BlizzCon 2014

BlizzCon is over for now. It was two days filled with exciting news, tournaments, amazing cosplay and the greatest closing ceremony I’ve seen so far thanks to Metallica! Of course I wish I were there in person but it wasn’t possible so I had to go with the second best option which was the virtual ticket and the live stream. It has become a tradition to watch the BlizzCon live stream now, so my boyfriend and I watched it together. We managed to stay awake during the whole night both nights so we didn’t go to bed until early morning.

Thanks to Tycer (http://twitter.com/tycertank) and DizzyMaMa (http://twitter.com/DizzyMaMa)

This year’s BlizzCon was special because of the 10 year anniversary of World of Warcraft. They showed this special documentary called Looking For Group to celebrate the 10 year anniversary. We learned everything from how they came up with the idea of the game and what they thought players would think of it to learning that they never thought it would get this big and that they once were just a bunch of regular people who loved games like so many of us are. The interviews with all the different developers and employees at Blizzard and the players who play World of Warcraft were so fun to watch because we got to hear so many different stories about their experiences in the game and what it has meant for them through all these years.

World of Warcraft has meant a lot to me because it helped me get through a difficult time, I got new friends, learned a lot, had so much fun and most importantly I met my boyfriend there. You should definitely watch the documentary if you haven’t done so yet, you can find it on here.

I was super excited to see what news Blizzard had for us because I noticed the hole in the schedule and wondered what it might be. Of course I hoped it had something to do with World of Warcraft, like the next expansion or a big patch, but then I thought it would be too early for news like that with Warlords of Draenor not even released yet. Then I thought it might be Warcraft 4, a new StarCraft expansion or that they never really cancelled the project called Titan after all and they were going to finally announce it. So I guess I wasn’t entirely wrong, because they did announce a new StarCraft expansion, Legacy of the Void.

But I was surprised when they announced the new game Overwatch and said that it wasn’t the Titan project, because it was exactly what I thought Titan might be like, a cartoonish shooter set in the future. Though I didn’t really expect them to have come that far with it already. Beta in 2015. The announcement trailer for Overwatch was so good that I would love to see more of them. I like that there are many different characters with different roles, like offence, defence, tank and support, and the characters have so many unique abilities to use. I can’t wait to try the game so I’ve already signed up for the beta and I hope I’ll be one of the lucky ones. Also looking forward to hear the music from the game which Neal Acree, Derek Duke and Sam Cardon among others are working on.  You can learn more about Overwatch on the official website.

Another thing I was excited to hear more about was the Warcraft movie. When I read “Warcraft Movie Presentation” on the schedule, I was pretty sure it meant a trailer or at least a teaser from the movie, but the only ones who got to see a teaser were the people who actually were there at BlizzCon in person. Super sad and disappointed face. We got to see some of the actors, Orgrim with the Doomhammer and what an orc would look like which was interesting, but I still wish we could have seen something more. It’s a bit annoying because everyone who were there and saw the teaser keep talking about how amazing it was and how excited they are for the movie. So hopefully we’ll get to see one soon.

I don’t doubt that the movie will be good, but Duncan Jones himself said it would be like Avatar and Lord of the Rings, which I’m not sure I’ll believe until I see it because those movies are some of my all time favorite movies and Avatar pretty much blew my mind and I wanted to jump right into the movie the first time I saw it. I do hope the Warcraft movie will be a movie that anyone can watch and enjoy, that they don’t have to be WoW or Warcraft players to understand it. You can get more info about the Warcraft movie by choosing to fight either for the Horde or for the Alliance.

Cosplayers BlizzCon 2014 (http://twitter.com/DaveKosak/status/530899105338654720/photo/1)

The contests were of course something I looked forward to. It’s always fun to see the amazing costumes, movies, art and music people have made. There were so many great costumes this year so I can’t possibly pick a favorite. But I thought the winners were amazing. I can’t even imagine how much work they must have put into those costumes. I could never make anything like that. I would have liked to dress up as something if I were to attend BlizzCon, for fun, not to win the contest, so I’m not sure I would even enter the contest. I would be happy just walking around and being funny. You can check out the contest winners here.

Chris Hardwick was the perfect host. I knew he would do good as I watch him every week on Talking Dead which he’s hosting. So I hope to see him again next BlizzCon!

I watched the WoW Q&A and kept hoping someone would ask about Moonkin Form and whether or not we will see an update to it in the near future. One year after I asked Tom Chilton the very same question through Twitter at BlizzCon 2013. His answer then was that they have given a lot of love to druids over time with their different forms, so the moonkin will have to wait a little bit longer (read more here). Most people asked very silly questions at this year’s Q&A and none asked about the Moonkin Form. So I asked on Twitter if anyone could ask about it, and Restokin said she would ask someone about it if she found someone to ask and she did. The answer she got was that they might do it after they do the blood elves, but it’s not high on the priority list. So I doubt we’ll see any update in Warlords of Draenor, but I guess it depends on what else they got on their list, maybe we’ll be surprised.

Heroes of the Storm looks great but I’ve never been a big fan of games like that, mostly because my experiences haven’t been very good. The few times I tried similar games I didn’t really know what to do and everything seemed so complicated. I tried my best to learn it but everyone else on my team and our opponents were so much better and I felt so useless and I don’t think the rest of my team enjoyed playing with me. But I think I’ll like it if I play with friends. I haven’t tried Heroes of the Storm yet but I would like to mostly because it has to be more fun when you know the characters and recognize their abilities and I hope they won’t make it as complicated as other similar games.

I had to watch the panel Heroes of the Storm – Sound of the Nexus because I love to learn about how they make the music for the games. It was interesting to hear how they come up with the different sound effects and hear them play the Heroes of the Storm theme which was amazing! You can listen to Heroes of the Storm music here.

Cosplayers rocking out to Metallica (http://twitter.com/MaynardeSC2/status/531306351838773248/photo/1)

The closing ceremony was the best I’ve seen so far! Metallica blew the roof of Anaheim Convention Center and I was headbanging, playing air guitar, air drums and whispering the lyrics in my living room. Whispering because I recently lost my voice after a week of the flu. I was incredible tired when Metallica finally went on stage, but I couldn’t miss it. They played all my favorite songs so I was happy when the show was over and I could go to bed.

I haven’t had time to go back and watch everything I wanted to see from BlizzCon yet, but I will do it now the next days. It was also very fun to read tweets and see pictures from the people who were at BlizzCon and tweets from people who like me watched the stream at home.

Thank you, Blizzard for yet another amazing BlizzCon and happy 10 year WoW anniversary!

Did you watch the BlizzCon live stream or were you there in person? What were you most excited about?

My Blog as a Mix Tape

I first discovered this link-up on Nerdjoy but it was started by Joie Fatale of Confessions of a Book Pimp.

What would your blog sound like if it was a Mix Tape? Five songs on side A, and Five on B?
Create a playlist, of 10 songs that describe your blog! Any genre! Any song!
Tweet your link with the hashtag: #MyBlogMixTape! And please, please, please! Leave me a comment with the link to your post! I want to hear all the music!!!

I love music, so this topic is perfect for me! But it’s not easy to pick 10 songs to describe my blog. My blog is first and foremost a World of Warcraft blog. But I’ve also written more personal posts and I would like to continue to write not only about World of Warcraft but about other games, other interests and maybe some personal stuff every now and then. I’ve been working on this playlist for some weeks now, not all the time of course but I’ve been listening to different music, reading lyrics and thinking.

The lyrics are very important to me, I always read through them when I hear a new song I like so I can learn what it’s about and understand it. I often find my own meaning with it because it reminds me of something. The songs I’ve chosen for my playlists are all songs I like a lot from my favorite band Machinae Supremacy, a song from Donkeyboy, my favorite song by Lindsey Stirling, one song by Porcupine Tree and the music from the faerie dragon event in the Whispering Forest.

I’ve added parts of the lyrics that appeal to me.

Donkeyboy – Crazy Something Normal

There’s a ripped off cord
To my TV screen
Because I will never
be afraid to dream

I’m a dreamer, sometimes I have to remind myself to live in the real world and not only in my dreams,

Machinae Supremacy – Republic of Gamers

We are all equals here
and we fight for dominion tonight
We don’t ask color, race or creed,
dedicated, free-for-all

Passed through my line of sight
You are the one that caught my eye
I’m coming for you right now
Yeah you can try to hide
How many levels can you up
before I track you down and make you die?

The first part reminds me of WoW and how you can be anyone you want, you don’t have to tell anyone who you are in real life. The second part makes me think of PvP in WoW, when you’re in a battleground and see one person and you decide you’re going to go get him/her.

Lindsey Stirling – Minimal Beat

This song is an instrumental and has no lyrics. But the song and the video makes me think of dreaming and traveling, and it gives me inspiration to do what I like and what I want.

Machinae Supremacy – Rise of a Digital Nation

Though far apart, united by heart

We’re all far apart, from different countries all around the world, but internet makes us connected and united.

Machinae Supremacy – A View From The End of the World

Friend me, follow, fan and like
Say, what’s on your mind tonight?

Just as well when the real world feels so small
We are gods here, and we can reach it all
I can hear the whole world call

We excel at passing time, and we share our hearts and our minds

The Greatest Show on Earth is right here on the net
And we are a part of it

Again internet brings us together. We friend each other, follow each other, fan and like. Share our thoughts and what we do with the whole world. We’re part of the greatest show on earth.

Porcupine Tree – Time Flies

But after a while
you realize time flies.
And the best thing that you can do
is take whatever comes to you.

She said nothing ever happens
if you don’t make it happen.

 

Time flies, it really does. We grow older every day. If you want something, you have to make it happen. Follow your dreams.

Machinae Supremacy – Force Feedback

Take a look across this vast uncharted battlefield
You still don’t know your enemy
A bunch of pissed off freaks with infinite mad skills
And a newfound taste for blood

I don’t think you understand
These are our shores and our land
You are a stranger here
And we won’t be idle as you interfere

This song also makes me think of WoW and a new expansion where we don’t know who the final boss will be. Or a battleground where the opposing team don’t know their enemy which is us, “a bunch of pissed off freaks with infinite mad skills and a newfound taste for blood”.

And the second part is also about an enemy who enters our territory and we want them gone.

Machinae Supremacy – Crouching Camper Hidden Sniper

Do you always play warfare just to lay around
With your ass in the grass and your chin to the ground
Again and again every round

Now your chicken shit outfit and need to survive
is just trying my patience and cramping my style
It deals a lethal blow to the thrill
playing punk-hide and seek to get kills

I’m gonna do you a favor
And not t-bag you for your behavior
But even so you and I are far from OK
Your lame bullshit slows down the game

I was all about action, I played every day
But the failed interaction with lamers dismayed
Eroded the appeal of the game

These days I play for one and one reason alone
I’m here to practice muh stabbin’ on pissants who prone
I always got the most knife kills
Check your killcam to review my skills

Are you afraid of a showdown
(Rather) shoot in the back than react face to face
It’s not our fault that you’re slow
now be a good bitch and die before you go

This song makes me think of Counter-Strike. But parts of it can also be about WoW and bad players who don’t do what they should.

Machinae Supremacy – Indiscriminate Murder is Counter-Productive

I know that I’m not meant to kill this indiscriminately,
but I get a bit bit carried away by the sounds of pain

What I may never know is the place of the maze
in which I would have erased some fucking fairies from space
I neglected to ask before I killed the last dairy farmer who knew

I wish I had waited for you
I wish I could invoke some better part of me

I know I’m supposed to be all “the one”
but I have too much fun killing everyone

I came here to play, now could you come out and stay
so I can kill and away you
to the gods you pray to and never look back.

I know that all these NPCs don’t pose a threat to me
But I gotta kill kill something right now and this’ll have to do

This is one of my favorite songs by Machinae Supremacy because it’s different and fun. It also reminds me of WoW.

Music from World of Warcraft – Song from the Faerie Dragon event in the Whispering Forest

This song has no lyrics. But it is so mysterious and beautiful. Makes me think of the event and the feeling of finding a new and secret place, the excitement of adventures in WoW.

So, what would your blog sound like if it was a mix tape? Let me know in the comments below which songs you would add or make your own playlist and post it on your blog. Remember to post a link to your post on Confessions of a Book Pimp :)

What I listen to while playing WoW

This week’s shared topic on Blog Azeroth comes from Amerence who writes

I know that the World of Warcraft game has its own music to play either we are in the caverns, the city, battlegrounds even in raids or pretty much anywhere. The background music loops and plays wherever you go. But I know some of you prefer to mute and listen to your own music while playing the game. I want to know what World of Warcraft Music Background you choose to hear or your own flavor of music while playing the game.

It’s not a secret that I love music and that includes the in-game music in WoW. As of right now I’m really looking forward to hearing the music in Warlords of Draenor, I’m so excited to see the login screen and listen to the main title for the first time, to be honest, that’s one of the things I’m most excited for prior to an expansion. I always play with the in-game music on while playing new content or zones because the music is like the soul of the game and it completes the excitement of exploring something new. I’m one of those who turn up the music volume and turn on the best quality of all the sound settings. Sometimes if I’m not flying or running around in the world with my camera zoomed in to first person and the UI hidden, then I’m sitting with my eyes closed and just listening to the music.  I don’t know any other way of explaining what the music means to me.

But sometimes while in the same zone for a long time with the music turned up really high and on loop, I might find myself turning the volume down because I can also get tired of hearing the same track over and over again for hours. This usually happens in the cities I spend a lot of time in, e.g. Orgrimmar, Dalaran and Shattrath.

I don’t play a lot through old content, but if I do, I always turn up the music. Like last week I boosted by boyfriend’s death knight alt through the Icecrown Citadel dungeons The Forge of Souls, Pit of Saron and Halls of Reflection. The music in those dungeons is amazing and we had to stop and listen to it several times.

I know some people don’t want the music on while they’re raiding because they have to focus and listen to ventrilo. But I had the music on back when I was raiding, not so loud that I couldn’t focus or hear ventrilo, but loud enough to hear the music because it made the fights so much more exciting.

Some of my favorite pieces of music from World of Warcraft

The only time I actually prefer to listen to my own music is when I’m doing PvP because the music I choose to listen to gives me the right mood and really gets me in “the zone”, it gives me confidence and motivation, and I think I perform better with that kind of music. It has to be loud, but not so loud that I don’t hear the in-game sounds, because I like to be able to hear when someone caps a base or a flag, but with my own music in my ears I might not hear the sound of a rogue or druid stealthing behind me.

My most recent addiction in music is Lindsey Stirling. She’s an amazing violinist and composer who really takes classical music to a new level! Just by listening to her and watching her videos on YouTube I get so inspired that I actually want to pick up playing an instrument again.

Besides her, one of my favorite bands are Machinae Supremacy. They’re a Swedish band that combines metal and rock with chiptunes, self-defined as “SID metal” (many of their songs use a SidStation that features the SID chip of the Commodore 64). They’re not that well known yet, but they have actually released five studio albums and they’re planning their first headlining European Tour this year. I first discovered them when they were supporting Children of Bodom in Denmark in 2011.

Sometimes when I play with my boyfriend, we listen to music on his computer, through speakers. We mostly listen to our own playlists on Spotify with everything from old and weird music from our childhood to our favorite bands/artists and songs. A band we’ve listened to a lot lately is Donkeyboy. A Norwegian pop band.

By the way, a good headset or speakers really do a difference.

Lindsey Stirling: Website, Facebook, YouTube

Machinae Supremacy: Website, Facebook, YouTube

Donkeyboy: Website, Facebook, YouTube

 

What do you listen to while you play WoW?

Through Your Interface – Day 6: Favorite Line of Poetry/Lyric

Favorite Line of Poetry/Lyric

Most of us have a favorite poet or song. Give us an image that you think represents your favorite line, or what line inspires you most. You should probably include said line and *maybe* give some explanation/reasoning behind it, unless you’re feeling overly ambiguous. 

This is one of the first songs I heard by Machinae Supremacy when they toured with Children of Bodom and Ensiferum earlier this year. I had never heard about them before, but I instantly fell in love with their SID metal style, how they played to the audience, unique vocals and lyrics. They have been one of my favorite bands since then. They aren’t very famous, not yet, so they don’t do headline tours yet but hopefully they will soon.

When I first read through and learned the lyrics of this song it made me think of Deathwing, how big he is and how we got no chance to survive if he flies over us and breathes fire at us. This screenshot was taken months back in Uldum when we progressed in Throne of the Four Winds and he killed everyone who took the portal.

Machinae Supremacy – Rocket Dragon

I wield the true all-seeing eye
My vision digitized and bright despite the veil of night
Those really people on my screen?
They run around in panic in between places to hide,
as I tear up the street outside

Run, run away or remain with the ones
with nowhere to go as The Sky falls to Earth

Stay down if once you have fallen
It’s all coming down
The world ends and fades out
Stay down if once you have fallen to the ground
Can you hear the sound of a demon in search of its prey?

I long to give them all a taste,
a sudden breath of hellfire raised to send them all away
A few more souls to make my day

As I burn down and murder I know that God forgives
‘Spite all the things I’ve done,
my soul yet forever lives
All those caught in the shadow of my wings have cause to fear
I swear on all I’ve done
No evil shall linger here

Machinae Supremacy

• http://machinaesupremacy.com
• http://www.youtube.com/user/MachinaeSupremacy
• http://www.facebook.com/machinaesupremacy 

Music of Cataclysm

I think it’s about time to write another post about music, cause I love the in-game music so much and I know most people don’t listen to it at all, which is sad cause it’s really good. It’s like watching a movie without soundtrack. Or for me it is, the music is so important. I’ve told you about it before, how I sometimes just turn everything up on high and just listen, or fly around in different zones or instances and raids. I wish I could get people’s eyes, or ears, more up for the music in WoW.

We’re still early in the Cataclysm expansion, but there is already so much good music, and there is much more to come in the future patches I’m sure. So I’ve tried to pick my favorites, but it’s not that easy to pick just a few. So here is seven, I think.. Random order. And excuse my poor skills to describe music, I just say words which pop into my head.

Twilight’s Hammer (Eventide)

This is played in Blackwing Descent and in some zones where the Twilight’s Hammer are. Love this song. How it builds up from whispering. Then stronger vocals and the sound of the steel hammering. Wonder what the lyrics are, and if the lyrics mean something or if they are just for the sound of it.

Nightsong

This is played in Mount Hyjal, among other songs, sometimes just parts of it. This has to be the best song of Cataclysm. The vocal and music is just perfect! When I listen to it I imagine a night elf in the forest, singing, but when the tempo rises she starts running like the night elf in the WoW trailer. And we follow as she runs through the forest and when it slows down again you see her jump down a waterfall which runs out in a small river near the village where she’s from, a beautiful village where all the other night elves live.

Castaways

This is one of the goblin songs played in goblin cities and zones. This music fits the goblin areas perfectly, fun and playful, and very unique. My favorite part is from 3:38,  which appears in the main title The Shattering and the trailer where we first meet the goblins.

Orgrimmar (Reforged)

One of the songs played in Orgrimmar. I loved the old music, but I love this one more. With the intro. War music, drums, strong, very Horde.

Vashj’ir

The zone music in Vashj’ir. Beautiful, mysterious, watery, fits perfectly.

This music is special to me as it was the first Cataclysm music I heard cause I was questing in that zone on the beta when they first implented.

Call of the Elements

This reminds me of the tauren house which was south of Silithus before Cataclysm, a version of this music was there and I always wanted to know which song it was, cause I don’t think it appeared anywhere else before Cataclysm. But that house had been there for a long time, maybe since vanilla, was the music that old too? But when I listen to this song I think of where I sat in that little tauren house in the middle of the night, with a fireplace, warming your hands on it, dark outside, the fire is the only light.Warm and cozy. I made a post and a video with in-game sound on of that place, so you can hear what the music there was like and how it reminds me of this new song. Here is the post and the video on YouTube.

Skywall 2

This is the music playing while fighting the bosses in Throne of the Four Winds, Conclave of the Four Winds and Al’Akir, so I always turn up the music volume when we’re there. Love the part from 2:21. There is more Skywall music, the part which plays in The Vortex Pinnacle which is more heavenly, slower tempo, you can find it here.

So those were some of my favorite songs of Cataclysm, until next content patch.. But I also have to mention Curse of the Worgen, Tanaris, Pirates Surrender, Elemental (Deepholm) and Cold Mountain.

You can buy the music here.