This past weekend, BlizzCon 09 dominated Anaheim, drawing in 30,000 loyal Blizzard players.
This year was my first year at BlizzCon. In fact, I am quilty to say that I don’t even play any Blizzard games. I tried World of Warcraft once, and I didn’t stop for 6 hours straight! That was my cue not to sign up. But I’ve always wanted to play. So my experience is direct from a straight n00b.
Opening ceremonies with lots of exciting news.
I was continually amazed at how one company is able to hold a whole convention based on only three games: StarCraft, Diablo, and World of Warcraft. My first impression of BlizzCon was overwhelming - 30,000 in attendance and an abundance of enthusiasm. Even though I’m not a Blizzard gamer, the opening ceremonies and new announcements still managed to excite me. I think I will have to jump on the bandwagon very soon.
William chose not to be identified… oh wait.
Although I’ve tried WoW, I’ve never touched Starcarft or Diablo. When I sampled Starcraft, I have to say it’s definitely not one of my favorite games. In fact, I’ve never played a real time strategy game and diving into Stracraft 2. The cutscenes are beautiful, but other than that, it really didn’t keep my interest.
Diablo 3, on the other hand, was incredibly awesome. I’m not a huge PC gamer whatsoever, so I’d never even looked into playing Diablo. But sampling Diablo 3 may have changed that view. Although the demo displayed a bleak desert landscape, the gameplay is surprisingly easy to adapt to for an PC gaming n00b. With Diablo 3, only 1 class, the barbarian, returns and 3 new ones emerge - the witch doctor, witzard, and finally the monk - takes this game to a new level. I played through the demo twice - first with the witch doctor, and second with the monk. The witch doctor is so easy to play with, that the game seemed to be a little to simple for a beginnger. The monk, however, took a bit more getting used to, but I have to say that I loved playing both classes.
Three new classes? Er, not quite. Goofing at the photo booth with Coin-Op TV’s Rob Welkner and GameGirl.com’s JesV.
As for WoW: Cataclysm, Blizzard announced that Azeroth would be cast in chaos and destruction with the resurgence ofDeathwing and two new classes would be added: the goblin for the horde, and the worgen for the alliance. While the gameplay hasn’t changed in the demo, it was fun to try out the new classes. I didn’t really get to see much of the drastic landscape changes in the demo, but that may have just been my limited gameplay experience.
No, not gamers, just Nvidia booth babes.
Other noteworthy happenings at BlizzCon is the costume/sound alike/dance contest, hosted by the charmingly funny Jay Mohr. Many amazing costumes paraded the stage until one Mistress of Pain graced the audience with her incredible craftsmanship, taking first place.
The costume winner, from Florida. I wonder how she managed to pack that?
I have to say that although I enjoyed Jay’s humor, about 20 contestants deep into the sound alike contest, I simply couldn’t take the repetitiveness and we didn’t stay till the end. The dance contest was very cute and amusing, and one talented gentleman took the first place title with his female dwarf dance. He surprised the audience with his en pointe high kicks!
Jay kept me laughing through the 100+ sound alike contestants.
One of the most exciting parts of BlizzCon was the schwag, which included a limited edition never-to-be-reproduced vinyl Raynor Starcraft 2 toy, and a very much coveted Marine Murloc in-game pet.
The Raynor Starcraft toy was also given to Blizzard employees who got to design their own, and the top three were chosen to be sold in the Blizzard store. All other entries were on display. You could also purchase blank ones and let your creative side take over!
The ending ceremony closed with a hot and sweaty Ozzy Osborne tearing up the stage. From my comfortable seat in the press lounge, he appeared to be spraying the audience with an unusual white foam. Other than one WoW commercial, what do BlizzCon and Ozzy have in common? Hmmmmm……..
Hmm…. still thinking.
BlizzCon was enjoyable even for the non-Blizzards, although I think I may hve been converted. Do I need yet another distraction? Can I afford to lose 4-8 hours a day to another video game? Methinks.. yes!
Want more photos? Check out the costume contest, employee decorated toys and more on my BlizzCon album.
August 28th, 2009 at 5:29 pm
Thanks for being my winggirl, I could haven’t sat in the press room and did nothing without you!
August 30th, 2009 at 4:38 pm
What does Ozzy Osbourne have in common with Blizzard besides the commercial?
Well, he’s not the only Ozz that’s affiliated with World of Warcraft? ;P
September 1st, 2009 at 12:07 am
Hey we didn’t do nothing… we played.. Diablo…. we.. ate….. checked gmail…..