blizzardentertainment posts

Diablo II could be a harsh mistress: bludgeoning your free time without a second thought, severely lowering your resistance levels in Hell difficulty, and adopting a "that's life, kid" attitude toward misspent skill points. Though equally harsh in many ways, modern action-RPGs and MMOs such as Titan Quest and Blizzard's own World of WarCraft allow players the option to respecify (or "respec") skill points they've decided are no longer applicable toward their desired character build -- for a fee, of course.

Blizzard community manager Bashiok recently posted about respec options in Diablo III. Though purposely elusive on concrete details, Bashiok did say that "There will almost definitely be some sort of system to respec; however, it isn't likely to be as liberal as World of Warcraft. We don't want to lock a player into a system that punishes them for mistakes, experimenting, or lack of knowledge early on in the game. We also don't think a system that allows immediate, complete, and at-a-whim changes to a character spec matches the feel of Diablo. It's likely to be somewhere in between."

Bashiok went on to admit that "we still feel like the desire to play the same class again that you may have played before is still a part of the game, and with some ability to respec could potentially require other incentives."

At a not-so-top-secret stockholders meeting earlier today, Activision received the necessary stockholder approval (over 92 per cent) to officially merge with Vivendi Games. The transaction between Activision and Vivendi will officially close on July 9.

According to the official press release, "Activision and Vivendi Games will combine their businesses through the merger of a newly formed, wholly-owned subsidiary of Activision with and into Vivendi Games. As a result of the merger, Vivendi Games, the parent company of Blizzard Entertainment and Sierra, will become a wholly-owned subsidiary of Activision."

For in-depth information, please view the official press release.

Our sister site WoW Insider has revealed what appears to be the official box art for World of WarCraft: Wrath of the Lich king, the forthcoming expansion set for Blizzard Entertainment's life-devouring MMO.

"Is it the real deal or a mocked-up forge?" asks WoW Insider writer Matt Warner. "The WotlK box layout has many exact elements used on The Burning Crusade box. The placement for the Blizzard logo and ESRB rating line up exactly, and the font used to spell 'expansion set' is identical to its cardboard predecessor. In another photo that lends to its authenticity is a printer's mark. The box also notes that you need The Burning Crusade to play Wrath of the Lich King which means no free TBC bundles."

Though Blizzard has yet to unveil an official release date, Wrath of the Lich King is believed to be available later this fall.

For many PC gamers, this weekend's official Diablo III announcement instigated a resurgence of Diablo purchases and re-installations across the globe. If you're interested in Diablo III but haven't partaken in the previous two installments, Big Download will happily take you back in time eight years with the Diablo II demo, which is available for PC and Mac gamers.

The demo allows you to sample the Barbarian class as well as the first two quests of the game's first Act. If you enjoy yourself (and you will), Blizzard's online store now features Diablo II and its expansion pack, Lord of Destruction, for download.

Additionally, Big Download also hosts each of the three Diablo III trailers released this weekend: a cinematic teaser, an artwork overview, and 20 minutes of gameplay featuring the returning Barbarian class and the all-new Witch Doctor class.

Download the Diablo II PC demo.
Download the Diablo II Mac demo.
Download the Diablo III cinematic teaser.
Download the Diablo III artwork overview.
Download the Diablo III gameplay trailer.

Paris is a long trip, so long that most of us won't be able to make the journey overseas to the Blizzard Worldwide Invitational, which kicks off tomorrow and ends on Sunday. Fear not -- WoW Insider's got you covered. The WoW-centric site will be providing live updates from the show, including coverage of the anticipated Blizzard announcement that has caused speculation throughout the week.

Whether the announcement ends up being Diablo III, solid info on Wrath of the Lich King, or something else entirely, tune in to WoW Insider for updates as they occur.

Hey, don't feel bad that you won't be there live to witness the excitement, the games, the cosplay -- we can't go, either.

In an odd but fitting metaphorical comparison that resulted in a craving for cheeseburgers, Age of Conan developer Gaute Godager feels that World of WarCraft and other similar MMOs are nice, but Age of Conan is meatier.

"I enjoy playing WOW, I enjoy playing Lord of the Rings Online," Godager admitted in a recent interview with Eurogamer. "But you know... I'm going to be a bit cheeky now, but if you've been to McDonalds for four or five years, and had your burger and your coke, sometimes it's great to just have a great steak and a glass of good wine."

Godager expounded, explaining that Age of Conan is "more expensive, it's not for everyone and perhaps it's not as easily accessible as WOW is. But it could be more meaty."

Further speculation by Godager suggests that AoC might appeal more to Europeans than other MMOs due to different gaming tastes. "In Europe, a lot of people don't have consoles, and they use their PC for gaming to a bigger degree," said Godager. "Many European countries also have better internet connectivity than many parts of the US, and PC gaming has for many years promoted the consumption of high bandwidth, not only through legal means but also through piracy."

Seeking to provide an extra layer of protection for its millions of World of WarCraft gamers, Blizzard has announced the Blizzard Authenticator, "an electronic device that generates a six-digit security code at the press of a button," according to GamesIndustry.biz. Lightweight and waterproof, the device generates a code that is valid only once and active for a limited time. If used, the code must be included with a user's name and password upon log in.

A completely optional device, the Blizzard Authenticator will be available for a price of €6.00 at this weekend's Blizzard Worldwide Invitational event. The purpose of the Authenticator is to provide "a safe and enjoyable game environment" for World of WarCraft, according to Blizzard CEO Mike Morhaime. One crucial aspect of providing such an environment is "helping players avoid account compromise, so we're pleased to make this additional layer of security available to them," continued Morhaime.

Shacknews reports that "I am Murloc," a trash-metal track played by Blizzard's own band, Level 70 Tauren Chieftain, will be available as a free download to PS3 and Xbox 360 Guitar Hero 3 owners starting tomorrow. "I am Murloc," a tribute to the articulate fish people from the popular World of WarCraft MMO, made its debut at the 2005 BlizzCon event.

The track's free release is considered a pre-festivity festivity which leads up to the Worldwide Invitational beginning this weekend.

During a keynote address held at the Paris Game Developers Conference, Blizzard Entertainment's Rob Pardo revealed that the dominant World of WarCraft was originally developed to be a free-to-play MMO.

"When were first going to make World of Warcraft, we wanted to make it free and advertising supported," Pardo explained. "We didn't want to charge a subscription, but as we researched market conditions, we realized that wouldn't support us."

In a detailed keynote analysis provided by Gamasutra staff writer Brandon Sheffield, Pardo discusses the company's inspiration for World of WarCraft, the possibility of deriving a triple-A experience from a web interface, and the forthcoming Activision Blizzard merger.

BlizzPlanet reports that Blizzard Entertainment's Diablo II has been updated to version 1.12. The patch eliminated the need for discs so long as all .MPQ files are installed. Those players who performed either a Single Player or Multiplayer install will need to reinstall the game using the Full Install option if they want play disc-free.

Now that the need for discs has been eliminated, we have to wonder: will Diablo II and its Lord of Destruction expansion find their way onto Blizzard's online store?