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Reader Halloween costumes 2008
Readers have already started sending in a few costumes for Halloween this year -- if you're dressing up as something from the World of Warcraft, don't forget to take a picture and send it through our tipline. Reader Taytayflann of Frostmane assembled this great Bloodfang costume from a Horde hoodie that he bought -- the shoulders, which took the longest to make, he says, are made out of shin pads, cardboard, wire, red and black cloth, and staples. They turned out really well, and even though it was probably tough putting them together, it was probably still easier and faster than traipsing around Blackwing Lair with 40 people trying to get the virtual set.There are only a few pictures in the gallery below, but we'll be adding in your entries from the tipline throughout the weekend (both of real-life and ingame costumes), so check back to see more. And don't forget to have a safe and happy Halloween tonight from all of us here at WoW Insider.%Gallery-35811%
Nethaera talks about supporting roleplayers
There's a huge forum thread over on the forums right now (though it's been going for the better part of a month) about Blizzard putting in more for roleplayers -- player housing, surnames, and "a more interactive world" are all asked for, and much later in the thread, Nethaera does weigh in with a nice long statement about how Blizzard is dealing with all of this stuff. The bottom line, as always, is that there's only so many hours in the day, and Blizzard has to prioritize what gets worked on. And as of yet, neither player housing nor surnames or any of the other suggestions have made their way to the top of the list.Which makes sense -- as many roleplayers as there are, nobody would really call them the primary audience of the game. There are definitely other games out there that are much better for defining a character. Which doesn't mean that we'll never see these things ingame -- player housing has been wanted (and promised) for a long time, and surnames are something that's common in almost every MMO but World of Warcraft. Neth just says that it's a matter of time, and that while player housing is still on the horizon, the world of Northrend will be more immersive and interactive than the rest of the game so far. Which is good news not just for roleplayers but for everyone else as well.
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Warriors of Time on Moon Guard hosts Bare Naked Boxing
Hagiel, the guild leader of Warriors of Time on the Moon Guard server, is having a birthday this week (happy birthday!), and to celebrate, they're hosting something that sounds awesome: bare naked boxing duels. This Thursday, October 9th, at 6:30pm server (which I believe will leave you enough time to still come out to our meetup later in the evening if you're in Anaheim), they're all meeting in front of Orgrimmar, and it's fight club time. To fuel the festivities, we hear there will be beer and treats also -- let me tell you, if you've never gotten drunk in game, taken off all of your clothes and weapons, and gotten in the ring with just your fists, you're missing out.Seems like it's always the Moon Guard folks holding all of these fun player-run events, seems like. If you're running an event or you know about one going down on your server, feel free to drop us a tip, and let us know also if you make it to these things. We're always interested in seeing pictures or videos of player-made events going down. And good luck to the fighters on Moon Guard Thursday night, because you know what they say: If this is your first time to bare naked boxing, you have to get naked and box.
GotGame tries to bring a browser and social networking inside Azeroth
The folks at GotGame kindly sent us a note about their new service -- they're running a "closed beta" (which just means you have to sign up for it, but they're increasing the number of people in it each week) of some software that will let you actually crack open a web browser ingame, with some social networking services attached (so you can keep track of your friends in the service and what they're playing).You can see some screenshots of how it works in the gallery below. Personally, I've never been too big a fan of any of the "cross-game" social networking services (Xfire is a really popular one that we've talked about before, and a friend invited me to Raptr as well recently), mostly because I already know what my gaming friends are playing, and I've got enough social services running to distract me from my work anyway. And while an ingame browser is kind of nice (EVE Online actually has one built-in to the game), my own browser is already just an alt-tab away (and I've always got Lightheaded when I just need to pull up some game help). It's nice that this one works in more than just World of Warcraft, but really, why bother playing anything else?So the GotGame software didn't really strike a chord with me, but maybe if your friends are already on it, and you're looking for a more robust ingame browser, it's just what you need. Get Adobe Air installed, and then you can try getting into the beta on their website. Any other ingame browsers that you guys use regularly or, like me, do you prefer that things outside the game stay there?%Gallery-33201%
New Illidan wallpaper from Blizzard
Vaneras is apparently clearing house on cool Burning Crusade artwork before we get to the next expansion -- he's posted a new wallpaper up on the Blizzard site, and it pretty much rocks. Our good friend Illy D is still hanging out with that dusty old skull, literally dripping with demonic power, while a bunch of slimy Naga stand threateningly behind him. Very nice.The second poster in the thread wishes Illidan actually looked like this in game, and to a certain extent, he's right -- Blizzard has always made games as easy on the CPU as possible, so ingame models, while usually textured very well, aren't quite as detailed as their concept art. But the concept art (and the cinematics) is what, I think, allows these characters to have so much of a life outside of the game. Most of us have never been told that we weren't prepared by Illidan ingame, but we surely remember him telling us the same thing before the last expansion.
How to hold a scientific conference in Azeroth
John Bohannon has been writing for Science magazine as "The Gonzo Scientist," and his most recent writeup, on a real scientific conference held in the World of Warcraft, is a great read. We reported that the event was happening back in May, and now Bohannon's put together a really honest report (from how the conference was funded to the reasons why it was chosen to be Horde-only) on what its like for these scientists researching virtual worlds to put their money where their mouth is, so to speak, and actually hold a conference ingame.They had to deal with everything from conversation direction (they appointed one person to get whispers on any questions for speakers, though, as anyone who's ever been to a mass ingame event will tell you, you can't really keep people from yelling and screaming) to mobs in the Barrens. And it sounds like they did get something done -- besides the panels, which were only slightly frustrated by griefers, they took expeditions throughout the world, and did do a little thinking about how different meeting in RL and meeting in a virtual existence is.Very good read. The end of the article has a link to a PDF book about the conference, but it's hidden behind Science's membership wall. Still, Bohannon writes clearly and fairly about the game, and it's fun to think of a bunch of scientists actually trying to navigate a virtual world while doing their own research.
Breakfast Topic: A waste of money
Aysel is a little ashamed about spending 1000g on a title, though she shouldn't be -- "of the Shattered Sun" is as honorable a title as any other, and if you've got the money to get it, more power to you (though her suggestion that her guildies call her AOTSS is pretty funny).But I like her other question better: what's the dumbest thing you've ever spent a bunch of ingame gold on? My waste of money is probably more of a mistake than an actual embarrassment -- I remember spending a good 100g to outfit my level 40 Mage in the shiniest stuff I could find on the AH, including a couple of world drops and the whole shabang. I had in mind that I was going to take her all the way to 70 -- and then I think I never played her again. What a waste.I'm sure you all have better stories, though -- ever accidentally dropped a lot of cash on something you couldn't actually use, or splurge on an item that was a little silly, just so you could have it? What's the most money you've ever wasted on anything in the game, and what did you buy?
Two upcoming RP events, on Steamwheedle and EU Moonglade
As I said the other day, we're always happy to give some more notice to various RP events happening around the realms, and here are two (one on the US and one on EU) coming up in the next week or so.First up, there's going to be a Horde hoedown (they're not really calling it that, I just thought "Horde hoedown" was a good name) on May 10th at 8pm server over on Steamwheedle Cartel. There'll be a concert with skits and performances (including prizes for the best one), a best dressed contest, and storytelling around a bonfire. Seems fun -- if you want to perform, they're asking you to post on the board, although if you just want to watch, you can probably just show up.And over on EU Moonglade, they're holding a belated May Day event on May 11th. That one starts at 8:30pm server, and they're asking you to come dressed in your best and brightest Spring clothes. It seems a little more formal than the bonfire, but there's no reason you can't sneak a good Spring Ale in.As always, if you've got events going on that you want people to know about, drop us a tip and we'll let people know about it.
The Guild, Episode 9 released
Episode 9 of The Guild is up, and it's confrontation time. The guildies meet each other in RL again to take down the bank ninja Bladezz, but yet another boss battle looms deep on the horizon. Y'know, not that we don't love this series (we do), but has there ever been any actual gameplay footage here? Am I the only one that would kind of like to see them in their characters, maybe raiding into Karazhan or wherever else they're raiding?Maybe there's legal issues or something involved (but surely Blizzard wouldn't mind, right?). At any rate, another fun episode for The Guild (Tink needs to get some new DS games, I beat Mario like years ago), and it seems like things are coming to a boil on this storyline. Episode 10 should be a big one. Like The Guild? We do, too! We've got all the episodes so far: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, and 8. And don't forget to check out our interview with Felicia Day, The Guild's appearance on Mahalo Daily, or even The Guild's gag reel.
Sounding off on ingame sound
If you checked out the unofficial changes in patch 2.4, you'll have noticed (or just heard on the realms) that quite a few sounds got changed. Some are louder (as in that annoying PW: Shield sound), some are quieter, and some are just plain missing (it's a known bug that Tigers and Sabers don't roar anymore). But this brings up an interesting debate: many players are saying that they never would have noticed -- they rarely ever play with sound on anyway.Playing with music off is one thing (and yes, many people prefer to listen to their own music while playing), but playing with the sound completely off seems like it would be tough -- there are a lot of audio cues going on in the game, and with sound off, you might not notice that a party member accidentally pulled another mob offscreen, or that someone behind you is casting a certain spell, or any number of other things that have specific audio to them. That doesn't need to be the only thing you listen to (I usually have to turn down the game sound during raids, just so I can hear what's going on in Vent), but surely listening to game sound makes you a better player.Do you keep the sound muted all the time, and if so, why? And do you have any trouble playing if you do? Of course, it does help you avoid that annoying PW:S sound, but as someone who keeps the game sound up (though not the music), it seems like there are specific cues meant to be heard while playing the game. Don't you miss those with the sound off?
New Year's Eve in Azeroth
Just in case you aren't headed out to a party this evening, let this serve as your reminder that it's New Year's Eve in Azeroth this evening as well. As usual, there will be hourly fireworks in all the major cities after sunset, free drinks in public areas, and revelers aplenty (make sure to blow them a /kiss). Additionally, while it's not listed on Blizzard's official page, there are two quests available (one for each faction), and tradition says that the guards in Booty Bay will get drunk and pass out, which means PvP is going to be welcome in the neutral port town (usually, attacking someone there will get you beat up).Wherever you are this evening (in Azeroth or the real world), here's hoping you have a safe and happy New Year's Eve! Thanks for all you've done for us at WoW Insider in 2007, and we'll see you in 2008!
Ron Paul supporters plan rally in Azeroth
Republican presidential candidate Ron Paul's internet regiment has come to World of Warcraft-- a group of his supporters are planning to form a guild on Whisperwind and do a march from IF to Stormwind (which means they'll probably be Gnomes or Dwarves, which is too bad, because I liked the idea of "Trolls for Ron Paul") on New Year's Day at 8:30pm EST.Now, we here at WoW Insider are politically neutral when it comes to Warcraft, so we won't advocate joining these guys (and we also won't advocate forming a "Horde for Hillary" guild to oppose them). But we are 100% in support of bringing widescale opinion expression of any kind into the game itself, so this should definitely be a fun event.As always, if you go, take pictures and send them to us. And if you hear about any other political rallies in World of Warcraft this coming election year, let us know about those, too-- we'd love it if a presidential candidate (any of them) somehow got some extra buzz just because he (or she) was able to get out "the Orgrimmar vote."Thanks, Paul!
Fan-made LotRO map guesses at expansion details: Mordor in 2012!
This has been out there for a while now, but if you haven't already seen it then it's definitely worth a look. Visions of the Ring has a player-made map that speculates a time line for Lord of the Rings Online expansions. It is flash-based, and you can scroll by months or years and see when the map creator Hayoo expects different content will be added, and what the overall game map will look like at any particular time.Before you go thinking, "What a nutjob!", and dismiss the whole thing, Hayoo has a lot of reasoning behind the map's dates and the order in which things will come.
A formal pronouncement of (ingame) marriage
Rezist has an interesting idea on the forums. We've already seen lots of ingame marriages happen, just for fun, but what if the marriage process ingame was formalized? Right now, you can buy a tux and a dress and pretend to get married, but what if the tabard vendor also sold a marriage license, so that you could formally connect two characters in marriage? Of course, it would have to actually mean something-- maybe the two characters could share a bank, or even get some kind of combat bonus when they were grouped up or near each other. With a Valentine's Day patch coming up in a few months, it might be a fun twist to put in there.On the other hand, marriage itself brings up its own set of problems. Would marriage between people of the same sex be OK? Odds are that's a bomb that Blizzard doesn't want to deal with. And how would divorce work? A formalized ingame marriage could be as messy as marriage in real life if not dealt with properly.Later in the thread, Nethaera shows up to turn the conversation from RPing in general, and I agree with her-- we're already playing characters here, and there's nothing wrong with doing something cute like this to let two people playing the game show a little affection for one another. But unfortunately, odds are that this is a little too messy an issue for Blizzard to put much work into.
RPers distraught to see saved letters soulbound
Here's a really interesting undocumented note from the latest patch: Angelhunter on LJ says letters (as in saved copies of mailed ingame letters) are now soulbound. And that's a huge deal, apparently, to roleplayers -- they used those little scraps of paper for everything from treasure hunts and "official" documents to invitations and tickets.Now, I'm not quite sure exactly why this change would be made -- for what possible reason would you want to keep people from trading saved copies of in-game mail? It's not like it would stop anyone's communication -- anything goldsellers could say in these sheets of paper, they could say in in-game chat just as well. And I can't think of any possible way that these saved letters could be used to do something devious like pass secret letters or communicate across factions-- there's no reason to make them soulbound by default.Of course, it may just be a bug -- that's what someone was told by a GM, so maybe Blizzard will put a fix in, and RPers can have their murder mysteries again. Unfortunately, I can't seeing it justifying a hotfix -- odds are that even if it is just a bug, RPers will be waiting quite a while until they can trade letters again.
Polling players on new content
There's an interesting discussion going on over on the forums about whether or not Blizzard should conduct player polls. Antiquity from Lightning's Blade can't see why they don't-- it's an easy way for them to get quick feedback about different aspects of gameplay. But Nethaera disagrees. She says (and I can see her point as well) that polls are commonly inaccurate, which is definitely true, and while she doesn't exactly come out and say it, she seems to be implying that Blizzard would rather hear player feedback in terms of discussion rather than in numbers. Just hearing that 70% of players will use voice chat doesn't tell the whole story-- more important to know would be the reasons players would use voice chat, and in what situations they would use it.So it's not really likely that Blizzard will implement in-game polling anytime soon-- for now, they're content to get their player feedback from the forums (and, I suspect, from sites just like this one).However. We here at WoW Insider have no such compunctions, and we love to hear your feedback in terms of numbers just as much as in the comments. And I especially like Antiquity's poll suggestion, so here it is. Yes, this isn't really a solution to what he wants-- he wants to hear in-game voices, not forum voices or WoW Insider reader voices. But it is an interesting question, and I would like to see what you all think.%Poll-3190%(I did leave off the "All of the above" choice-- if that was on there, I don't see why everyone wouldn't choose it. This way, you're forced to choose your preference.)
Earrings and tattoos may be available at ingame barbershops
Salthem has dropped a nice hint about the most unexpectedly exciting feature of the new expansion: hairstyles!Yep apparently it's not just hair: there will definitely be new hairstyles and colors, but there may also be new jewelry (earrings and noserings, I'd assume), and maybe even tattoos to choose from. And the most interesting piece of news is that the hair changing won't take place outside of the game, in a menu or some such, but at ingame barbershops.Strange. Will there be a barbershop inbetween the swords and wands shops in Orgrimmar? Or maybe new hairstyles will be confined to the new expansion, and the barbershops will appear in Dalaran only. Either way, Salthem says the design is still being planned, so we're a long way off until getting concrete information on this. Hopefully, Blizzard has gotten clued in to how excited players are about more customization option, and we'll all get something cool when the expansion eventually hits.Thanks, Kevin!
Fed up with ingame gold whispers
Like Sniffledoo, I'm done with it. This ingame gold whispering is getting worse and worse, and it's time something drastic was done about it.If you have no idea what I'm talking about, you can consider yourself lucky, but I'm guessing it's become pretty widespread by now (at first, I'd just chalked it up to being on a high population server). Spammers are almost constantly sending whispers ingame to buy and sell gold and powerlevel characters. Blizzard has of course said that they are banning players who get reported as spammers, but, also like Sniffledoo, I think it's time they went another step-- it's time to go after the sites that are doing it.As always, IANAL, but clearly we know where these spam messages are coming from-- they are being sponsored by the sites advertised (I can, unfortunately, list a few of them off the top of my head, but I won't link to any of them, because they just don't deserve it). Does Blizzard have a legal claim against these sites for ruining the player experience and consistently breaking the TOS? If they have documented this activity, couldn't they take it to court and at least sue these sites for ruining the game experience?It's gotten to the point where I would almost be willing to agree to a TOS that says "I agree to be sued for spamming" if it means Blizzard has a better legal footing against these idiots. Reporting these players is the best thing to do right now (even though these are alts that are just created and deleted, maybe even in a matter of minutes), and there are even addons now that will block and report this stuff for us, but why can't Blizzard do more? Why haven't they gone after the sites sponsoring this junk?Update: A couple of people have already mentioned the gold links on this site-- in case you missed it, we are constantly working to get rid of them. WoW Insider does not condone or endorse any activities that are against the TOS, including powerleveling and gold buying and selling.
