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The Care and Feeding of Warriors: Titan's Grip!
Titan's Grip is confirmed -- dual wielding 2h weapons. Rossi will love that. - Michael Gray from WoW Insider's coverage of the WWI dev panel.To my mind, the news from the Worldwide Invitational is big enough to push back our discussion of DPS gear for the starter raider. (We most certainly will talk more about it, believe me.) Several statements from the invitational need discussion for us warriors, I think, especially worth considering how they may well change the design philosophy of the class.Also, yay, Diablo III. It's especially appropriate that we get the news about Titan's Grip on the same day as we get our spiritual forefathers, the barbarian class, back. So, you may ask, what exactly was said about warriors that was interesting?Warrior Wanted to make the class feel more like Warcraft III -- put the Bladestorm Shockwave in, and tweaked Arms and Protection. Shockwave will help with Prot damage problem Titan's Grip is confirmed -- dual wielding 2h weapons.
WWI '08 Panel: Mage
Well. At first, it didn't seem to me like Tom Chilton had as much news for Mages at the first WWI dev panel as he did for other classes, but one of the Q&A dialogues did reveal a nice vision for our future.The most common news being reported, of course, is the new "bolt" spell -- the Frostfire bolt. This is a direct damage nuke that's a mix of "fire" and "ice" damage types, and will help circumvent the resistances of certain bosses who have an affinity for an element. Eh. I mean, that's great and all, but it doesn't really speak to any retooling or massive re-vamp at the ways Mages need help.However, during the Q&A, one of the audience members was a lot more pointed. Now that everyone seems to have their own spammable crowd control, he askes, what's being done to bring Mages back to a more unique role?The answer was awesome. Simply put, if everyone's doing crowd control, then Mages are going to be buffed in their hallmark: raw, unadulterated damage. Especially since Seed of Corruption shines against our AE damage ability, Chilton says we should expect to see our overall damage output increased.Does this mean Mages will become the epitome of WoW DPS? Mm, I'm not holding my breath - but at least in terms of putting us back in a vital, noticeable role, the future looks hopeful. Stay tuned as we continue to cover the WWI event, and try and bring the best (and worst) news available.
WWI '08 Panel: Druid (UPDATED)
While there isn't quite as much shocking news for those of us in the furry set as there was for our totem-spouting Earth brothers, there's still enough information to get us excited about our futures in Wrath of the Lich King.I have to admit that I was a little surprised to hear Tom Chilton say in the first WWI dev panel that Blizzard isn't planning any Cyclone changes. When an audience member asked if there would be any alterations for Cyclone, Chilton answered in a pretty clear, unambiguous manner: Nope. But he did give us some explanation for it.
WWI '08 Notes from the WoW Q&A Dev Panel
The Q&A panel from the var digg_url = 'http://digg.com/pc_games/http_www_wowinsider_com_2008_06_28_wwi_08_notes_from_the_q'; Blizzard Worldwide Invitational is about to begin. We'll be bringing you live updates on the latest tidbits and bombshells the devs have in store for us. Check after the jump for a minute by minute description of what's being asked and revealed. %Gallery-26320%
WWI '08 Panel: Priest
Before I begin, if you haven't seen our notes from the class discussion Dev Panel at the Worldwide Invitational, you should go take a look. Skip down to the Priest section, look it over, and come on back. I'll wait here for you, okay? Okay, go. Are you back now? Good.We knew of the existence of the three spells Chilton discussed for quite awhile now, but the confirmation is nice, especially since there's no need to dance around the 'it might not be real, oh no' bit. The three spells I refer to are Divine Hymn, Guardian Spirit, and Dispersion. The stated goal of these abilities is to solidify the role of the current Priest specs. I can definitely agree with that on the part of Divine Hymn and Guardian Spirit, but not so much Dispersion. That doesn't mean Dispersion is a bad ability for what it does, it just doesn't reinforce the role of a Shadow Priest necessarily.
WWI streaming reliability disappoints
It's not like we've been awake since the wee hours waiting for a big announcement or anything. And it's certainly not like there was a huge dev panel with Tom Chilton, whose every word we hung on about class changes. But as your intrepid WoW Insider staff huddles around the news room viewers to get you the latest information from the 2008 Blizzard Worldwide Invitational, we're encountering the same problem as everyone else. The streaming live feed offered by Octoshape and Blizzard is kind of letting us down.I suppose some of the technical difficulties are unavoidable. I have to assume the technology is pretty complicated. But the problems range from audio and video randomly cutting out, to Octoshape's viewing slots being filled by too many users. This is a little surprising, since Octoshape had good performance for Blizzcon and even GotFrag. Just as frustrating, the Octoshape web site doesn't have any information about what was going wrong.On the other hand, since Tom Chilton stepped off stage, the stream has been a lot more reliable. They've either fixed the problems, or the number of viewers has stepped down since the WoW discussion has ended. Here's hoping the better performance lasts.
WWI '08 Panel: Shaman
Holy moly, Shamans got a ton of stuff they wanted and then some today at the WoW Dev Panel during WWI '08 today. Shaman CC! Hex, previously the domain of NPCs only, was confirmed as a Shaman spell -- it'll have a quick 1.5 second cast, and will turn your enemy into a frog for about 8-10 seconds. The frogged person will still be able to move around, but they won't be able to attack or cast spells. A 1 minute cooldown was mentioned, but that's in opposition to the purpose of the spell, which is supposed to be emergency only, so that may change. The devs mentioned that Shaman were suffering from "Totem spam," so a few totems will be combined -- Strength of Earth and Grace of Air will become the same totem, and the physical school news was re-confirmed. Perhaps the biggest Shaman complaint since launch was answered: Shaman totems will now affect the whole raid, not just the local group. That's a big one. Weapon enchants are being revamped for more utility. Rockbiter is out completely, and Earthliving is replacing it -- it will give a +Healing buff. Flametongue will give spell damage, and Frostbrand will "more reliably snare" opponents. A lot of Shaman concerns were answered today for sure, though perhaps not in the way players might have wanted. Will a 10 second CC be enough? It's great that totems affect the raid now, but will their range be extended to reach all of those people?All of this information is still up in the air, of course, but it's awesome to finally see some official news on where classes are headed for Wrath of the Lich King. Stay tuned for more Wrath information, as well as any other WoW news we hear coming out of WWI.
Breakfast Topic: What Blizzard didn't announce at the opening ceremony
By now I'm assuming you've read the liveblog or seen the announcement post and heard: Diablo 3 is go. By now you have probably also heard that there really weren't any other announcements at the opening ceremony. Don't get me wrong, Diablo 3 is awesome. But as much as we're Blizzard fanboys (and fangirls) here, we're all about the WoW first, and we need some WoTLK news to sustain us too -- and we still don't know what that mysterious "next generation MMO" in development is either -- it seems most people are assuming it's Starcraft now though. Me, I'm not convinced. After all, there's a Starcraft game in development too, so it could presumably be either franchise, or simply an updated World of Warcraft 2. There's quite a few things that could come out about WotLK today and tomorrow, of course. I'm still hoping for an opening cinematic and an official release date to start. While we're at it, how about giving us a demo of the Dance Studio or Barbershop, or better yet, some other unannounced new major feature for the expansion? I might even settle for new skills, talent trees, or even a new battleground preview. What are your expectations and hopes for news from the World Wide Invitational as it soldiers on?
Who's Jay Wilson?
Jay Wilson is on stage at WWI right now, showing off Blizzard's new game, the very hot-looking Diablo 3. But just who is Jay Wilson, and why is he in charge of the new Diablo game? Wilson's worked with Blizzard on World of Warcraft, and he's even got a character named after him.Previously, he'd worked for a company called Relic Entertainment, and was the lead designer on Dawn of War, a Warhammer 40000 (Warhammer, but in the future, kind of like Starcraft to our Warcraft)-based RTS game. The good news is that the game was fairly well reviewed, but of course Diablo 3 isn't an RTS game, it's a hack-and-slash, so we're not sure how Wilson will do on that front yet.In this interview, Wilson was known to be at Blizzard and supposedly working on Starcraft II but of course now we know better. This new Diablo could be the chance for this developer new to Blizzard to claim his place in history.UPDATE: Our very own Joystiq caught up with Jay Wilson at the Blizzard Worldwide Invitational. Find out what Diablo 3's lead designer has to say about porting to consoles, the next Deckard Cain rap and the notorious dupe exploits of previous games.
Blizzard introduces Diablo 3
click to enter gallery var digg_url = 'http://digg.com/gaming_news/Blizzard_introduces_Diablo_3'; Joystiq will make any sacrifice to bring you the latest news -- even if it means flying to Paris, France in order to attend Blizzard Entertainment's Worldwide Invitational. Only seconds ago we were shown a cinematic from Blizzard's newest game: Diablo 3. We're currently being shown a live demo of the game (which we're reminded is a work in progress) by lead designer Jay Wilson. The look and feel of the game -- though graphically updated from its aging sibling -- looks a lot like the dungeon crawls we all know and love from the original series. We're promised more loot, more quests (and some old friends like Deckard Cain), and new environments. Classes demo'd include the familiar Barbarian and the brand new Witch Doctor (a master of disease and fire who will control pets). Says Wilson, the game is "primarily cooperative" and it will be quick and easy to form groups over Battle.net. Sorry, folks who were expecting an MMO, but it sounds like Diablo 3 will continue in the tried-and-true Diablo format.Update: Blizzard's European site is now live with the cinematic teaser and gameplay footage for your perusal!%Gallery-26340%
Blizzard unveils Diablo 3
Despite an entire week of misleading ice and blue-lit eyes that was supposed to make people think it was the Lich King, Blizzard unveiled earlier today one of the most anticipated game releases in a long time, Diablo 3. It wasn't the best kept secret, as the week leading up to the event had the entire gaming community buzzing with rumors (and hopes) of a sequel to one of Blizzard's big three properties. Diablo is one of Blizzard's most popular properties, along with Warcraft and Starcraft. The first game in the series, a dark fantasy role-playing game, was released in 1997 to much critical success. Its sequel, Diablo 2, was released in 2000, with equally glowing reviews. Diablo received a 9.6 on GameSpot's review, the highest score on a PC game to date. Diablo 2 holds a spot in the Guiness Book of World Records for being the fastest selling computer game ever sold, with more than 1 million units sold in its first two weeks of release. It still holds the record to date.At the Worldwide Invitational, lead designer for Diablo 3 Jay Wilson, formerly of Relic Entertainment and designer on Warhammer 40K Dawn of War, spoke about the game. The latest sequel will be a 3D hack and slash with an isometric view, with at least one familiar class -- the Barbarian, an interface with health and mana bubbles. The game world will have destructible environments and quest or story events, "more so than previous games." Alongside the old (yet new) Barbarian class is the new Witch Doctor class, with spells and a pet mechanic. Diablo 3 will also see the return of Deckard Cain, one of Diablo's most popular characters. Update: The official site is up, with screenshots, artwork, and the cinematic and gameplay videos. And oh, a kickass picture of Tyrael. Stay a while, and listen! Gallery: Worldwide Invitational 2008: Diablo 3 WoW Insider is on the ground in Paris at the Blizzard Invitational bringing you the big announcements and latest Wrath news as it happens. Check out our latest coverage!
Splash page changes as WWI opening ceremony begins, announces Diablo 3
As of 2:57 PDT, only about 2 hours after the last screen update, and with the opening ceremony for WWI well underway, the splash screen for blizzard.com and other associated sites has changed to a flash file. We're expecting it change over any second now, and will update this post when it does. Edit: And the Heavens Shall Tremble. It is official, everyone. Diablo 3 is coming our way. You can see a still of the splash screen in our gallery, but be sure to watch it in all its glory on a Blizzard site as well. %Gallery-25975%
Liveblogging the Worldwide Invitational opening ceremony
We're here at the Blizzard's 2008 Worldwide invitational in Paris, waiting impatiently for the opening ceremonies to begin so we can finally quash the endless speculation about Blizzard's splash screen. We'll be reporting to you live as the ceremony continues, so read on!%Gallery-26320%
Turpster at the World Wide Invitational: Meet and greet in the queue
Click To Play People are lining up out the door, down the street and around the corner at the Porte de Versailles Exposition Center in Paris, France. Our beloved Turpster visited with several of the Blizzard fans waiting in line to get into the convention in time for the opening event. This video captures the excitement in the air as WoW players and other Blizzard fans from around Europe and the United States gather in anticipation. The fans in attendance are making their own predictions for Blizzard's big announcement. Diablo 3? Lost Vikings? Wrath? All of the above? Stay tuned, Turpster and the rest of the WoW Insider staff are devoted to keeping you posted on the latest breaking news.
Splash Screen changes: Worldwide Invitational edition
With mere hours to go before the Worldwide Invitational, the splash screen has changed. This time the file, named Ice5andahalf.jpg, shows the 5 runes even brighter, and adds a 6th rune - a winking smiley face. You think Blizzard's having fun with this yet? It's also worth noting that the lines around the glowing eyes are much more pronounced now - as are the eyes themselves, which now look a lot like twin stars. But are we seeing the lines of Arthas' helmet, the lines on Diablo's face, or the lines on a Protoss Templar's face? I'm not sure we'll know for sure until WWI's big announcement now, although I'm rooting for Diablo. Then again, is that the spire of Icecrown Glacier I see down there in the lower right of the night sky? It's likely that we're hours away from a big announcement at the Worldwide Invitational, and ice6.jpg will appear then, and we'll know exactly what is up with all this wacky stuff. With any luck, we'll also hear about just how much thought Blizzard put into this whole splash screen deal. Were they really expecting all this hubub? %Gallery-25975%
A first look at the Worldwide Invitational
Though Blizzard's Worldwide Invitational has not yet begun (though there are only a few hours to go!), WoW Insider has been checking out the Paris scene and hunting for any clues on Blizzard's next move. (We brought our magnifying glass and everything!) We haven't found any -- even after extensive interrogation of US CM Nethaera -- but we have managed to get a good look at the Paris Expo Porte de Versailles. Check out what's happening by travelling along with Turpster or visiting our Worldwide Invitational gallery!%Gallery-26320% WoW Insider is on the ground in Paris at the Blizzard Invitational bringing you the big announcements and latest Wrath news as it happens. Check out our latest coverage!
Turpster at the Worldwide Invitational - Day 0
Mark "Turpster" Turpin is in Paris for the Blizzard Worldwide Invitational and has logged the first video of his misadventures. Join him as he takes a bus ride with Blizzard reps, gets his first look at the Convention hall and explores the oddities of Parisian hotel bathrooms. Cover your eyes, children, it's Turpster at his best. WoW Insider is on the ground in Paris at the Blizzard Invitational bringing you the big announcements and latest Wrath news as it happens. Check out our latest coverage!
WoW Insider Show goes live (from Paris, kind of) tomorrow
Tomorrow's podcast is going to be a big one -- not only am I back on the air after being away last week, but Matthew Rossi and John "BigBearButt" Patricelli are both going to join me, Duncor the Dependable will likely be on from WoW Radio, and oh yeah -- by the podcast tomorrow, we'll know what the hell Blizzard has been hinting at for the past week. And there's more: not only will we be talking at length both about what Blizzard announces tomorrow and also what they don't announce, but we've got an ace in the hole: Turpster is live in Paris at the Worldwide Invitational right now, and if we can get our telegraph machine working correctly, we'll have a live-on-the-spot report from the T himself. He'll probably be drunk on French wine, but still, he'll give us a Turps-eye-view of what's going down in the land of croissants.We'll probably also chat a little bit about Arena Season 4, as well as what's going on with the Midsummer Fire Festival, but my guess is that whatever Blizzard announces tomorrow will pretty much dominate the conversation. Tune in over on WoW Radio at 3:30pm Eastern for the very first audio words in what's going on in Paris.And as usually, we'll be answer your questions via email (theshow@wow.com), and chatting live on IRC at irc.mmoirc.com in the #wowradio channel, so you can ask Turpster what France smells like (I'm guessing frog's legs and the burning fires of the revolution, but I've never been, so who knows). Tune in tomorrow to the WoW Insider Show for all the news that's fit to talk about on WWI '08!
WoW Insider's coverage of the Worldwide Invitational 2008
WoW Insider rocked it during BlizzCon last year, and we're prepared to bring you the same kind of coverage during the Worldwide Invitational in Paris this weekend. We've got folks on the ground blogging live (that's the view from the hotel room to the right there), we've got folks back here at WoW Insider HQ to keep an eye on the rumors and speculation, and we've got a whole host of information for you to browse through up already, so that you can know what's happening in Paris even before it happens.Our coverage of the opening ceremony will begin tomorrow, Saturday morning, at 5:45am Eastern (that's when it starts in Paris at 11:45am CEST). We'll bring you liveblogs of as many presentations and developer panels as we can, and all weekend, we'll be posting video of the event. Our correspondents have their eyes peeled for all of the Blizzard luminaries (Chris Metzen, Samwise, and of course that Warlock guy -- he's always at these things), so you'll see what we see. And what would an event be without swag?! We'll have lots of it, so even if you are in Paris, keep an eye out for us, and if you're not there, stay tuned afterwards -- you never know when we'll turn some con swag into a contest.It's going to be a terrific event. Look for some on-the-ground information later today, and be ready tomorrow morning to experience the WWI on WoW Insider, whether you're in Paris or anywhere else in the world. It's going to be a terrific event -- we can't wait! WoW Insider is on the ground in Paris at the Blizzard Invitational bringing you the big announcements and latest Wrath news as it happens. Check out our latest coverage!
New account management options: Blizzard Authenticator and Beta Opt-In
Many thanks to my buddy Taeous for discovering a new link on the account management page yesterday evening. Currently there are two new small items that are going to be of interest to nearly every WoW player out there: "Blizzard Authenticator" and "Beta Opt-In". We already know about the Blizzard Authenticator that'll be coming out soon enough. It is a little (optional) device that will act as a hardware based key which will be needed to log on to your account. This looks like the spot that you can associate one to your account with. However the Beta Opt-In link is really interesting. This is just in time for all the activity at the World Wide Invitational 2008, and those of us at WoW Insider are speculating that all those beta keys people are getting at the WWI08 will be used there (there will be a goodie bag handed out to each attendee). However hopefully this will also let others get into the beta as well. Right now the beta link points to the resurrect-a-friend program, and the authenticator link points to an un-published page - we'll let you know when they change over to a page with more useful information. Nonetheless, definitely something we all want to keep an eye on.
