COMMUNITY

We’re pleased to announce that Blizzard Entertainment will be attending Dreamhack Winter 2009, the world’s largest computer festival, which is taking place from 26th to 29th November in Jönköping, Sweden.

Dreamhack attendees will be able to visit the Blizzard booth to take part in various competitions and contests, and also to play both StarCraft II and World of Warcraft: Cataclysm.

You can find out more about Dreamhack Winter 2009 at http://www.dreamhack.se/dhw09.

We look forward to seeing you there!

This edition of the Q&A features some questions by StarCraft II fans. If you haven't done so in the past, go check out those fansites for great news and articles about StarCraft II!

• Short Story: Changeling - Just because the years following the Brood War have so far been relatively uneventful, that doesn't mean it's safe out there in the cold vastness of space. Zeta Squad is about to find this out, the hard way.
• Singleplayer Storytelling - Discover the ways in which StarCraft II will build on and expand the storytelling techniques of previous Blizzard titles, awaits you in this article.
• Multiplayer Mapmaking - Ever wonder what design considerations and decisions go into the many multiplayer maps of StarCraft II? Check out this article to learn more!
• Character Biographies: Tychus, Zeratul, Raynor - The character biographies for Raynor and Zeratul have been updated with new art and additional info, and you can now also read up on Tychus Findlay, one of Jim Raynor's old comrade-in-arms.
• New Art and Screenshots - Check out more than 20 new screenshots and pieces of concept artwork! We got nukes, we got knives, sharp sticks... check out all the new info now!

We're pleased to announce the return of the monthly StarCraft "Vespene Laughs" Comic Contest! From tasty, crunchy banelings to a brighter, more cheerful Kerrigan, we received a ton of funny and creative entries in our previous contest; now we’re inviting you to make the galaxy laugh once more. To participate in each month's contest, simply submit your entries here by the 28th of the following month. The first-place winner each month will win keys to the upcoming StarCraft II beta. Check out the official rules for more information.

We have just released the fourth installment of our StarCraft II Battle Reports, a series of videos created for the official website in order to give you a closer look at the fast-paced, intense, and exciting-to-watch multiplayer matches of StarCraft II. In this latest battle report, you'll see two of Blizzard Entertainment's best players go head-to-head as the protoss and terrans while our commentators, StarCraft II lead designer Dustin Browder and eSports team member Robert Simpson, dissect and analyze the on-screen action for you.

Check out Battle Report 4 now!

This edition of the Q&A features some questions sent in by our fansites. If you haven't done so in the past, go check out those fansites for great news and articles about StarCraft II!

We've had some exciting times over the summer with BlizzCon and juicy single player news as well as some more information on our new and improved Battle.net service. But some time has passed since then and I am sure that you are longing for more information and have been asking yourself a lot of questions. We'd like to now continue with our Q&A series for you to enjoy!

If you have any questions you'd like to have answered, feel free to post them in our questions thread here and they might just pop up in our next Q&A.

Congratulations to the winners of our monthly StarCraft "Vespene Laughs" Comic Contest! We'd like to thank everyone who participated -- we received many hilarious and creative comics from all around the world, and picking the winners wasn't easy.

This August brought us to gamescom 2009 in Cologne, Germany. At gamescom, we hosted many events, including raids with members of the guilds “For the Horde” and “Ensidia”. In addition to these live raids, there were Q&A quizzes, levelling contests, and hands-on demos of StarCraft II: Wings of Liberty and Diablo III. To get a feel for the atmosphere at gamescom, check out our extensive coverage of the event, including our photo gallery and an exclusive interview with “For the Horde.”

StarCraft II has just been voted as the “Best of gamescom” for 2009 from the largest European trade fair for interactive games and entertainment. At gamescom this year, StarCraft II premiered its new single player mode StarCraft II: Wings of Liberty.

The fourth BlizzCon has begun! The two-day celebration of Blizzard Entertainment games and the passionate communities of players surrounding them is now underway at the Anaheim Convention Center, and we're inviting everyone at home to follow along with the exciting events and announcements at www.blizzcon.com. We'll be updating the site throughout the convention with breaking news, updates from the developer panels, and photos from the show floor, contests, and other activities. We'll also be broadcasting streaming video of the tournaments taking place throughout BlizzCon, so be sure to check back often over the next couple of days.

If you're looking for up-to-the-minute coverage, you can also catch us on Twitter by following @Diablo, @Warcraft, and @StarCraft. For those watching on DIRECTV Pay Per View or via the Internet stream, don’t forget to tweet us suggestions for what you’d like to see covered using the #BlizzConDTV tag.

You want to be one of the first in Europe to get your hands on the brand new single player mode of StarCraft II: Wings of Liberty or the first playable demo of Diablo III? Or maybe both? Then come and join us at the gamescom 2009 at the Blizzard Entertainment booth ( Hall 6, booth C20/B21) in Cologne, Germany!

Participate in our contests and quizzes such as knowledge Q&A’s or Death Knight levelling contests and you could win valuable prizes by Razer, SteelSeries or Panini. Watch the World of Warcraft raids on Friday and Saturday performed live on-stage by the top guilds Ensidia and For the Horde.

Additionally, our recruiters will be at the booth ready to answer your questions about recruitment and working at Blizzard Entertainment. Blizzard Europe currently has numerous positions open in Quality Assurance, Localization, Customer Support and other departments in our offices in Velizy, France (near Paris) and Cork, Ireland. We’re looking for Italian, Polish, Russian, German, French, Spanish, and English language speakers. Bring your CV and talk to us about our employment opportunities.

We look forward to welcoming friends both old and new to our booth which is open to the public from Thursday 20 August until Sunday 23 August.

This Friday marks the beginning of BlizzCon 2009, and thousands of players will be making the trek to the Anaheim Convention Center to enjoy a weekend full of gaming, tournaments, panels, contests, and more. If you're interested in watching the sold-out show, don't forget that you still have a few days to order your "virtual ticket," available via Internet stream. This package comes with 18 hours of live coverage, including the closing concert with Ozzy Osbourne, as well as the exclusive BlizzCon 2009 in-game pet, Grunty the murloc marine.

StarCraft II's Jim Raynor, terran hero, outlaw, and leader of Raynor's Raiders, will be making a rare exclusive appearance at this year's BlizzCon. Standing 6,25 inches tall, dressed in his signature StarCraft II battle suit, and sporting an oversized Gauss rifle, Raynor is the debut piece in a new line of Blizzard Entertainment-inspired designer vinyl toys known as n00bz.

The Raynor figure can be found exclusively inside this year’s BlizzCon goody bag and won't be available anywhere else. When interviewed about the honor, the good captain had only this to say: "I don’t play nice with others." You can check out images of this year's Raynor figure, along with a preview of other n00bz that will be available for purchase at BlizzCon, on the goody bag page.

We’re pleased to announce that StarCraft II: Wings of Liberty and Diablo III will be at gamescom 2009. Visitors to the Blizzard Entertainment booth, located in Halle 6, B21 & B31, will be able to go hands-on with both games -- a first for Diablo III in Europe.

From Thursday 20 until Sunday 23 August, gamescom in Cologne, Germany will be open to the public. You can find out more about what gamescom has to offer, and how to get there, at www.gamescom-cologne.com.

Razer is co-developing a new line of StarCraft II gaming peripherals, including a tournament-grade mouse, keyboard, and headset. In addition to these peripherals, Razer will design exclusive StarCraft II messenger bags, backpacks, and an E-Sport Pro Gamer Case. Head over to razerzone.com for more information on all the new StarCraft II gear.

Members of our recruitment team will be at the Blizzard booth during gamescom 2009 to answer your questions about life as a Blizzard employee. Blizzard Europe currently has numerous open positions in quality assurance, localization, customer support and other departments in our offices in Vélizy, France (near Paris) and Cork, Ireland. We’re looking for Italian, Polish, Russian, German, French, Spanish and English speakers. You can find out about all our open positions in Europe here.

So come to Cologne from 20 to 23 August armed with your CV and a passion for forging great games! We look forward to seeing you there.

Steelseries will be releasing two new limited edition StarCraft II mousepads featuring battle-hardened Terran marines from StarCraft II and another capturing Kerrigan and Zeratul clashing in an epic battle! Beyond bringing beautiful Blizzard artwork to any desktop, these high-quality, cloth-surfaced mousepads offer exceptionally precise and consistent glide, perfect for gamers who demand only the best. These exclusive mousepads will be on sale for only 14.99€. Also, between July 27th and July 31st SteelSeries will be hosting daily contests on Facebook where you’ll have a chance to win an ultra-exclusive signed copy of these mousepads. Winners of these contests will receive mousepads signed by Blizzard artist Wei Wang!

SteelSeries has just unveiled the first of a new line of StarCraft II gaming surfaces featuring original artwork from the game. Developed to meet the requirements of pro gamers, these pads boast a high-quality cloth surface optimized for precision laser and optical mouse tracking. Check them out at Steelseries.com.

We’re pleased to announce that Blizzard Entertainment will be attending gamescom 2009 in Cologne, Germany next month. We look forward to welcoming old friends and new to our booth, which will feature hands-on gameplay with our upcoming games. Our booth is open to the public from Thursday 20 August until Sunday 23 August.

We will be revealing more information on our activities during the show in the coming weeks. You can find out more about what gamescom has to offer, and how to get there, at http://www.gamescom-cologne.com/

Our recruiters will be at the booth ready to answer your questions about recruitment and working at Blizzard Entertainment. Blizzard Europe currently has numerous open positions in quality assurance, localization, customer support and other departments in our offices in Velizy, France (near Paris) and Cork, Ireland. We’re looking for Italian, Polish, Russian, German, French, Spanish and English speakers. Bring your CV along and talk to us about our employment opportunities.

The 17th edition of the Euskal Encounter will be taking place in Bilbao, Spain, from the 23rd to the 26th of July. Besides the multiple and varied activities that will be taking place at the event, Blizzard Entertainment will also be hosting activities and giving attendees the opportunity to try a demo of the up-coming StarCraft II

Additionally, there will be World of Warcraft competitions with unique prizes for the winners:

• 3 vs. 3 Arena Tournaments.
• Levelling contests: create a character and reach level 6 as fast as possible.
• Stratholme & Azjol-Nerub Speed Runs: the fastest group to complete the instance will win.

We’re pleased to announce that Blizzard Entertainment will be present at the 17th edition of the Euskal Encounter in Bilbao, Spain. Euskal Encounter is a mass LAN event for amateur and professional computing enthusiasts which will take place in the Bilbao Exhibition Centre from July 23rd to 26th.

Stay tuned for additional information about the activities that Blizzard will be hosting at the Euskal Encounter 17. We hope to see you there!

Myndflame, one of the most well-known machinima-makers, has released his latest work this past weekend: the trailer to Illegal Danish III. Take a moment to check it out. It may some somewhat familiar...

Check out Battle Report 3 now!

Welcome to this weeks' edition of the StarCraft II Q&A featuring a new part of the Map Maker special. We are looking forward to seeing a lot of creativity from map developers from around the world and here is another sneak peak on how the tool for implementation will look like.

The first Blizzard Entertainment global creative writing contest has been judged and the winning entries chosen. After poring over nearly 17 million words, our judges have decided on one grand prize winner and seven runners-up. Take a moment to enjoy the ideas and creative stories of all the winning entries.

The grand prize winner will visit the company headquarters to meet and eat with the Blizzard Entertainment creative writing staff, and will receive a Frostmourne sword. The seven runners-up will be sent signed copies of the Diablo Archive, Warcraft Archive, StarCraft Archive, and Warcraft War of the Ancients Archive.

Congratulations to the winners of our monthly StarCraft "Vespene Laughs" Comic Contests for the months of February, March, April, and May! We'd like to thank everyone who participated -- we received many hilarious and creative comics from all around the world, and picking the winners wasn't easy. Check out the previous months' European winning entries here, or take a look at the winners from USA below.

• USA

The second and final allotment of tickets for BlizzCon 2009 has now been sold out. We look forward to seeing all attendees in Anaheim, California! For those unable to attend in-person, online coverage of BlizzCon will also be offered via a DIRECTV Pay Per View event as an Internet video stream.

If you were unable to purchase BlizzCon tickets during the first round of ticket sales, we just wanted to remind you that our second batch of BlizzCon 2009 tickets will be going on sale Saturday, May 30. Ticket sales are again scheduled to begin on Saturday at 19:00 CEST, so be sure to visit the ticket sales page then for a chance to get yours.

BlizzCon 2009 will take place August 21 and 22 at the Anaheim Convention Center, and tickets cost $125 each. For those unable to attend the show, in-depth coverage of BlizzCon will also be available as a Pay Per View Internet stream. For more information about the convention and the Internet stream, check out the official BlizzCon site.

We have added a new video showing unit death animations to the Developer's Corner.

The initial allotment of tickets for BlizzCon 2009 has now been sold out. If you weren’t able to get tickets this time, you’ll have a second chance on Saturday, May 30, as another batch will go on sale then. Coverage of the gaming festival will also be offered by DIRECTV as a Pay Per View event, available both via satellite and Internet stream.

Just in case Saturday, May 16 isn’t circled on your calendar, here’s a quick reminder that BlizzCon tickets will be going on sale tomorrow. After our gnomish engineers in Southern California get to work and finish making the final preparations late Saturday morning, they’ll activate the ticket-purchase process and BlizzCon tickets will officially go on sale. If you are unable to purchase tickets tomorrow, a second batch of tickets will go on sale May 30. And for those unable to attend the show, in-depth coverage of BlizzCon will also be offered by DIRECTV as a Pay Per View event, available both via satellite and Internet stream.

BlizzCon 2009 will take place August 21 and 22 at the Anaheim Convention Center, and tickets cost $125 each. For further information about the convention, check out the official BlizzCon site, and keep an eye on the ticket sales page tomorrow for the chance to get yours.

The StarCraft II beta-test period is coming in the months ahead! If you’d like a chance to participate, now’s the time to let us know. Simply log in to your Battle.net account, and click “Beta Profile Settings” to go through the new beta opt-in process and upload a snapshot of your system specs. During this process, you’ll also have the opportunity to opt in to future betas for other Blizzard Entertainment games. Please note that even if you’ve opted in to our betas previously, you’ll need to complete this new process and upload your current system specs to have a chance to be invited.

For more information, see the FAQ -- or create a Battle.net account to opt in now. If you have an unused beta code from BlizzCon 2008 or WWI 2008, visit this site to enter your code.

Check out Battle Report 2 now!

• New World of Warcraft Feature: P1mp My Mount
• New StarCraft II Unit: Terra-tron
• Diablo III: The Archivist

If you enjoy the Blizzard Entertainment universes and have the drive to pen fantasy fiction in them, here’s your chance to shine. Whether you conjure stories in your free time or write for a living, you’re encouraged to enter and have the chance to win a free trip to Blizzard Entertainment headquarters in Southern California. This contest is open to entrants from around the world, though all submissions must be in English. For more information, head to the contest page or read the official rules.

What would you do if you could design the Blizzard Entertainment theme park of your dreams? Here's your chance to show us! Blizzard Entertainment is challenging you to design a theme park, complete with rides and attractions based on the universes of Starcraft, Warcraft, and Diablo. Submissions will be judged on design creativity, artistry, and imaginative use of the lore and spirit of Blizzard games.

Winning entries will receive prizes including StarCraft II beta keys, a chance to have their entry displayed at BlizzCon 2009, and more.

The contest closes on March 30, 2009 so don’t delay! Learn more about the fabulous prizes and the contest details at the official contest page.

We recently answered a number of questions from the community regarding StarCraft II. Check out part 47 of the Q&A, along with the StarCraft II Q&A archive in the Battle.net forums.

Congratulations to the winners of our first two monthly StarCraft "Vespene Laughs" Comic Contests for the months of September and October! We'd like to thank everyone who participated -- we received many hilarious and creative comics from all around the world, and picking the winners wasn't easy. Check out September's and October's European winning entries here, or take a look at the winners from USA below.

• USA

In the sixth epic episode of BlizzCast, we spend a day with a developer and find out what life is like for World of Warcraft Lead Tools Programmer Monte Krol. Next, we take a look at StarCraft II unit design from concept to creation with Senior Art Director Samwise Didier and Lead Game Designer Dustin Browder. In our third segment, Bashiok spends some time with Anthony Rivero, senior artist for Diablo III, and discusses “bridging the gap” in the series’ character design. Bornakk wraps the episode up by answering some questions from the community.

Listen to the show now or check out the transcript to see all the featured artwork.

The Blizzard iTunes page has been updated to include the official World of Warcraft: Wrath of the Lich King Soundtrack. The iTunes edition of the soundtrack contains a total of 21 tracks, including three exclusives -- "Path of the Lifewarden," "Shadow Web Caverns," and "Obsidian Sanctum" -- different from the three exclusive tracks found on the Collector's Edition soundtrack CD. Individual tracks are available on iTunes for 0,99 € each, or you can buy the entire album at once for 9,99 €.

Click here to check out the soundtrack on iTunes, or head to the Blizzard iTunes page for more information -- and while you're there, check out the other Blizzard musical offerings, including soundtracks to Diablo II, StarCraft, and World of Warcraft: The Burning Crusade.

We’ve recently added 10 new Blizzard Entertainment-themed mobile-phone downloads to the Mobile Ringtones and Wallpapers store, including a variety of new unit sounds from StarCraft; new wallpapers of the terran, protoss, and zerg from StarCraft II; and a chilling portrait of the Lich King Arthas Menethil from the upcoming World of Warcraft expansion. You can purchase these and more than 50 other Diablo, StarCraft, and Warcraft wallpapers and ringtones here.

We've updated the StarCraft II FAQ with new information from BlizzCon 2008, including details about the StarCraft II Trilogy and the terran single-player campaign. You can check out the FAQ here or on the official forums.

We’ve just brought our brand-new Battle.net forums online. The new forums bring a host of new features and stability, as well as helpful tools for us to better moderate and organise posts. They’re available right now -- to access them, visit: http://forums.battle.net.

The forum login requirements remain the same. In order to post you will need an account created by a Battle.net supported game and a CD-key.

If you’re still looking for some posts or information from the old forums, we’ve left them up at the original address (http://www.battle.net/forums.shtml). The old forums aren’t open for posting, but if you’d like to copy a thread or back up some information, they’ll remain available until Tuesday, October 7.

The benefits of implementing these new forums are numerous, and we hope you’re as excited as we are to see this step toward the continued growth and support of our Battle.net community.

Send us your StarCraft-themed comics and we'll choose the funniest or most interesting to be showcased on a special gallery page. Remember, we're looking for the best StarCraft humor out there. You can submit comics created in any medium, just make sure they're relevant to StarCraft II, original, and make us laugh.

For the first month, our winner will receive an 8GB Blizzard Branded iPod Nano, a copy of the StarCraft board game, a StarCraft Battle Chest, a shirt, and a copy of the StarCraft cinematics DVD. Two runners-up will also receive prize packages. See the official contest page here.

The war between the Terran, Protoss, and Zerg continues on a smaller scale with our new StarCraft-themed wallpapers and ringtones for your phone. They’re part of a new service that lets you download content related to your favorite Blizzard Entertainment games to supported mobile phones.

Over 50 pieces of content are currently available, including wallpapers of the Queen of Blades and other StarCraft characters, game logos, and more. Visit the new Mobile Ringtones and Wallpapers page for more information -- and while you’re there, be sure to check out our World of Warcraft and Diablo mobile content, too.

We have just published videos from some of the developer panels at the 2008 Worldwide Invitational. Check out our Videos page to watch Blizzard developers discuss the evolving design process behind StarCraft II, the world lore and environment of Diablo III, and the present and future of the classes in World of Warcraft.

We will be adding more panels so check back often!

The sign-ups for the StarCraft Community Tournament have now closed down. Stay tuned for the exciting qualifier round that will be held on May 24th and 25th in cooperation with GosuGamers for the privilege of competing in the finals at the Worldwide Invitational in Paris and the chance to win great prizes! All participants will receive an email with further instructions in the coming days.

At the 2008 Blizzard Entertainment Worldwide Invitational, all attendees will have the opportunity to witness some of the world’s top StarCraft, Warcraft 3 and World of Warcraft players compete in exciting matches. In addition to these professional gaming matches, community player tournaments will allow you to show your skills for fun and glory – and some amazing tournament prizes. Sign up to compete with other members of the community in Blizzard's upcoming StarCraft tournaments and use your skills to come out on top! Compete in the StarCraft: Brood War qualifiers hosted by GosuGamers to win your spot in the StarCraft: Brood War finals! Check out the Community tournaments page for more information!

• New World of Warcraft Hero Class: Bard
• New StarCraft II Unit: Tauren Marine
• World of Warcraft on a Console
• Diablo Loot Piñata
• Forums: Bears and Buckets and Walruses, Oh My!

• Check out TeamLiquid where the staff members semioldguy and Last Romantic posted their coverage in the StarCraft II TeamLiquid Coverage Part I and Part II with detailed game decriptions. If you have any questions, you can Ask LR about StarCraft II or Ask semioldguy about StarCraft II.
• On Starcraft.org you can take a Photo Tour to have a look at the Blizzard Museum and check out the Emmy that was awarded for the South Park episode. Read their article on the Swarm for more Zerg hands-on experience.
• GosuGamers takes a look at the Queen in StarCraft II and answers your questions in the Open Q&a with Raistlin. They also published an Interview with Samwise Didier. You should also take the time to see their Zerg Unit fact sheet and the Community Reaction to Zerg as well as the reactions of the ProGamers with the match-up between sAviOr and Bisu and the Pros Perspective on SC2
• sclegacy has put together a report of their "Day at Blizzard" headquarters with an insight on the campus as well as their thoughts on the Zerg and the Gameplay of StarCraft II.
• IncGamers also stopped by the Blizzard headquarters and has plenty of information for you in their Zerg coverage with the official trailers, a preview on the Zerg Queen, the Press Q&a and the general Zerg Preview covering all units.
• On the fansite Starcraft2forum Joneagle_X writes about his trip to Irvine. For more information have a look at his Q&a Thread and his model of the new redesigned Nomad!
• Last but certainly not least GameReplays also gives you an insight on their visit to Blizzard and get to test StarCraft II themselves. Check out their impressions in the StarCraft II Zerg Details & Trialer.
• More information is available on sc2blog who have a summary of everything that has been going on the past couple of days in their Blizzard's Rush: 36 hours of Zerg
• If you still thirst for more information, check out the sites sc2blog, Planet StarCraft, Blizzplanet, StarCrafttwo.com, myMYM, StarCraft II Australia, StarCraft II Player, StarCraftLive, Starcrafttwo.com and StarCraft II Zone.

• GameSpot: Hands-on - Zerg Rush, Interview with Art Director Samwise Didier (Video) & Interview with Lead Game Designer Dustin Browder (Video).
• IGN: StarCraft II Hands-On, StarCraft II Zerg First Look, Video Special: Blizzard Studio Tour, Zerg Unit and Zerg Structure list and Video Interview with Chris Sigaty as well as Zerg gameplay trailers.
• Gametrailers: Interviews with Chris Sigaty on Zerg Evolution, Comparison Interview and Recapturing the Magic - Interview with Art Director Samwise Didier
• Gamespy: StarCraft II Preview, Interview with Dustin Browder