Tag: Blizzard Entertainment

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Book Reviews Fiction

Jaina Proudmoore: Tides of War By Christie Golden

In recent days, books published by Blizzard Entertainment are more in line with the pace of the popular online game World of Warcraft‘s lore development.  At the end of Cataclysm, the age of the Dragons has passed.  Now, we are onto the age of the Mortals.  The so-called lesser races have proven themselves that they can and they will rise up and guard this world.  Dragons – the previous guardians since the age of the Titans – have lost their immortality in the battle against Deathwing who was corrupted by the Old God.  They have stepped down from the guardian role.  Slowly but surely, Blue Dragons have lost the notion of a dragonflight and now seek the concept of individuality.  Nexus – home to the blue dragonflight – is turning into a ghost town.  The world is indeed changing.

Human and Orc have been at war with each other for years.  Over time, Human has gathered other races namely Dwarf, Night Elf, Gnome, Draenei, and Worgen and formed the Alliance.  As for the Orc, Horde is formed with Troll, Undead, Tauren, Blood Elf, and Goblin.  The Horde and Alliance are technically at war with each other.  But they have briefly joined force with the Aspects of the dragonflights in the battle against Deathwing who threatened to destroy the world.

Now that Deathwing is vanquished and the world is on the path of healing, Horde is in a much stronger position compares to where they were years before.  No longer the orcs are enslaved by the humans like they have in the past.  Led by Thrall – the ex-Warchief – the peoples of the Horde have left Eastern Kingdoms and settled in the opposite continent, Kalimdor.  Due to Cataclysm, Thrall has answered his calling, dropped his mantle as a Warchief, and has become a shaman who has a key role to play in saving the world.  Before his departure, Thrall has named Garrosh Hellscream – son of Grom Hellscream who once succumbed to the demonic power but died a heroic death – as the new Warchief.

In the Universe of Warcraft, while good and evil is as clear as black and white, it has nothing to do with the races’ appearances.  Horde are as honorable as the Alliance.  They have bad seeds, just like the Alliance do.  During the Cataclysm era, there are disgruntle voices within our online community: Do Blizzard flavor Horde?  Thrall has turned into a savior while his counter part King Varian seems to have been sidelined.  Horde appear to have gained ground against the Alliance across the world.  Supporters of the Alliance have made a long list in justifying their claim that Blizzard has indeed flavored the Horde.

I am concerned, of course.  Because it seems to me that Blizzard is making a U-turn in order to please and retain the fans.  In the online game, we know that the fall of Theramore once ruled by Lady Proudmoore is the trigger of a new war between the Horde and the Alliance.  We also know that at the end of this new Mists of Pandaria expansion, the Horde capital Orgrimmar will be raided and Hellscream will be defeated – by Alliance and Horde alike.  As a keen observer of the lore, this a very bold plot development.  Blizzard is going to upset a lot of people.  This is a big gamble.  But, if played right, this plot twist may well bring the entire franchise back to its very root.

War.

As a fan of this franchise – be it as a Horde or Alliance supporter – I welcome this twist.  Let’s put war back to Warcraft.  In order to fully appreciate this wind of change, Christie Golden has written an excellent book called Jaina Proudmoore: Tides of War.  I have read quite a number of her novels.  This book again moves me to tears.  The scale of war is nothing like what I have read before (within this franchise that is).  Garrosh Hellscream has a plan.  He is not agreeable to the ex-Warchief’s vision of peace.  Garrosh wants to bring glory to the Horde.  More specifically, he wants to be the leader who finishes off what Thrall – in his eyes – has failed to do.  Readers of Christie Golden would immediately recognize that while Garrosh is hotheaded, he is one great tactician when it comes to warfare.  He would sacrifice all that he has in order to achieve a goal.  But he would also retreat if the tactical advantage is no longer viable.  He does not listen.  But he values loyalty and he does not hesitate in exerting authority over his people and other Horde races.  Horde leaders such as Baine and Vol’jin do not agree with Garrosh’s thirst for war.  Both have secretly negotiated peace with the Alliance in the past through diplomacy means.  But for their peoples’ survival’s sake, they answer to Garrosh’s call for arm because Horde units, even when it is fragmented within.  Such is the political difference between the two factions.

Jaina Proudmoore’s Theramore is of a strategic military importance to the Alliance.  The city is located by the sea, in Kalimdor, south of Orc Capital Orgrimmar, and has a key route to Night Elf’s home land up north.  Garrosh’s vision is clear.  Destroying Theramore is only the first step.  His military plan is to barraade Kalimdor from Alliance’s reinforcement, and ultimately drive out or exterminate the night elves in the north.  Both the Undead and the Blood Elf are uneasy about Garrosh’s plan.  Because their capitals lie in Eastern Kingdoms.  Alliance will retaliate and they will be the first to suffer.  But like Tauren and Troll, it is either follow Orc’s command or face isolation.  That leaves them little options.

While Garrosh vision is sound, the execution can be less than honorable.  Slowly, we can see how power corrupts Garrosh and turns him into a tyrant, a dictator who will stop at nothing unless his goal is attained.  This time, there is no demonic corruption to be blamed.  Nor the Old Gods.  It is pure greed and ambition of the mortals, which is something new in the lore.

The center figure of this new book is of course Jaina Proudmoore.  I have been following Jaina’s story for years, mainly because in the early days of this online game, I enjoyed role playing as a human.  Jaina is one of the – if not the – most powerful living human mage.  If you roll a mage class like I do, she is the role model to look upon.

Due to her heritage, she rules Theramore and was romantically linked to the then-human prince Arthas who turned into Lich King.  While her family was slaughtered by the Horde, she believes that most Horde are as honorable as the Alliance and that diplomacy is the key to peace.

Imagine her emotional shock when Garrosh has launched an assault to Theramore.  As an attempt to halt the assault, she has to plead for help from the neutral organization Kirin Tor residing in the magical city of Dalaran, from her new friend Kalecgos the ex-Aspect of Blue Dragonflight, and from King Varian the leader of Alliance.  This is one spectacular battle when we get to see first hand the transformation of Jaina as well as King Varian stepping up as a war strategist.  This war does not end when the book does.  It is going to be escalated as more stories unfold in the World of Warcraft.

Jaina Proudmoore: Tides of War is a must read for the fans and the lore lovers.

Categories
Book Reviews Fiction

Of Blood and Honor by Chris Metzen

Chronologically speaking, Of Blood and Honor is the last book of the Warcraft: Archive series.  This book is written by the esteemed Chris Metzen, generally regarded as the father (or one of the fathers) of Warcraft.  It is of an honor to finally read his work.

Of Blood and Honor, on the surface, is a rather short story.  Lord Tirion Fordring, a human paladin and a follower of Light, one day finds an old orc in his province.  In his days, every orc is a monster and must be eliminated.  Tirion fights the old orc and is being defeated.  As the tower collapses threatened to kill the unconscious Tirion within, the old orc saves his life, binds him onto his horse, and sends him back to his Keep.

Deeply affected by how the situation turns out, Tirion has decided to return to abandoned tower and confront the old orc once again.  Why would a monster save its enemy’s life?  To his surprise, this old orc speaks his language and has a name.  Eitrigg further enlightens Tirion on how some orcs have decided to leave their ranks because they do not wish to be corrupted by the demonic power and lose their way of life.  Do orcs have honor?  This one seems to have, so thinks Tirion.  In return to Eitrigg’s saving his life, Tirion has vowed to leave Eitrigg in peace and never seek him out.

Unfortunately, words are out and people now know that there are orcs in the area (although there is only one).  Is Tirion willing to risk losing everything he has in order to uphold his honor and his vow with an enemy?  To those of us who have been playing World of Warcraft since the beginning, the interaction between Tirion and Eitrigg marks a pivoting moment in the history of Warcraft – Horde and Alliance can collaborate.  They can fight side by side if a situation calls for.  This is exactly what we do today, when we face the worse adversity the world has yet to face.

Of Blood and Honor may not be rich in complexity.  However, without a doubt, it is a book that is rich in honor and sacrifice.  The path to heroism is not easy.  Especially when most don’t see that you are one.

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Book Reviews Fiction

The Last Guardian By Jeff Grubb

For those who have played Warcraft 3, the real time strategy game released decades ago, you may recall a black raven that transformed into a human prophet at will speaking to both the Horde and Alliance.  It was the prophet’s plan to bring both sides’ attention to the looming danger of the demonic invasion – The Burning Legion.  The game ends with the glorious battle of all races of Azeroth against the demons’ final assault to the World Tree.

Perhaps the name Medivh means something to you.  The Last Guardian tells the story of Medivh, the most powerful mage known in Azeroth, before he has become the raven that some of us are familiar with in Warcraft 3.

To my best knowledge, The Last Guardian is the only Warcraft novel written by Jeff Grubb.  I do not know why he no longer writes for the Warcraft series.  I happen to enjoy his writing style – slower pace no doubt, but with a certain mysterious underlying to the overarching story.  The Last Guardian almost reads like a detective story.  Magic is explained in the finest technical detail.  The entire book is written in such finest detail.  I feel as though I am living inside the tower of Karazhan, together with the visions within and all.

Medivh is an enigmatic character.  His tower of Karazhan holds many secrets of the past and the future.  To tell the story, Jeff Grubb relies on the young Khadgar – a human mage highly recommended by Kirim Tor (an organization of mages residing in Dalaran) to be the apprentice of Medivh.  Khadgar has an inquisition mind and his undying curiosity makes him a perfect spy to learn the secret of the tower.  Medivh knows of Kirim Tor’s intend but is confident that by building trust, Khadgar may one day stand by his side.

The stories told within Karazhan are epic.  It goes all the way when Medivh’s 800 years old mother Aegwynn battled the evil Titan Sargeras.  Throughout my interaction with the Warcraft franchise – be it as in-game or the bits and pieces of lore scattered in books and at Blizzard’s website – it is the closest moment I have read about the Titans.  There are plenty of visions that explain what the past was, and what the future is to be.  The stories further explain Medivh’s background and why the most powerful mage in Azerorth is going insane.

After reading The Last Guardian, there are still many questions in my mind.  If Medivh is the Guardian of Order of Tirisfal, how does he relate to the Aspects of the five dragon flights – who are also named as the Guardians of Azeroth?  If the Aspects are empowered by Titans, what empowered the Guardian of Order of Tirisfal?  Sargeras appears to be one tough Titan to defeat – though it does not seem impossible – would this Titan be the ultimate villain in the online game World of Warcraft?  If so, when would that be?

The Last Guardian is the third book coming from the Warcraft Archive series.  It reads differently from others.  A worthwhile read nonetheless.

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For the Geeks

6,311 Hours Of Played Time: World Of Warcraft

At times I ask myself: Am I playing too much World of Warcraft?  It is hard to comprehend what 6,311 hours mean without a context.  My record shows that I have played this online game since the beginning of 2005, spent more than US$1,000 on subscription fees.  I don’t play WoW every day.  As of now, I haven’t touched the game for months.  But when I touch it, I could go crazy with it.

Theramore, Destroyed.  Jaina Proudmoore’s hair has turned white.  Hellscream is safe and sound.  What’s next?

Typically for me, a video game takes around 40 hours to consume.  A good game may eat up 80 to 120 hours of my life.  The third expansion Cataclysm was released two year ago.  That expansion alone I have clocked in roughly 1,700 hours –  the most played expansion of all.

There has been great debate on how Cataclysm flares compared with the previous expansions, even with the original game released in 2004.  There are fans who say that it is disappointing.  The sales figure also seems to support that sentiment.  Towards the end of the expansion, even the developers feel the heat and the need to reverse a good portion of their design philosophy.  This clearly has an impact on WoW’s next expansion Mists of Pandaria, which is due to be out in a few days’ time.  The question is: Is Cataclysm all that bad?

Personally, I welcome a better emphasis on skill-based rather than gear-based approach.  The content at the beginning of the expansion was significantly harder than before.  That required us to reexamine our priority system.  I love the challenge, although I must say, Blizzard seems to have over-engineered some of the game mechanics.

The problem of this increased challenge is that some players no matter how hard they tried or read from the Internet simply could not bridge that gap.  In the previous expansions, we could compensate skill with gears earned through persistence.  That did not seem to work for the first year of Cataclysm.  To make it worse, the then-high-end content failed to reward the effort required.  The net result?  People were frustrated.  Relationships were strained because not everyone performed or could perform at the same level.

On the plus side, I like the bite size stories spread across the new zones.  I also like the new dailies hub that evolves as we progress.  The quests do not feel too taxing either.  And I like how Blizzard opens up raiding to the less hardcore players.  Being able to collect an armor set that was used to be exclusive to raiders who invest immense amount of time and sacrifice is one good news (ironically, I do not seem to invest any less played time either).

What’s Next?

Having played the beta of the new expansion Mists of Pandaria and having seen some of the new game updates, I must say that I am underwhelmed.  The graphics look dated.  World of Warcraft indeed plays like an aging game.  Fans would defend this online game by pointing to the fact that game play is the most important aspect of all.  But there is a limit to how far this saying could go.

My friends and I have recently logged back in and tried out the new scenario mode.  That was insanely boring.  Perhaps if we haven’t tried the latest massively multiplayer online game, we could have overlooked these flaws.  Would I continue to pay US$14.99 a month to play this game?  Cynthia’s commitment to the annual pass deal will continue till end of this year.  Hence, we may still get the new expansion and try it out.

This time round, I doubt I would pushed the played time beyond 7,000 hours.  I sure pray that I won’t.

While the scenarios from both the Horde and Alliance perspective are incredibly boring, we took a screenshot nonetheless.
Categories
For the Geeks Game Reviews

Diablo III Madness – 140 Hours And Counting

This Diablo III madness has no end.  140 hours have passed and I don’t even feel it.  It is like that one scene in Twilight whereby Bella sits by the window observing the change of seasons in one minute.  There are four levels of difficulty in this video game.  It takes me 140 hours to clear the second difficulty level – Nightmare – for all my five classes.  My next milestone is to complete the third difficulty level – Hell – and call it a day.  Inferno difficulty could well be too brutal for me.

Or maybe not.  We shall see.

Heavens burn as we cast the Prime Evil into oblivion.

I will not repeat what has already been said in my last post “Diablo III – First 80 Hours“.  What I said back then is still valid today.  Instead, I will share my experience with the game as I progress through different difficulty levels.  And a short recap on news surrounding the Diablo community from launch till now.

At launch, Diablo III smashed records, sold more than 6 millions copies excluding the 1 million World of Warcraft annual pass subscribers who got the game free.  Due to this unexpected sales record, a game that requires constant connection to the servers became unplayable as the servers were brought down time and time again by the surge in demand.  Onto then second week, when the US servers finally gained stability, reports started to come in as players’ accounts were compromised, in-game progress was lost.  The solution is to use a physical or mobile authenticator that provides an extra layer of protection like how Internet Banking tackles security.  On top of that, Blizzard gives us an option to enable SMS alert whenever account information is modified.  I do not know of any video gaming company that goes into this level of security to protect our accounts.  That could be due to the Real Money Auction House (RMAH) that I will talk about in just a bit.  Back to the first month after launch, the ride was bumpy.

Meanwhile, while the US region cried about the rumored hacks, Blizzard‘s office in Korea responsible in hosting the Asia servers was raided by the local government that sought evidence against Blizzard in their denial of refund requests.  Asia region has its own controversy.  Koreans were given more quotas in accessing the Asian game servers while other locations such as China, Taiwan, and Hong Kong needed to queue for hours just to get into the game.  In-game exploitation also ran wild in the Asian servers causing long extended maintenance that denied people from playing the game.  Players in Asia were as unhappy as the US counterparts.  I have no idea how the European players were coping.  I suspect they would have faced similar issues.

RMAH was launched in June.  Those who had high end in-game items made profits due to the initial craze.  One item could be sold for US$250 up.  While minority made money out of playing a game, the community overall appeared to view RMAH as the unnecessary evil.  Couple that with the fact that the game had been exploited by some and the economy imbalance that persists till today, RMAH has become a messy business.  However, if we are to take a step back, with or without RMAH, people trade items – items that they do not create – using real money.  While RMAH provides a safer environment for trading, it also encourages those who would not have traded trade.

To add onto this drama, Blizzard has decided that one of the gear attribute – attack speed – was too high.  Balancing the game means that all in-game items – past and future – have to be adjusted.  To compensate, Blizzard also makes Diablo III‘s inferno difficulty more manageable.  The net result was that those who have spend hundreds of dollars buying gears from RMAH suddenly woke up to the new reality that their gears were less powerful than before.  This seems to have put a brake to RMAH sales.  Are you willing to buy in-game items using real money only to find that one day, the items may be no longer what you wanted them to be?

Tricky situation.

If you read the online professional reviews, Diablo III has done pretty well.  If you crosscheck the scores with user reviews, the two do not tally.  User reviews from Metacritic to Amazon slam down the score to the lowest possible.  Some players from US demanded a full refund after beating the game and strangely, Blizzard has granted their requests.  Official forums continue to be on fire citing Diablo III as the worst game Blizzard has ever produced.  Participation in public games seems to dwindle.  The community seems to thin out.  Perhaps the end game is not quite there yet as we are still waiting for a future patch to address this issue.  Or perhaps action hack-and-slash genre is not something some would enjoy doing for hours.

What about me?

This is the secret level, “pony land”. Rainbow and all. Colorful but deadly.

I love it.  My friends seem to love it too.  Day in day out, I play with my friends online, overcoming challenges.  The contents may be the same.  It is Act One through Act Four.  The story is linear.  But different classes play differently.  Different difficulty levels play differently.  After we have cleared Nightmare difficulty (the second level), Hell plays like a whole new different game.  The challenge requires me to pay attention to mechanics I may have overlooked in the previous difficulty levels.  To me, Diablo III is like Tetris.  The framework and the pieces do not change over different levels.  But the fun stacks up as the pace increases.

How long will I stay with this game?  I am not too sure.  Maybe till the new World of Warcraft expansion Mists of Pandaria is out?

Categories
Book Reviews Fiction

Lord of the Clans By Christie Golden

Christie Golden needs no introduction.  She has written tons of books for major fantasy franchises.  I reckon she is one of Blizzard’s favorites.  I may not be agreeable to her writing style, especially her over reliance of the word ‘had’ (who am I to comment about English grammar anyway, though this habit of hers has been highlighted by other online reviewers as well).  But every book of her so far managed to move me to tears.  If you need someone to thoroughly develop a character and to strike the emotional core of the readers, Christie Golden is the one you shall look for.

Lord of the Clan, in summary, is a story of Thrall.  It is the second book from the Warcraft: Archive series.  The demonic power that corrupted the orcs seems to have receded, leaving the blood eyed orcs docile, incapable to return to their former glory.  For most orcs, their way of life is lost.  The warlocks’ abuse of demonic power has driven the shamanic spirit away.  In this era, orcs who were previously addicted to the demonic power are now willingly imprisoned by the human.  The war is lost.  It is a dark day for the orcs.

Infant orc Thrall, son of Frostwolf Clan’s Chieftain, is left in the wild when his parents are brutally assassinated by their fellow Horde.  During a hunting trip, Thrall is found by a human called Lord Blackmoore who is in command of the encampments where orcs are imprisoned.  Instead of killing the orc baby, Blackmoore has decided to enslave Thrall and train him as a gladiator for his personal gain.  He commands his people to teach Thrall how to read and to fight.  He wants Thrall to learn the human language and master the war strategies.  Life as a gladiator is never easy.  However, Thrall is also blessed with a few friends.  One of them is a human girl called Taretha, who treats Thrall as her little brother.

However comfortable life seems to be as a slave, Thrall’s true destiny is not to be a gladiator.  He must join force with Grom Hellscream of the Warsong Clan.  He must unit with the Warchief Orgrim Doomhammer.  Together, the New Horde must rise.

Lord of the Clan is the first book that is written from the Horde’s perspective.  While the Old Horde that fell under the demonic influence is traditionally viewed as villain and the Alliance is seen as hero, with the rise of the New Horde, the line is no longer black and white.  Orcs can be honorable.  Orcs can be merciful.  And human can also be corrupted by political power too.

Thrall has become a center figure in recent lore development.  Lord of the Clans has shed much insight onto Thrall’s childhood and adulthood.  With Thrall’s unique background – born as an orc and taught by the human – it is no doubt he is where he is today.  The question to all whom indulge in the World of Warcraft is: after Cataclysm and at the end of Mists of Pandaria, will Thrall return as Horde’s Warchief?

Categories
Book Reviews Fiction

Day of the Dragon By Richard A. Knaak

Richard Knaak is one of the few resident Warcraft series writers.  His storytelling style is visibly different from others, more so towards the traditional fantasy genre.  Written in 2001, Day of the Dragon is considered as the first book of the Warcraft series.  It is also the first book of the Warcraft: Archive four-book series.  Warcraft is a fantasy universe I am fond of, dearly.  Hence, I read Day of the Dragon with a high anticipation over my holiday in Bandung, devouring every bit of the lore within.

For those who are familiar with the recent lore development, reading Day of the Dragon is real treat.  Never have we been so close to some of the key figures in recent days.  Imagine reading Deathwing in human form, the Old Horde corrupted by demonic power, and the general mistrust of the use of magic – just to name a few.

Back to the era whereby the day of the dragon has passed, dragonqueen Alexstrasza – one of the five great Aspects of the dragon flights – is captured by the orcs from the Dragonmaw clan and is imprisoned within the caves of Khaz Modan.  Deeply weakened by an artifact called Demon Soul, she resigns to her fate of birthing red dragons only to be trained by the orcs to do evil deeds.

Her consort, Korialstrasz also known as Krasus in his human form, must find a way to free his beloved queen.  And it is no easy task.  Uniting the rest of the weakened dragon Aspects seems impossible.  Malygos has gone mad; Nozdormu is obsessed with collecting artifacts throughout the timeline; and Ysera is lost in her dream world.  Only Deathwing the Destroyer – the black dragon flight Aspect – is not weakened by the Demon Soul.  And he is plotting his sinister moves in bringing the world to an end (you could say again, but this event happens before Cataclysm).

Hope is now placed upon a human mage Rhonin from Kirin Tor of Dalaran.  Krasus sends Rhonin on an observatory mission to Khaz Modan escorted by an elvan ranger Vereesa Windrunner.  During their journey, they have recruited the help of the human paladins as well as the dwarves and their quest has changed.  But is it enough to face the adversities of the orcs, trolls, and goblins?  With the Horde losing ground and the Alliance gathering its forces under a mysterious character called Lord Prestor, how would this ultimate battle play out?

Day of the Dragon answers a lot of questions I used to have.  Locations and characters such as island kingdom of Tol Barad, Gemm Greymane, and Gilneas are not featured in World of Warcraft until 2011.  It appears to me that Day of the Dragon was well ahead of time.  Lore development these days are tightly coupled with the game development.  Deep inside, I am wishing that Blizzard would release new lore that will not be seen in the game till, say, a decade later.  This will give the fans something to look forward to, something beyond what we have anticipated today.

Categories
For the Geeks Game Reviews

Diablo III – First 80 Hours

What a blast!  20 days into Diablo III and I have clocked in 80 played hours.  On top of that, Ihave finally defeated the ultimate evil for one of my five characters.  One down.  Four more characters to go.  And then onto the next difficulty level.

Note: Did you know the Diablo III runs in both PC and Mac platform?  Once you purchase a game key, you can download and install the game to either platform as many times as you wish.  Do check minimal system requirement though.  To purchase the game, click here to create an account and head to Blizzard Store.  If you are a Android or iPhone user, don’t forget to download the free  Battle.net Mobile Authenticator app (or you can purchase a physical one online at Blizzard Store).  Also, you may wish to turn on the SMS verification feature in your account management for extra security.

“You dare to judge me?!”

Games are certainly more fun played with friends.  In general, that is true – physical and virtual world alike.  So I have played with Cynthia mostly, when she is online.  Sanctuary seems less lonely that way, and less scary for sure.  She can go head-to-head with the mobs at the frontline while I, well, I heroically shoot the enemies from a safe distance.  Now you know who wear the pants at our home.  We have played with our real life friends too.  It is mindless zerging, destroying all things that move, all things that don’t.  It is an insane fun, in a therapeutic kind of way.  Though at times I wonder if we are holding our friends up by too obsessively exploring every corner of the map and smashing every jar we see (there is an achievement for 1,000 jars destroyed for the OCD ones, like me).  At times, we join the public games just to repeat some of the memorable boss fights.  Getting a random group is super fast compares to, say, World of Warcraft.  In that online game, we could end up waiting for up to half an hour or more for a group to be assembled.  In Diablo III, it is instant.  As our party size increases (up to four), so is the strength of our foes.  When one is leaving, no problem.  Our foes will scale down accordingly.  I like this dynamic aspect.  It keeps the encounters challenging and from the social interaction point of view, the more the merrier.  Almost always.

The game in Normal setting does not require 30 hours to beat, which we eventually did.  Typically, it can be done in 20 hours, or even less.  Cynthia and I are the thorough ones.  We enjoy opening up unexplored areas to hunt for treasure and face the seemingly formidable foes.  I take one step further that drives Cynthia nuts.  I listen to all the dialog, again and again.  My only complain with the public games is that most random players would choose to skip the cut scenes and dialog.  That is totally understandable.  But as for me, I am in for the full experience.  Discovering the little stories my in-game companions have to tell, pieces of lore, trivial dialog that keeps the game alive, and more.  To that end, I solo the contents as well.

Scoundrel (my rogue companion in-game when I have no one to group with): Sometimes I wish that when we’d met, you’d taken one look at me and fallen desperately in love.  But then I think of all the gold I’ve gotten with you.

Kasumi (my demon huntress): You know that that it won’t end that way, right?

Scoundrel: Right.

Upon completion of Normal difficulty setting, characters are typically around level 30.  After which, the entire game play can be repeated in a higher difficulty setting called Nightmare.  That boosts character level from 30 to 50.  To reach the level cap of 60, Hell difficulty awaits.  Beyond that is Inferno setting that is tailored for those who demand the ultimate challenge.  If you are seeking for a deeper thrill and a sense of purpose, Diablo III offers a Hardcore mode whereby all deaths are permanent.  That is pretty hardcore.  It is like play Tetris with one life and you want to see how far you can go before getting beaten.  My goal is to reach the level cap for all my 5 characters covering all 5 different classes.  Inferno is likely not my cup of tea.  If and when I reach there, I would love to take a holiday for a well deserved break.  Hawaii would be nice.  How many times must we save Heavens and Sanctuary?  As many times as we defend Azeroth from Deathwing I suppose.

“Cartoon-ish? Perhaps. But the level of detail is astonishing.”

Some asked me if this game is any good.  It is an incredibly easy game to pick up.  In the initial stage of the game, you can simply hack and slash your way using the two mouse buttons.  As you progress, you can use the four extended skills that are mapped to the numeric keys 1 to 4.  6 buttons are all you need to master this game.  You get to choose 6 active skills from a total of 22 at any time of your game play.  Each skill can be augmented with one of the 5 different runes (6 if you count the no rune option).  That in turn changes how the skill works.  On top of that, you get to pick 3 passive skills from an array of 15.  You can do the mathematics and work out the potential number of combinations.  It is rare to see two players picking up the same configuration.  Individual build shapes one’s play style.  Coupled that with the individual’s gear stats preference, there is much depth in Diablo III.  Now, while I cannot vouch for what happens in the Inferno setting, I am pretty sure that it is Blizzard’s interest to avoid cookie-cutting builds that make everyone alike.

If you are into or open to hack-and-slash role playing games, Diablo III is the benchmark.  The game play is fluid.  The artwork and soundtrack is beautiful.  Each time you level, you feel more powerful as more skill options are available at your disposal.  Within the virtual world of Diablo III, you are always gold hungry, loot hungry.  All items’ stats are randomly generated making it unlikely that two gears are identical.  Blizzard, unlike other developers, continues to improve the game based on community feedback.  Other developers more often than not de-prioritize the fixing of their games after they have taken your money.  Instead, their first priority is to build new DLC (downloadable contents) and new expansions.  Not Blizzard.

In this new era, no man is an island.  Collaboration and trading for mutual benefits trump working on your own.  You may hate the concept of the in-game Auction House that facilitates the trading of game items using either in-game currency or real currency.  But it is a good way to help each other in order to fasten the pace and overcome challenges.  Items that you no longer need can be offloaded into the Auction House so that someone else may find a use of it.  Or you may pick up an item from the Auction House that others do not need.  If you are not the type who spends real currency to acquire virtual items, you can stick with the in-game currency.  If you do, Blizzard provides a safe environment for real money trading to occur.  Is Blizzard charging too much as a middle man?  I do not have a benchmark for comparison.  Besides, I hope Blizzard can continue to make money somewhere so that the servers can be funded – free of charge for us folks – for many months or even years to come.

Any downside?  Sure.  It is called weekly scheduled maintenance that happens during our prime evening hours.  Something some of us have been bearing since the launch of World of Warcraft.  It is worse than Error 37 if you were to ask me.

To continue reading my adventure of 140 hours with the game, click here.

“You still haunt my sleep.”

Categories
For the Geeks

Evil Is Back: Nine Things To Get You Ready For Diablo III

Update: You can start to install the digital download on May 14 11.01pm GMT+8 and the server live date is May 15 3.01pm GMT+8.

For some, this has been a wait more than a decade long.  It gets more excruciating as we approach May 15.  Diablo III is featured on our local paper today.  One couple has postponed their honeymoon to next year in anticipation of the game’s release.  That is some kind of commitment!  I am unsure if I would love Diablo III that much.  Not even sure if Cynthia who gets the game free thanks to WoW annual pass would enjoy playing this game with me.  I have faith in Blizzard.  They make good games.  And to my readers, here are nine things you should consider doing in getting yourself ready for this upcoming epic gaming journey.

1. Watch the Cinematic Trailer

Here is a little crash course for you.  Mortals have been using Soulstones to trap the three Prime Evils from Hell.  The bad guy you see in the video below is Azmodan, the Lord of Sin, who is also one of the four Lesser Evils.  According to Book of Cain (which I will cover later), the Lord of Sin is a clever manipulator who trades in vice and coruption.  He is passionate and plotting – both to very dangerous degrees.  He is by far the most charismatic and seductive of all the Evils.

Little has been revealed about Azmodan, yet it is hinted that he is looking for a promotion to be a Prime.  I suppose Diablo III may tell a deeper story on this Lesser Evil, who is by no means less evil.

2. Read Book of Cain

When I played Diablo II eons ago, I did not really get into the story.  In fact, I did not complete the game.  I have participated in the closed beta.  It was a pleasant experience, with voice acting and etc.  Still, I could not quite get the story.  What I missed was the lore.

To fully enjoy Diablo III, you have to read the lore.  There is one such book that fits the bill.  It is Diablo III: Book of Cain.  148 pages only, with tons of artistic illustrations.  The book tells the story of the beginning of time, before Heaven and Hell were created.  It is a book of mythology that defines the universe of Diablo.  In this realm, mortals as products of angels and demons are not powerless.  That’s why we get to trap the Evils inside the Soulstones in previous episodes.

Evil is back in this third episode.  Get acquainted with the lore today!

3. Pre-order the Game

Unlike Starcraft II, there will be no price difference between getting a local physical copy or downloading the game online via Battle.net.  Either way, after online registration, you will be able to download the game client to any machine – PC or Mac – in the future.  Getting a physical copy saves you the hassle of spending 6 to 12 hours downloading the game.  Getting a virtual copy saves the environment (sort of), with one less packaging, and you get to download the game client in this very moment.  The choice is yours.

Local copy of the game is marketed and distributed by Asiasoft here in Singapore.  For pre-order information and more, visit this link.

4. Attend the Launch Party

Like all Blizzard games, there will be a launch party at Funan DigitaLife Mall and it is held on May 15, 2012 from 9am to 9pm.  For those who have pre-ordered the game, you may collect it from 3pm onwards.  Marc Messenger, the lead developer of this game will be there.  There will be cosplays, hourly giveaways, and lucky draw.

I wonder if the local cosplays standard will be as close as Tasha and Miyuko who are featured in the official Diablo site (see picture below).  What do you think?

5. Create a Battle Tag

You will need a Battle Tag in order to play Diablo III.  It is a name that represent you in Battle.net.  So, choose wisely.  Since it may take time for you to dream of a handle, start dreaming now.

From my experience, a short Battle Tag is much desired.  You may wish to call yourself Iamawesome1337.  Unfortunately there is a space constraint in the game interface.  To others (and even to you), your portrait may show Iamawe… instead.  This may frustrate you.  Think of something short.  It doesn’t have to be unique.  Because Blizzard will tag a 4-digit random code behind your tag.

Diablo III is meant to be played with your friends online.  It is built that way.  Enemies scale up as more join the party.  So, start socializing with your friends and sharing your Battle Tag.  Mine is Lace#1115.  See you in the game!

To create a Battle Tag, you will need to first create a Battle.net account.  Head to http://battle.net for more information.

6. Pick a Class

At launch, there are five classes to choose from: barbarian, wizard, demon hunter, witch doctor, and monk.  You will need to pick one to start your journey.  The question is: Which one will you pick?

I have participated in the closed beta.  I enjoy all five classes.  With ten character slots and a shared stash for you to pass the items around, you are free to experiment what works for you.

Barbarian and monk are melee classes.  You get to face the enemies up close.  Barbarian is the traditional warrior class.  You jump into the battle faster than any other classes.  And you hack and slash your foes away, right to their faces.

Monk on the other hand is a nimble melee class.  You get to jump in and out of the scene and to think how to deal damage without taking too much of it.

Witch doctor, demon hunter, and wizard destroy enemies from a distance.  Witch doctor summon pets to assist you.  Damage over time is the key strategy.  Contrast to wizard, wizard deals direct damage.  Initially I thought wizard would be boring to play, but it is not.  As for demon hunter, first, know that this class does not come with a pet (somehow WoW players associate the word ‘hunter’ with pets).  Second, this class gets to carry two bows that do some really funky stuffs.  It is probably the most interesting class in this genre.

In short, pick your first based on your play style or even artistic preference.  However, I suspect you will get to play all eventually, in different difficulty settings.

Still need more inspiration on which class is for you?  Head to PC Gamer site and read how game developers may pick as their first.

Oh, when you first start the game, make sure you pick the correct geographical region.  You are allowed to switch between the three regions.  The game is not region locked like Starcraft II.  However, characters created in different regions are not connected.

7. Know Your Resources

This may sound obvious.  Official forum is the best place to get up-to-date information, contributed by the community as well as the developers.  There will be discussion and sharing on how to play your classes better.

Character profiles will be available for the tracking of your and your friends’ progress.  There is a skill calculator for those who enjoy fine tuning their characters’ abilities based on play style.  Have you ever wondered what Diablo III is?  The video below will have the answers for you.

8. Watch the Wrath Animation

For those who enjoy watching animation, this close to 7 minutes video clip depicting the conflict of High Heavens and Burning Hells is not to be missed.  It is created by Blizzard Entertainment teamed up with renowned director Peter Chung and acclaimed animation studio Titmouse.  This video does make more sense if you have read Book of Cain as recommended earlier.

9. What’s Your Excuse?

Come this May 15, you may find your colleagues disappear, your loved one disappear.  Try to think of the annual Great Singapore Sale, or the upcoming Euro Cup.  People do disappear for various reasons.  Be sympathetic.  Chances are, your friends are busy fighting demons in the Burning Hells.

If you are finding it hard to come up an excuse for your colleagues, or your loved ones, here is a fan-made website http://www.sorryformay15.com that may just do the job for you!

Categories
For the Geeks

World of Warcraft: Mists of Pandaria Beta Test – First Impression

Hooray!  Blizzard has sent me a beta invite for the testing of their upcoming expansion Mists of Pandaria.  Not that it was a huge surprise, really.  Because I have signed up for their annual pass deal and I know, eventually I will get an invite.  Still, it is good to get a rather early invite as I have been a loyal subscriber since its 2004 launch (OK, my payment lapsed for a couple of months because my credit card has expired but they really should have follow-up).  One of the first 200,000 lucky ones, I am.

“Oh my, guess what I saw when I first logged into the beta test server.  So many pandas!  I think I am getting panda phobia!  Note: Each panda you see in this picture represents one online player.”

I enjoy beta testing.  The last one I did was for the upcoming Diablo III.  I get to see an evolving product, based on testers’ feedback.  That gives me more insight on Blizzard’s design strategy (like how they value UI friendliness in Diablo III looking at the tweaks they do).  If you do get a WoW beta invite, here are some friendly reminders to make your journey more rewarding:

  • Beta means that it is an unfinished product, although Blizzard does reveal beta at its finest quality.  You get to see its beauty at its rawer form.  But you also get to see some rough edges.
  • The server is going to lag like crazy, regardless of your network performance.  It could be frustrating.  Hey, look at the bright side.  How often do you get to see hundreds of online players crowded in one place?  Nightmare no doubt.  But you would cherish this insane moment looking back.

“So I created a female pandaren.  Character customization seems to give me 14 face options.  Unlike the male pandaren, there is no customization option for the female face shape.  Just different color patches. Is it because we are at the beta stage?”

Female Pandaren

I don’t think I would try out the 85-90 high level zones in this beta testing.  Because I want to save the experience for my 10 characters.  Moreover, I don’t want to be sick of it by the time Mists is released.  What I do not mind is to try out the new pandaren starting area a couple of times since at most, I would only experience it once when this expansion is live.

The new pandaren race – silly as some may say – is down right adorable, especially the female pandaren.  I must say though, the female race looks a bit plastic to me, almost like a robot in her god forbid cuteness.  Maybe just a matter of getting used to.  Also, I observe that not all customization features are opened as of now.  The male version’s face customization varies the shape of the face.  The female version seems to vary the color pattern only.  I am not sure if it will be the case for the live version.

You can have a black and white pandaren that looks more like a panda.  Or you can have an orange version that in Cynthia’s words, looks more like a fox.  Female orange pandaren comes with a big orange tail too.  Alternatively, if you wish, you could have a hybrid look.  Black and white face with an orange body and in the case of a female pandaren, a fat orange tail instead of a tiny stub.

Female pandaren, in my opinion, is a bit short and plump.  I think I may roll a male pandaren when the time comes to save me some money to do a sex change later.

“Stop humping that scroll you silly pandas!  How are we supposed to click it when there are so many pandas crowded at it?!  Note: The trick is to pan the camera as show and keep spamming right click on the top right corner of the scroll.  You will get it eventually.  Also, if too many pandas are standing on top of the quest giver, press SHIFT-V and interact with the NPC’s green name plate instead.”

New Monk Class

It has been a while since Blizzard releases a new class for World of Warcraft.  So I rolled a monk class.  This new class is quite possibly what I look forward to most when Mists is live.

Some online reviewers describe the new monk class plays like an arcade game, combo-like button meshing and all.  I was a bit weary when I first heard about.  After experienced 11 levels of playing a monk, it is not as dramatic.

True, there is no more auto attack.  It plays like a rogue and shares the same energy pool concept, except that the combo points are not with the enemy but upon the monk herself.  This new resource called Chi can be accumulated up to 4 points.  Chi does not dissipate over time, unless you log out.  Some abilities generate Chi while others consume it.  For example, at level 1, you can consume 40 energy, perform a Clobber, and whack your target with your weapon (in my case, a staff).  Clobber generates one Chi.  You can also consume a Chi and whack your target with your hand – Tiger Palm – while you regenerate energy.  Tiger Palm deals more damage when the target is above 50% health.  So common sense would tell you to whack your enemy with your palm at the beginning of the encounter.  Perhaps even unload your Tiger Palm at that early stage when you have excess Chi.

Once your enemy drops below 35%, you can perform a Blackout Kick that has a 3 second cool down.  Blackout Kick consumes 2 Chi and it refunds 1 Chi if the target is dead by your kick.  So in effect, it would consume 1 Chi if you kick properly.  The so-called combo move is really how you wish to optimize your abilities based on the target’s health.  You cannot spam Clobber because that consumes energy.  You cannot spam Tiger Palm because that consumes Chi.  And you cannot spam Blackout Kick because not only does it consume Chi, it has a cool down.  With a potential to specialize into tank, melee damage, and heal, the new monk class sounds interesting.

All you need to do is pray that you don’t lag.  Because there is no auto-attack to save you.

“The artwork of the new pandaren starting area is colorful and beautiful.”

The Pandaria Artwork and Quests

While I am not overly excited by the oriental theme (strange eh given my background?), the artwork is colorful and beautiful.  A lot of work must have poured into the new starting area.  The oriental music background sounds good too. Unlike the Cataclysm new races’ starting areas, in this upcoming expansion, Blizzard has minimized phasing technology so much so that it does not matter at which stage of the quest line you are at, you can always see your friends.

Truth be told, I am not against phasing technology.  The downside is that the world around you seems a lot emptier than it really is.  Players at a different stage of the quest don’t necessarily see each other’s presence.  Till today, I still think that the goblin’s starting area is the best, out of all.  Tight storytelling, full of colors and insane humor.  Questing in the new pandaren starting area appeared to be a bit bland, initially.

“OK, I need three carrots and three turnips.  Where shall I begin?”

The quests in pandaren staring area can generally be broken down into a few types.

  1. Help someone to kill some unpleasant enemies.
  2. Help someone to collect some useful items.
  3. Take someone to somewhere.
  4. Go somewhere with someone.
  5. Defeat a mini boss.

#1 and #2 often go hand-in-hand.  So in Mists, you can almost predict what your next quests are going to be.  To be honest, I yawned (staying up till wee hours trying to defeat server lag didn’t help).  But I got through them nonetheless.

“What is this creature following my panda?!”

Maybe I am getting too old for this expansion.  Mists seems to have a playful undertone to the entire setup, unlike the previous expansions.  You wake some creatures up.  Play with some creatures.  As a pandaren, you start off as a neutral race.  You get to interact with two pandaren NPCs that are supposed to help you decide if you wish to join the Horde or the Alliance at the end of your journey as an initiate.  Later in your starting area, you get to interact with traditional Horde and Alliance races as well.  I wish Blizzard could work more quests into this part of the journey, to give players a better sense of which fraction their way of life is to be.  As of now, it feels a bit too shallow.

In retrospect, I really enjoyed the blood elf and draenei starting areas.  The quests take you to around level 20 and reward you with some good blue quality items.  For pandaren starting area, provided that everything stays the same as beta, you will get to level 11, and wear a set of white inferior items.

I am quite a sad panda.

“When you roll a panda, you start on top of a giant turtle who has a Chinese name.”

Closing Thoughts

I must admit that I am not overwhelmed with the new race’s starting area.  Maybe because I was not playing with my friends and the server lag was understandingly horrible (no complain on the latter).  The new female pandaren artwork is a bit too cute and plump to my taste.  The overall artwork though, is beautiful.  The quests are still linear, not much innovation I have seen except the one you have to stand on top of a log to dual with other NPC monks.  The entire journey, coupled with the server lag, took me 5 hours to complete.  That includes reading the quest text.  By then I have chosen which side I am on.  When this is live, I would not expect anyone to spend more than 3 to 4 hours on this starting area, which is kind of short.

The new monk class though, sounds promising.  Now, I wish we have tri-spec instead of dual-spec.

“My life is for Horde!  Hellscream took me in with open arms, not without a very scary and lengthy speech (or wall of text).  When will Blizzard give us more voice acting?”