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Blizzard Watch posts

Blizzard Watch Podcast Uncut: Episode 209

Hi there, Patrons! Here's this week's pre-show and episode of the Blizzard Watch podcast, uncut. If you'd like to download to your favorite device and listen to it later, you can head...

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Online gaming has always been a real place

Online gaming has always been a real place

By Matthew Rossi

One of the statements we see from time to time is the notion that the internet and by extension online spaces where people congregate and socialize are somehow less valid because they're not "real." We see it in numerous flavors and forms, from people bemoaning tha...

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Blizzard Watch Podcast Uncut: Episode 208

Hi there, Patrons! Here's this week's pre-show and episode of the Blizzard Watch podcast, uncut. If you'd like to download to your favorite device and listen to it later, you can head...

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Kirigi, Chosen of Cenarius

Kirigi, Chosen of Cenarius

By Matthew Rossi

This character profile has been written for Kirigi, one of our supporters. If you enjoy it, you can check out the other profiles we’ve written, too! View Post

Lore Watch Episode 95: But you cannot kill hope

Lore Watch Episode 95: But you cannot kill hope

This week our Lore Watchers Anne, Matt, and Joe jump into the mailbag to answer your questions and end up in some lengthy discussions – but when do they not? On the topic list this episode are Bolvar/The Lich King and his current motivations and plans, Lilian Voss and her place in the Horde, an...

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Blizzard Watch Podcast Uncut: Episode 207

Hi there, Patrons! Here's this week's pre-show and episode of the Blizzard Watch podcast, uncut. If you'd like to download to your favorite device and listen to it later, you can head...

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Gold sinks aren't to remove gold, they're to keep people playing

Gold sinks aren't to remove gold, they're to keep people playing

Gold sinks have always been a thing in WoW, mostly for the prestige of having something rare. After Warlords of Draenor, when many players used a bevy of alts and the Garrison Mission T...

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The toxic rot at the heart of gaming, and why we must resist it

The toxic rot at the heart of gaming, and why we must resist it

By Matthew Rossi

Why do we play games?

There’s no singular answer to this question. The answers vary as much as do the kinds of games we play and the variety of people who play them. I play games to entertain and distract myself, especially when I’m anxious or afraid. But...

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Blizzard Watch Podcast Uncut: Episode 206

Hi there, Patrons! Here's this week's pre-show and episode of the Blizzard Watch podcast, uncut. If you'd like to download to your favorite device and listen to it later, you can head...

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Lore Watch Episode 94: Kaja’mite, Saronite….Azerite?

Lore Watch Episode 94: Kaja’mite, Saronite….Azerite?

This week our Lore Watchers Anne, Matt, and Joe take on your reader emails and dive into a lengthy discussion about the properties and similarities between a goblin’s favorite beverage and the blood of the planet, the past and future of the dragonflights, the whereabouts and origins of Helya, a...

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Blizzard Watch Podcast Uncut: Episode 205

Hi there, Patrons! Here's this week's pre-show and episode of the Blizzard Watch podcast, uncut. If you'd like to download to your favorite device and listen to it later, you can head...

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Blizzard shouldn't nerf PVP mana regen when the real issue is healing from non-healers

Blizzard shouldn't nerf PVP mana regen when the real issue is healing from non-healers

By Michael Mitchell

Last week, Blizzard's World of Warcraft hotfix notes made a pretty big change to 2019-02-18 22:32:41 +0000 UTC View Post

Blizzard Watch Podcast Uncut: Episode 204

Hi there, Patrons! Here's this week's pre-show and episode of the Blizzard Watch podcast, uncut. If you'd like to download to your favorite device and listen to it later, you can head...

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Lore Watch Episode 93: At the hour of her third death

Lore Watch Episode 93: At the hour of her third death

This week our Lore Watchers Anne, Matt, and Joe jump into the mailbag and take a closer look at the Old Gods and everything that’s been going on in Battle for Azeroth so far. What exactly is Azerite? Are we planning on pulling that giant sword out of Silithus eventually? Exactly who is being re...

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Blizzard Watch Podcast Uncut: Episode 203

Hi there, Patrons! Here's this week's pre-show and episode of the Blizzard Watch podcast, uncut. If you'd like to download to your favorite device and listen to it later, you can head...

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Blizzard Watch Podcast Uncut: Episode 202

Hi there, Patrons! Here's this week's pre-show and episode of the Blizzard Watch podcast, uncut. If you'd like to download to your favorite device and listen to it later, you can head...

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Blizzard Watch Podcast Uncut: Episode 201

Hi there, Patrons! Here's this week's pre-show and episode of the Blizzard Watch podcast, uncut. If you'd like to download to your favorite device and listen to it later, you can head...

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Lore Watch Episode 92: Which came first, the Karazhan or the Medivh?

Lore Watch Episode 92: Which came first, the Karazhan or the Medivh?

This week our Lore Watchers Anne, Matt, and Joe dig into your reader emails and discuss some interesting theories. Who (or what) is living in the Lich King’s hat? What was Antorus really for? Where – or maybe more accurately – when is Medivh? It’s a dizzying dive into time travel...

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Blizzard Watch Podcast Uncut: Episode 200

Hi there, Patrons! Here's this week's pre-show and episode of the Blizzard Watch podcast, uncut. If you'd like to download to your favorite device and listen to it later, you can head...

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Character Profile: Bluella, Death’s Engineer

Character Profile: Bluella, Death’s Engineer

By Matthew Rossi

This character profile has been written for Bluella, one of our supporters. If you enjoy it, you can check out the other profiles we’ve written, too View Post

Lore Watch Episode 91: Maybe we should just throw out that whole cosmology chart thing

Lore Watch Episode 91: Maybe we should just throw out that whole cosmology chart thing

This week our Lore Watchers Anne, Matt, and Joe take a look at some reader emails, and inevitably go off on a bunch of different tangents – would you expect anything less? Subjects include Sylvanas and her many deals, the motivation and ultimate goals of the val’kyr, the nature of life and de...

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Blizzard Watch Podcast Uncut: Episode 199

Hi there, Patrons! Here's this week's pre-show and episode of the Blizzard Watch podcast, uncut. If you'd like to download to your favorite device and listen to it later, you can head...

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Blizzard Watch Podcast Uncut: Episode 198

Hi there, Patrons! Here's this week's pre-show and episode of the Blizzard Watch podcast, uncut. If you'd like to download to your favorite device and listen to it later, you can head...

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Lore Watch Episode 90: The lore and continuing mysteries of patch 8.1

Lore Watch Episode 90: The lore and continuing mysteries of patch 8.1

This week our Lore Watchers Anne, Matt, and Joe jump right into a discussion about the lore surrounding patch 8.1. What does Tyrande’s embrace of the Night Warrior aspect of Elune mean for her future? What do Sylvanas’ actions say about her ongoing plans for the Horde? Is the Saurfang/Sylvana...

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Blizzard Watch Podcast Uncut: Episode 197

Hi there, Patrons! Here's this week's pre-show and episode of the Blizzard Watch podcast, uncut. If you'd like to download to your favorite device and listen to it later, you can head...

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The challenge of narrative design in MMOs — and why you can hate good writing

The challenge of narrative design in MMOs — and why you can hate good writing

By Matthew Rossi

Writing a large MMO like World of Warcraft is a collaborative exercise that exists in a format unlike any other. Movies are collaborative, but generally have a designed and engineered stop point -- even with the advent of cinematic universes, there's always a sen...

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Blizzard Watch Podcast Uncut: Episode 196

Hi there, Patrons! Here's this week's pre-show and episode of the Blizzard Watch podcast, uncut. If you'd like to download to your favorite device and listen to it later, you can head ov...

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You won't get Classic WoW rewards in retail WoW, and that's the way it should be

You won't get Classic WoW rewards in retail WoW, and that's the way it should be

By Anne Stickney

I like to think I got a lot accomplished back in vanilla WoW. I was in a top-end raid guild during the days of Molten Core and Blackwing Lair. I witnessed (and subsequently disconnected from) the opening of the Gates of Ahn'Qiraj, after months of effort. I went o...

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Lore Watch Episode 89: Tauren motivations and Windrunner’s ultimate plan

Lore Watch Episode 89: Tauren motivations and Windrunner’s ultimate plan

This week our Lore Watchers Anne, Matt, and Joe dive into the mailbag to answer your questions. On the table for discussion are some more musings about the Light, the Void, and the nature of undeath, as well as a deeper look into one Baine Bloodhoof and his choice to stick with the Horde. The episod...

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Nostalgia, WoW Classic, and the perils of moving backwards

Nostalgia, WoW Classic, and the perils of moving backwards

If you play a Hunter, Battle for Azeroth has been a mixed bag as expansions go. Yes, we're getting a host of new tameable pets and Marksman is getting buffed in 8.1, but to me the change that made my Hunter almost unplayable was the change to pet families. In Legion, any ...

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