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ArenaNet dev Josh Foreman talks about the Super Adventure Box
ArenaNet's April Fools' Day joke on steroids, the Super Adventure Box, seems to be pretty popular. A retro-tastic homage to some of the classics of gaming, complete with a ridiculously camp commercial, the Super Adventure Box is Guild Wars 2's month-long escape into a simpler time without hideous undead Elder Dragons ravaging the world. And the man responsible for it, Josh Foreman, wants to talk to you about it! Skip below the cut for Foreman's explanation of where the Box came from and what the team's vision for it was. Can't get enough of the Super Adventure Box? Check out the full soundtrack. Still not sure what the Box is? Head on over to our in-depth look at it.
Listen to the entire Guild Wars 2 Super Adventure Box soundtrack
Enjoying your Super Adventure Box groove in Guild Wars 2? Then you've probably noticed the kicking 8-bit tunes as well. ArenaNet Composers Maclaine Diemer and Leif Chappelle put together 26 minutes of brand-new (and old-school) music tracks to power the super adventure, and you can listen to the whole shebang on SoundCloud. "It's not easy reducing a lush, bombastic orchestral piece into just the four channels we have available to us for 8-bit music," Diemer said. "After the initial statement of the theme, a galloping rhythm and bass line with more of a classic Zelda feel kick in, followed by a new melody that bridges the gap between the Guild Wars 2 we know and love and the world of Super Adventure Box." What's even better is that each of the tracks has composer notes attached to them, so if you're interested in how the duo came up with these catchy tunes and what inspired them, your curiosity shall soon be sated.
Flameseeker Chronicles: NPCs and culling and beedogs, oh my
It's good to have memorable characters. It's important, in a game, to have the sort of characters that players can look back on a month or a year or a lifetime later and think, "Yeah, I remember that NPC." In that sense, I guess ArenaNet has succeeded admirably in the case of Rox the Charr Ranger. I'll remember her until my dying day. ... Mostly because she absolutely petrifies me. Have you seen this lady's eyes? They were clearly made for soul-eating. They're half the size of her face (maybe this is why the baby devourer thinks she's its mommy?), far more cartoony than pretty much anything else in the game, and more saccharine than the fluffy pink quaggan backpacks with bows and hearts. I don't know whether it makes it better or worse that she's got a fairly normal Charr lady voice. Rox was introduced to us, of course, in the Flame and Frost: The Razing patch that came out at the end of March. Let's see what's been going down in the world of Guild Wars 2 since then.
April Fools: Journey gets a trailer for Rocket Death Match DLC
thatgamecompany is probably the last group of folks we expect these shenanigans from; They're always so artsy and sincere! But there must be a few yuksters around Sony's studio in Santa Monica, because the studio created this faux trailer for April Fool's Day, threatening to invade the serene landscape of Journey with some raucous Rocket Death Match DLC. Then again, maybe it makes sense. Getting vaporized with an across-the-map rocket shot in Halo might not be the same kind of emotion that we felt at the end of Journey, but they can both be pretty tearful experiences.
April Fools: Dishonored creators lie about everything in their own game
Every year on April 1, the barrage of joke videos and announcements roll in, and every year, there's a clear winner in the "Oh, man, that's good" category. This year's frontrunner is a subtle, hilarious walkthrough video from Dishonored co-creators Raf Colantonio and Harvey Smith. Watch in wonderment as the pair spout off inaccuracies about their own game, all delivered in calm, professional tones.Listen for a few of our favorite lines, such as, "The thickness of the air is simulated," "This is the player's love interest," "The plants grow at real-time in the game," "For the rest of his life he has no legs," and the conversation about Fabrice's door-lighting expertise.
April Fools' Day comes to the PTR courtesy of Wowhead
If you haven't had enough of April Fools' Day quite yet -- and in light of Blizzard's joke no-show this year, maybe you haven't -- you'll enjoy Wowhead's celebration of this silly holiday in the form of what they tell us is new information about patch 5.3 on the PTR. So just what have we got to look forward to? We think the highlight is the new Earth Week holiday, in which we'll be cleaning up Azeroth and battling the forces of evil otherwise known as The Crown Chemical Co. We'll also be fighting a new boss called the Sky Sludge, which drops five epic rings that seem awfully familiar. But if that doesn't strike your fancy, there's also new cosmetic armor and auras, in-game Hearthstone, and the delicious-looking Doritos Locos Feast. And, while we are pretty sure this is all a joke, Blizzard has been known to have a strange sense of humor before...
April Fools: Minecraft 2.0 is finally coming
No, it's really not, but in the ridiculous pranking tradition of April Fools Day, Mojang has curated a batch of fan-created trailers for a fictional Minecraft sequel. The videos feature update suggestions from Mojang, including death by chickens, exploding farm animals, floating sheep, horses, a "Hostile" game mode, six new decoration blocks (including Slime) and many more changes, listed here.Mojang teases that Minecraft 2.0's announcement comes in celebration of the PC series nearing 10 million sales. And no, that one isn't a joke.
Do the Harlem Shake with ElvUI for April Fools' Day
The above video shows what awaits for ElvUI users when they log in today. I must say, I've been using addons and UI mods for years now in WoW, but as one YouTube commenter says, "Trolled by an addon, that's a first for me." Personally, I got a good kick out of seeing this on my main and I'm looking forward to logging onto my alts, at least just to see my dwarf scream "DO THE HARLEM SHAKE" to Zangarmarsh. However, for those ElvUI users among you who may have been less than diligent about keeping on top of updates - and who can blame you really, I swear ElvUI goes out of date every three days - it seems that instead of the Harlem Shake, you get a message saying all your gold has been donated to the Orgrimmar orphanage. I personally can't confirm this, because for once I did update my UI as soon as it said to. Let us know if you can confirm/deny the orphanage joke! Big thanks to @Vixsin_LiG5 for bringing the video to our attention, as well as the other commenters who tipped us on ElvUI's goofy prank. Happy April Fools' Day!
April Fools: Football Manager 1888 edition announced
Chalk this April Fools joke up as cruel, because Sports Interactive's announcement of Football Manager 1888 today leaves us with a game we know doesn't exist that we want to play so badly. The developer says the fake game gives players "the option of taking over any of the original 12 clubs involved in the 1888/89 season and guiding them to league and cup glory."Screens of the management game's interface are sepia-toned and weathered, giving the game an "authentic" 1888-era look. "You will experience real life problems of the era, such as: players being called up to the army leaving you with a hole in your squad and players having to retire from football with immediate effect following a serious injury," the announcement reads.With the Football Manager modding community being as active as it is, we hope this mode will exist in some capacity in Football Manager 2013. Until then, it's just another one of today's April Fools jokes.
The Queue: No April Fools' gags here
Welcome back to The Queue, the daily Q&A column in which the WoW Insider team answers your questions about the World of Warcraft. Alex Ziebart will be your host today. You all keep wondering what our April Fools' Day gag is this year. We don't have one! Seriously! For serious. Serious serious. thebl4ckd0g asked: anybody else fought one of the legendary battle pets, but gotten absolutely nothing after beating them? I fought the fish one in kun-lai, beat him 3 times in a row, but got nothing. No loot. No gold. Not even xp for my lvl 24 pet.
Your guide to Guild Wars 2's Super Adventure Box
April is almost upon us, which means that the first day of April is almost upon us, which means that April Fools' Day is almost upon us. In the past, the folks at ArenaNet have proven themselves fond of celebrating this occasion, which has given fans high hopes for continued trolling in the world of Guild Wars 2. Since March's patch, strange things have been appearing that all seem to hint at some sort of April Fools' joke: Super Adventure Box achievements on the hero panel, mysterious Continue Coins falling out of chests, and a new range of weapon skins added to the sPvP weapon pane. Of course, it's been pointed out to me that perhaps the most delicious joke of all would be to put in all those clues and then have no actual prank. I can almost taste the rage of fans who had compulsively run characters through jumping puzzles for days in an attempt to stock up on Continue Coins that suddenly turned out to be worthless. Fortunately (or not, depending on your sense of humor), that's not the case at all. The Super Adventure Box is real, and it's almost time for you to start playing it. Let's talk about it, shall we?
WoW Archivist: Blizzard's April Fool's jokes are more real than you think
WoW Archivist explores the secrets of World of Warcraft's past. What did the game look like years ago? Who is etched into WoW's history? What secrets does the game still hold? It all began in 2003, when Blizzard announced pandaren as a playable race -- for Warcraft III. This never happened, of course. The announcement was an April Fool's joke. But you know that someone at Blizzard back then really wanted to play as a panda. Nine years later, with the Mists of Pandaria expansion, we can all be pandaren now. When Mists was first revealed, the outcry from some in the community was fierce. Much of it centered around how "pandaren were just an April Fool's joke." Most of us, I would hazard to guess, have been won over by them in this expansion. With their incredibly deep history, love of life/beer, and gorgeous architecture, not to mention the amazing voice acting and animations that bring them to life, the pandaren have been a bigger hit for WoW than many ever imagined they could be. In 2004, a playable goblin tinker for Warcraft III was another April Fool's joke. An overwhelmingly enthused response for playable tinkers led to Blizzard adding them to the game. Given the origins of the pandaren and goblin tinkers, it's safe to say that any April Fool's joke that Blizzard has done over the years could one day spawn a tangible addition to the game, or perhaps a spinoff under the WoW brand. Let's look back at Blizzard's WoW-related April Fool's jokes to see which ones could be the next to become real -- and which ones already have.
One Shots: Bringing it back for realsies
By now, everyone's figured out that today's One Shots revival was an April Fool's joke, but you guys have been such great sports about it that we're going to Bring Back One Shots starting next weekend as a once-a-week featurette. No... really. No joke! So... do send your screenshots to oneshots@massively.com, and don't forget to include all the usual details, like your name, the name of the game shown in the screenshot, and a little explanation of the scene. Large, colorful, clear, UI-free shots that tell a story and really show off the game make for the best images. We'll pore over the submissions every week and pick out one that really sings to us to showcase, and then we'll see how it goes. If we get lots of submissions and the feature does well, we'll keep it around more permanently! We've tucked our first entry, from Ehra, behind the break to cap off the April Fool's festivities!
One Shots: None shall pass... until the sun comes out
Who dares attempting to pass? You? Are you trying to pass the Great and Terrible White Wizard? Well, please don't. He wouldn't like it very much. In fact, he might become so put out that he'll cast a spell with his +5 staff of mockery and turn you into another piece of coal for his suit. For years I have wanted to pass by this snowman in Lord of the Rings Online but chickened out each and every time I came under his glare. Just look into those eyes and tell me that you don't feel your will melting away and your feet frozen into place. Back away, my friend. Back away slowly and never return. Do you have a picture of a favorite MMO anthropomorphic pile of snow? The very first thing you should do is not send it in to us at oneshots@massively.com, along with your name, the game, and a description of the scene, and we won't publish it. Bring back One Shots!
Assassin's Creed on Kinect makes people look like Fools, also it's April
A dark, cynical part of us truly enjoys April Fools' day. We already have severe trust issues with the world at large, and one day a year we're allowed to look at every single person with a complete lack of belief or respect and have it be totally normal. We're proud to say that while we watched the above trailer for Assassin's Creed on Kinect, the expression on our faces was absolutely normal.
April Fool's jokes streak across the MMO community
It may be the weekend, but that's never stopped pranksters in the past from pulling off truly epic April Fool's jokes. Many MMO studios, bloggers, and fan site operators are lining up to take a shot at the jester's crown today, hoping that their blatant (and entertaining) lies will at least amuse, if not trick, players. It would be fool-hardy (har har) to try to round them all up, so suffice it to say that office clowns have been quite busy thus far. From Star Wars: The Old Republic's announcement of playable ship droids and City of Heroes' offer of ludicrous marketplace sales to Blizzard's focus on educational kids games and StarCraft 2's playable supply depots to SOE scaring visitors with Chatdy, the gags are flying fast and furious. We might be the most impressed with a deeply detailed wiki entry for a Guild Wars mission called Annihilator 2: Searing Day, during which players are sent into the past to save Gwen from the G-1000. If you've spotted any other pranks, please share them in the comments!
One Shots: Can you believe they put that in an MMO?
This is a screenshot of one of the most amazing things ever seen in any MMO. When I first saw it, I couldn't believe that it was actually happening. Is it a glitch? An easter egg? Has some disgruntled developer thrown this in to get back at his boss just before leaving the industry for good? Unfortunately, my character stepped in the way at the last second, but that shouldn't matter, right? Oh well. It was amazing, I swear! Do you have a picture of the one that got away? The very first thing you should do is not send it in to us at oneshots@massively.com, along with your name, the game, and a description of the scene, and we won't publish it. Bring back One Shots!
One Shots: Botanical bliss
This is a picture of a plant in Fisherman's Haven in Guild Wars, one of my favorite zones for accessing my storage vault when I'm /invisible and hiding out from my friends, who are probably trying to drag me along to vanquish zones or do Zaishen dailies or something. I mean, seriously guys, I think you forgot that MMOs aren't supposed to be about fun. They're supposed to be about spending $60 and then complaining on the forums and quitting in a huff. Behind me is a beautiful vista with gentle waves swirling on a beach nestled in an exotic cove, but you can't see any of those things because I chose to focus on this plant, darnit. It's my very favorite plant. I stand next to this plant while accessing the storage vault referenced earlier. I don't have to comport with your oppressive "beautiful screenshot" paradigm. This plant has deep meaning. Deep. Meaning. Something about standing alone in a wasteland of sand. It's about the very essence of MMOs, see? Do you have a picture of a favorite MMO plant? The very first thing you should do is not send it in to us at oneshots@massively.com, along with your name, the game, and a description of the scene, and we won't publish it. Bring back One Shots!
The Daily Grind: What are your favorite jokes of the day?
All right, we admit it, you probably haven't seen any April Fool's jokes just yet. It's early. But every year, MMO developers -- and the rest of the Internet -- delight in the absurd, the strange, and the blatantly false. Yes, the first of April is when everyone gets to troll the world just a little bit. And while some people are stalwartly opposed to a day during which you can trust no news and be sure of no announcements, the rest of us just accept nothing useful is getting done today and enjoy it. So go ahead and see what the various jokes are around the internet. Seriously, we'll wait. Then, let us know your favorites. Maybe it's something everyone loves, maybe it's something no one has seen yet, maybe you're just going to link something on YouTube. The point is, we want to know -- what's your favorite April Fool's joke this year? Every morning, the Massively bloggers meet to discuss the dark ritual required to summon back the most missed of all features: One Shots. So we're bringing it back today. If you can't trust the footer text today, then who can you trust? In other news, this is today's Daily Grind!
Blizzard Entertainment introduces Blizzard Kidzz!
Blizzard Entertainment has just announced a new line of educational games for children of all ages, involving plenty of favorites from the Blizzard universe of games. For Warcraft fans, keep an eye out for The Westfall Trail, in which kids ages 6 and up can lead a band of settlers from Lordaeron to Westfall while learning about the history of Azeroth -- as long as you avoid catching dysentery, of course. And if it's typing skills you're looking for, Zergling Teaches Typing should be right up your alley. There's even a playable demo of the game available on the official site. Yep, with Blizzard Kidzz, your child can play all the games their heart desires -- and learn while doing it, too!
