World of Warcraft at Gameplanet NZ

World of Warcraft – Return to Karazhan preview

Wed, 19 Oct 2016 13:04:00 +1300

Patch 7.1: Return to Karazhan will open the way to new opportunities for players to venture further into the ongoing stories within Legion and face new and exciting challenges.

The Lich King now reigns over Taiwan

Thu, 28 Jul 2016 10:10:00 +1200

When you're thinking about putting a statue in your city, Arthas The Lich King wouldn't be the first figure that comes to mind, would it?

It seems Taiwan begs to differ.

Earlier this week, Blizzard Entertainment unveiled a giant bronze statue of The Lich King, Arthas Menethil, in Taichung City, Taiwan.

Blizzard considers classic WoW servers after Nostalrius shutdown

Wed, 27 Apr 2016 11:24:00 +1200

World of Warcraft executive producer J. Allen Brack has finally commented publicly on the closure of pirate WoW server Nostalrius.

"Our silence on this subject definitely doesn't reflect our level of engagement and passion around this topic," he said in a forum post.

Brack said the company had not seen a "clear legal path to protect Blizzard's IP and grant an operating license to a pirate server."

Legal threat closes WoW's largest pirate vanilla server

Fri, 08 Apr 2016 11:56:00 +1200

A legal threat from Blizzard will see one of the most popular "pirate" servers for World of Warcraft shut down.

For about a year, the Nostalrius Begins server has provided World of Warcraft fans with version 1.12 of the world-conquering MMO – a version of the game that existed way back in 2006, prior to the release of expansion The Burning Crusade.

According to the Nostalrius Begins team running the server, it has 800,000 registered accounts and 150,000 active players.

Henry Cavill was too busy raiding in WoW to talk to Zack Synder about Superman

Mon, 04 Apr 2016 07:26:00 +1200

When Zack Snyder first reached out to Henry Cavill to ask if he would play Superman in a movie — this was for 2013's

Director Zack Synder initially couldn't get in touch with Man of Steel and Batman v Superman star Henry Cavill because the latter was biceps-deep in a WoW raid.

“The first time I got the call [to play Superman] I actually missed it – I was playing World of Warcraft at the time. I had my priorities straight," Cavill told Conan O’Brien last week.

World of Warcraft children's book series in the works

Wed, 30 Mar 2016 11:27:00 +1300

Blizzard is partnering with Scholastic Corporation to publish a series of children's books based on its mega-popular MMO World of Warcraft.

World of Warcraft: Traveler follows explorer Aramar Thorne, who adventures through Azeroth guided by his father's magical compass.

Written by comic author and animator Greg Weisman and illustrated by Blizzard art direector Sam Didier, the books will be official canon in the Warcraft universe.

World of Warcraft – New Mount: Hearthsteed trailer

Wed, 16 Mar 2016 13:18:00 +1300

Show off your love for Hearthstone's fast-paced card-slinging action by charging across the battlefields of Azeroth on a magnificent Hearthsteed! Getting your hands on this unique flying mount is simple . . . and fun! Just win three games of Hearthstone in "Play" or "Arena" mode to get the "Mount Up!" Hearthstone quest reward. The next time you log into World of Warcraft, the Hearthsteed will be waiting for you in the nearest mailbox.

Activision Blizzard to stop reporting falling WoW numbers

Wed, 04 Nov 2015 11:53:00 +1300

Activision Blizzard will no longer report World of Warcraft subscription numbers, the company announced in its quarterly earnings call today.

The current base of WOW subscribers sits at a ten-year low of 5.5 million, down 100,000 or so from the last quarter and significantly lower than its peak of 12 million in 2010.

Company representatives said of the figure, "Note that this is the last quarter that we plan to provide subscriber numbers. There are other metrics that are better indicators of the overall Blizzard business performance."

World of Warcraft: Legion – feature overview

Fri, 07 Aug 2015 10:34:00 +1200

The Burning Legion has returned, and the heroes of Azeroth are being called to the Broken Isles to continue their adventures. Attempting to drive the Legion back will take players to level 110, have them wielding powerful Artifact Weapons, progressing through a new PvP Honor system, gathering with their brothers and sisters in Class Orders, and even choosing a new character class altogether: the Demon Hunter.

Blizzard announces World of Warcraft: Legion expansion

Fri, 07 Aug 2015 10:34:00 +1200

World of Warcraft's sixth expansion is entitled Legion, Blizzard announced today at their Gamescom 2015 briefing.

In the story, the Burning Legion returns in "the biggest invasion of Azeroth ever," and players will fight off its hordes through a host of new features.

Blizzard revealed a new Azeroth continent, a fallen Night Elf civilisation called The Broken Isles that now functions as a portal for the Legion.

World of Warcraft: Legion – Gamescom 2015 teaser

Fri, 07 Aug 2015 09:40:00 +1200

Gul’dan works in secret to set a new era into motion, for which Azeroth can scarcely prepare.

WoW players raise US$1.9 million for ebola relief in Africa

Thu, 12 Feb 2015 12:40:00 +1300

World of Warcraft players have raised over US$1.9 million dollars to help with the Red Cross' ebola relief efforts in West Africa.

Donations were raised through the purchase of a vanity pet, called Argi. The pet came on sale on December 31, for US$10, and 100 percent of the proceeds went to the Red Cross.

“The community embraced this cute little intergalactic nibbler, helping out a great cause in the process," said Blizzard. "Thanks again to everyone who helped make a difference."

World of Warcraft - Lemmy the Gnome in 'Gnomo-plasty' trailer

Thu, 27 Nov 2014 14:12:00 +1300

Lemmy gets a face lift – and more! See what really goes on behind the scenes of WoW’s character make-overs.

World of Warcraft: Looking for Group trailer

Thu, 06 Nov 2014 15:15:00 +1300

The trailer for the all-new documentary “World of Warcraft: Looking for Group”. Celebrate 10 years of adventure, camaraderie, and /dancing on mailboxes all around Azeroth. Explore the history of WoW with its creators, and journey into corners of Blizzard and the WoW community you’ve never seen before.

Blizzard has "six or seven" more World of Warcraft expansions conceptualised

Tue, 26 Aug 2014 15:29:00 +1200

Blizzard already has concepts for another "six or seven" World of Warcraft expansions, says game director Tom Chilton.

The developer is in active development on the World of Warcraft expansion that will come after this year's Warlords of Draenor.

"We already have zones in production for it", said Chilton.

Robin Williams to be memorialised in World of Warcraft

Wed, 13 Aug 2014 16:57:00 +1200

It looks like a petition to get recently deceased comedian Robin Williams inserted into World of Warcraft as an NPC has succeeded.

Williams – a Warcraft and Zelda fan – died earlier this week aged 63.

Following the news of his death, more than 10,000 gamers signed a Change.org petition requesting he live on in World of Warcraft.

World of Warcraft subscriptions now at 6.8 million

Wed, 06 Aug 2014 10:09:00 +1200

There are now just under 7 million people playing World of Warcraft, Blizzard has announced.

As of June 30, 6.8 million people were subscribed to Blizzard's MMO.

In May, Blizzard announced that 7.6 million were subscribed.

World of Warcraft lead systems designer leaves Blizzard

Thu, 28 Nov 2013 11:14:00 +1300

World of Warcraft lead systems designer Greg “Ghostcrawler” Street has left Blizzard to take on a “new and exciting” opportunity elsewhere.

Street announced his departure on Facebook.

“I have been at Blizzard Entertainment for almost six years. It has been epic and I have made many friends around the world and I have learned so much. But, I have a great opportunity for something new and exciting, and sadly it is time to move on.

WoW free-to-play not under consideration

Mon, 11 Nov 2013 16:30:00 +1300

World of Warcraft won’t go free-to-play anytime soon, says Blizzard.

The first 20 levels of the popular subscription-based MMO can currently be played for free, and falling subscriber numbers have many speculating that a change of business model is coming.

However, speaking with Eurogamer at BlizzCon, production director J Allen Brack said that WoW wasn’t designed to be free-to-play.

World of Warcraft: Warlords of Draenor Announcement Trailer

Sat, 09 Nov 2013 09:49:00 +1300

(No description)

New World of Warcraft expansion Warlords of Draenor revealed

Sat, 09 Nov 2013 09:39:00 +1300

Blizzard has announced Warlords of Draenor, a new expansion to its popular MMO, World of Warcraft.

Warlords of Draenor sends players to the ancestral home of the orcs and the draenei. The expansion bends time to reintroduce characters and stories that precede the first Warcraft real-time strategy game, Warcraft: Orcs and Humans, released in November 1994.

“Across Draenor's savage jungles and battle-scarred plains, Azeroth's heroes will engage in a mythic conflict involving mystical draenei champions and mighty orc clans, and cross axes with the likes of Grommash Hellscream, Blackhand, and Ner’zhul at the height of their primal power,” writes Blizzard. “Players will need to scour this unwelcoming land in search of allies to help build a desperate defense against the old Horde’s formidable engine of conquest – or else watch their own world’s bloody, war-torn history repeat itself.”

Blizzard files Warlords of Draenor trademark

Mon, 04 Nov 2013 14:55:00 +1300

World of Warcraft developer Blizzard Entertainment has filed a new trademark for “Warlords of Draenor” just ahead of fan festival BlizzCon this weekend.

The trademark covers the videogame category. The domain name warlordsofdraenor.com was registered in early October. Blizzard flew under the press radar on that occasion by registering the domain via Go Daddy.

In Warcraft fiction, Draenor is the ancestral home of the Orcs. It was the setting for the game’s first expansion, The Burning Crusade.

World of Warcraft film has a release date

Wed, 02 Oct 2013 12:31:00 +1300

The World of Warcraft film, known simply as Warcraft, has a release date.

Blizzard tweeted that Universal Pictures will release the film on December 18, 2015.

The cast isn't officially confirmed, although there are rumours Colin Farrell, Paul Dano, Paula Patton, and Anton Yelchin are all involved.

WoW subs drop below eight million

Mon, 29 Jul 2013 09:36:00 +1200

World of Warcraft’s monthly subscriber number has dropped to 7.7 million, Blizzard has announced.

That’s 600,000 subscribers fewer than the game had in March of this year, and a figure that’s comparable to the game’s subscriber numbers in 2007, shortly before first expansion The Burning Crusade pushed it past the eight million mark.

Last year’s Mists of Pandaria expansion saw subscriptions rise to more than 10 million by October.

World of Warcraft “ruined a genre” – former Blizzard dev

Thu, 04 Jul 2013 12:26:00 +1200

Former Blizzard developer Mark Kern says that MMOs are now too easy and that World of Warcraft “ruined a genre”.

In a post on MMORPG, Kern – who left Blizzard to found Red 5 Studios – lamented the drive towards accessibility that he believes has turned most MMOs into indistinct and unchallenging races to their respective end games.

“Accessibility was the mantra when I was leading the World of Warcraft team,” he wrote.

World of Warcraft 8 Year Anniversary trailer

Wed, 21 Nov 2012 14:10:00 +1300

World of Warcraft turns eight on November 23, and Blizzard wishes to thank their community for joining them in celebrating eight epic years of adventure. To celebrate, players who log in to World of Warcraft between November 18 and December 1 will receive a unique Feat of Strength achievement and Celebration Package item.

World of Warcraft’s Remote subscription service now free

Mon, 27 Aug 2012 09:54:00 +1200

World of Warcraft’s Remote subscription service is now free to use.

The service is available via WoW’s Armory app, which also features a character viewer.

Using the app, players may chat with their guild as well as use the auction house for free.

Kotick: World of Warcraft movie still important

Sat, 04 Aug 2012 04:50:00 +1200

Those fearing the demise of a World of Warcraft movie can rest easy, according to Bobby Kotick.

The Activision CEO has revealed that the project has a new writer, and that the movie is “important to Blizzard".

"[Blizzard are] very excited about having a ‘World of Warcraft’ film. They’ve been very careful and thoughtful about the development process.”

WOW loses a million players in three months

Fri, 03 Aug 2012 09:30:00 +1200

World of Warcraft has lost more than one million subscribers in just three months, Blizzard has revealed.

The MMO had 9.1 million subscribers as of June 30 2012, down from 10.2 million subscribers in March, which is the steepest player drop in the game’s seven-year history.

In March of 2011, the game boasted 11 million subscribers.

Spider-Man director leaves WoW film

Thu, 19 Jul 2012 10:08:00 +1200

Sam Raimi is no longer directing the upcoming World of Warcraft film adaptation.

Announced as director of the project in 2009, his departure was due to a scheduling clash with Oz: The Great and Powerful, he said.

"Actually, they don't have me directing World of Warcraft anymore because when I took the Oz job, they had to move on to another director. They had to start making it."

World of Warcraft: Mists of Pandaria

Tue, 20 Mar 2012 16:24:00 +1300

Chris Metzen looks tired.

The normally indefatigable senior vice president of story and franchise development, no doubt taxed by myriad projects, falls over his words and momentarily pauses during the Mists of Pandaria press event at Blizzard's sprawling Los Angeles headquarters.

Then, with traditional Metzen panache, a few jokes are cracked and it's back to business.

World of Warcraft Chuck Norris TV spot

Wed, 23 Nov 2011 11:44:00 +1300

Chuck Norris didn’t break a sweat filming the newest World of Warcraft television spot. Instead, he made the director cry and then cooled himself with the tears.

BlizzCon: WoW Mists of Pandaria panel

Sat, 22 Oct 2011 13:30:00 +1300

Read our summary and transcript of the World of Warcraft Preview panel at BlizzCon.

Blizzard today announced World of Warcraft: Mists of Pandaria. Blizzard’s objective is to create new gameplay experiences. Whereas previous World of Warcraft expansions have always focused on an apocalyptic enemy, Mists of Pandaria wants to get back to Warcraft II – focusing on the conflict between the Alliance and the Horde.

The expansion introduces a new continent, Pandaria. It has a pan-Asian theme and is home to the Pandaren race. It is a single, unified continent much as Outland and Northrend were before it.

Following Deathwing’s fall, the Horde and Alliance resume their hostilities. After a devastating naval battle, both factions wash up on the shores of a new continent, Pandaria. The land had been shrouded in mist ever since the Sundering. The objective in the expansion is to save Pandaria from being consumed by the Horde and Alliance war machines.

BlizzCon: World of Warcraft Class Talent System panel

Sat, 22 Oct 2011 10:15:00 +1300

Tune in here for our live blog coverage on Saturday at 10:15AM (NZT).

World of Warcraft: Mists of Pandaria screenshots

Sat, 22 Oct 2011 10:07:00 +1300

Blizzard has announced the next World of Warcraft expansion, Mists of Pandaria and released screenshots of the new playable race and their mystical homeland.

Blizzard announces new World of Warcraft expansion

Sat, 22 Oct 2011 08:22:00 +1300

Speaking at BlizzCon this morning, Blizzard's senior vice-president of story and development Chris Metzen revealed World of Warcraft's latest expansion.

Mists of Pandaria will be set in the new continent of Pandaria, and will see World of Warcraft's level cap raised to 90.

The new expansion will also feature new dungeons, new PvP content and a new talent system, as well as the introduction of the Pandaren race, and the Monk class. Pandaren will be playable as both Alliance and Horde.

BlizzCon 2011 - We're There

Thu, 20 Oct 2011 17:08:00 +1300

We're packing our bags for BlizzCon 2011 in California, but there's still time for some last-minute speculation before we leave...

The games industry is unique in a number of ways. It’s certainly the youngest of the major entertainment forms and, arguably, it’s also the spriteliest. Native to computers and later to the Internet, games have thrived where the rotund film, music and television industries have recently been emaciated.

But games also have a unique relationship with their audience. The cost and complexity of games creates a barrier to entry that often makes them seem arcane to those who are merely passing curious. On the other hand, those with the requisite skill-set and interest to graduate to gamerdom are soon endowed with an emotional and financial attachment to their favourite titles and to the industry, which sees them more engaged and invested than they might be with other forms of entertainment.

The same can rarely be said of the one-night stands so many of us regularly carry out with film and TV: So it’s so super-awesome that you’re still here, Dame Judi Dench, but I have this thing on soon. There’s a bus timetable on the fridge and half a fare’s worth of change on the counter – by Thundera, if you’ve stretched out my original Atari tee...

Blizzard trademarks “Mists of Pandaria”

Wed, 03 Aug 2011 15:39:00 +1200

World of Warcraft creator Blizzard Entertainment has registered a new trademark for “Mists of Pandaria”.

In Warcraft lore, the Pandaren are an elusive Panda-like race inspired by Chinese history. Like dwarfs, they have a penchant for the brewing of ales.

The Pandaren were initially conceived as an April Fools’ joke but quickly gained traction with Blizzard’s fanbase.

Warcraft goes free-to-play up to lvl. 20

Wed, 29 Jun 2011 12:35:00 +1200

Blizzard has today announced that World of Warcraft is free-to-play up to level 20.

Previously, the World of Warcraft trial program had lasted from 10 to 14 days.

Now called the Starter Edition, the trial also includes access to The Burning Crusade expansion, meaning players can choose the Draenei and Blood Elf races.

BlizzCon 2011 announced

Tue, 08 Feb 2011 09:25:00 +1300

Blizzard has defied convention and announced dates earlier than usual for BlizzCon 2011. The gathering will take place on the 21st and 22nd of October at the Anaheim Convention Center in California.

BlizzCon is a celebration of all things Blizzard and the company’s primary platform for announcements and revelations regarding its blockbuster franchises Warcraft, StarCraft and Diablo.

Ticket sales haven’t been announced but they usually sell out within seconds of becoming available, so if you happen to know you’ll be in California in October, or if you’re considering heading to the event, watch this space closely.

Blizzard goes after gold sellers

Tue, 01 Feb 2011 11:38:00 +1300

Blizzard has taken further action against gold sellers by working with transaction site PayPal to shut down their accounts for “intellectual properties violations.”

PayPal has sent the following letter to suspected gold selling businesses:

You were reported to PayPal as an Intellectual Properties violation by Blizzard Entertainment Inc. for the sale of World of Warcraft Merchandise.

Rumour: Diablo III dated

Thu, 02 Dec 2010 10:16:00 +1300

According to MMO Game Site, Diablo III will be released at the end of next year, followed by two expansions in 2012 and 2013.

The chart – which looks about as professional as the aforementioned website – also contains dates for StarCraft II’s expansions, the next two World of Warcraft expansions and “Titan” a new intellectual property due late 2013. Presumably it’s a codename for Blizzard’s unannounced MMO.

Warcraft offers a new charity pet

Tue, 30 Nov 2010 13:30:00 +1300

Blizzard has announced a new “Charity Pet”, available now at the developer’s World of Warcraft pet store. The “googly-eyed” Moonkin Hatchling comes in both Horde and Alliance versions. It will occasionally plant flowers at your feet and will happily dance with anyone.

For every Moonkin Hatchling adopted between now and the 31st of December, Blizzard will donate 50 percent of the USD $10 purchase price to the Make a Wish Foundation, a charity that grants the wishes of children with life-threatening medical conditions.

In February, the World of Warcraft community raised over USD $1.1 million for the charity through purchases of the Pandaren Monk pet.

BlizzCon: World of Warcraft Open Q&A

Sun, 24 Oct 2010 09:21:00 +1300

We're live blogging from BlizzCon in Los Angeles.

BlizzCon: World of Warcraft Class Q&A

Sun, 24 Oct 2010 08:00:00 +1300

We're live blogging from BlizzCon in Los Angeles.

BlizzCon: World of Warcraft Quests & Lore panel

Sat, 23 Oct 2010 10:08:00 +1300

We're live blogging from Los Angeles.

BlizzCon: World of Warcraft Dungeons & Raids panel

Sat, 23 Oct 2010 09:13:00 +1300

We're live blogging the panel from Los Angeles.

Blizzard's Cory Stockton and Scott Mercer have concluded a World of Warcraft: Cataclysm Dungeons & Raids panel at BlizzCon this morning.

Here's a summary of what we can expect from the expansion in the near future;

In patch 4.1 The Deadmines and Shadowfang Keep will be level 85 heroics. These dungeons will feature new quests and new encounters.
Dungeon quests will be attainable right outside the entrance, including all classic dungeons.
The bosses for new dungeons will be tied to the zones they're in. You'll interact with those bosses in the zone's main quest line, and Heroic versions will have different bosses.
Vanessa Van Cleef is the new heroic boss of the Deadmines.

World of Warcraft caps 12m subs

Fri, 08 Oct 2010 09:29:00 +1300

World of Warcraft now has more than 12 million active subscriptions. Blizzard’s massively multiplayer online game passed the milestone in the wake of the game's second expansion, The Wrath of the Lich King, finally being launched in China and as Western markets gear up for the launch of the third expansion, Cataclysm, on the 7th of December.

As if the above figures didn’t make it abundantly clear, World of Warcraft is the most popular subscription-based MMO in the world.

The game was the worldwide best-selling PC title in 2005 and 2006. In 2007 it came second to its first expansion, The Burning Crusade. In 2008 the second expansion, Warth of the Lich King, was launched and the series claimed three of the top five PC titles for the year.

Cataclysm beta: Blizzard's bold efforts examined

Wed, 04 Aug 2010 14:30:00 +1200

One man takes a voyage down memory lane to confront his gaming demons. Will the World of Warcraft Cataclysm expansion compel him to sacrifice his social life once more?

Here we are once again. Teetering on the precipice of yet another World of Warcraft expansion.

Whilst waiting for the enormous Cataclysm beta download, I found myself with ample time to think about how to start this article. Oddly enough I recalled the first fantasy style games I fell in love with, and one in particular.

If there was ever a game that was likely to send me into a two-decade-long coma, Shadow of the Beast was it. It wasn't that it was boring, but insanely difficult, especially for a ten year old with crappy motor skills. I certainly became well acquainted with the death screen (which incidentally is still my favourite game over screen). Developers Psygnosis always managed to make sure you knew you were dead in their games.

WoW to go free-to-play in the future?

Thu, 01 Jul 2010 08:43:00 +1200

World of Warcraft lead game designer Tom Chilton has speculated that Blizzard’s behemoth MMO could one day move to a free-to-play model.

Speaking with PC Gamer magazine, Chilton suggested that in the future the subscription model might not make sense. Both Dungeons & Dragons and Lord of the Rings Online have adopted non-subscription models.

Naturally, no such move would be considered unless another MMO could actually rival World of Warcraft and offer a better price point. That’s unlikely to happen in the near future.