|
World of Warcraft
|
|
Written by Atomm
|
|
Monday, 06 August 2007 |
Blizzard announced their latest expansion for the hugely successful, World of Warcraft. This expansion, titled Wraith of the Lich King is set in a new continent called Northrend. At first glance, you may be asking what the hell am I talking about and why does this have anything to do with Turbines, Lord of the Rings Online?
Let's take a look at a few items in the newly announced expansion.
1a. In Blizzards World of Warcraft, the new expansion is titled Wraith of the Lich King. The Lich King was once an Elder Shaman named Ner'zhul.
1b. In Turbines Lord of the Rings Online: Shadows of Angmar, one of the main characters is called the Witch-king of Angmar, also known as Lord of the Nazgûl. He happens to be the leader of the three Ringwraiths.
Take on it's own, you may say that it is merely coincidence that they share similar words and that two of the words have very similar phonetics, even rhyming when said back to back. Try it, Ner'zhul – Nazgûl. Let's take a look at another element, the location.
2a. In Blizzards World of Warcraft, the new lands are “Northrend is a frozen wasteland” (source: http://www.wowwiki.com/Northrend)
2b. According to wikipedia, “In the chapters in The Lord of the Rings describing Frodo and Sam's journey in Mordor, the valleys in an area called the Morgai, on the land's "outer marges [...] under the westward mountains", are described as a "dying land [but] not yet dead".“ (source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mordor)
Ok, again we are making a stretch. Both lands are barren wastelands, although one is frozen and the other is ravaged by a volcano. However, it's this last bit of evidence that really makes me wonder....
3a. Take a look at the webpage Blizzard put up for Wraith of the Lich King: http://www.worldofwarcraft.com/wrath/index.xml
3b. Now take a look at the Witch-king on the left side of Turbines, Lord of the Rings Online Website: http://www.lotro.com/index.php
The thing that strikes me the most is the use of the full face crown wrapping around darkness where the face should be. Even more interesting is the stance that each character poses. In both cases, they are firmly holding the hilt of sword, pointing straight down. And the last interesting coincidence is the use of a flowing black cape, which anyone who has seen the Lord of the Rings movie knows is a major part of the Ringwraiths appearance.
Now please keep in mind, these are merely one mortals observations. I can not say either way whether there is indeed a coincidence or not. The storyline for the Frozen Throne and the opening of the Dark Portal previously set in motion the current story arc announced by Blizzard recently. The whole thing just strikes me as a bit odd. |
|
World of Warcraft
|
|
Written by Atomm
|
|
Tuesday, 03 October 2006 |
There’s trouble in the online gaming world when the actions of a renegade player threaten to destroy Blizzard Entertainment’s award-winning game World of Warcraft. The future of the game lies in the hands of Cartman, Kyle, Stan and Kenny when all new episodes in the tenth season of the widely-acclaimed series, “South Park,” premiere Wednesday, October 4 at 10:00 p.m. on COMEDY CENTRAL.
Blizzard Entertainment, Comedy Central, South Park, World of Warcraft
In this episode, the boys come into contact with a gamer who doesn’t play by the rules. Even the creative people behind World of Warcraft don’t know how to stop the renegade. They are forced to put all of their hope into the hands of the kids of South Park. The boys dedicate their lives to defeating the mad gamer and saving the game for all.
“We were excited to hear that the creators of ‘South Park’ were interested in featuring World of Warcraft in the opening of their new season, and we really enjoyed collaborating with them to make this happen,” said Mike Morhaime, president and cofounder of Blizzard Entertainment. “We’re looking forward to sharing the experience with our employees and our players as well when the season debuts this week.”
World of Warcraft is the world’s most popular massively multiplayer online role-playing game, with millions of players worldwide. In World of Warcraft, players assume the roles of legendary heroes as they develop friendships, forge alliances, and compete with enemies for power and glory. The game’s upcoming expansion pack, World of Warcraft: The Burning Crusade, is due out by the end of this year. Learn more about World of Warcraft at the game’s official website: www.wow-europe.com.
Launched in 1997, “South Park,” now in its tenth season, remains the highest-rated series on COMEDY CENTRAL. “South Park” repeats Wednesdays at 12:30 a.m., Thursdays at 10:00 p.m. and 12:30 a.m., Fridays at 12:00 a.m., Saturdays at 3:00 a.m. and Sundays at 11:30 p.m.
Trey Parker and Matt Stone are co-creators and executive producers of the Emmy award-winning “South Park” with Anne Garefino as executive producer. |
|
|
MMORPG
|
|
Written by Atomm
|
|
Friday, 08 September 2006 |
Nearly 200,000 Players Have Signed-up Worldwide
WESTWOOD, MA – SEPTEMBER 8, 2006 – Turbine and Midway announced today that The Lord of the Rings Online™: Shadows of Angmar™ (LOTRO) has officially entered Beta in North America. Codemasters Online Gaming is pleased to announce the simultaneous launch of Pre-Beta in Europe.
This Beta is by invitation only and over time more and more players will be invited. Fans can continue to register to join the Beta Program by visiting http://www.lotro.com/betasignup for North America and http://www.lotro-europe.com for the European program.
“The response to LOTRO Alpha was overwhelming. Player enthusiasm continues to exceed our expectations at every milestone,” said Jeffrey Anderson, president and CEO of Turbine, Inc. “The Alpha was oversubscribed and the Beta Program is on a record-setting pace with nearly 200,000 players already registered. LOTRO is building toward one of the largest beta communities in the industry.”
The first and only massively multiplayer online role-playing game (MMORPG) based on the literary works of J.R.R. Tolkien, The Lord of the Rings Online™ allows players to write their own stories in Middle-earth™, the most famous fantasy world of all time.
David Solari, Vice President and General Manager of Codemasters Online Gaming, said “It’s great to reach the Beta for such an exciting game. We look forward to seeing players bring the incredible world of Middle-earth to life and making it their own.”
The Lord of the Rings Online: Shadows of Angmar lets players join in an epic adventure - exploring a massive online world while defending the lands of Middle-earth from the Dark Lord Sauron. Players of all levels will explore incredibly detailed realms and join familiar characters in an evolving and persistent re-creation of J.R.R. Tolkien’s beloved world. They will face the dangers Frodo and the Fellowship left behind when they began their epic journey to destroy the One Ring. Gamers can adventure solo or choose from thousands of players online to forge their own fellowships. Players, solo and fellowships alike, will be challenged by hideous monsters and minions of evil as they fight epic battles to defend Middle-earth. LOTRO will deliver on the opportunity to allow players to immerse themselves in the greatest adventure of our time.
LOTRO is co-published by Turbine and Midway in North America and Codemasters Online Gaming in Europe.
|
|
Read more...
|
|
|
World of Warcraft
|
|
Written by Atomm
|
|
Monday, 14 August 2006 |
WOW! I mean literally, World of Warcraft: The Burning Crusades expansion looks incredible! Let me say it again, WOW! Before I go into the details, I would like to pose this question. Why cant every game company be as innovative, bold and dead on as Blizzard? It amazes me to see a company that can do so many good things for their players and continue to push the envelope of what a MMORPG or any Game, for that matter, should be.
On to the details. A few interesting things have been pointed out in this recent GameSpy article on World of Warcraft: The Burning Crusades. Lets start with the big ticket items. All new raids will be capped at 25 players. I think that is a great move. The current Ranking Ladder system for PVP is going to be scrapped. This is a big deal. Its the equivalent of EA dropping the ranking system from Battlefield 2 because they realize how flawed a system that requires power gamers to prey on casual gamers really is. In its place, there are going to be true tournament style PVP arenas called the Gladiatorial Arena System. Think CAL for MMORPGs. Players will form teams to compete in three different brackets: 2v2, 3v3 or 5v5. Even cooler, this system will allow inter-faction fighting. Now the Horde will be able to PVP against the Horde and the Alliance will be able to PVP against the Alliance.
Another cool PVP feature is the addition of a neutral city in the expansion that can be captured by a faction. The faction that controls the city will reap the benefits of its Quest Givers and NPC shops. In a move that really brings World of Warcraft closer to its RTS brothers, there will bombing run griffins doing Area of Effect damage and siege towers that can be destroyed. The flight paths will be fixed, but it sounds really cool.
The GameSpy Article is 3 pages and definitely worth the read even if you are not a WOW player. The ideas in this article are the pinnacle of what outside the box thinking can do for a game. Other game companies could learn a lot from Blizzard if they are paying attention. |
|
|
Ultima Online
|
|
Written by Atomm
|
|
Thursday, 16 March 2006 |
We have the press release for OzzFest 2006. You can find out why Ozzy is only doing 10 shows, who the bands will be and find out what some of those bands think of being on OzzFest. As a special treat, we have the list of cities OzzFest will be visiting in 2006.
-----------
“They came, they saw, they pumped fists,” wrote Entertainment Weekly last year about the fans who experienced the “sweaty-heady essence” of the 10th anniversary of the king of festivals, the mighty OZZFEST .
And now, amped up to 11, the summer’s premiere touring concert festival enters its second decade this July with clenched teeth and trademark invincible spirit. OZZfest will roll out July 1 in San Francisco and visit 20 cities, with venues TBA.
Founder and namesake OZZY OSBOURNE is set to headline just 10 shows this summer. Why? “Because after 10 years I feel it’s time to let someone else share the headlining spotlight. We want to shake it up a bit this year,” says OZZY. “I’ve closed virtually every OZZfest performance for a decade now and I feel I can finally let other artists headline our festival and that’s my intention for the future.”
|
|
Read more...
|
|
|
World of Warcraft
|
|
Written by Sarge
|
|
Thursday, 02 March 2006 |
|
Raph Koster, a game designer who was a large part of the success of Ultima Online, and who currently works for Sony Online Entertainment, has recently posted a piece in his blog titled "What are the Lessons of MMORPGs today?". This is at times extremely funny and also kind of sad, and makes you think about why you game. In that same vein, he also has a presentation that he gave to an Austin Game Conference in 2003 about gaming, fun, and the human brain. It is an excellent and quick read and can be found here: "A Theory of Fun" Presentation |
|
|
Ultima Online
|
|
Written by Atomm
|
|
Tuesday, 28 February 2006 |
Source: Toolband.com
And we have the complete list of confirmed European dates.
5/26 - Lisbon, Portugal / Superrock Festival
5/27 - Madrid, Spain / Festimad
5/29 - Barcelona, Spain / Razzmatazz
5/30 - Lyon, France / Transbordeur
5/31 - Luxembourg City, Luxembourg / Rockhal
6/2 - Germany / Rock AM Ring
6/3 - Germany / Rock IM Park
6/4 - Landgraaf, Holland / Pink Pop Festival
6/6 - Hamburg, Germany / Sporthalle
6/7 - Berlin, Germany / Columbiahalle
6/8 - Dusseldorf, Germany / Philipshalle
6/11 - Glasgow, Scotland / Academy
6/13 - Hammersmith, UK / Apollo
6/16 - Switzerland / Interlaken Festival
6/17 - Vienna, Austria / Nova Rock Festival
6/19 - Milan, Italy / Filaforum
6/21 - Rome, Italy / Foro Italico
6/22 - Bologna, Italy / L R Arena
6/24 - Poland / Katowice Spodek
6/25 - Prague, Czech Republic / T Mobile Arena
6/27 - Amsterdam, Netherlands / HMH
6/28 - Paris, France / Le Zenith
6/29 - Belgium / Werchter Festival
7/1 - Denmark / Roskilde Festival
7/4 - Kristiansand, Norway / Quart Festival
7/7 - Gothenburg, Sweden / Metal Town Festival
7/9 - Finland / Turku Festival |
|
|
World of Warcraft
|
|
Written by Atomm
|
|
Wednesday, 11 January 2006 |
The time has come to take the next step in the evolution of World of Warcraft. Come join us in exploring such places as ZulGurub, Molten Core, and AhnQiraj.
We are currently accepting members to fill our rosters and join us in the neverending battle that is World of Warcraft!
If you are interested contact Brono at
This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it
Brono |
|
|
World of Warcraft
|
|
Written by Atomm
|
|
Tuesday, 22 November 2005 |
|
As the members of Gekozen have noticed, many folks are reaching level 60 and wondering what to do after the level grind is over. Many members want to see the end game content. With this in mind I have contacted the leaders of Northrend Cartel and Lawless guilds, and they have agreed to bring us into their raiding alliance. But I need your feedback? Visit the Gekozen forums and tell me what you think. |
|
|
World of Warcraft
|
|
Written by Atomm
|
|
Wednesday, 09 November 2005 |
On November 13th, Gekozen will have its first instance day. If you have quests in any dungeon, sign up in the Gekozen forums and well see if we can help you out.
If you need access to the Gekozen, send Skorch a Private Message. |
|
|
World of Warcraft
|
|
Written by Sarge
|
|
Tuesday, 08 November 2005 |
Atomm reported on the Sony/BMG "rootkit" DRM software problems a few days ago. What he didnt tell you was that enterprising World of Warcraft hackers have figured out that you can use the loopholes created by the DRM software to hide your hacks from "The Warden" - Blizzards anti-cheat program which is controversial in its own right. You can read the small article on the matter here.
Thanks to BoingBoing for the link |
|
|
World of Warcraft
|
|
Written by Atomm
|
|
Friday, 28 October 2005 |
Its official, the new World of Warcraft expansion is titled Burning Crusades. The official website is up and confirms a lot of the rumors we originally posted.
From the official website:
World of Warcraft: The Burning Crusade is the exciting new expansion to Blizzards award-winning massively multiplayer online role-playing game. It expands the game by tremendous bounds, adding new races, lands, Battlegrounds, professions and items, and more. Here is just a partial list of what you can expect from the World of Warcraft expansion:
An increase in the level cap to 70
Two new playable races, including the magical Blood Elves
New starting zones in QuelThalas and beyond
The entire new continent of Outland, reachable through the
Dark Portal
Many new high-level dungeons to explore in Azeroth,
Outland, and elsewhere
New flying mounts in Outland
Many new and dangerous monsters, including epic world
bosses
Hundreds of new quests
Hundreds of new items
A new profession: Jewelcrafting
Socketed items
And much, much more...
|
|
|
|
<< Start < Prev 1 2 3 4 Next > End >>
|
| Results 1 - 22 of 81 |
Listen Now
Playlist
UT2004 (R)
