• About Joystiq
• Send us tips!

Breaking News »

10.12

BlizzCon 2008: The comedy of the closing ceremony

10.11

EA store reveal Spore Creepy & Cute Parts Pack

10.11

Jay Mohr grabs Sword of Frostmourne, kills 12 at BlizzCon

10.11

Blizzard's Wilson: Some Battle.net features to be 'monetized'

10.10

StarCraft 2 to be released as a trilogy

BlizzCon 2008: The comedy of the closing ceremony

13 Comments by Kevin Kelly Oct 12th 2008 12:15AM
Filed under: Culture, Features, Mac, PC, Galleries

BlizzCon offered up not one but two, Two, TWO comedians for the price of one at the closing ceremonies. We knew Patton Oswalt would be performing, but were weren't aware he'd have a warm-up act. As far as our experience with comedy goes (which is basically reading Ludwig's and Justin's posts), opening acts normally suck. And even though he dresses like a lumberjack and looks much older than the 31 his MySpace page claims, Kyle Kinane was funny as well.

Head after the jump to listen to the full comedy stylings of both Patton and Kyle after the break. You may never go commando in corduroy pants again.

Continue reading BlizzCon 2008: The comedy of the closing ceremony

EA store reveal Spore Creepy & Cute Parts Pack

46 Comments by Ross Miller Oct 11th 2008 9:40PM
Filed under: Mac, PC, Simulations

Well, that was fast. With just over a month since Will Wright's Spore was released to the masses, a listing has popped up on Electronic Arts' online store for Spore: Creepy & Cute Parts Pack, something we've known to be coming since our E3 2008 interview. You can currently pre-order the expansion, available as direct download for $19.95 on Tuesday, November 18, though that could change. Are you ready for an onslaught of creepier (and cuter) penis creatures?

[Thanks, TechNick]

BlizzCon 2008: WoW Wrath of the Lich King new gameplay and images

9 Comments by Kevin Kelly Oct 11th 2008 7:30PM
Filed under: Mac, PC, Action, Adventure, Fighting, Online, RPGs, Video, MMO, Galleries

If you've been playing the Wrath of the Lich King beta, then this stuff isn't new to you. However, it sure is pretty. All those lush environments, just waiting to be riddled with the corpses of the vanquished. Straight to you from BlizzCon comes the video above, and the gallery below.

Gallery: BlizzCon 2008: World of Warcraft: Wrath of the Lich King

Jay Mohr grabs Sword of Frostmourne, kills 12 at BlizzCon

22 Comments by Kevin Kelly Oct 11th 2008 7:00PM
Filed under: Culture, Mac, PC, Action, Adventure, Online, MMO

Click to magnify the horror.

Story at 11.

BlizzCon 2008: New Starcraft II gameplay footage and images

9 Comments by Kevin Kelly Oct 11th 2008 6:30PM
Filed under: Mac, PC, Online, Strategy, Video, Galleries

Been itching for some Zerg action? Now you have it, in video form. Check out the new Starcraft 2 video above, and the new screenshots down below, straight from BlizzCon. We'll have a full hands-on with Starcraft 2 and the Zerg experience later.

Gallery: BlizzCon 2008: Starcraft II

Joystiq Interview: StarCraft 2 Lead Producer Chris Sigaty

40 Comments by Adam Holisky Oct 11th 2008 5:00PM
Filed under: Features, Mac, PC, Interviews

click to embiggen

The big announcement at BlizzCon yesterday was the morphing of StarCraft II into a trilogy. I had the opportunity to sit down with one of the people instrumental behind this change, StarCraft II Lead Producer Chris Sigaty. I spoke with him right after the announcement was made, and we talked about how this will impact SC2, what it will mean for multiplayer games, and what challenges the developers are facing in making SC2 the best game it can be.

Gallery: BlizzCon 2008: Starcraft II

Continue reading Joystiq Interview: StarCraft 2 Lead Producer Chris Sigaty

BlizzCon 2008: The costume and dance contest

13 Comments by Kevin Kelly Oct 11th 2008 4:00PM
Filed under: Culture, Mac, PC, Action, Adventure, RPGs, Video, MMO, Fashion, Galleries

One day of BlizzCon is already behind us, and with it came the announcement of the Wizard class for Diablo III, the fact that Starcraft II is going to be a trilogy, and the truism that World of Warcraft players really love their costume and dance contests.

Check out the video of the pants-off dance-off above, hit the links below that for some highlights, and then be sure and crawl through our galleries below for all that we've seen so far. Today brings more panels, more Diablo III news (omg wtf?!), and a closing ceremony featuring Patton Oswalt, Video Games Live, and Level 80 Elite Tauren Chieftain. We'll be bringing you audio and video, so keep watching.

Gallery: BlizzCon 2008: Costume Contest

Gallery: BlizzCon 2008: The Experience

Blizzard's Wilson: Some Battle.net features to be 'monetized'

68 Comments by Kevin Kelly Oct 11th 2008 3:00PM
Filed under: Mac, PC, Adventure, Online

Speaking at yesterday's Diablo III Gameplay panel, Blizzard's Jay Wilson was asked one of the questions that's been hiding in the back of all of our brains, "Is Battle.Net going to remain free?"

His response probably wasn't what you'd want to hear. "We are looking to monetize Battle.Net so that we get to keep making these games and updating features," said Wilson. "We kind of have to." He went on to say that they do recognize that everyone loves having it as a free service, and that they don't have a strong desire to make a subscription-based game.

What does that mean for our beloved free online gaming service? We're hoping to find out when we talk to Blizzard bigwig Rob Pardo later this afternoon.

BlizzCon 2008: Diablo III Wizard cinematic and new screenshots

18 Comments by Kevin Kelly Oct 10th 2008 8:00PM
Filed under: Mac, PC, Adventure, Online, RPGs, Video, Galleries

Here's the piping-hot new cinematic video for the Wizard class in Diablo III, straight from BlizzCon. This leads us to suspect that each class will get its own cinematic, possibly as they approach the Sanctuary instance near the beginning of the game. There are several Wizard-specific CGI moments and gameplay shots in a sort of "coming up this season on Diablo III" format.

Below you can check out the new gallery of screenshots from Diablo III, featuring new shots of the Wizard, Barbarian, and Witch Doctor. Enjoy the goodies, and keep checking back for more info.

Gallery: BlizzCon 2008: Diablo 3

BlizzCon 2008: The Diablo III Class Panel

14 Comments by Kevin Kelly Oct 10th 2008 7:29PM
Filed under: Features, Mac, PC, Adventure, Online, RPGs, Galleries

Jay Wilson, Julian Love, Wyatt Cheng from Blizzard were the first panel from BlizzCon, which was all about the Diablo III class system, including its tweaks and special effects. Unfortunately, we didn't get any more hints at the other two classes which haven't been announced yet. However, with the Witchdoctor and Wizard being so magic heavy, we're sure they'll add another physical fighter that isn't quite as big as the Barbarian. Head after the break to get the new details on the Skill System, the Rune System, and four of the Wizard's spells that involve blowing things up, and / or melting them.

Gallery: BlizzCon: Diablo 3 Skill Systems Gallery

Continue reading BlizzCon 2008: The Diablo III Class Panel

StarCraft 2 to be released as a trilogy

119 Comments by Ross Miller Oct 10th 2008 6:55PM
Filed under: Features, Mac, PC

And here you thought there'd be no big StarCraft 2 announcement after its conspicuous absence from the BlizzCon 2008 opening ceremony. Rob Pardo, executive vice-president of game design at Blizzard announced that the campaign version of the game will be a trilogy, each part focusing on a separate race.

• Terrans - Wings of Liberty
• Zerg - Heart of the Swarm
• Protoss - Legacy of the Void

Sure, it's not a release date, but for those still hopeful, there's always tomorrow night's closing ceremonies. We'll get more info on this as we have it, like will it all be in one box? Will we have to buy separate discs? Can we have it now, please?

Update: Yes, you'll have to buy separate discs. According to Pardo, "It's a separate product. Look at the next two as expansion packs, but will have the feel of stand alone products." Meaning yes, we'll be charging you more money.

Watch: Diablo 3's Wizard

43 Comments by James Ransom-Wiley Oct 10th 2008 2:00PM
Filed under: Mac, PC, RPGs, Video

We've always admired that certain finesse -- a commitment to craft, if you will -- about the wizard that's missing from the careless hacks of a barbarian. Well, just see for yourself.

Gallery: BlizzCon 2008: Diablo 3 concept art

Joystiq hands-on: Diablo 3 and the Wizard class

22 Comments by Kevin Kelly Oct 10th 2008 1:50PM
Filed under: Mac, PC, RPGs

Click for full, hi-res gallery

That's right, Diablo III. We jumped on one of the machines made available to the press, and hacked and blasted away until the intense stares stabbing daggers of "GIVE ME A TURN" forced us back. We'll spend a lot more time with this over the weekend, but for now here's the skinny.

First up was the "Choose Your Class" screen, which made us pee our pants when we first saw it. Six classes! Right?! Well, no. That's a male and a female of each class. The male wizard was ghosted out and nonselectable for some reason, leaving (from left to right) female wizard, female Barbarian, male Barbarian, male Witch Doctor, and female Witch Doctor. The other classes will be revealed (we hope) this weekend, and they seem to look like (we think) an Amazon and an Assassin for the other two unrevealed classes.

Gallery: BlizzCon 2008: Diablo 3

Continue reading Joystiq hands-on: Diablo 3 and the Wizard class

Diablo 3 Wizard class revealed [update]

29 Comments by Ross Miller Oct 10th 2008 1:25PM
Filed under: Mac, PC, RPGs

Click for full, hi-res gallery

Blizzard has revealed the third (of five total) classes for Diablo 3: the Wizard. According to the press release, "A wielder of the elements and a master manipulator of time, the wizard can hurl environment-shattering lightning bolts, channel explosive arcane energies, and create pockets of space outside the normal temporal flow." The class, along with Barbarian and Witch Doctor, will be playable this weekend at BlizzCon. Update: We originally stated that six classes were shown on the character select screen. A pox on us, it was just the male-female counterparts. Image of character select after the break.

Update: Check out our hands-on of the game and the new Wizard class -- plus the first gameplay footage.

Gallery: BlizzCon 2008: Diablo 3

Continue reading Diablo 3 Wizard class revealed [update]

Diablo 3 playable at BlizzCon 2008

16 Comments by Ross Miller Oct 9th 2008 8:10PM
Filed under: Mac, PC, Adventure, RPGs

Our cohorts at WoW Insider just called to brag that, according to the official BlizzCon paperwork, Diablo 3 will be playable at demo stations this weekend. If you're one of the lucky ones to get through the ticketing process, we have a good feeling what line you'll be waiting in the longest. Stay tuned for more coverage from this weekend's Blizzard Extravaganza.

Updates: Check out our hands-on with the newly-unveiled Wizard class.

Gallery: BlizzCon 2008: Diablo 3

Gallery: Diablo III

More game info on GameDaily: GameDaily Biz, Fast & Free Game Downloads, Video Game Trailers, Video Game Cheats, Video Game Reviews, Video Game Screenshots,

All contents copyright © 2003-2008, Weblogs, Inc. All rights reserved

Joystiq is a member of the Weblogs, Inc. Network. Privacy Policy, Terms of Service, Notify AOL