll still have them in-game.

The Recording Icon was a bit hard to see, as it hides on the minimap in the same area as the mail icon. As I had mail, it was near impossible to see. By default, recording is keybound to the "[" key. Toggle the key to toggle recording. When recording is over, you'll see a compression bar pop on the screen. When it disappears, your recording is done, and can be found in the Movies folder under your WoWTest folder.

Once you have the video recorded, it's as easy as firing up iMovie, dragging the clip in to your clips area (this 3-minute clip took about 2 minutes to import), and adding some titles, effects, and music. All in all, this whole project took about 10 minutes to execute.

I'm very impressed with whatever dark voodoo magics the Mac team at Blizzard had to conjure to put recording in-game. It was always a sore-spot for me as Fraps was so good on the PC, and nothing I tried on the Mac came close.

I can't wait to see what Blizzard does for in-game voice chat!