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Blizzard Set To Debut 'Something New' At PAX East 150

Posted by Soulskill from the battle.net-forum-users-already-upset-about-it dept.
skade88 writes "Ars is reporting that Blizzard will announce a new game on March 22, 2013 at PAX East. They say the new game is not a sequel or expansion. Blizzard is also saying the new game is not the long rumored MMO named Titan. Considering that every game Blizzard released since 1998 has had the name StarCraft, Warcraft or Diablo in it, this is big news. Ars speculates in the article that the new game could be Blizzard's version of a DOTA game. They showed off Blizzard All-Stars at BlizzCon 2010 as a SC2 custom map. It could be ready for launch as its own standalone game. I guess we will have to wait and see!"
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Blizzard Set To Debut 'Something New' At PAX East More

Blizzard Set To Debut 'Something New' At PAX East

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  • No...let me guess, more micro-transaction shit, right?

    • Re:WoW for PS4 and Xbox Durango?!?!? (Score:5, Funny)

      by masternerdguy ( 2468142 ) on Thursday February 28, 2013 @01:07PM (#43036063)
      Citizen, you enjoy microtransactions.

    • Re: (Score:3)

      by h4rr4r ( 612664 )

      Watch, probably moving to the annoying mobile IAP method.

      Player, you have run out of Mana! You may disconnect from battlenet for 1 hour to regenerate or pay $1 to regenerate now.

      • If you're right, just put a bullet in my head right now.

      • In Application Programming?

        • Yes. The player is programmed to accept that they must make in-application payments by frustrating obstacles and essentially bad game design.

          • Re: (Score:2)

            by geekoid ( 135745 )

            It's not a bad game design. I mean, some people could do it poorly. but the idea that creating that is and of itself bad design is incorrect.

            • I think you've misunderstood; I'm saying bad game design is a technique used by scalpers like Zynga to force people to pay up. Microtransactions follow bad game design, they don't cause it (except perhaps by choice, at a business model planning level.)
              • There are a handful of what I consider to be pretty good games that use microtransactions. I think in those cases they adapt the microtransactions to what is inherently a pretty decent game - I don't mind when it's used for custom character graphics or to give players moderately faster access to higher level "stuff."

                Of course, you're absolutely right about companies using bad game design as a technique to generate microtransaction income. It really depends on how the game was developed: "We have this coo

    • Re:WoW for PS4 and Xbox Durango?!?!? (Score:5, Insightful)

      by Andrio ( 2580551 ) on Thursday February 28, 2013 @01:41PM (#43036553)
      Man, this sucks. I remember when I loved Blizzard, but now I can't even get excited about this news, not even a little bit.

      I know that this new project, no matter what, will (1) Be always online and require an account and (2) Will have its gameplay heavily influenced, driven, or impacted by a means to make money after the initial ($60!) sale, via micro transactions or a monthly fee or whatever.

  • Clealry (Score:5, Funny)

    by geekoid ( 135745 ) <dadinportlandNO@SPAMyahoo.com> on Thursday February 28, 2013 @01:06PM (#43036047) Homepage Journal

    they've done away with the pretense of a game and just have an auction house.

    Or it could be truly shocking and they are going to produce a fun game again.
    I would love to see a new Warcraft RTS. preferable without some lame story shoved into it.

    • Avoiding RTS stories (most are bad) is as easy as multiplayer and skirmish.

    • Re: (Score:2)

      by dywolf ( 2673597 )

      What games have they released that haven't been fun? Even Diablo 3 was fun the first time through.

      and if you just want a competent RTS without any backstory, there's already 1000's of those. half the attraction of the warcraft and starcraft games are the stories that provide the motivation/reason for the missions

      • too bad sc2 pissed all over the motivations/reasons from sc1.

      • What games have they released that haven't been fun? Even Diablo 3 was fun the first time through.

        and if you just want a competent RTS without any backstory, there's already 1000's of those. half the attraction of the warcraft and starcraft games are the stories that provide the motivation/reason for the missions

        No way. I played D3 and I was bored out of my mind. It was nothing like it's predecessor.

    • Re: (Score:2, Interesting)

      by a1cypher ( 619776 )

      I would LOVE a new Warcraft RTS.

      But not like warcraft 3 where they put too much emphasis on "legends" which were single irreplacable units with super powers that the game revolves around. Too much like a pre-cursor to WoW.

         

      • I kinda liked the hero; especially the dwarf. The sound effects in that game are classic. Can't remember tghe last time I played it and I still find myself imitating them in context:

        "Woooooork complete!"

    • A new Warcraft RTS, set 5-600 years after current WoW content would be a great lead-in to Warcraft 2. It could be used to set the scene for the next MMO, start development on a story and characters and future bosses. And it wouldn't be too hard to create make it so that your previous character could be part of your prologue as the great hero who slew whatever. If you see how your character generation in GW2 goes, the ability to pick a previous character and it will look up some feats of strength, be them Pv

  • I wish I could say this was interesting but expect "Blizzard announces facebook game" or "Blizzard announces Warcraft DOTA"

  • "Ars speculates in the article that the new game could be Blizzard's version of a DOTA game."

    Well, there are a half dozen of those already, too. So: Nothing new still.

  • can't wait
    3d isometric top down view and you have to spend money to buy every upgrade

    • Re: (Score:2)

      by h4rr4r ( 612664 )

      A proper RTS or turn based game would be great to have again. If we could forgo having to buy each bullet.

      I am pretty excited about the new wasteland.

      • I can't wait for that to hit.

        That Kickstarter was exciting. "If we get this much money, we'll do this in Linux".

        Ok, we just hit that number.

        "If we get"

        Ok, we just got that while I was typing the description.

        • Re: (Score:2)

          by h4rr4r ( 612664 )

          I was surprised how fast that went too, especially since the genre is pretty much dead. Maybe we can eventually have another "Jagged Alliance".

          • Oh yeah Jag was a great game. I guess Jagged Alliance Back in Action was published in the not too distant past but it was a terribly executed remake of Jag 2.

            • Re: (Score:2)

              by h4rr4r ( 612664 )

              I only found out about that now.
              I was excited, then sad to see it had no fog of war and basically was a terrible game.

              This should be easy. Make old game again, updates graphics and story line. Change nothing else.

  • Let me guess (Score:2, Interesting)

    by Anonymous Coward

    Microtransaction Hero!

    Spend real money to buy things to wave your dick around on the forums. Complete with full public profiles so others can see how much money you actually spent.

    Cool features like:
    - Call people noobs for not spending as much money as you have
    - Spend money instead of actually playing the game
    - Spend money to acquire virtual currency that Blizzard owns
    - Spend money to super-inflate the in-game economy so if you want something later, you have to spend more money

    • That sounds a lot like EVE General Discussion to me.

      • That sounds a lot like EVE General Discussion to me.

        My understanding of Eve was that the microtransactions were just for avatar appearance. Has this changed?

      • Re: (Score:2)

        by Jeng ( 926980 )

        Sounds a lot like any MMO that has an issue with real money being used to advance gameplay vs actually playing.

        Whether the company allows in game transactions or not, it still happens.

    • Microtransaction Hero!

      Spend real money to buy things to wave your dick around on the forums. Complete with full public profiles so others can see how much money you actually spent.

      Cool features like:
      - Call people noobs for not spending as much money as you have
      - Spend money instead of actually playing the game
      - Spend money to acquire virtual currency that Blizzard owns
      - Spend money to super-inflate the in-game economy so if you want something later, you have to spend more money

      It will be microtransaction based MMO and, in order to get a good initial population, the will offer existing WoW players an opportunity to SELL their WoW accounts for a head start in the microtransaction economy of the new game. The net worth of your WoW account will be based on things like how many achievements, what item level, how many alts and what level they are. Thus 'end game' players in WoW will be able to effectively start playing the new game at 'end game'.

  • Comment removed based on user account deletion

    • I also hope it's not a DOTA clone. The only tower defense game I can remember liking much recently was Dungeon Defenders, which i enjoyed because it had character progression.

  • Definitions, please (Score:1, Insightful)

    by Anonymous Coward

    And what exactly is a DOTA game?

    • Comment removed (Score:5, Informative)

      by account_deleted ( 4530225 ) on Thursday February 28, 2013 @01:28PM (#43036323)
      Comment removed based on user account deletion

      • Good guess but I heard it will consist of a slot machine. You earn slot tokens by moving a cursor around the screen for 1 hr per token. Each token has a tiny chance of increasing your power rating by 1 point. You can then walk around the game with your rating flashing over your head.

        You can do group tasks where you all work together to move the cursor for 2 tokens per hour but then they scream "retard!!!" at you while you do it.

    • Re:Definitions, please (Score:5, Informative)

      by Anubis IV ( 1279820 ) on Thursday February 28, 2013 @01:33PM (#43036429)

      DOTA = Defense of the Ancients, the most popular custom map in Warcraft III. It spawned the MOBA (multiplayer online battle arena) genre in which players control a single hero unit from a third-person perspective while leveling/gearing up in an attempt to destroy the opponent team's base, and which now has a number of entries in it, the most notable being League of Legends. DOTA is so well known and popular that Valve even hired IceFrog, one of DOTA's lead developers, to create "DOTA 2" as a standalone game that is currently in beta (and is already the second most popular eSport title, behind only StarCraft II).

      • Correction: not the second most popular. It's the second highest-paying to its contenders, behind only SC2.

      • Re: (Score:1)

        by tippe ( 1136385 )

        I saw DOTA but thought DOTT (Day of the Tentacle). Man, that was a good game back in the day. I'm not sure how I would feel about a remake, but I'd probably still buy it though. I have no interest in DOTA, though, so Blizzard won't be getting my money if that's what they'll be announcing...

        </ramblings_of_an_old_man>

        • You will be confused to know that Day of the Tentacle is now a Disney property.

          • Re: (Score:1)

            by Anonymous Coward

            Day of the Tentacle + Tinkerbell.

            All we need to do is wait for a Japanese company to buy Disney and let the porn flow naturally.

      • Nice and informative, but a bit confusing. LoL, an eSport title, is about four times larger (# of players) than Dota 2. Can you explain why you count Starcraft 2 and Dota 2 as the top two e-Sport titles, yet do not include the 'most notable' Leage of Legends?

        (Disclaimer: I play Dota 2, and not LoL; I am not a LoL fanboy, just curious about the appearant contradiction)

        • It was a mistaken statement on my part. See the first response to my last post. I corrected it with the correct info.

  • YOU ARE NOT (Score:3)

    by etash ( 1907284 ) on Thursday February 28, 2013 @01:28PM (#43036331)
    PREPARED for what blizzard is bringing forth!

    /me runs away

  • Aha (Score:4, Insightful)

    by Opportunist ( 166417 ) on Thursday February 28, 2013 @01:31PM (#43036373)

    I will show "some reaction" when I know what it is.

    Seriously, I mean, I'm used to vaporware and whatnot, but this is getting ridiculous. Are we now supposed to get excited over the announcement of getting "something", they can't even be assed anymore to at least announce it?

  • It's exactly the same as WoW just with Hobbits added. Just think hairless Pandas that need to be fed constantly.
  • I am kind of curious. They cover there fantasy and dark fantasy bases with Warcraft and Diablo, they cover their distant future with Starcraft.
    What does that leave that's significantly different?

    A contemporary hyper-realistic fps war game? Where you can trade real world money to drop tanks and get airstrikes?

    An mmo where you play as a minimum wage worker at a large box store? You can have to make up the difference in your rent with micro-transactions?

    A pirate simulator? Where you need to use m

    • How 'bout an ARG where you use micro-transactions to learn WTF Blizz intends to announce, so you don't have to masturbate yourself up to the frenzy of anticipation and excitement their marketing department clearly expects you to have.

      Seriously, has Vivendi's ownership of Blizz yielded ONE positive result?

      • Positive results? It got me to stop playing WoW. Probably saved me a boatload of money on Diablo 3 micro transaction because of how trash that game is long term.

  • Why do you care? (Score:2, Offtopic)

    by B5_geek ( 638928 )

    Have you forgotten how poorly they treated the community and the whole bnetd fiasco?

    I don't give a flying fuck what they make, they will never get a dime from me.

  • More well polished mediocrity. (Score:3, Insightful)

    by Ziggitz ( 2637281 ) on Thursday February 28, 2013 @02:02PM (#43036823)

    Blizzard has become the J.J. Abrams of game developers in the last couple years. Nothing they do is risky or ambitious. As a result Diablo 3 turned into a snoozefest with no new mechanics and a loot system that was less exciting than its predecessor. They showed they can't break away from core mechanics in Starcraft 2 that were terrible for the multiplayer scene. If they were to make a DotA style game at this point, I would give an absolute vote of no confidence in their ability to turn it into a quality competitive game. Sure it'll look pretty and it'll run smooth. It'll either be well balanced and boring as hell or broken beyond all belief. They'll ignore player feedback and commit themselves to horrible design decisions.

    The thing I dislike most about Blizzard right now is that they seem to think that they have bottled the formula for fun. They think that they have a perfect statistical method for determining balance while completely ignoring how their games are actually being played. What they've actually bottled is the perfect formula for average clones of prior success. So not really all that excited.

  • World of Starcraft! (Score:4, Interesting)

    by S810 ( 168676 ) on Thursday February 28, 2013 @02:15PM (#43037005) Homepage

    Maybe this will be World of Starcraft! I have long thought that it was the next evolution of that franchise.

    • Eve should hire Blizzard developers to come in and revamp the UI. Maybe it's because Eve has a lot of information to present, but as fun as the game is the UI sucks. Far too menu driven especially when you're combat.

    • Re: (Score:3, Interesting)

      by Tharkkun ( 2605613 )

      Maybe this will be World of Starcraft! I have long thought that it was the next evolution of that franchise.

      It will probably be the Bungie and Blizzard collaboration that has yet to be announced. The signed on to develop a game together a couple years back.

  • They take a good game and mess it up. Wonder what they will be doing this time

    • They take a good game and mess it up. Wonder what they will be doing this time

      I'm not sure which game you're referring to? 10 million subscribers still for World of Warcraft. Diablo 3 top selling game of the year sold 12 million copies. You may not appreciate their work but obviously someone does.

  • I'll say now that I'm not buying it. Then again, I say I'm cancelling my WoW account and never returning. Only, in four months I renew, level to 45, get bored, and quit again. I do this three times a year. Diablo 3, told myself I wasn't going to bother. Week after release, I bought it. Blizzard always seems to sucker me into their games. No matter how often I tell myself I'm not playing, I come back. >.
    Certainly has my attention as to what the game could be though.
  • WoW has seriously turned me off to Blizzard games. Seven years in that did have it's good times but that was from the people I met and not from the game I played.

    Loved Diablo 1 and 2, haven't even touched Diablo 3. I'll be cracking away at the next cavern in Minecraft when they release this new one.

    • Re: (Score:1)

      by Anonymous Coward

      Diablo 3 was a rip off anyway. I threw the DVD in the garbage.

      They cashed in on their entire reputation for a quick buck.

      Never again.

  • World of Warcraft --> Slurpy of Starcraft? (great for cross promotion)

  • Meh. Who cares? (Score:3)

    by runeghost ( 2509522 ) on Thursday February 28, 2013 @04:19PM (#43038545)

    Blizzard jumped the shark years ago. The only people who might be legitimately excited by this news are stockholders, at the prospect of yet another franchise to milk cash from.

  • Eastern Kingdom and Kalimdor Xtreme Beach Volleyball.

    Which will be followed in about five years by
    Leisure Suit Larry in the land of the night elves.

  • As a Mac user, let me be the first to say (Score:4, Insightful)

    by ArcadeMan ( 2766669 ) on Thursday February 28, 2013 @04:23PM (#43038579)

    Finally, another game available for the Mac! We almost have a dozen good games now!

  • Warcraft/Starcraft MMO Cross Over, WoW + Eve Online.

    I jest.

    Maybe a new Blackthorne? ;)

  • A Diablo RTS with MACRO transactions! You can buy more games from them within the game!

  • Nobody mentioned that Blizz said they had a new Linux game for 2013, or at least Linux compatible. Could it be it?

  • I hope its a Lost Vikings themed bubble shooter.

  • cause surely they aren't lame enough to showcase Diablo 3 for PS4 again

  • I'm finished with Blizzard. After the giant pile of diarrhea that was Cataclysm they decide to fix it with Pandas and Pokemon. Then we get a Starcraft sequel we waited years for that played the same as the first while being split into 3 games to make more money for Activision. Then there was Diablo 3 which was a worse game than it's predecessors and now we find out that they were blowing smoke up our asses by being a PC only company then cripple a flagship IP with a game that was killed by consolitis.

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