Dragon Army - Expectations of Blizzcon 2009

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What can we expect at BlizzCon?
August 17th, 2009, posted by jsimmons

BlizzCon is certainly shaping up to be the best gaming convention in Southern California for this year. Sure, E3 had Project Natal and almost a half-dozen new Mario games, but this year’s BlizzCon looks to be chock full of exciting information. That’s what happens when a company’s got two blockblusters coming in the near future (”StarCraft II: Wings of Liberty,” is tentatively set for 2010; ”Diablo III” is being pushed fairly aggressively — its Web site is getting the same visibility as those for SC2 and “World of Warcraft”).

So, what can we expect?

“StarCraft II” information is going to be rampant, and for good reason: It’s the next game Blizzard’s going to release. There’s also the second and third titles in the series, which means that Blizzard will still be making this game long after the first copies are already in gamers’ hands, and they’ll be full-blown sequels instead of expansion packs. Blizzard’s always been good about approaching content differently in sequels, so there’s a lot of information that could be mined from this franchise still.

There’s some vague event information at Blizzard’s BlizzCon Web site:

Gameplay: Game creators will discuss the “design process and evolving mechanics” of the sequel.
Lore: Writers will bring attendees “up-to-date on the defining characters and events” of the StarCraft universe.
Art: Blizzard artists will talk about “the distinctive art style” of StarCraft.

That’s a starting point, at least. Here’s what I’d expect: We’ve already seen dozens of interviews and press releases regarding multiplayer on “StarCraft II,” but very little on anything else. Look for the company to discuss the game’s offline aspects; nuts-and-bolts information regarding online play, both in terms of unit comparisons and Battle.net access; and hints about specifics in the series’ other two titles. The keyword in that last one is “hints” — Blizzard’s very careful and controlled about information flow, so seeing anything substantial from the zerg or protoss games is unlikely.

“Diablo III” will likely get a good dose of coverage, too. Not only is it in line to be released after “StarCraft II” — at least, it looks that way — but it still has several huge gaps in public information.

Consider: We only know three of the game’s five classes (barbarian, witch doctor and wizard), we only know a pair of settings (series-standby Tristram and a new location, Caldeum) and have absolutely no clue where the story’s headed.

Again, from Blizzard’s BlizzCon Web site:

Heroes & Monsters: The design process of the heroes and the monsters that bedevil them will be the focus here. This looks to be one of the best panels to visit; if new class information gets spilled, this is a likely place for it to come from. Also, boss fights could be covered – in an IGN interview last year, Rob Pardo said that one of the team’s goals was to have bigger and better end-of-act baddies, taking cues from the Zelda and God of War franchises. New, legendary heroes and epic beasts for them to conquer? Sounds like a winning combination.
Lore: Here, Blizzard’s “lore masters” will “delve into the past, present, and future of the Diablo universe.” That looks like a peek into the “Diablo III” storyline is a sure thing — a definite must for Sanctuary story buffs.
Art: Finally, the art of Diablo, which is some of my favorite — moody, evocative and classic — will be discussed by its creators.

In short, the many gaps in our information on “Diablo III” will likely be filled this year. We probably won’t get details, per se, like where chain lightning will fit into the wizard’s talent tree, but at least we’ll have a full picture.

“World of Warcraft” has seen two content patches since “Wrath of the Lich King,” and will get at least two more before the expansion’s done (Icecrown and the recently announced Onyxia revamp). There’s also the ever-present player-versus-player and class balance discussions (and often, the resulting flame war).

The BlizzCon events Web site is a little more direct when it comes to WoW:

Class Discussion: This panel “gives insight into the intricate workings of class design and balance,” and, hopefully, will have bouncers. Class balance is one of those things that proves sensitive for many players. It may be worth going to just for the fireworks. However, I doubt much new information will come out of this; Blizzard’s already communicated its overall goal for class development. Its designers are also typically hesitant to say what specific changes they’re making — they’ve learned that even off-hand comments can be construed as binding promises by rabid fans.
PvP: Here, Blizzard hosts a “lively discussion of competitive play and our PvP battle plan.” Again, another facet of the game that can really elicit, eh, impassioned responses from a boisterous crowd. Those looking for new information might have better luck here. Recent changes to battlegrounds (experience awards, experience toggling and the addition of a new field) suggest that Blizzard’s rethinking at least some of its PvP goals; it’s a possibility that we’ll get some new insights into the whole design process.
Art: Another art workshop, this time focusing on WoW.
Dungeons & Raids: “Learn how World of Warcraft’s most epic encounters are created and balanced.” Now we’re getting somewhere. With the new Onyxia dungeon incoming, there’s almost definitely going to be some information coming out of this panel. While the new Argent Tournament raids will likely dominate the discussion, it’s not totally out of the question to get some info on Icecrown or the broodmother revamp — perhaps some news on Onyxia mechanics, or who we might on our way to Arthas?
UI & Mods: Here, players can ask designers about “the ongoing quest to make a simple yet highly customizable UI.” This covers features, too — so, there will almost definitely be some information on what Blizzard plans to add to WoW. Of all the announced WoW panels, this one is the most guaranteed to have some new insights into the game.

Also in WoW, there’s been a some speculation floating about the Web, summed up best by BlizzPlanet, that Blizzard recently filed a new trademark: “Cataclysm.” What does that have to do with anything? Well, the summer after “The Burning Crusade” was released, Blizzard announced “Wrath of the Lich King.” Coincidentally, this BlizzCon is the summer after “Wrath of the Lich King” was launched. It’s highly possible that the next WoW expansion will be announced this year.

In fact, I’m pretty confident it will be announced. Of all the speculation about unannounced panels and news releases, this one feels like it’s the likeliest, mostly due to the timing.

Finally, there’s that mysterious new MMO that was quietly confirmed some months back. We still have no information on the game’s setting, except that it will be a new intellectual property — the first new world Blizzard’s created since the original “StarCraft” came out in 1998. It’s possible that Blizzard will release more information on this title at BlizzCon, but I doubt any formal announcement will come this year. There’s so much already on Blizzard’s plate — “StarCraft II,” “Diablo III,” a probable “World of Warcraft” expansion — that promoting a new game just seems like it’s overkill. That being said, there’s room for a fourth bug at the top of Blizzard’s Web site after the “BlizzCon” tag disappears, so who knows?

Source: http://gaming.freedomblogging.com/2009/08/17/what-can-we-expect-at-blizzcon/2797/

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