wow-cinematic
Latest
Patch 5.2: The Thunder King official trailer
We may not have gotten a trailer for patch 5.1, but we've certainly got a good one for patch 5.2! In a departure from earlier trailers, the trailer for 5.2 skips the narration and instead features some eloquent poetry courtesy of Lorewalker Cho. The trailer comes hot on the heels of the release candidate on the 5.2 PTR, suggesting that perhaps we should be expecting that patch next week. Pull on your troll-killing boots and prepare for a raid the likes of which we haven't seen since Ulduar. The Thunder King comes! I'm awfully excited for this patch, and even more excited to see a new trailer from Blizzard. We haven't had a proper patch trailer since patch 4.3 -- and this particular trailer is a vast, vast improvement from the Hour of Twilight trailer in Cataclysm. What do you guys think? Are you ready for patch 5.2?
Mists of Pandaria cinematic review
I love this cinematic. There are several reasons for this. First and foremost in my mind, anyway, is that for the first time since the trailer for The Burning Crusade, we've got ourselves a trailer with a little bit of humor in it. Don't get me wrong, I loved the cinematics for both Wrath and Cataclysm, but there is only so much dark doom and gloom I can take. We've dealt with the worst of what the world has had to offer in the past two expansions, and frankly, I could use a breather from it all. Warcraft has always been a franchise that's had a quirky sense of humor at its heart, and we haven't seen that humor in recent trailers. Given the themes of the prior two expansions, that was understandable -- how can you make light of the Lich King? How can you make a joke about Deathwing literally ripping the world apart? These were dire times, and they required a suitably dire cinematic to get the urgency of that point across. Mists of Pandaria is an entirely different sort of expansion, and the cinematic reflects that. But there's far more to this cinematic than meets the eye -- and it's the deeper meanings that continue to delight me.
Mists of Pandaria in-game cinematic achievement
You know what I love about this cinematic? Everything. But the biggest thing I love is the fact that it is utterly tied in to the actual expansion in the coolest possible way. Those in the beta may or may not recognize the location of the cinematic; it's the top of the Shrine of Fellowship in Jade Forest. And the sheer attention to detail between cinematic and game is staggering once you've seen the location in game, which you should absolutely visit upon hitting Pandaria's shores. Why? Because unlike any other expansion before it, Mists of Pandaria has put together the cinematic and the game via a unique achievement that you can only get by visiting the Shrine of Fellowship. Once there, all you need to do is reenact Chen's actions by straightening the broken incense burner found near the bridge. And once you've done that, you'll nab yourself the Restore Balance achievement along with 10 achievement points. So what's Chen doing up there? Well, he likely heard the bell -- and he may have been nearby visiting Sam the Wise, too. Check out our gallery for some side-by-side comparisons of stills from the cinematic and more shots from the Shrine of Fellowship, and don't forget to nab your achievement when Mists is released! %Gallery-162673% It's open warfare between Alliance and Horde in Mists of Pandaria, World of Warcraft's next expansion. Jump into five new levels with new talents and class mechanics, try the new monk class, and create a pandaren character to ally with either Horde or Alliance. Look for expansion basics in our Mists FAQ, or dig into our spring press event coverage for more details!
Mists of Pandaria cinematic now available
It's weird to think that a little under two years have gone by since we last saw the cinematic debut for an expansion. It certainly doesn't feel like it's been quite that long, but here we are. It's time to put Cataclysm to bed and take a look at the cinematic for Mists of Pandaria. And oh man, fully rendered pandaren are pretty sweet. What do you think? It's open warfare between Alliance and Horde in Mists of Pandaria, World of Warcraft's next expansion. Jump into five new levels with new talents and class mechanics, try the new monk class, and create a pandaren character to ally with either Horde or Alliance. Look for expansion basics in our Mists FAQ, or dig into our spring press event coverage for more details!
Breakfast Topic: That first WoW trailer no one seems to remember
Many of you might not remember the trailer at the top of this Breakfast Topic. I remember looking for it a few months ago and just not being able to find it in hard media form, only remembering that it was on one of the Blizzard discs that I had lying around my apartment. It was a futile attempt. However, someone sent me a link to the YouTube version, so I was very excited. To be honest, I don't even remember where I saw it. My best guess would have to be on the Warcraft III disc with all of the cool trailers for upcoming Blizzard games. What struck me about this video is how much of Warcraft is still here, so many years ago today, than what was originally pitched to us. That orc shaman has the exact same kind of mannerisms and mysticism surrounding him in his few seconds of screen time that it feels like Thrall has in his storyline. It felt fun and prophetic to look back and see the World of Warcraft still relatively the same tonally, even though we've all changed so much since we first saw that video. Oh, yeah, that's Peter Cullen doing the voiceover. What do you guys think? Would this trailer still sell you on the Warcraft?
Poll: Which is your favorite in-game cinematic?
After Blizzard's machinima team stretched its wings with the inclusion of WoW's first in-game cutscene, The Wrathgate, players have expressed their praise and hope that more cinematics would be included in Warcraft in coming expansions. With the success of The Wrathgate, Blizzard included Arthas' end in cinematic form after his defeat on Icecrown. When Cataclysm released, both the goblins and worgen were treated to cinematics that transitioned the player from starting zone to a larger world with an epic cutscene and story. Now, the Dragon Soul raid and the ending of Cataclysm are marked with story cutscenes showing off Deathwing's anger, Thrall blasting Deathwing out of the sky and parachuting onto Deathwing's back. Even Cataclysm's twist ending got a cinematic. Which cinematic was your favorite? The betrayal of the Forsaken at the Wrathgate still holds a very special place in my heart since it was the first time cinematics were done in WoW. It was a home run from the start. Watching Sky Captain Swayze and Ka'anu jump out of the Skyfire, along with my raid, also ranks high on the list of cutscenes for me, even if it's only a few seconds long. What do you guys think? Vote! %Poll-71855% Brace yourselves for what could be some of most exciting updates to the game recently with patch 4.3. Review the official patch notes, and then dig into what's ahead: new item storage options, cross-realm raiding, cosmetic armor skinning and your chance to battle the mighty Deathwing -- from astride his back!
Patch 4.3: Watch Dragon Soul's cinematics
Spoiler alert: If you would rather check out these cinematics in game during the Dragon Soul raid, avoid clicking after the jump. The Dragon Soul raid is finally here, and Deathwing's time is up. Now that brave heroes have thwarted Murazond's plans in the future, reclaimed the Dragon Soul artifact in the past, and escorted Thrall to Wyrmrest Temple in the present, it's time to put that bad boy to use. There are a total of four cinematics in the Dragon Soul raid, most of them 10- to 20-second transitional movies you get to watch as the action ramps up and Deathwing gets a face full of Dragon Soul. Hit the jump for the three cinematics that are currently available to watch. We still have not seen the final cinematic, presumably Deathwing's ultimate demise, as of the writing of this article. Hopefully we will have it soon enough. Spoiler alert: Do not hit the jump unless you want to be spoiled on these cinematics.
The Queue: Getting ready for heroics edition
Welcome back to The Queue, WoW Insider's daily Q&A column in which the WoW Insider team answers your questions about the World of Warcraft. Mat McCurley will be your host today. Hey, I'm back! Blame Alex. Yesterday, heroics opened up for testing in the Cataclysm beta. Tonight, the epic quest to get absolutely destroyed by these dungeons begins! Wednesday, Wednesday, Wednesday! Come one, come all. Witness the horrors, trials and tribulations of stalwart souls! The slaughter in the Stonecore! The battle in the Blackrock Caverns! Throne of the DIES ... The quite literal Deadmines! Hellish Halls of Origination. A truly Grim Batol! Uh... Vortex Pinna...culling? What do you want from me? It's early. Enough of that. Let's get on with some questions. There are some Cataclysm spoilers in a couple of The Queue questions this week, so be wary if you're avoiding that sort of thing.
