wow-machinima
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WoW Moviewatch: The Last Marine Murloc
The background for this machinima goes something like this: The last murloc marine is sent to Azeroth to kill all the things. However, despite his fearsome countenance and the powered armor that makes him a one-man army, the tiny murloc is no match for Deathwing. It all ends with a burp. CrazyPlusPlus did an astounding good job with this video. The animation and graphics are entertaining and tone-perfect for the joke, and the movie doesn't drag the punchline out to ridiculous lengths. There's a lot to be said for a quick and effective joke instead of a long, drawn-out comedy. Over all, The Last Marine Murloc was fun, and I hope CrazyPlusPlus continues to put out more machinima movies. Interested in the wide world of machinima? We have new movies every weekday here on WoW Moviewatch! Have suggestions for machinima we ought to feature? Toss us an email at moviewatch@wowinsider.com.
WoW Moviewatch: The Pretender
N3rKMinD's name is very difficult to type, but his WoW-themed video for The Pretender isn't difficult to watch at all. This music video is a fun, stylized romp through Azeroth alongside a night elf rogue who seems determined to lay down sweet, sweet revenge on some other night elves. While I'm sure some readers will disagree, I actually really missed music videos like this. We don't see as many of them as we used to. I like a fun, narrative music video with some good old-fashioned rock and roll in the background. (The music is Foo Fighters. Dave Grohl performs with Tenacious D. That makes it rock and roll, okay?) A little rock and roll, a little night elf rogue, and a little vengeance come together for a kickass video. Interested in the wide world of machinima? We have new movies every weekday here on WoW Moviewatch! Have suggestions for machinima we ought to feature? Toss us an email at moviewatch@wowinsider.com.
WoW Moviewatch: Heroes
It's been a long time since we've heard from Kidsake. His music video for God's Gonna Cut You Down received huge acclaim among machinima fans. The use of Johnny Cash as musical background, coupled with unique and interesting visuals, thrilled many of us. Kidsake's back with a new video called Heroes. It's a shout-out to his friends and fellow WoW players, featuring a large series of character vignettes set to Peter Gabriel's cover of Heroes. This surprisingly moody, brooding piece actually reminds me of Kidsake's other videos. He definitely brings a thoughtful, enigmatic feel to his videos. Interested in the wide world of machinima? We have new movies every weekday here on WoW Moviewatch! Have suggestions for machinima we ought to feature? Toss us an email at moviewatch@wowinsider.com.
WoW Moviewatch: Temple of the Moon
This cover of Temple of the Moon comes from katethegreat19; you may recall her cover of Lament of the Highborne from a few years ago. This Temple of the Moon is amazingly well-performed, as was her earlier work; Kate's got an amazing voice and Temple of the Moon really shows it off. The song was composed by David Arkenstone. The video itself is a first for katethegreat19. While the story feels a little opaque, the imagery and viewpoint are right on target. I'm glad to see Kate folding machinima into her work. I suspect she'll be able to sync the imagery to her music in subtle and effective ways. Take the time to listen to this musical treat for a virtual trip straight to the heart of tranquil Darnassus. Interested in the wide world of machinima? We have new movies every weekday here on WoW Moviewatch! Have suggestions for machinima we ought to feature? Toss us an email at moviewatch@wowinsider.com.
WoW Moviewatch: Airships
Your intrepid WoW Insider staff recently published an article on how to record game footage on a Mac. The piece was surprisingly well-received; it turns out quite a few WoW fans would like to make their own videos, but they just weren't sure how to make it happen. Emmaskar was inspired to create her own video called Airships: a WoW Machinima. It's her very first machinima, and I think she did an amazing job. The views and shots of Azeroth in this video are beautiful, and her song selection was perfectly suited to the whimsical, thoughtful scenes. Best of all, the whole thing was put together from in-game footage. I can't say how exciting it is to see new people pick up the art of machinima. While we're seeing new videos all the time, it's critically important that new fans join the hobby. It's the only way we can thrive as a community. Emmaskar's work looks promising; I hope she enjoyed the experience enough to keep trying. Interested in the wide world of machinima? We have new movies every weekday here on WoW Moviewatch! Have suggestions for machinima we ought to feature? Toss us an email at moviewatch@wowinsider.com.
WoW Moviewatch: Orc vs. Wild: Moonguard
Wowcrendor tackles the complicated subject of RP servers in Orc vs. Wild: Moonguard/Goldshire RP Server. Boar Thrills crafts a gnome disguise from local fauna and enters Goldshire to spy on the wily, somewhat quirky roleplayers. He blends in by walking and immediately meets a truly immersed roleplayer. I found this video especially interesting because it's the first time Wowcrendor has tackled roleplay culture. Certainly, most of the creator's videos involve immersion and escapism, but story-based roleplay hadn't been directly addressed. Roleplayers might not be a huge fan of the portrayal. Still, I can't help but think exactly how true to Goldshire this video actually is. Interested in the wide world of machinima? We have new movies every weekday here on WoW Moviewatch! Have suggestions for machinima we ought to feature? Toss us an email at moviewatch@wowinsider.com.
WoW Moviewatch: My Dearest SteaksOnSpear
Bloodvein created My Dearest SteaksOnSpear as a response to a commenter. This video is odd. It's very odd. I was hypnotized by it. I have no explanation for why this video made me laugh out loud and giggle like a madman, but I did. Maybe it's the idea of a blood elf with a hairy chest, or maybe it's that same chest having a prison tattoo. While this response is intended as a way for Bloodvein to interact with his fans, I was blown away by the quality of animation and art. Bloodvein shows off some impressive technical skills in this video, even if it's just for the sake of some sight gags and shout-outs. My Dearest seems to be an ongoing series, though, so drop by and leave a YouTube comment. Who knows? You might get the next My Dearest response. Interested in the wide world of machinima? We have new movies every weekday here on WoW Moviewatch! Have suggestions for machinima we ought to feature? Toss us an email at moviewatch@wowinsider.com.
WoW Moviewatch: Why Can't I Raid?
We've featured Why Can't I Raid? a few times in the past. It's a sharp parody of Rihanna's Unfaithful, remixing the song into the perspective of a raider desperate to be included's in her guild's group. It was one of our first exposures to Sharm, who has since become nearly legendary in the machinima scene. This is actually a recreation of the video by Twilightpaladinus. This time around, the video focuses on a poor gnome warlock. There's something sweet and undefinable to a gnome that lends an air of sadness to the video. While the video doesn't use many of the fancier machinima tricks, it's a fairly solid performance from a new creator. I hope to see more in the future. Interested in the wide world of machinima? We have new movies every weekday here on WoW Moviewatch! Have suggestions for machinima we ought to feature? Toss us an email at moviewatch@wowinsider.com.
WoW Moviewatch: Alliance vs. Horde: Firelands
The team over at TheWarpZone has put together a new WoW-themed video. Alliance vs. Horde: Firelands revisits the old Mac vs. PC format, although I really think of the Alliance vs. Horde series as its own creature; it's working within its own mythology at this point and developing its own character. I'll admit the Horde had me going with its complaints about Ragnaros. Those sort of nitpicks and opinions are exactly the kind of thing we see in the official forums all the time, so I thought it was reasonable that might be the Horde's editorial stance. The Alliance vs. Horde series is a lot of fun. I'm always interested in the head-to-head style and the lighthearted, amusing opinions each character espouses. By the way, if you don't follow TheWarpZone normally, jump back and check out this X-Men Born This Way parody. Interested in the wide world of machinima? We have new movies every weekday here on WoW Moviewatch! Have suggestions for machinima we ought to feature? Toss us an email at moviewatch@wowinsider.com.
WoW Moviewatch: Molten Front Ganker
Wowcrendor and Jesse Cox teamed up to create this comedy spoof, Molten Front Ganker. It's been a year since Bed Intruder swept the internet up in its Auto-Tune glory, and the duo chose to celebrate that anniversary through a WoW parody. This music video feels like such a great idea that I almost wonder why it took this long to produce. Of course, it's a good thing that the appearance of this parody happened just now, because Wowcrendor and Jesse have put together a tone-perfect video. The "Hyjal kids, Hyjal wife" pun couldn't be better suited to lampooning the source material; I can't think of a better lyrical pun at all. Interested in the wide world of machinima? We have new movies every weekday here on WoW Moviewatch! Have suggestions for machinima we ought to feature? Toss us an email at moviewatch@wowinsider.com.
WoW Moviewatch: Goodnight Orgrimmar
Goodnight Moon is a classic kid's book. Even if you've not read the book yourself, you've probably still heard of it. Essentially, the narrator wishes everyone in the world goodnight as he lulls your child to sleep. Wowcrendor was inspired by this classic book to create Goodnight Orgrimmar. In this short, beautiful little video, Wowcrendor manages to touch on all the little things that make a capital city feel bustling and alive. Voiced by Worgen Freeman, Goodnight Orgrimmar is a wonderful send-off to the Horde city. I'm clearly a fan of Wowcrendor and his work, but I think Goodnight Orgrimmar might be among the best yet. He manages to capture so many experiences and subtleties about the game while still giving it his trademark affection. My hat's off to Wowcrendor and guest star Jesse Cox for a smart, incredible little homage to the game. Interested in the wide world of machinima? We have new movies every weekday here on WoW Moviewatch! Have suggestions for machinima we ought to feature? Toss us an email at moviewatch@wowinsider.com.
WoW Moviewatch: What Would Warchief Garrosh Do?
I'm not entirely sure what coincidence has inspired it, but I've seen a dozen requests this week for a re-feature of this video by Irdeen Productions. What Would Warchief Garrosh Do? was Irdeen Production's entry into the BlizzCon 2010 machinima contest. Obviously inspired by South Park's love of Brian Boitano, a handful of Horde kids sing an entertaining anthem about Garrosh Hellscream. Now that we've had about 9 months of Garrosh under our belts, I wonder how many of us still think Garrosh is a great Horde leader. Regardless of my feelings about Hellscream, I do love this video. It's fun, fast, and packed with lots of jokes. Interested in the wide world of machinima? We have new movies every weekday here on WoW Moviewatch! Have suggestions for machinima we ought to feature? Toss us an email at moviewatch@wowinsider.com.
WoW Moviewatch: Theory of a Death Knight Wants to be a Tuskarr
This is an odd video from Myndflame. Essentially, Theory of a Death Knight spells out at a news conference why he thinks tuskarr should be a playable race. As is customary for the poor death knight, he gets eaten by a dinosaur. I'm not sure I completely agree with the logic proposed by Theory of a Death Knight, since I'm not sure hauling around a spare tire should be a virtue. But I definitely agree that the tuskarr should be playable, because having tusks on the Alliance side would be spectacular. Interested in the wide world of machinima? We have new movies every weekday here on WoW Moviewatch! Have suggestions for machinima we ought to feature? Toss us an email at moviewatch@wowinsider.com.
WoW Moviewatch: How to Win at Let's Plays
Wowcrendor presented this video to us with a bit of a grin, since it focuses on more than just WoW. It's called How to Win at Let's Plays, and it looks at a series of common commentary videos you can find all over YouTube. Don't worry if you're shy about other games -- there's plenty of WoW in here. I look at this video as a cautionary tale for folks who want to create their own video game commentaries. ("Let's play" is just a reference to that kind of video.) In a moment of painful epiphany, I realized that Wowcrendor pretty much nailed it with this piece. I've seen at least a dozen of every example he presents. A good Wowcrendor video is when you finish it, you can't decide whether to laugh or cry. Interested in the wide world of machinima? We have new movies every weekday here on WoW Moviewatch! Have suggestions for machinima we ought to feature? Toss us an email at moviewatch@wowinsider.com.
WoW Moviewatch: Total Escapism vol. 5
We got our first look at the trailer for Total Escapism vol. 5 last week. Good as his word, Baron Soosdon has now made that full movie available on YouTube in the United States. This is the last movie in his Total Escapism series. The Baron will still be around creating machinima, but he felt it was time to close the chapter on this particular series. Total Escapism vol. 5 is a gorgeous 15-minute romp through the world of Azeroth. You not only get to see some astounding views of places and landmarks in the World of Warcraft, but you'll see some high-quality footage of characters casting spells and living in the game. Really, though, talking about the subject material of this video does it a disservice. The point isn't the literal narration of what's happening on the screen; instead, the point is to watch the beautiful animation and astounding graphics. It's an experience more than a story, and it's one the Baron has executed marvelously. Interested in the wide world of machinima? We have new movies every weekday here on WoW Moviewatch! Have suggestions for machinima we ought to feature? Toss us an email at moviewatch@wowinsider.com.
WoW Moviewatch: My Baby's a Quest NPC
Work warning: This video contains sexual themes and references. Greyfoo is back with a brand new video called My Baby's a Quest NPC. This original music tells the story of a man who discovers his girlfriend is actually a quest giver, which means he needs to perform some Herculean tasks to win her back. Of course, that's much harder than it seems, and he eventually decides to find love in Dolanaar instead. This video has the trademark vocals, smooth rhythms, and laid-back feeling possessed by all of Greyfoo's music. The song was actually written way back in classic WoW, so you might pick up a few oddities while you listen. If your'e a fan of Greyfoo's music, you can find his complete album over at CDBaby. Interested in the wide world of machinima? We have new movies every weekday here on WoW Moviewatch! Have suggestions for machinima we ought to feature? Toss us an email at moviewatch@wowinsider.com.
WoW Moviewatch: Battle of the Blues
Myndflame has created a fun, unique idea for getting official Blizzard posts out to the community. In Myndflame's new series, the "insane voice actor" reads blue posts out loud. It's a pretty great idea, in my opinion, since it brings a level of entertainment to what can sometimes be rather dry information. The idea has really caught on, and even the community managers have gotten in on the fun. The result is that Myndflame took the recent Battle of the Blues and turned the banter into its own video. This performance blew me away. It was hilarious. I've not laughed so hard at forum interaction since the last ret paladin nerf. The video isn't long; take the time to check it out and enjoy the fun. For the record, that is exactly the way I've always imagined Neth and Zarhym speaking. Make sure to keep checking out Myndflame for future installments. It's definitely worth your time. Interested in the wide world of machinima? We have new movies every weekday here on WoW Moviewatch! Have suggestions for machinima we ought to feature? Toss us an email at moviewatch@wowinsider.com.
WoW Moviewatch: Unlimited Escapism Vol. 5 trailer
All good things must come to an end, including the Unlimited Escapism series by the masterful Baron Soosdon. This is the trailer for Unlimited Escapism Vol. 5, the final installment. This trailer shows off the same hallmarks as the rest of the Baron's videos. You can see his astounding eye for beautiful, engaging graphics as well as his tongue-in-cheek reflections on his own work. While this is technically just a trailer, it's as beautiful and engaging as many full-length videos we've seen. You can see the whole video here on Vimeo. It's worth every moment you watch. Interested in the wide world of machinima? We have new movies every weekday here on WoW Moviewatch! Have suggestions for machinima we ought to feature? Toss us an email at moviewatch@wowinsider.com.
WoW Moviewatch: Dragon Slayers
Dragon Slayers was created by Erunno for the Slovene community. The video is an homage to the Slayers anime, in case you don't recognize the style. English speakers can press the CC button on the YouTube player to see and read the subtitles. The animation in this video blew me away. Not only are the graphics smooth and convincing, Erunno did an outstanding job adapting a traditional anime style to WoW art. This really is a beautiful video to watch, and my hat's off to Erunno for his incredible skills. Interested in the wide world of machinima? We have new movies every weekday here on WoW Moviewatch! Have suggestions for machinima we ought to feature? Toss us an email at moviewatch@wowinsider.com.
WoW Moviewatch: The Edge of Glory
Croftzi created this Azeroth-themed music video for Lady Gaga's The Edge of Glory. While I am a reluctant Lady Gaga fan, this song never really wormed its way into my heart. It's a fine song, as far as pop culture music goes, but it just didn't have any particular beats or lyrics that captured my imagination. This video, however, illuminated the song for me. Croftzi's video is fun and engaging; it works well with the natural motion of Gaga's song. It's also nice to see a love story for a pair of trolls; somehow, we just don't see many of those. I'm excited to see more from Croftzi. This is my first real exposure to her work, and I hope it's not the last. Interested in the wide world of machinima? We have new movies every weekday here on WoW Moviewatch! Have suggestions for machinima we ought to feature? Toss us an email at moviewatch@wowinsider.com.
