Posted on 10/31/2005 10:59:44 AM PST by Sofa King
Blizzard Entertainment, one of the most popular game developers in the world, has finished up with Blizzcon, a two-day convention to show off their new stuff. I thought I'd post a list of some of the stories that have come out of it.
There's news about Starcraft:Ghost (multiplayer sounds interesting).
There's the WoW expansion pack, The Burning Crusade
And something on the convention itself
I love "Frozen Throne." I began with 3v3, then got good enough to do 2v2. Just Random games, never arranged. But I also miss Starcraft. Too much lag on that network now, though.
I have to be the only one who doesn't understand the attention and worship that Blizzard gets. Their games are NOT that great.
This might give Halo some competition.
Please add me. I am a huge Blizzard fan; have been since Wc2 was released. Currently addicted to World of Warcraft
That's an interesting question. From the sound of it, I almost think that they're regarding the multiplayer as more important that the single player (which is natural for Blizzard), so I wouldn't doubt it. It's nice to see that Ghost is coming along after it's rocky developement (The entire first build was thrown away because the new developement studio didn't think they could do anything with it).
Amazing that World of Warcraft is the largest MMORPG in the world and has been wiping the floor with EQ 1 and EQ2 here in the US and abroad.
Having played many many 100s of games going back to Atari, I can say without a doubt that they are indeed great, especially their Multiplayer. Blizzard is about the only thing that kept the PC Game industry going for a while and at one point was about the only profitable unit for Vivendi.
I can't even agree with their games being well-executed, since their competition had more well-executed games available at the time, or even prior to, a given Blizzard game's release.
StarCraft? Why bother, when I had Total Annihilation at the time? Indeed, TA forced SC to be delayed for almost a year.
Diablo? Fallout was better.
WoW? It really doesn't offer anything other MMORPGs don't. I'd rather play Ragnarok Online.
Primal Rage? ... Hah.
StarCraft: Ghost has been made, canceled, and remade with a brand-new team. It's going nowhere, almost as if Blizzard is attempting to copy 3D Realms' attempt at making Duke Nukem Forever.
I really don't get the Blizzard love.
Blizzard kept the PC game industry going single-handedly? WHEN!?
I love Blizzard's visual style. Dull, realistic graphics with no style bore me. I see enough of the real world without seeing it in videogames too.
WoW doesn't add anything new persay but everything is done right. WoW is my 7th MMO played at this point for more than 2 months and I can say its tied with DAoC for all time favorite.
SC: Ghost hasn't interested me. I'm not a shooter game guy anymore.
From about 2000-2004. Blizzard (and the Sims). Excluding their games, the PC Gaming industry would have had enormous drops in sales. It barely has limped along with flat sales even though every Blizzard game released has sold more than its predesecor (Diablo II for example sold around 6 million copies, plus expansion pack copies of around 3.5 million) SC for example sold almost 10x as many units as Total Annihilation did, even after Total Annihilation dropped its price long before SC did. Their games have shattered so many selling records. There are 5x as many North American ONLY servers for World of Warcraft as there are for the entire base of Everquest which before WoW was the largest full subscription cost online game in the world. There are over 10x as many WoW users worldwide as EQ users at its peak.
Total Annihilation was supremely better than StarCraft. SC was a game where you simply made as many units as possible in the shortest amount of time and sent them out to someone else's area. I got tired of that with Age of Empires. TA's Boneyards was one of the best multiplayer setups ever. I'm really looking forward to Supreme Commander.
Ragnarok Online flopped? Er... maybe compared to its acceptance in Korea and Japan, sure. But no flop lasts for as long as RO has. And I was making a point; I hold such disdain for WoW that I'd rather play RO.
Regarding Diablo and Fallout, Fallout was better, but as I really don't care about either game, I'm not going to argue that.
Why yes, the PC game market IS shrinking. This is why Blizzard began work on a console game (SC Ghost.) Blizzard isn't singlehandedly carrying ANYTHING. The entire market is shrinking, partially due to the emphasis on multiplayer, and partially due to the cost of keeping up with system requirements for games. It's easier just to buy a console or two every few years than it is to upgrade your computer every 6 months.
Don't award credit where none is deserved.
You are in the minority that thinks TA was better. Almost every gaming magazine, every website, every fan poll has shown SC is the most popular RTS game, not just compared to TA, but of all time. I find it funny because I think WC3 is immensely superior to SC.
Ragnarok Online flopped? Er... maybe compared to its acceptance in Korea and Japan, sure. But no flop lasts for as long as RO has. And I was making a point; I hold such disdain for WoW that I'd rather play RO.
It did flop here in the US and in Europe. Pretty much every MMO does well in Korea and Japan, especially when they are cheap to play like Lineage 1 was. The game is literally awful. Have you ever played the "good" MMOs like Everquest, Dark Age of Camelot, Ultima Online or World of Warcraft? They literally wipe the floor with Ragnaros Online, especially at end game.
Regarding Diablo and Fallout, Fallout was better, but as I really don't care about either game, I'm not going to argue that.
You are in the EXTREME minority that thinks Fallout is better than Diablo. I can't even remember how many clone Diablo games came out in the following years (or it cloned Diablo II).
That's my point though, the PC Market has been shrinking but Blizzard's PC sales have been increasing. Blizzard's profit has been so strong the last 2 years Vivendi several times has raised its profit outlook accredited to Blizzard's WC3 and World of Warcraft. When PC Gamers think about PC Games, the first company that always comes to mind is Blizzard. Millions of people ported over from console because of Blizzard, myself included.
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