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The Queue: New Year's Eve
Welcome back to The Queue, the daily Q&A column in which the WoW Insider team answers your questions about the World of Warcraft. Alex Ziebart will be your host today. I'm writing today's edition of The Queue at 5:00 a.m. Central time. It's already 2015 in New Zealand. Timezones are weird. Beztoko asked: I have a timeline question it has been said that WOD Gul'dan is on the phone with a very angry kil'jaeden, am I wrong to assume that this is a different kil'jaeden than the one we fought in BC?
Celebrating the New Year in World of Warcraft
We're sure you already have New Year's Eve plans, but if you plan to use the holiday to catch up on some WoW time, you should definitely check out the fireworks displays in the skies over Azeroth that are happening hourly. To find the celebrations, head to the nearest major city -- and look for a crowd revelers standing around tables of holiday booze to help ring in the New Year. And if you're planning to celebrate in Booty Bay, take care -- the guards may be taking the holiday off. For those of you who haven't finished Winter Veil achievements, you still have until Thursday morning to get them wrapped up -- so don't get too caught up in holiday cheer that you can't make time to stomp on the Greench. And as always, have a fun and happy New Year!
The Daily Grind: What was the highlight of your 2013 gaming year?
Folks, I hate to break it to you, but we're running out the clock on 2013. If it's been a year that's near and dear to your heart, I urge you to cherish every moment you have with it from now until midnight on New Year's Eve. After that, your only recourse is to wait for VH1's Remember the 2013s to air. Every year for gaming has its ups and downs, both for individuals and for the community as a whole. Instead of dwelling on the negative, I'd love for you to pick out one highlight of your 2013 gaming year to share with us. For me, it was probably getting to play WildStar at long last and finding that it's met my expectations and then some. I was nervous about that, because you know how hype can be, but now I can breathe easier and just get excited for launch. What about you? Every morning, the Massively bloggers probe the minds of their readers with deep, thought-provoking questions about that most serious of topics: massively online gaming. We crave your opinions, so grab your caffeinated beverage of choice and chime in on today's Daily Grind!
Daily iPhone App: Ring in the New Year with the Official Times Square Ball App
It's New Year's Eve, which means there will be a rocking party in Times Square tonight. If you can't be in New York City for the shindig, you can still participate in the fun using the 2013 edition of the Times Square Official New Year's Eve Ball App. The official New Year's Eve app lets you watch a live stream of the events, including the midnight ball drop, from Times Square and even participate by submitting your own party photos. The top photos will be featured on the Toshiba Vision screen directly beneath the official crystal ball. The app also includes the history of the event as well as the news, photos and event schedule for the 2013 party. The Times Square Official New Year's Eve Ball App - 2013 is available for free in the iOS App Store.
Talkcast tonight, 10 pm ET: Another auld lang iSyne
We've yet to land directly on New Year's Eve with a scheduled TUAW Talkcast; the most recent Sunday night NYE was in 2006, years before we started the show, and the next Sunday alignment with 12/31 isn't until 2017. (We should all come to see it in good health.) One day off is as close as we'll get, so tonight we'll celebrate with a) a year-in-review show, and b) BYO libations. Uncork some vino, pop some bubbly or pour yourself a beer! You're among friends here. To participate live during the show, you can use the browser-only Talkshoe client, the embedded Facebook app, or download the classic TalkShoe Pro Java client; however, the best way to have your voice heard is to call in. For the web UI, just click the Talkshoe Web button on our profile page at 4 HI/7 PDT/10 pm EDT Sunday. To call in on regular phone or VoIP lines (viva free weekend minutes!): dial (724) 444-7444 and enter our talkcast ID, 45077 -- during the call, you can request to talk by keying in *8. If you've got a headset or microphone handy on your Mac, you can connect via the free X-Lite or other SIP clients (aside from Skype or Google Voice), basic instructions are here. Talk to you tonight!
Arcane Brilliance: New Year's resolutions for mages
Every week, WoW Insider brings you Arcane Brilliance for arcane, fire and frost mages. This week, we leave 2011 behind and look toward 2012, which I predict will be the magiest year ever! A new year is upon us, my wizardly cohorts. It is a time for reflection, a refractory period when we bask in the afterglow of the year that was and then take a quick shower to rinse off the stink of it. But most importantly, it's a time to look forward, to set new goals, to examine ourselves and determine how best to progress, to improve, and to somehow avoid ending the world in a fiery apocalypse that only John Cusack can save us from. In that spirit, I thought this eve of the new year might be a good time to take an honest look at the mage class, examine our weak points, and conjure up some ways to shore them up in 2012. I figure we still have a at least a few months before Armageddon, and I can think of no better way to spend those last few moments of our existence than by killing as many warlocks as possible. I'll do a full column on gearing up in 4.3 in the coming weeks, but for the time being, suffice it to say there is some phat, epic mage loot out there right now, and all you need to do is take it. Preferably from a warlock's smoking corpse, but we'll take it however it comes. We're at the point now in this expansion where the epics are flowing with almost ridiculous ease. If you've been waiting to level a mage, it has never been easier to get that mage fully kitted out in purples than it is right now. And if, for some reason, you've been neglecting your mage, now is the time to get him up to speed.
Breakfast Topic: What was your favorite WoW moment of 2011?
Happy New Year's Eve, everyone! It's almost time to throw your old 2011 Justin Bieber calendar in the trash and hang your new 2012 Justin Bieber calendar. No doubt, 2011 has been a heck of a year so far -- we were introduced to Mists of Pandaria, we killed Deathwing with 24 complete and total strangers, we BlizzConned, and we visited parallel universes. There's been a lot of really awesome stuff going down, and at WoW Insider, we've been in a reminiscing mood. But don't let us have all the fun. We want to know what your favorite World of Warcraft moment was this past year. Was it the time your guild finally downed heroic Ragnaros? Was it the time you scored that Cho'gall kill with only one person left standing? The moment you hit the 999,999 gold cap? Or was it something more personal -- say, that moment your boyfriend shared news of your wedding proposal via a popular World of Warcraft website?
WRUP: WoW Insider's rockin' New Year's Eve eve
Every week, just at the start of the weekend, we catch up with the WoW Insider staff and ask them, "What are you playing this week?" -- otherwise known as: WRUP. Join us to see what we're up to in and out of game, and catch us in the comments to let us know what you're playing, too! Ah, New Year's Eve -- a magical evening when you get annoyed by Ryan Seacrest for a few hours, watch some bands (who will be entirely irrelevant by 2013) perform, and suffer through an unsettling attempt by a stroke victim to accurately rattle off a countdown. And it's all followed up with a sad, post-midnight attempt to recreate the magic by watching Chicago celebrate the Central Time Zone's version of the New Year. Silly Chicago -- your New Year's doesn't count. Only New York's does. But, of course, New Year's Eve is about more than just traditional network programming. New Year's Eve also affords us all the chance to make New Year's resolutions. That's what today's WRUP is all about -- New Year's resolutions. What's your New Year's resolution? And ... of course ... what are you playing?
Some video game cocktails to ring in the new year
Christmas has come and gone (did you get that Radio Flyer you asked for?), but that only means that the march to New Year's Eve has begun. And that, of course, means festive libations. The Guardian has your party planning covered with six delightful video game-themed cocktails, from Portal 2 shooters to the flaming Uncharted 3 spectacle seen above. Just remember, the only achievement you'll unlock for "beating" all of these games is alcohol poisoning. [Image: The Guardian]
RuneScape rings in the new year with 39 manhunts
It's almost over. RuneScape's year-long celebration of its 10th anniversary is coming to a close, and Jagex has great, wonderful plans to end it with a bang. Naturally, this translates into "developer manhunt" because why not? During New Year's Eve, players are encouraged to be on alert as the clock strikes midnight 39 times in each of the time zones across the world. Every time this happens, a special moderator's in-game location will be made known through Facebook, on Twitter and in RuneScape itself. Those who can hunt down and find this mod in time will be treated to a special celebration. The first clock to strike midnight on New Year's Eve is in Tokelau on Saturday, December 31st, at 5:00 a.m. EST. RuneScape players may wish to note that not all 39 "midnights" occur on the hour (this helpful website lays out the precise order). [Source: Jagex press release]
Man eats iPhone 4 at New Year's Eve celebration
We admit, we tricked you a bit with that headline -- India's Krishna Kalyan actually ate a cake for New Year's Eve, which is not nearly as extraordinary (or painful) as actually chowing down on a Retina Display and an A4 processor. But it was a cake that looked remarkably like an iPhone 4 -- as you can see to the right, the screen is very detailed, with fully-rendered icons (and even some push notifications waiting to be read as well). Sure, the shape is a little more cake-like than iPhone-like, but I like the tasty little home button and the frosting dock connector down below. The only thing missing? Get those icons in some folders, man! You've just got them hanging out all over the place. And while we're at it, does anyone really keep their Photos or iTunes Store apps on the front home screen any more? We've all pushed those off of the first page for more useful apps, right? At any rate, excellent cake. Happy New Year to one and all -- hope you all had a good and safe one no matter what you were doing. Now back to work!
Live Stream: It came from the Blog New Year's Eve bash
Welcome to <It came from the Blog's> end-of-the-year bash, pun intended. We are live, attempting to get With a Little Helper from my Friends for as many people as possible. Join us in game or in the chat room after the break. Update: The stream is now over. You can view the video replay by clicking the image above.
PSA: iPhone alarms not working come New Year's Day 2011
We're not exactly sure of the cause of this fancy new issue affecting Apple's super cool iPhone line of cellphones, but apparently you've got trouble come 1/1/2011. According to an explosive stream of frustration-filled tweets on the Twitter microblogging service, when the clock strikes midnight, one off alarms will cease to sing out. The issue sounds eerily similar to recent Daylight Savings Time trouble we witnessed back in November, although we saw both repeating alarm and single alarm failures. So how can you fix this potentially life-ruining problem? Well until Apple patches its OS -- and it's currently unclear if this is just iOS 4.2.1 or earlier versions as well -- you can simply create a recurring alarm at the time you need to be woken up, and then disable it once your dreams are completely ruined. We're taking a deeper look into the issue and have contacted Apple -- if we get more news, you guys will be the first to know. In the meantime, feel free to commiserate in comments, and... happy new year? Update: 9to5 Mac says that the bug will get fixed all by itself once the calendar hits January 3rd. We haven't confirmed this, but if it turns out to be the case, that's pretty good news. In less good news, the issue seems to be affecting iOS 4.1 and 4.0.2 as well. Update 2: Apple responded to us on the issue, though they didn't offer any surprises: We're aware of an issue related to non repeating alarms set for January 1 or 2. Customers can set recurring alarms for those dates and all alarms will work properly beginning January 3. [Thanks to everyone who sent this in]
TUAW's Daily App: Seafood Watch
Here's another Daily App choice that's a little more practical than a lot of the games we've been covering lately. Seafood Watch is an app updated with information about fish from all over the world, letting you see at a glance where the fish you're eating probably came from and not only how nutritious it is for you, but how good for the environment as well. The app is designed by the Monterey Bay Aquarium, and finding information about the fish on your table or at your supermarket is as easy as pulling up a guide to browse, doing a search for the fish name or even checking around your location. Plus, as New Year's Eve is tonight, there's even a sushi guide. So when the sushi gets passed around a little before midnight, you can take a look at the guide and know exactly where that sashimi came from. Seafood Watch is a free download from the App Store for the iPhone. Have a safe and happy New Year's Eve tonight!
The Daily Grind: What are you looking forward to in 2011?
Farewell, 2010 -- hello 2011! As many of us prepare to ring in the new year tonight, our thoughts turn to the future as they typically do at the end of the year. What will 2011 bring for you? Will it be a banner year of excellence, or a year that would best be experienced on fast-forward? I have a better idea: Let's talk about what we're looking forward to in 2011 -- in MMOs, I mean. It's promising to be an exciting year as major projects such as Guild Wars 2, Star Wars: The Old Republic and Rift come to a head, and that's only the surface of 2011's potential. So what, if anything, has you jazzed about next year? What do you wish were already here -- a new game, an expansion, a special event -- so that you could enjoy it? Every morning, the Massively bloggers probe the minds of their readers with deep, thought-provoking questions about that most serious of topics: massively online gaming. We crave your opinions, so grab your caffeinated beverage of choice and chime in on today's Daily Grind!
New Year's App Blowout lowers prices on some iOS apps
The sales are almost all done this holiday season (EA , you may have noticed, has raised its prices back up from that 99 cent price point that was so strong during Christmas), but here's one more to help you pick up a a few more iOS games to play over New Year's. The third annual New Year's app blowout features a deal put together by a bunch of indie developers, and it's offering sales on some really great iPhone and iPad apps. I can heartily recommend Battle for Wesnoth for just 99 cents, and DisplayPad for just $2.99 is a nice deal as well. Other than those, some of the games on the list look worth a try, and there are some that have dropped all the way to free, so jump on in and download those. Hopefully, after all of the new games out this holiday season and all of the crazy sales on apps from earlier on this year, you've got more than enough to play on your iOS device. But just in case you don't, feel free to take advantage of this last big "blowout" before we head on into whatever magical apps we'll see in 2011.
Ring in the New Year on your iPhone with the official Times Square Ball app
Ever wanted to be in Times Square on New Years Eve instead of in your buddy's basement? Well, good luck with that. In the meantime you can download the first official Times Square Ball app. The app lets you live vicariously through those that are there and features the countdown clock (synced to your time zone), and it also includes a commercial-free, mobile stream of the webcast event. For those that are actually going to be there, the app offers news, weather, photos, maps and schedules for the Times Square New Year's Eve celebration. Additionally, you can check-in via Foursquare, Facebook and Twitter, and you'll be shown exactly how many miles you are from the festivities. Times Square Official New Year's Eve Ball is a free download.
One Shots: Auld lang syne
While we're not entirely certain of the wisdom of giving Hobbits things that can explode, it would appear that the group that formed during Shawn's Choose My Adventure trek through Lord of the Rings Online is still out there and doing well. Capeo decided to snag a screenshot and let us know how their merry little bunch rang in the new year. He writes in: It was New Year's Eve in the Shire and a few of the Massive Hobbits gathered for fireworks down the Hill from the Party Tree. As you can see from [this] shot, safety was maybe farther from our minds than it should have been. (We're still around and having great adventures in Moria and Mirkwood. *waves to Gibbi*) For some, it's all solo. For others, it's all about their group. Some others prefer a bit of both! We'd love to see screens of your favorite MMO, if you'd like to send them to us. Just email them to oneshots AT massively DOT com along with your name, the name of the game, and a quick description. We'll do the rest. %Gallery-9798%
Times Square New Year's Eve ball drop brought to you by... some furiously pedaling tourists
Hey, if you're in New York City and bored on New Year's Eve, well, maybe you feel like working? Duracell's set up its Smart Power Lab in the heart of Manhattan, along with several Power Rovers, which are stationery bikes that generate renewable energy when pedaled. You see where this is going, right? That energy is being stored up and harnessed by Duracell to power the ball we watch drop every year, which boasts about 9,500 LEDs. Fun times, if you're not averse to the freezing cold, the screaming crowds, the garbage, and the awful music. Or you could always do what we do, and stay home in your jammies watching Twin Peaks -- but it's really up to you. Either way, we're glad to see the ball is no longer powered by Dick Clark's rage. There's one more shot after the break.
The Queue: New Year's Eve edition
Welcome back to The Queue, WoW Insider's daily Q&A column where the WoW Insider team answers your questions about the World of Warcraft.New Year's Eve! Hooray! Are you doing anything special tonight? I totally am. I'm going to play an alt. Gasp! Shock! No seriously, I have no idea what I'll be doing. Right now though, I'm answering questions!JLocke asked...I know the next big patch to hit will have Uldar raid in it, but are there any other cool things attached to it that we know of?
