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BioWare and Dark Horse release first issue of Old Republic webcomic
If you're chomping at the bit for scraps of information regarding BioWare and LucasArts' upcoming long ago and far, far away MMO Star Wars: The Old Republic, you'd be wise to turn your attention to the first issue of the game's Dark Horse-produced online comic, "Threat of Peace." With writing from BioWare's Rob Chestney and art from JSA Classified illustrator Alex Sanchez, it's higher caliber work than your usual webcomic fare. Sure, it's a scant three pages long, but with future installments dropping every two weeks, it should prove an invaluable resource for the KotOR-uninitiated who can't tell their Kashyyyks apart from their Coruscants.
Introducing the Massively webcomic: Grinders
Grinders is a new weekly cartoon here at Massively devoted to chronicling your adventures in your favorite MMOs! If you have a funny story or just a funny character, submit your tale complete with a screenshot to lemuel.pew@weblogsinc.com. The best will be etched in stone and displayed in the town square for all to see. Or just put in the comic.Well, what's Grinders really about? How about last week's raid-gone-bad, or that time you danced on the head of a giant mob? Or that famous thing that Jenkins fella did? It happens all the time, you just need to write it out and send it in! Be sure to include screenshots so Lem knows what to draw, and include character names, games and even your server so credit goes where credit is due. We look forward to seeing your online tales of wit and woe!Lemuel Pew is a webcomic artist and MMO player with the attention span of a guppy. Between sketching gamers in cartoon form and making too many alts in City of Heroes, he draws an online comic called Blank It. Feel free to watch his Twitter at your own risk.
The black-and-white evolution of MadWorld's graphics
MadWorld Lead Character Designer & Art Director, Masaki Yamanaka, just posted an informative blog that talks about Platinum Games' decision to go with a black-and-white art style and its subsequent evolution -- one that progresses from a high contrast black-and-white look to the addition of desaturated yellow tones and plenty of comic book violence. Something similar to Sin City, but with no Jessica Alba and fewer metaphors. It's interesting to note that early concepts of Jack had him free of bladed weaponry. Thankfully, through the miracle of development, a chainsaw was attached to his arm, which definitely aids in the spilling of Organizer blood.
"Flintlocke" creator moving to Blizzard
Readers Geamo, Dice, and Leethax have written to let us know that Dave "Fargo" Kosak, co-founder of Gamespy and creator of the wildly popular "Flintlocke's Guide to Azeroth" and its Horde follow-up "Flintlocke vs. The Horde" is leaving for...Blizzard! In his farewell message on Gamespy he says he'll be creating content for Blizzard games and World of Warcraft specifically (so be on the lookout, as he writes, for "quest instructions (shouted) at you in a very loud, very poor Scottish accent"). Kosak has been responsible for hearthstones being memorably described as "the chickenrock," an explanation of aggro mechanics, The Five Stages of Warcraft, and the ultimate goblin-engineered weapon (which you can find in Area 52). Unfortunately, it looks like he's not going to be able to continue the "Flintlocke" comics while at Blizzard (whether for time-related or legal reasons, I'm not sure), so that's kind of a downer. The current Horde comic has already been planned all the way to its end, which will occur at some point in late April. I was disappointed to read this -- I love Flintlocke, and the Horde storyline is amazing ("What kind of combat skills you got on that thing?" "Probably flee and mate") -- but I expect we'll be seeing some of Kosak's influence ingame.Congratulations, Mr. Kosak, and from all of us here at WoW Insider, good luck!
The Killzone comic you'll never see
Let's talk about obvious things for a while. Bankruptcy sucks. That's pretty obvious, right? DreamWave Comics was working on a comic based on the Killzone universe. However, it never saw the light of day due to the company's financial meltdown.The BBPS.com has some interesting images that were made before the company's dismantling in 2005. To think, this comic would've been perfect to launch in tandem with the upcoming game (maybe as a Limited Edition bonus?). The quality of the art is staggering.Too bad it'll never come to fruition. With Killzone's current fandom, we think hordes of players would've rushed to buy this comic. Isn't that obvious?
Preview of World of Warcraft comic issue 15
Yesterday we mentioned that Garona Halforcen, strangely popular assassin from the earlier RTS games, would be making her comeback in the World of Warcraft comic series. WorldofWar.net first reported that issue 18 would be the first reappearance of Garona, but a preview of issue 15 on the official website shows that it's going to start up a bit earlier than that.The preview reveals that when Garona (who has the same tailor as Valeera Sanguinar apparently) killed King Llane, she was actually pregnant. When she 'disappeared' from the overall Warcraft story, she handed off her child to the Undead Mage/Warlock/Necromancer Meryl for safekeeping since she couldn't trust herself while she went to deal with her inner demons. It's interesting to note that this Undead Necromancer isn't actually a member of the Forsaken, so that Forsaken Warlock action figure you may have purchased awhile back isn't a Forsaken at all. He predates Ner'zhul by quite a bit, and the comic describes him as being undead via his own will and sorcery. He should prove to be a pretty neat character.
Prototype comic detailed, hitting stands in April
New details have emerged surrounding Wildstorm's upcoming comic book take on Radical Entertainment's Prototype. First announced last April, the graphic reworking will be penned by Jonah Hex writing duo, Jimmy Palmiotti and Justin Gray, with illustrations by Transmetropolitan co-creator, Darick Robertson. The adaptation's debut issue will cut into comic book pull lists this April as the first in a six part mini-series. But read slowly. Even with a variant cover by veteran X-Men and WildC.A.T.s artist, Jim Lee, that's still just one issue for every two hours of game.
Crunch numbers like the bones of villains in City of Heroes
Back in Issue 12, City of Heroes added the ability to see the exact statistics of your heroes to the game -- a feature that had been shrouded in mystery since the game's inception. Until that fateful patch, no one knew exactly how the statistics system in CoH worked or how things were calculated out. But, with that feature now a standard part of the game, it has become a very invaluable tool.But perhaps you're not up to speed on that. Perhaps you've never taken a look at all of those new digits and fancy words on the screen. Well, if you're looking for a basic starter on how to take advantage of this system, the comic blog Limited Edition has just posted their look into the stats. It's a brief walkthrough of some of the basic features -- good for anyone who hasn't gotten their feet wet with the stats as of yet.
Clams getting more special treatment
Clams took this site by storm last week. 98 comments on a post about clams? Yes, sir!The clam issue itself is simple to understand: Blizzard is updating a relatively obscure area of the game in patch 3.0.8 while ignoring other problems. At least that's what some people think. Truth be told I'm not sure where I stand on the issue. I can see how updating clam stacking is easy programmatically and fixes a small annoyance for some players. But at the same time I can see where people are upset that larger issues are not being addressed. Massive Pwnage makes light of the situation in a comic posted today. "World of Warcraft: Ground-breaking changes with every patch," reads the subtitle.The comic gets my stamp of approval, and gave me a good chuckle this afternoon when it came through our tip line. Be sure to head over there and check out the larger version.This is so much easier!
White Knight Chronicles prequel manga goes live
Level-5's first big PS3 RPG, White Knight Chronicles, is hitting Japan very soon. In order to get the populace ready for this epic adventure, the official Japanese site now features a beautifully illustrated prequel manga. Simply click on "Special" at the top of the site to get a peek at the first issue. Sure, it's in Japanese, but for fans that are eagerly awaiting this game, this is a nice way of seeing the expansive world of WKC.
North America also getting House of the Dead: Overkill bonus
Click for full cover. The House of the Dead: Overkill collector's edition bundle is one of the best preorder items we've seen in a while, so it was understandably upsetting when Sega initially revealed the package as a Europe-only bonus. You can pack that pitchfork away for another day, however, because Sega has confirmed it will be spreading the love to North America. Preorder Overkill at GameStop, GameCrazy, or Amazon, and you'll have the option to bag all of this. Yum.%Gallery-29952%
House of the Dead: Overkill gets Euro release date, Collector's Edition
Sega will release The House of the Dead: Overkill in Europe next February, and there'll be an optional bonus at "selected retailers" for fans who preorder: this rad Collector's Edition. Arriving in a fetching minimalist slipcase (loving the authentic scuff marks), this will come bundled with a graphic novel that tells the stories of Agent Washington and Varla Gunns, and the events that lead up to the game.Here's the downside: this sweet package has so far only been announced for PAL regions -- apart from Germany, obviously. Sucks to be Germany, eh? Hit up our gallery for a closer look at the comic's cover and a sample page.%Gallery-29952%[Via press release]
World of Warcraft #12 and Ashbringer #2 comic previews available
The official World of Warcraft website has been updated with previews of the next issues of both currently running Warcraft comics, the Ashbringer series and the series featuring Varian Wrynn. The Ashbringer series is starting to feel a little more like a story and a little less like random happenings in Alexandros Mograine's life superglued together, so that's good. I wasn't too impressed with the first edition in the series, but I'm hoping that's because it had to string together in-game events to set the tone/story in motion. This is only a preview though, so we can't really judge from that. There's a neat little discovery at the end of the preview that grabbed my attention, so I'm curious to see where that goes.The Varian Wrynn comic is starting to come to a close I think, as we're finally seeing the King make his comeback. It looks like the player's role in ousting Onyxia has been nullified, which is disappointing but expected. It would've been nice if they left that nod to us, but what can you do?Anyway, if you're into the comics, go check it out!
Dead Space Animated Comic: Issue 6
Another dollop of space horror has just gone live with the sixth issue/episode of the Dead Space animated comic, which you'll find right after the break. We don't want to spoil anything for you, so we'll say only that the colonists are under attack and s*** goes bananas, b-a-n-a-n-a-s.This is the sixth issue we've posted about, so we're a little light on new things to say about them. ... Oh hey, we know: Are any of you old enough for this to remind you of something that might have been on Liquid Television or Kablaam? ... Nobody? Oh well. Enjoy the comic. In case you're behind, here are the previous issues: Dead Space Animated Comic: Issue 1 Dead Space Animated Comic: Issue 2Dead Space Animated Comic: Issue 3Dead Space Animated Comic: Issue 4Dead Space Animated Comic: Issue 5
Barrens Chat: Spoiled Rotten
So, this is somewhat of a spoiler strip. It is something that has been mentioned and posted in previous articles, but just in case you skipped those for obvious reasons, you probably should skip this, also.That being said, I noticed while drawing this out and looking at a screen shot of Thrall that he looks like a green, balding version of the Geico cavemen. With big teeth, of course. Maybe it's just me.I know I've started doing them on the computer entirely again, but I uh... misplaced my drawing paper. When I get paid this Friday maybe I'll go pick up more, but that's a really long drive to the nearest art store.Possible alternate text for a couple of the panels after the jump! %Gallery-22361%
Barrens Chat: Bubbles bubbles everywhere...
And way too much to drink.Just a short this week in honor of Brewfest. Which has ironically fallen on the same week as this school's homecoming, so no matter where I look there are parties and drunken revelry. Anyways, I haven't had the chance to participate in Brewfest too much this year, although I did roll up an alliance not long ago and rode the Tram for the first time.In closing, have a safe and happy World of Warcraft holiday, and don't drink and ride!See you next week. %Gallery-22361% Barrens Chat is a weekly comic strip that's been shortened today due to too many trips through the festival grounds. If you're looking for something longer, why not try an unwanted parody. Like 'em short and sweet? Try this shocking shorty. Come back next week for another comic!
Barrens Chat: Always a catch
Right when we talk two of our friends into playing World of Warcraft with us again, the same two that talked us into playing in the first place, I miss out on all the fun. Almost a day without power, and the internet has, as of earlier today, finally gotten back up to par. At least I have the weekend to look forward to!I hope I'm not the only person looking forward to my very own Frosty. I missed out on all the other fun vanity pets, but I finally (might) get a cute little Frost Wyrm, oh and the Collector's Edition's other extras as well. I just don't think I'll be cuddling it any time soon, he looks a little bony.See you next week! %Gallery-22361% Barrens Chat is a weekly comic installment created on caffeine and pixy sticks. Although often abusing Hunters in any way we can find, sometimes we go after the tankier players, too. Stop by every week to see a new comic, and hope that the sugar stash has run out by then.
Barrens Chat: Dead ringer
I don't have much to say with this comic this week, thank goodness. With a two page reaction paper due tomorrow, and two exams Friday, I greatly enjoyed the time I took from my week to sit down and do this comic. With that said, I would like to send out a sincere "I'm sorry for your loss" to the five of you whom have recently (read as: within the last month) experienced something similar with a very different piece of hardware. At least that made one of you turn your World of Warcraft subscription back on.Anyways, have you ever wondered what it would be like if things in Word of Warcraft worked the way they did in real life? Like if for instance some large corporation made your Mechanostrider instead of that nice little Milli Featherwhistle? You could be minding your own business, enjoying a nice breeze from running through Nagrand when, Bam!What do you think? Have you ever just thought about something like that? Standing there one day being shocked back to life and thinking "Gee, what if these jumper cables malfunctioned?" Maybe it's just me, but when I see my Engineering friend zooming around in his Turbo-Charged Flying Machine while I'm stuck on my poor, unflying kodo, I sometimes giggle at the thought of him crashing.At least he's not our healer. Barrens Chat is being devious this week, while the author enjoys picking fun at those unfortunate enough to experience the one of the many rings men (and women) fear most. Past victims have been shockingly few, however not all innocents were spared. Come back next week for a new comic!
World of Warcraft comic hardcover collection reviewed
Well, I admit it: I've been reading the World of Warcraft comic (I'm up to issue ten) and enjoying it as a light bit of fantasy fare with lots of nice nods to the lore of the game. It's not trying to be more than that, I don't think, perhaps wanting to leave some room for this Wednesday's Ashbringer comic. However, it was news to me that there's a hardcover collection of the series out. Of course, where I fail, the folks at Blizzplanet succeed in not only knowing it was out, but in giving it an in-depth review.The review is positive, and the special goodies of concept sketches, Blizzcon exclusive issues and what sounds like a solid layout and design make me seriously consider saving my gold (I need real life daily quests) to pick this up. Feel free to head over to Blizzplanet and see if you agree with that sentiment.
Ashbringer Wednesday
If you love comic books, play World of Warcraft, and are interested in the lore of the Ashbringer -- all of which I actually apply to myself -- then you might want to set aside $3.99 and check out DC Comics' limited series about the legendary sword coming out this Wednesday, September 10. The first issue of a four-part limited series, the comic deals with the story of Alexandros Mograine, the Ashbringer himself. Produced by Wildstorm Studios, the guys behind the World of Warcraft comic featuring the badass Varian Wrynn, the comic will be written by Blizzard Creative Director Micky Neilson and drawn by original WoW comic artist Ludo Lullabi with help from Tony Washington. The covers will be drawn by Blizzard Art Director Chris Robinson (not to be confused with the singer of The Black Crowes...), with variant covers from Lullabi and Washington.
