Oswald
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Rumor: Epic Mickey 2 appearing in online surveys
Epic Mickey 2 is running the rounds of Disney online-marketing tests, complete with box-art and title variations, according to an anonymous source at Destructoid. Disney is apparently getting a feel for the Epic Mickey 2 audience, asking which of the above box arts is most pleasing and which of the following titles most inspires test-takers to open their wallets: Epic Mickey 2: Return of the Mad Doctor, Epic Mickey 2: The Power of Two, Epic Mickey 2: Mystery on Mean Street or simply Epic Mickey 2. The prototype game Disney is marketing features two-player split screen with Mickey and Disney's first cartoon star, Oswald the Lucky Rabbit, who uses his ears to fly like a helicopter. Mickey and Oswald are thrown back into the annals of Disney classicism, armed with paint and thinner, just as in the previous title. We can't help but imagine what the box art would be if Don Draper was working on this project -- Mickey painting the town with a bottle of whiskey, Minnie in a bikini on one arm and a new title, Simply Mickey.
Epic Mickey developer diary explores the plight of Oswald
In an alternate universe, we could be anxiously anticipating the release of Warren Spector's upcoming platformer, based on the world's most recognizable cartoon character, Epic Oswald. Check out the developer diary below to see how we ended up with that round-eared sopranist instead.
Battle.net accounts required by November 11th
As of November 11, players will no longer be able to log in with non-Battle.net accounts. If you haven't merged your World of Warcraft account with a Battle.net account yet, you better do it soon! As a bonus incentive, players who do merge their accounts will receive Oswald the penguin! Those who already have merged their accounts need not worry as they will also get Oswald. Players that were involved with the Wrath beta may remember receiving one of these in the mail except he was known as Mr. Chilly then. I'm sure Oswald will make an excellent companion to Pengu (another penguin pet). Receiving Oswald is going to be a limited time offer. Blizzard hasn't officially announced a date yet, but they do plan on removing the ability to get him at some point. Of course, not being allowed access into the game might be incentive enough to begin the account merging process! For additional information, check out the Battle.net account FAQ, Instructions on creating a Battle.net account, a video tutorial on how to convert your account, or just make your account a Battle.net account now (US) (EU).Note: There is a blue post saying November 12th, and the in-game announcement saying November 11th. If appears that EU players need to convert by the 12th, and NA/US players need to convert by the 11th. But be on the safe side and just convert your account now.
WoW Moviewatch: Snacky's Journal 4 wins Grand Prize at BlizzCon
Although the BlizzCon movie contest was hardly publicized at all -- no press releases about the contest or the winners -- it yielded the cream of the WoW machinima crop so we will be featuring the winning movies here at WoW Moviewatch for the next few days. The winner in each category, as well as the Grand Prize winner, received the newly minted Oswald award to put on their shelves. (I hereby dub thee The Ozzie!) Today we feature the Grand Prize winner, Snacky's Journal - Episode 4 by the typically brilliant Stone Falcon Productions. This film also won the Drama/Romance category (see below), even though I think it is better suited for the Comedy category. It's good, Snackish fun, with high quality film-making and acting, as all the Snackys are. I like the new fem gnome and I hope she continues in the series because she's a cute character and could make for a good foil for Snacky.Here's a list of the other winners, along with links to ones that have been already featured on WoW Insider. We'll feature and comment on some of the others this week. Action/Adventure Category Runner-up: The Future Soon by Spiffworld Runner-up: Mercy of the Sea by Sleeping Dog Productions Winner: Divided Soul by Falch Productions Comedy Category Runner-up: Fruit of Elune by Myndflame Runner-up: The Dead Murloc by KILH Machinima Winner: The Rumpus Machine by Oblivious Films Drama/Romance Category Runner-up: Dead Rain 2 by Bear on a Trampoline Runner-up: Redshift by Slashdance Winner: Snacky's Journal - Episode 4 by Stone Falcon Productions If you have any suggestions for WoW Moviewatch, you can mail them to us at machinima AT wowinsider DOT com.
BlizzCon Roundup: Day 1
Whew. What a dizzying first day that was, wasn't it? Ok, well, I wouldn't know myself since I'm halfway across the world, but judging from the conference hangovers my colleagues have got, it's safe to say it was one whirlwind of an opening. If you weren't here yesterday to watch -- er, read -- the play-by-play, here's a quick recap of BlizzCon '08 Day One: Our tenacious guys at BlizzCon liveblogged the opening ceremonies, although nothing really spectacular happened here other than the announcement of the Wizard, a hot new class for Diablo III. It was mostly trailers, recaps, and a reminder for everyone that something historic will happen in November. And it's not the elections. Mike gave us all a preview of the people milling about in costume earlier in the day, but that was just a preview for the totally phenomenal costume contest this year. While past years have been pretty cool, this year's crop blew all the past ones out of the water. You'll have to check out the gallery for yourself to see what I mean. Can you imagine a turtle mount? Yes. A turtle mount. Krystalle snapped quite a bunch of shots from the convention floor just to give everyone an idea of how BlizzCon feels. Looking through the general floor gallery, it almost felt like I was there. Minus the trademark convention smell, I presume, and the sad inability to purchase any of the cool swag. The first World of Warcraft panel of the day dealt with the game's UI. It's pretty cool and was a proper teaser for the even cooler things that would pop up later in the day. Our man Alex did the liveblogging duties for this one. Itemrack will have to wait, unfortunately. More stuff from yesterday after the jump!
New annual Oswald awards to premiere at BlizzCon '08
In a sign that machinima is becoming increasingly well-known and respected, Blizzard has decided to give out special Oswald award statues at BlizzCon this year for the best machinima videos. (Wondering what machinima is? Check here to find out.) Yes, I am aware that the Oswald award itself is a silly gnome in goggles, but you have to admit that it is made of metal in the form of a humanoid, and it does begin with O, just like that other famous awards ceremony you might have heard of. It may be kind of a spoof, but it's still really neat and it should be a great time! Besides, it's something much more solid than a certificate, or whatever they gave out in previous years in addition to the prizes. It really is something they can put on a shelf in their home and admire proudly for years to come.The Oswalds will be awarded for the best in three categories: Action/Adventure Comedy Drama/Romance If the sight of this statue is just the sort of thing that inspires you to get out there and machinimate something right away, I'm afraid it's too late to submit your entry this year, so you can't be one of the first winners of the award unless you've already got something in. Good luck to all the Oswald hopefuls this year
