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Blizzard developers discuss patch 5.2 and more
Last week was a flurry of preparation for patch 5.2's launch, including a whole host of developer interviews. WoW Insider had the opportunity to sit down and chat with Lead Quest Designer Dave Kosak, but there were plenty more interviews to be had as the week progressed. And just in case you happened to miss any of that developer excitement, we've put together a roundup of all the fan site interviews in one handy spot. Battlecraft quizzes Cory Stockton on 5.2 content (Italian/English) Blizzplanet talks game development with Tom Chilton Epic Podcast chats 5.2 story and content with Dave Kosak and Cory Stockton Gamebreaker TV talks trailer lore with Dave Kosak Legendary digs into design with Greg Street and Ion Hazzikostas GuildOx talks raiding and group content with Ion Hazzikostas The Instance talks 5.2, Twitter and more with Greg Street JudgeHype chats with Tom Chilton about game development and 5.2 (French/English) Totemspot discusses class balance and more with Greg Street Twizzcast digs into running MMOs with Tom Chilton Vanion chats 5.2 content with Dave Kosak (German/English) WoW Insider discusses lore, dailies and more with Dave Kosak Warcraft Pets talks pet battles and more with Cory Stockton Wowhead chats about group content, encounters and 5.2 with Ion Hazzikostas While the same developers may have done multiple interviews, each interview offers a different look at what's in store for patch 5.2 and beyond. It's certainly nice to see the developers out and about in the community and talking content -- and one thing's for certain, everyone is pumped for patch 5.2's release. Be sure to check out all of the interviews for the most in-depth look at patch 5.2 you can get.
Blizzard developer interviews
After WoW Insider's Anne Stickney rounded off Blizzard's Developer Interview schedule with her chat to Cory Stockton and Dave Kosak, discussing patch 5.1, brawler's guild, lore, dailies, proving grounds, scenarios and player housing, WoW Insider thought we should bring together all the interviews in the recent set. Lead Systems Designer Greg "Ghostcrawler" Street: Legendary, GAMEBREAKER.tv Ghostcrawler discusses raiding, PvP, alts, reputation, dailies and cross realm zones with the Legendary hosts. All Things Azeroth Design, Cataclysm vs. Mists, patch 5.2 release schedule, classes, transmogrification changes. Wowjuju Brawler's guild, daily quests, transmogrification, 10man vs 25man, the gear grind, pet gear for battle pets? Lead Encounter Designer Ion Hazzikostas Convert2Raid Scenarios, challenge modes, Brawler's Guild, dailies, and, of course, raids. Method Coming soon! Lead Content Designer Cory "Mumper" Stockton: Curse Coming soon! Warcraft Pets Pet design process, pets in future expansions, pet battles, potential for pet gender and breeding, pet model updates, "boss" pets Lead Quest Designer Dave Kosak Darkmoon Herald Hidden quests, easter eggs, phasing, lore, future questing changes, interesting activities, tillers, dailies. Wowhead Patch 5.1 factions, brawlers' guild, scenarios and their lore involvement, dailies, alts, faction grinds, cooking changes. Lead Designer Tom Chilton ArenaJunkies Coming soon! Mists of Pandaria is here! The level cap has been raised to 90, many players have returned to Azeroth, and pet battles are taking the world by storm. Keep an eye out for all of the latest news, and check out our comprehensive guide to Mists of Pandaria for everything you'll ever need to know.
Reddit AMA transcript now available
Yesterday, several members of the Warcraft development team had a massive AMA on Reddit. AMA stands for Ask Me Anything -- and players responded with a deluge of questions on everything from Cross-Realm zones to story and lore. For the sake of convenience, Blizzard put together a transcript of the entire post on their website earlier today. The questions and answers are separated by the designer who answered them. Game Director Tom Chilton focused on PvP, gameplay systems, cross-realm zones, character models and development timelines. Lead Quest Designer Dave Kosak focused on lore, novels, characters, and quest and zone design. Lead Encounter Designer Ion Hazzikostas focused on dungeons and raids as well as loot and talent systems and endgame progression. And of course Lead Systems Designer Greg Street focused on classes, as well as gameplay systems, cross-realm zones, and dungeons and raids. There is a ton of information contained in the AMA, including some clarification on the purpose and mechanics of Cross-Realm zones, something that a lot of people have been wondering about. Check out the full transcript for an information overload of Warcraft goodies. 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!
Reddit AMA with WoW developers today
Community Manager Zarhym will be hosting an AMA (or Ask Me Anything) in /r/WoW on Reddit this evening at 5:30 p.m. PDT (8:30 p.m. EDT). Joining him will be Greg "Ghostcrawler" Street, Dave Kosak, Tom Chilton, and Ion Hazzikostas. For those who don't know, an AMA is where you post questions for the people participating and they are supposed to answer them all -- or as many as possible in the time allotted. Because this will be a heavily attended session, they will be answering the questions that are upvoted the most. WoW Insider will be monitoring the AMA, so we'll keep you posted on any important news items that arise. Zarhym's post with all the details is after the break.
Tom Chilton on the future of PvP in Mists of Pandaria
Nethaera sat down with WoW's game director Tom Chilton and asked him some questions about PvP in Mists of Pandaria. While a lot of the information we already knew about, there are some highlights that are worth noting. The first thing is particularly interesting ... Some highlights: Blizzard is considering putting an item in-game that would let players on the ground shoot down mounted players, pulling them into combat (if they're PvP-flagged and in close enough range). There'll be no Wintergrasp or Tol Barad. City guards on PvP realms will not be as tough as guards on PvE realms (PvE realm guard strength will remain as it is now). The new BGs should be in the beta for testing in the next couple of weeks. The new BGs may be added to the rated BG list at some point in the future. Players will see opponents class and spec (although not how that spec is used) before they start an Arena match. The full blue post, after the break.
The MMO Report: Aztec pandas make no sense edition
Morgan Webb dethrones Casey this week on The MMO Report, having made the journey to Anaheim to interview Blizzard's reps about World of Warcraft's upcoming Mists of Pandaria expansion. J. Allen Brack and Tom Chilton focus on the philosophy of this expansion and its shift from previous expansions' ominous tone to a more playful theme of adventure, exploration, and oh yeah, the war between the Alliance and the Horde. The pair also highlight changes to underdeveloped zones, pet battles, repurposed classic dungeons, phased farms (actual farms!), and solutions to the faction grind problem. Most interestingly, they tell Morgan that Pandaren came first... and the Asian motif followed. After all, they joke, it just wouldn't have made sense to put Pandaren in Aztec ruins. Get your panda on in the full video behind the break!
Mists of Pandaria: Press tour interviews from around the web
Not only is there a ton of information about the next expansion's features floating around, there are plenty of interviews with the minds behind the expansion as well. All of the fan sites got their own chance to ask developers questions about Mists, so each interview has different information. Check out these links to other developer interviews from around the web. Wowhead interviewed Lead Content Designer Cory Stockton about professions in Pandaria, bind on account pets, titles and mounts, transmogrification, and more. Wowhead also quizzed Lead Game Designer Tom Chilton about monks, questing, dailies, updating old world instances, and the player community.
Blizzard's project Titan still in the works
In and around the flurry of news swirling about >World of Warcraft's upcoming Mists of Pandaria expansion, a kind soul has been looking out for everyone waiting for news on the mystery-shrouded project Titan. Tom Chilton, a lead designer for WoW, told The OC Register about the "slow trickle of expertise" from the WoW team into the Titan team. Although he didn't confirm anything, Chilton said that it's possible that the movement of developer talent over to the Titan project may ramp up. Despite laying off about 13 percent of its workforce, Blizzard is still hiring in order to fill the development teams for both WoW and the new project. Chilton says: "I do believe there's room for us to have two highly successful MMO games. I don't feel like there's going to be a time where we just say 'OK, everybody on the WoW team, pack it up you're moving over to the Titan MMO.' I don't see that as being a realistic probability. I think we're going to try to staff up both teams and actually end up with two large, strong MMO teams." Hopefully this sort of talk means that MoP is nearing readiness so the company can give a little more attention to the Titan MMO -- might we someday soon find ourselves with actual, hard facts about this mysterious project?
Blizzard's Tom Chilton on World of Warcraft's patch 4.3 and beyond
It may be hard to believe, but World of Warcraft's Cataclysm expansion has been out for the better part of a year now. All the while, players have been on a long and arduous adventure to defend the lands of Azeroth from the nefarious Deathwing and his minions. In an interview with Blizzard's Tom Chilton, Joystiq brings to light some details on the dragon's imminent demise as well as a few insights on what players can expect from WoW's patch 4.3: Dragon Soul. Chilton details the upcoming Transmogrification system, which allows players to customize the appearance of their gear by transferring one item's graphic to another. He also discusses the new Void Storage system, which grants increased storage space, with the caveat that any item stored in the void will be stripped of all gems and enchantments. The pièce de résistance of the whole affair is, of course, the final showdown with Deathwing himself. Players will have to traverse three separate five-man instances, which will culminate in a huge battle that doesn't just feature Deathwing as the opponent: He's the battlefield as well. But we don't want to give it all away, so head on over to Joystiq for the full, juicy interview.
Tom Chilton suggests Mists of Pandaria "wildly overhyped"
Maybe Mists of Pandaria isn't quite as likely as we all thought. IGN PC had a chat with Game Director Tom Chilton about the rumors of the upcoming expansion, as well as the upcoming patch 4.3 and the possibility of WoW moving to a free-to-play model. Chiming in on the subject of transmogrification was Art Director Chris Robinson, who explained a little about the details behind the feature and its restrictions. Robinson clarified that protecting class integrity was an important factor in both armor design and the upcoming transmogrification feature: "When you see those demon wings you know 'Okay that's a warlock,' you know you can apply that to his tier twenty-one armor but it's still a warlock." So what about free-to-play? Chilton confirms that it's "definitely a possibility," but for those of you looking for an immediate free-to-play version of WoW, you're going to have to wait. Chilton clarified that the change would be a dramatic departure from Blizzard's current business model, and it would take quite a bit of convincing to switch models. As to the subject of Pandaren ... Speculation swirled recently regarding Blizzard's decision to trademark "Mists of Pandaria," as many thought it may indicate the name of the next World of Warcraft expansion. Pandaria, in Warcraft lore, refers to the home of the Pandaren, basically humanoid war pandas you may remember making an appearance as neutral heroes in Warcraft III. Chilton said the speculation was, "wildly overhyped." He added, "if you look at traditionally how we've handled that race it's been in those secondary products because we haven't realized it in the world. Most of the time when we do anything panda-related it's going to be a comic book or a figurine or something like that." Comic books, figurines, or a new expansion? Time and undoubtedly BlizzCon will tell. Check out the full article over at IGN PC.
Blizzard looking for "meaningful difference" in expansion releases
World of Warcraft's expansion cycle is not the norm in the MMO genre. The Blizzard expansion cycle is a new boxed expansion every two years, on average. According to Gameinformer, which got to talk to Tom Chilton at the Gamescom show in Germany last week, Blizzard is on track for a more timely release schedule with World of Warcraft expansions. Chilton told Gameinformer: We've been able to do it in one sense, but not as much as I would like to in another sense. I would like for all patches to reliably have raid bosses. Our first Cataclysm patch didn't have raid bosses. From a raider's persepctive, it probably doesn't feel any faster than it did before. For us, where the biggest improvement is going to be in this cycle is in the actual expansion release. Traditionally we've only been able to do an expansion about every two years. We're really hoping to make a meaningful difference in that.
More details emerge on Void Storage -- 80 slots of space
More details are emerging from Blizzard's recent talk at Gamescom. Kotaku sat down with Blizzard's Chris Metzen and Tom Chilton to talk about it all, and one of the things they covered was the upcoming void storage, slated to be released in patch 4.3. The details on the new void storage are as follows: 80 slots to store items All items put in void storage will have the following removed from them: Enchants Gems Name of player who crafted the item Kotaku's article doesn't list what exactly are the item restrictions in the void storage. It does say "extra items," which could lead one to believe there are no restrictions. However, in the past Blizzard has said it wants to do a gear-only storage for older gear sets, so it shouldn't be too much of a surprise if there are some item restrictions in place. We'll be finding out about that as patch 4.3 is released on the PTR (eventually). The full bit from Kotaku's interview with Chris Metzen and Tom Chilton is as follows: Another addition coming with the patch is "Void Storage", a new 100 to 150 [See Editor's Note] items slots. Like transmogrification, void storage comes from the Ethereals. Void storage is a pocket dimension created for a player that allows them to store extra items, but there is a downside. Anything stored in the void is stripped of its enchantments and gems and the name of the person who crafted it, Chilton said. The stripping isn't tied to the lore of the game, either, but is the byproduct of a technical issue that makes this new storage system possible. (Read: Silly databases!) Editor's Note: Blizzard has sent word that it's actually 80 slots in the Void Storage, not 100 to 150 as originally reported at Kotaku. Brace yourselves for what could be some of most exciting updates to the game recently with patch 4.3. Look at 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!
Raid finder coming in patch 4.3
It seems like only yesterday the blues were giving hints at a beefed-up raid finder coming in a future patch or expansion. According to an interview with Kotaku: Finally, Chilton and Chris Metzen, vice president of creative development at Blizzard, explained a new feature coming with the patch called "Raid Finder". The Raid Finder essentially operates like a dungeon finder, automating the search for fellow players on the hunt for a good raiding party. It will be built into the game's updated user interface when the patch hits, they said. The Kotaku article doesn't call it a "cross-realm" raid finder, but I think it's safe to assume that it will be -- otherwise, it'll just be like the one that's in game now (you remember that one, right?). There's no more details on the interface or accompanying restrictions on the new raid finding, but expect that information to be discovered or announced soon. Brace yourselves for what could be some of most exciting updates to the game recently with patch 4.3. Look at 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: Deathwing, cosmetic armor skins, and armor storage
European gaming convention Gamescom is in full swing this week in Cologne, Germany. German entertainment site Gamona.de sat down with both Tom Chilton and Chris Robinson to discuss the details of the upcoming patch 4.3, the patch where your dreams come true. It was revealed that the patch will include: Deathwing's raid and three new 5-man dungeons Cosmetic armor skins (!) An armor closet to store old gear, freeing up bank space As patch 4.3 will include Deathwing's raid, that probably means it will be the final patch in the expansion's overall narrative. If you doubted for a moment that Blizzard will announce the next expansion at this year's BlizzCon, doubt no more. We expect that these new 5-man dungeons will provide a new tier of heroics as well, pushing difficulty about Zul'Aman and Zul'Gurub. Follow us past the cut below for details on cosmetic armor skins and more!
BlizzCast Episode 16: World of Warcraft patch 4.2
BlizzCast episode 16 is a little different from what we've come to expect from the BlizzCast. It isn't an audio podcast. It's video! A vodcast, if you will. In the first-ever video BlizzCast, Blizzard's Rob Simpson speaks with Game Director Tom Chilton, Lead Quest Designer Dave Kosak, and Lead Content Designer Cory Stockton on the content of patch 4.2, from the raid to the quests and back again. You can watch it embedded above, over on YouTube, on the Battle.net BlizzCast site, or if you're a little more old-fashioned, you can still download it in MP3 form on Battle.net.
GDC 2011: Tom Chilton discusses Cataclysm design, talent and zone revamps
Tom Chilton gave a comprehensive and enlightening talk today at the Game Developers Conference, discussing remaking the World of Warcraft through Cataclysm's systems and content revamps. Chilton talked about some very interesting topics, including WoW's talent tree revamp, how he feels that the revamp of Desolace fell incredibly short of its potential, and a warning about the illusion of choice.
The MMO Report: Catackalysm special
First things first, to really understand this week's intro to The MMO Report, you need to do a wee bit of homework, assuming you don't already get the reference in the title anyway. Pop over here and watch this user-created video about the upcoming World of Warcraft expansion. We'll wait. OK, all caught up? Great. Off we go then! This week, Casey is joined by the lovely (and World of Warcraft-addicted) Morgan Webb, who sits down with Game Designer Tom "Kalgan" Chilton for a chat about the myriad things that have come in Cataclysm. Sure, it's chock-full of the normal things one would expect, like talk about things players both old and new will be experiencing in the expansion. Morgan also gets Tom to tell us more about some of his favorite quests in the revamped areas, as well as a bit more insight into Blizzard's development cycles for this expansion -- certainly a hot topic this week. In all, this will definitely be a treat for any World of Warcraft loving gamer. We've tucked the video behind the break for your enjoyment, or you can catch The MMO Report every Thursday on G4TV.
Alex Afrasiabi and Tom Chilton on Cataclysm
"I think people are blown away. I'm blown away, and I'm so jaded at this point." If you're looking for the big quote from this interview G4's Feedback did with Alex Afrasiabi (WoW's lead world designer) and Tom Chilton (its lead designer), then look no further, my friends. Discussion topics include whether Blizzard is going to take over Harmonix (all signs seem to point to no), the attempt at parity between goblin and worgen starting zones, how it feels to step into these new zones as a player once you've taken off your designer hat, and the battle between design intent and scheduling. If you're interested in hearing from the horse's mouth what Blizzard was thinking when it implemented Kezan or redesigned your favorite zone, here's your chance. World of Warcraft: Cataclysm has destroyed Azeroth as we know it; nothing is the same! In WoW Insider's Guide to Cataclysm, you can find out everything you need to know about WoW's third expansion, from brand new races to revamped quests and zones. Visit our Cataclysm news category for the most recent posts having to do with the Cataclysm expansion.
Cataclysm dev chat on Best Buy forums this Thursday
Want to ask Tom Chilton and J. Allen Brack questions about Cataclysm? Well, you can, this Thursday on the Best Buy gaming forums. Straight from Best Buy: This Thursday, Nov 18 at 4pm Pacific (12am GMT) Best Buy is hosting a live chatroom Q&A with Blizzard's Tom Chilton (Game Director) and J. Allen Brack (Production Director) about World of Warcraft: Cataclysm. The event is open to the public but is limited to 500 participants. The chatroom will be hosted on the Best Buy Forums here: http://bbyurl.us/CataclysmCHAT. A forum account is required to participate. If you don't make it in under the 500-user limit, check out the overflow broadcast on Ustream: http://ustream.tv/channel/wowdevchat Might be a good time to ask about your pet issue, like worgen females, ret paladin DPS, or cosmetic slots. World of Warcraft: Cataclysm will destroy Azeroth as we know it; nothing will be the same! In WoW Insider's Guide to Cataclysm, you can find out everything you need to know about WoW's third expansion (available Dec. 7, 2010), from brand new races to revamped quests and zones. Visit our Cataclysm news category for the most recent posts having to do with the Cataclysm expansion.
BlizzCon 2010: Day 2 round-up
Day 2 at BlizzCon 2010 saw the two most traditionally popular panels (the class Q&A and the general Q&A) go live, but there was plenty at the convention to keep you busy even if you were among the two or three people there not interested in developer panels. Liveblogs We liveblogged the World of Warcraft class Q&A and the World of Warcraft open Q&A panels and transcribed two previously unannounced DirecTV interviews with Greg Street (Ghostcrawler) and Tom Chilton. If you're looking for player complaints, developer snark or news on future game changes, you'll find 'em here. People, interviews and events Matticus caught up with Andy Salisbury for a preview the WoW magazine's third issue, and Anne Stickney interviewed both Richard Knaak and Christie Golden. Robin Torres put together a gallery of the items Blizzard auctioned off to benefit Child's Play, one of them a painting of characters in the upcoming DC Horde comic series. We also took lots of pictures of this year's art gallery. On a non-Blizzard note, someone took a nasty spill during Friday's dance contest. Friday recaps Lisa Poisso observed some happy realm meetups, we recapped an impressive costume contest, and Matticus wrote about the live raid and Paragon's ill-fated defense of Orgrimmar. Future content The Emerald Dream (or should we say Emerald Nightmare?) was confirmed as a future addition during the general Q&A. We don't know if it's going to be an expansion, a patch, a raid or something else, but developers promise that seeing it "is a matter of when, not if." New worgen cinematic The cinematic panel was a lovely peek at how the Blizzard team created the recently released Cataclysm cinematic, but it was also notable for the debut of long-missing cutscene that will power the Gilnean leveling experience forward. Revenge of the login dragon Angry about being voted out in favor of players' favorite candidate for warchief, Abesik Kampfire, the "login dragon" makes an ear-shattering return for the Cataclysm login screen. Closing ceremonies The Warcraft III and StarCraft II tournament winners were crowned (the WoW tournament was still in progress), and Paul Sams, Blizzard's chief operating officer, even started to talk a little about the company's new MMO ... or so we thought. %Gallery-105863% %Gallery-105843% %Gallery-105842% %Gallery-105858% BlizzCon 2010 is upon us! WoW Insider has all the latest news and information. We're bringing you liveblogging of the WoW panels, interviews with WoW celebrities and attendees and of course, lots of pictures of people in costumes. It's all here at WoW Insider!
