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Cast of The Guild making an appearance at BlizzCon '09
Fans and followers of the popular web series The Guild, loosely based on World of Warcraft, should be excited to know that the show's cast will be making an appearance at BlizzCon this year! Blizzard Community Manager Nethaera confirmed the news with an announcement on the official forums. Blizzard's forum post on the subject says that The Guild will have both its own booth and its own discussion panel at BlizzCon, where the cast (like geek goddess Felicia Day) will show off exclusive clips from the show's upcoming third season. This is a great move by Blizzard, given that the show is clearly based off of WoW and the communities for each share quite an overlap. If you've never seen The Guild before, now would be a good time to catch up on what you're missing from this award-winning show at http://www.watchtheguild.com. BlizzCon 2009 is coming up on August 21st and 22nd! We've got all the latest news and information. At BlizzCon you can play the latest games, meet your guildmates, and ask the developers your questions. Plus, there's some great looking costumes.
Preparing for BlizzCon: Costumes
BlizzCon approaches! Preparing for BlizzCon is your regular source for tips on how best to prepare for Blizzard's gaming extravaganza. These helpful hints are particularly suited for convention rookies. But if you are a con veteran, we'd love to hear your advice and wisdom in the comments as well.Many people will be wearing costumes to BlizzCon. If you are one of them, there are a few things you should know: If you want to enter the contest, you should enter online by August 17, 2009. Blizzard will accept entries at the con, but only if enough people didn't pre-register. They have changed the costume rules a bit. You need to be wearing or holding any props you have. If you are bringing your costume for the competition, but not wearing it all day, see an Information Kiosk. There will be no general storage options available. More costume tips are after the break.
BlizzCon 2009 Goody Bag is full of StarCraft goodness
Despite the earlier announcement that StarCraft II would be delayed, it looks like BlizzCon 2009 is going to be all StarCraft all the time. Blizzard recently revealed through the BlizzCon website and a humorous post by Nethaera that the official swag bag will contain an exclusive "Raynor" n00bz vinyl figure in addition to Grunty, the in-game murloc pet in a StarCraft II marine uniform and a StarCraft-themed Authenticator. Although Grunty is a World of Warcraft pet, all three items are StarCraft-centric.Although Blizzard reveals these items, it's likely that there will be more swag awaiting BlizzCon participants considering past Blizzard events have had a plethora of items from bottle openers to beach balls. These items, presumably, are the literal and figurative big guns of the set -- perhaps to be accompanied by (taking a wild guess here) Diablo hand sanitizers, Warcraft toenail clippers, and a host of other tiny things attendees are likely to lose right after they've picked up the goody bag. The "Raynor" n00bz figure is not for sale, but is among a line of cartoonish vinyl toy figure products that include Ragnaros, Ghoul, and Murloc designs that will go on sale on the show floor next week. Blank n00bz figures will also be available for Blizzard fans to have a hand at creating their own designs in the tradition of designer toys such as Dunny or Qee. While we're guessing at what else could be in the goody bags, check out last year's swag in the gallery below. %Gallery-34142% BlizzCon 2009 is coming up on August 21st and 22nd! We've got all the latest news and information. At BlizzCon you can play the latest games, meet your guildmates, and ask the developers your questions. Plus, there's some great looking costumes.
Preparing for BlizzCon: What to pack in your suitcase
BlizzCon approaches! Preparing for BlizzCon is your regular source for tips on how best to prepare for Blizzard's gaming extravaganza. These helpful hints are particularly suited for convention rookies. But if you are a con veteran, we'd love to hear your advice and wisdom in the comments as well.If you don't travel often, packing can be rather daunting -- particularly with all of the post-9/11 air travel precautions. Because you'll probably be bringing back more than you take, I recommend checking a bag rather than trying to carry everything on the plane. Yes, the baggage claim area adds extra time, but checking your luggage will allow you to bring a larger bag and you'll avoid having to worry about 3-1-1.Though I have been humbled (and educated) by reading the exploits of a truly expert packer, I used to travel a lot for business and have several tips for the infrequent traveler heading to BlizzCon.
Looking for interview subjects at BlizzCon for 15 Minutes of Fame
The WoW.com team will be at BlizzCon in force this year. Between liveblogging the big announcements and resisting the siren call of the Diablo 3 demo stations, we want to talk to you, the loyal readers, and we don't mean just at our 3rd Annual WoW.com BlizzCon Meet Up. We are planning a special BlizzCon edition of our weekly interview series 15 Minutes of Fame and are looking for some candidates for the column. We are especially interested in interviewing those WoW players who have a unique approach to the game. Are you the oldest player in the game who doesn't play with family? Are you the youngest and shouldn't be reading this site without adult supervision? The guild leader who does things differently? The guy who plays without the UI/Keyboard/Talents, etc.? Are you famous for something in or out of Azeroth? Should we interview your entire guild at once?If you think you bring something special to how you play the game and will be at BlizzCon next week, send us an e-mail at 15minutesoffame at wow dot com explaining what makes you a candidate for this special BlizzCon Edition of 15 Minutes of Fame. We'll pick the most interesting stories and contact you to make arrangements to meet during the convention for the interview. If we get enough interesting emails, we may even pick more than one.Please send your emails by Monday, August 17th to give us time to read through them all and coordinate the interviews. Don't leave your story and contact info in the comments of this post, send them to 15minutesoffame at wow dot com."I never thought of playing WoW like that!" - neither did we, until we talked with these players. From an Oscar-winning 3-D effects director to a custom action figure artist and even a bunch of guys who get together for dinner and group raiding in person every week, catch it on 15 Minutes of Fame.
Pocket Books releases signing schedule for BlizzCon
Our friends at Blizzplanet have posted the official Pocket Books signing schedule for BlizzCon -- both Richard Knaak and Christie Golden will be live in attendance and signing throughout the weekend, and you can find the full schedule after the break. Both Knaak and Golden have written popular Warcraft novels, so bring your copies and you might walk away with them signed.As far as I know, this is the first sign of a schedule we've seen for the convention. Blizzard usually does announce a schedule of panels and events a few days ahead of time (and of course, when you get your packet there at the door, there's a program with the full schedule inside), but they usually cut it pretty close. As of this writing, eight days until showtime, there is no official schedule yet posted on the site.But this will give you at least one thing to plan on seeing (and we can tell you for sure that Friday morning will be the official keynote, with Saturday evening being the Ozzy show, if the way they've done it in the past is any indication). And as long as you're making a schedule up, don't forget to stop by our meetup on Thursday night -- not only will we have WoW.com staffers live in attendance, but there will be door prizes galore. More info on that soon.Schedule after the jump.BlizzCon 2009 is coming up on August 21st and 22nd! We've got all the latest news and information. At BlizzCon, you can play the latest games, meet your guildmates, and ask the developers your questions. Plus, there are some great looking costumes.
Preparing for BlizzCon: What to pack in your backpack
BlizzCon approaches! Preparing for BlizzCon is your regular source for tips on how best to prepare for Blizzard's gaming extravaganza. These helpful hints are particularly suited for convention rookies. But if you are a con veteran, we'd love to hear your advice and wisdom in the comments as well.Backpack, messenger bag, extra large purse -- whatever you are toting into the Anaheim Convention Center should be filled with a few basic things in order to get the most from BlizzCon. The catch is that it cannot be any bigger than 10"x20" and it cannot contain any of the following: Desktop computers, laptops, electronic storage devices (unless you have a press pass) Glass bottles, cans, large containers (this limits some of your food options should you choose to carry-in) Alcohol (leave your cool flask or teeny airplane booze bottles in your hotel room) Weapons and fireworks (Captain Obvious is making giggle noises.) Join us after the break for what you can and should stuff in your BlizzCon-bag.
BlizzCast episode 10 released
Zarhym has announced on the forums that BlizzCast episode 10 is out right now for your listening pleasure. In the official podcast, he talks with Lead Encounter Designer Scott Mercer and Senior Game Designer Dave Maldonado about patch 3.2 and the Argent Tournament instances released with it. Strangely, it sounds like the podcast was actually recorded before the release, but of course now everyone knows that we fight the Black Knight in the 5-man and what the dailies are all about. Especially if you've been paying close attention to the testing on the PTR, lots of the "news" about patch 3.2 won't be all that surprising.They also look forward to BlizzCon: all of the developer panels and meetings that go on there, both from the perspective of fans (hey, we actually can be literate and reasonable instead of QQing all the time!) and from developers (turns out they are "not just blue text" -- who knew?!). It's not a super groundbreaking podcast, but as a wrapup to the release of 3.2 and a short preview to BlizzCon, it works just fine. And there's a bonus: Zarhym is offering up a contest -- answer some questions about the podcast after you listen to it, and you could win a "fabulous prize." The rules give away what the prize is: a Draenei vs. Blood Elf diorama or some action figures.And remember, if you've missed any of the BlizzCast episodes so far, you can find them both in iTunes or over on Blizzard's site, or just read our wrapups here on WoW.com.
Ozzy at BlizzCon confirmed!
digg_url = 'http://digg.com/music/Ozzy_Osbourne_to_play_at_BlizzCon_2009'; It's not a rumor and it's no longer a surprise - Ozzy Osbourne is going to appear at BlizzCon 2009, according to the program details of DirecTV. Unless Blizzard's partner for the live stream content is just goofing around, "a special appearance" pretty much confirms that the Prince of Darkness is going to perform in Anaheim this August. The news first started as a rumor that sprung from Zakk Wylde's Twitter message about a month back, corroborated by another rumor that another guitarist would be performing with Ozzy at BlizzCon.Here's to hoping that Ozzy Osbourne's special appearance means he'll actually rock out on stage. As cool as Level 80 Elite Tauren Chieftain are, I'm sure Samwise and his crew will actually enjoy the show (and who says they won't join up for one big supergroup?). Azeroth has its own Prince of Darkness, but having the real deal perform should be a special treat, just as it's sure to be something all fans can look forward to. It seems like another incentive to get the DirecTV package in addition to that cute, gun-toting murloc. With BlizzCon stepping up in the show department, I wonder what other big things are in store for us this year.Ozzy UK Blizzard commercial after the jump!Thanks, Milkingit!BlizzCon 2009 is coming up on August 21st and 22nd! We've got all the latest news and information. At BlizzCon, you can play the latest games, meet your guildmates, and ask the developers your questions. Plus, there are some great looking costumes.
More fuel for the "Ozzy at BlizzCon" fire
Here's another rumor that points at just who we might be seeing on stage BlizzCon -- over on Roadrunner Records' Blabbermouth.net news website, there's a rumor going around that guitarist Gus G., who's part of a band called Firewind, will be playing with Ozzy Osbourne at this year's BlizzCon. This isn't the first time we've heard Ozzy might be there -- Zakk Wylde, who is apparently on his way out of Ozzy's band, previously mentioned that he might be playing there, but Blabbermouth says Zakk is out and Gus is in.Now, before you go all nuts over the excitement of seeing the Prince of Darkness at BlizzCon (and we don't mean Arthas), keep in mind that this is only the second in a series of rumors, both from sources who may not exactly be familiar with BlizzCon anyway (they're only writing about this because they're interested in who's playing guitar with Ozzy, not what's going on at Blizzard's convention). So we definitely don't know for sure what's going on at BlizzCon yet -- don't pack your "Bark at the Moon" t-shirt until you've heard the official announcement from Blizzard.Still, that would be an incredible show. I like Video Games Live and all, but they've never performed "Crazy Train" for us.Thanks, Rob!BlizzCon 2009 is coming up on August 21st and 22nd! We've got all the latest news and information. At BlizzCon, you can play the latest games, meet your guildmates, and ask the developers your questions. Plus, there are some great looking costumes.
Preparing for BlizzCon: Virtual attendance options
BlizzCon approaches! Preparing for BlizzCon is your regular source for tips on how best to prepare for Blizzard's gaming extravaganza. These helpful hints are particularly suited for convention rookies. But if you are a con veteran, we'd love to hear your advice and wisdom in the comments as well.So you weren't able to get tickets either by purchasing or winning them (though there is still time to win). Do you still want to experience BlizzCon, but without the odor and sore feet? There are ways to view the event from the comfort of your own home, for a fee, of course: DIRECTV is offering pay per view coverage for $39.95. There is also a special (that ends today) for if you are not a DIRECTV customer, but join up through Blizzard that offers the coverage for free. There will also be internet streaming footage. The price is also $39.95 and you don't have to be a DIRECTV customer to sign up. The tournaments will be streamed for the low, low price of free. Of course, we'll be covering every drop of BlizzCon here on WoW.com, but if you want to watch any cataclysmic announcements with your very own eyes, these options will make you part of the virutal audience.BlizzCon 2009 is coming up on August 21st and 22nd! We've got all the latest news and information. At BlizzCon, you can play the latest games, meet your guildmates, and ask the developers your questions. Plus, there are some great looking costumes.
Blizzard streaming BlizzCon tournaments for free, in HD
Blizzard has announced that they're streaming most of the tournaments at BlizzCon this year yet again -- even if you don't sign up to the DirecTV feed, you can still watch most of the Arena, Starcraft, and Warcraft III matchups online on the BlizzCon site. And this year, for the first time, you'll be able to watch them in full HD quality (assuming that your connection can hold up). There will be one full stream dedicated to Arena matches, and one stream split between Warcraft III and Starcraft tournament coverage.And what you see should be some of the best players in the world -- all of the qualifiers from North America, Korea, Europe, and Taiwan will be in attendance to vy for the top spot and the $25,000 per-player prize. The stream will be running both days of BlizzCon, coming up in just a few weeks on August 21st and 22nd.[via Starcraft.org]BlizzCon 2009 is coming up on August 21st and 22nd! We've got all the latest news and information. At BlizzCon, you can play the latest games, meet your guildmates, and ask the developers your questions. Plus, there are some great looking costumes.
Preparing for BlizzCon: Contest roundup
BlizzCon approaches! Preparing for BlizzCon is your regular source for tips on how best to prepare for Blizzard's gaming extravaganza. These helpful hints are particularly suited for convention rookies. But if you are a con veteran, we'd love to hear your advice and wisdom in the comments as well.Time is running short on the contests to win tickets to BlizzCon. If you still want to go, but don't have tickets, here are the contests that you can still enter to win: Steelseries: Ends Friday, July 31. 2009. Razer: Ends Monday, August 3, 2009. Nvidia: Ends Saturday, August 1, 2009. Alienware: Ends Friday, July 31, 2009. Kingston: I can't find when this ends, but the entry form still works as of this writing. Even if you don't have tickets, we would still would love to see you at the Anabella on Thursday, August 20th. Good luck!BlizzCon 2009 is coming up on August 21st and 22nd! We've got all the latest news and information. At BlizzCon, you can play the latest games, meet your guildmates, and ask the developers your questions. Plus, there are some great looking costumes.
Richard A. Knaak, other authors will be signing at BlizzCon
Part of the fun of BlizzCon is that beyond all of the dev panels and crazy mainstage stuff going on, there's also the big convention hall full of things to see and do. All of Blizzard's licensing partners usually show up, so Upper Deck usually has games going on, FigurePrints shows off their wares, and all of the computer companies usually have some fun rigs on display. And now we've learned that, as usual, Pocket Books and TokyoPop will have booths set up, along with their usual stable of authors and artists. Richard A. Knaak has confirmed on his website that he'll be there, so if you're going, be sure to bring along your copy of War of the Ancients, and maybe you can get it signed.Our staff is hoping for a Christie Golden appearance as well, and while she doesn't have anything about BlizzCon on the website yet (she is at ComiCon this week, though), we're presuming that she'll be there. Medievaldragon of Blizzplanet is apparently also presuming it: he's included her with Knaak in his headline about the show (see update). So hopefully she'll be around, and Ziebart and Whitcomb can take their treasured copies of Arthas over and do some fanboy groveling.Should be excellent. We'll be doing our best to get some interviews with these folks here on the site as well, so even if you're not with us in Anaheim, you'll still get a chance to hear from some of your favorite Warcraft authors. BlizzCon ahoy!Update: Medievaldragon has gotten back to us, and he says that he's heard from Golden herself that she'll be at BlizzCon. Get those books ready for some signin'!BlizzCon 2009 is coming up on August 21st and 22nd! We've got all the latest news and information. At BlizzCon, you can play the latest games, meet your guildmates, and ask the developers your questions. Plus, there are some great looking costumes.
Blizzard puts a few limits on the costume contest
This is interesting -- the costumes at BlizzCon have gotten more and more complicated every year, as people try to one-up each other by bringing the wackiest and biggest costumes to wear, both for the official contest and around the show floor (you can see some of last year's appearances below). The big winner last year was this turtle mount, complete with wheels and a moving head, and so we wonder: what'll happen this year?Not so fast, says Blizzard. When a player asks just how far costumers might go (a live mount?), Bashiok says that there are some tweaks to the rules this year: costumes can't go over 10' in any direction, include "liquids or messy substances," or be judged on items that can't be worn or held. That would seem to disqualify the turtle mount, from official judging anyway -- they want the contest to revolve around costumes, not vehicles.Which doesn't mean that we won't see some crazy costumes on the show floor (and obviously you'll see them here on the site, even if you're not in Anaheim). But the contest itself might be a little more low key than last year -- seems like the Sea Turtle/ATV was enough to make Blizzard dial it back a notch.%Gallery-34205%
BlizzCon is one month away!
BlizzCon 2009 opens exactly one month from today. We are so excited - it's all we're talking about in the virtual office. Not only will there be lots of WoW news, there will also be plenty of stuff for the StarCraft and Diablo fans. Personally, I'm dying to get my hands on some Diablo III. Here is a roundup of everything we know as well as a little speculation of what we think may happen at the Anaheim Convention Center next month. If you don't have tickets, but will still like to go, there are some contests still running: Steelseries. Ends July 31. 2009. Razer. Ends August 3, 2009. Nvidia. Ends August 1, 2009. We want to meet you! The night before the con opens, we are meeting at the Anabella Hotel. If you are local, come join us! BlizzCon tickets are not required to attend. Details for the WoW.com meetup are here.
Announcing the third annual WoW.com BlizzCon Meetup
It's here! For months now, we've told you that we'll be having our third BlizzCon meetup on August 20th, the night before the big event in Anaheim, but we haven't yet told you exactly where. But now, we've finally confirmed our location and we can tell you where to go: We'll be meeting at the Tangerine Patio in the Anabella Hotel at 1030 W. Katella Avenue in Anaheim, CA. That's right behind the Convention Center (between it and Disneyland), and within easy walking distance from anywhere in the area. We'll begin the festivities at 7:30pm Pacific (local Anaheim time) on August 20th, and the Anabella will have the kitchen open and a cash bar ready for all of the eating and drinking you'd want. We're asking that attendees be 18+ or accompanied by parent, but other than that, just be a reader of WoW.com -- many of our writers and editors will be in attendance for you to meet and greet, and we'll be giving away some swag and speculating at just what we'll see later that weekend at BlizzCon.And if you aren't able to make it to Anaheim, don't worry: we'll have audio and video up and streaming to our Ustream page, so you'll be able to attend virtually and chat with everyone else there. And we're planning on having some Ustream-specific giveaways as well, so you won't be left out of the loot, either. All of our reader meetups in the past have been tremendous, and this one is set up to be our biggest and best event yet. We'll see you there!BlizzCon 2009 is coming up on August 21st and 22nd! We've got all the latest news and information. At BlizzCon, you can play the latest games, meet your guildmates, and ask the developers your questions. Plus, there are some great looking costumes.
Preparing for BlizzCon: News roundup
BlizzCon approaches! Preparing for BlizzCon is your regular source for tips on how best to prepare for Blizzard's gaming extravaganza. These helpful hints are particularly suited for convention rookies. But if you are a con veteran, we'd love to hear your advice and wisdom in the comments as well.The BlizzCon news is hitting us faster now, the closer we get to the event. In case you missed some, here's a roundup of the latest news pertaining to BlizzCon:Don't have tickets? Enter a contest! From Steelseries. Ends July 31. 2009. From Razer. Ends August 3, 2009. From Nvidia. Ends August 1, 2009 Want to enter Blizzard's creative contests? Deadline for Best Fan Art, Best Original Song, and Best Movie Using WoW Footage is July 31, 2009.Who is going to be there? Definitely: Jay Mohr Maybe: Ozzy Osbourne What will the big announcement be? My guess is: Cataclysm with new playable races.BlizzCon 2009 is coming up on August 21st and 22nd! We've got all the latest news and information. At BlizzCon, you can play the latest games, meet your guildmates, and ask the developers your questions. Plus, there are some great looking costumes.
BlizzCon Sweepstakes ticking down to deadline
Just in case you aren't satisfied with one chance at winning tickets to BlizzCon, those guys from SteelSeries have teamed up with J!NX, BradyGames, Upper Deck, and Swag Dog to bring you the BlizzCon Sweepstakes. That's like an all-star crew of geek and gamer gear companies forming some sort of super team just for you. That's right, these guys want you to go to BlizzCon, too, and all you have to do is hop on over to their sweepstakes site, fill up a form, and you're in. It's that easy. First prize is a flight for two to Anaheim, 2 nights at a hotel, 2 passes to BlizzCon, and yes, even $300 in pocket money (so you can buy more of swag, I'd imagine).Here's where the all-star crew comes in -- if you don't get to win the Grand Prize, five lucky chaps will go away with a SteelSeries World of Warcraft mouse, a $50 J!NX Gift Certificate, and the World of Warcraft Atlas from BradyGames. The rest of the lucky guys will get $25 Swag Dog Gift Certificates, Fields of Honor booster packs, World of Warcraft-themed mousepads, and a bunch of other cool stuff. Not a bad deal at all for just filling out a form. Of course, as usual, it's only open to residents of the United States and Canada (excluding Alaska, Hawaii, and Quebec). The contest runs until July 31, so feel free to dilly-dally around WoW.com before you submit your entry.Don't like that you can't enter the contest because of where you live? We don't like it either! Unfortunately there is nothing we can do about it right now. But you can! In the US contact your Congressperson, in Quebec contact the Quebec government, and in the UK contact your member of Parliament. Tell them you want things changed so contests can be open for everyone.
Win a trip to BlizzCon from Razer
Did you run out of tickets for this year's BlizzCon? If you're like the majority of people who queued up for tickets but clicked a nanosecond too late, and are now mulling over DirectTV's pay-per-view package (it does come with a Murloc...), the cool guys over at Razer might have something worth looking into. They're sending a pair of lucky Blizzard fanboys (or girls) to Anaheim, booking them at a hotel, giving them a pair of BlizzCon passes, and topping it off with $300 in pocket change. Sounds like a great deal, right? Of course it does, as long as you're a resident of the United States or Canada, that is.That tiny little detail aside (sorry, all you folks from rest of the world), all you have to do is register over at Razer's BlizzCon '09 contest page and complete a pair of pretty cool quests which will require you to, ah, rifle through Razer's "book of faces" and tap into their "avian based network". It's a fun little exercise that won't take more than a few clicks and keystrokes with a dash of token sleuthing. If you don't manage to snag the Grand Prize, you just might be lucky enough to win one of ten DeathAdder gaming mice or one of ten Razergear Messenger Bags and laptop sleeves. It certainly seems easier than writing a letter to Nvidia, right? Now get hopping, all you citizens of the US and Canada! We'll see you at BlizzCon!
