To all of you who are getting all hot in the pants at the prospect of the new World of Warcraft expansion, you're in luck. Blizzard announced on Thursday that invites for the "Wrath of the Lich King" beta were being sent out, and the servers prepped for the onslaught of people wanting to appease their addiction. From what we've heard the invites are being sent out randomly, but I'm guessing a handful of guilds are getting in on the action.

Now, I just have to ask. Why the fuck would someone wanted to participate in a beta for an MMO? We all know that beta characters get wiped, items get taken away, and like the slutty girl in high school, you're ultimately tossed aside for something better. I realize that there is a ton of testing that needs to get done, but I don't understand why people would want to sacrifice so much of their time into something that will net them absolutely nothing.

I'm sure all the WoW players reading this right now are foaming at the mouth and screaming "WHAT ABouT KNOWING EXACTLY WHAT TO DO WHEN THE RETAIL VERSION COMES OUT!!!" Yeah, you could offer that as an incentive to bust your ass in the beta, but doesn't that ultimately ruin the experience when it does hit shelves? I knew a couple of people that spent nearly 100 hours testing out "The Burning Crusade" expansion, and every single one of them came to regret it. It made playing the retail version almost seem like a chore, and it only took about two weeks for them to uninstall the game, and post in the forums how they uninstalled the game. Sure, they came back about a week later after realizing real life fucken sucks, but still, it made their expansion experience pretty horrible.

While I commend the people that do actually go into the beta to find bugs, I also realize that there is only about 5% of the player population that really give a fuck about that. Most people that play WOW are more concerned with their personal player growth, and will just use the beta to ensure some advantage when it launches. If WoW wasn't such a pissing contest of retarded proportions I would totally condone beta participation, but we all know exactly how this is going to end. The intensely hardcore players are going to study the thing inside out, level to 80 in about 11 hours, and then cry like babies about how Blizzard has shitty content. It happens every single time, and it will happen again.

Kim Fidler
InternetPopular.com

Let's face it. 2006 was the last time E3 was truly any fun. Yes, it got a little taxing as a game reviewer trying to get impressions on all your assigned titles, but it was fun. You walked around the absolutely packed Los Angeles Convention Centre, watching kids getting all excited about the Nintendo Wii, and even though you hated the 1 hour lines to try it, a small part of you felt like those kids. It was a spectacle, and while it may have gotten a little too big, that doesn't mean that it was the wrong direction to take with the event.

Today, Ryan Kim from the San Francisco Chronicle published a story about several industry execs wanting to bring the old E3 back from the dead. Bring back the booth babes, re-introduce the oversized statues of Master Chief, and throw some of the best parties the gaming press will ever experience. While many companies did spend over $10 million on their booths, in some way it was totally worth it. It created that flash that this industry strives on and actually made the event feel like something other than a glorified preview copy of a game you just flew halfway across the country to play.

Within Kim's article there are several comments from some of the gaming industries biggest names. Our good buddy John Riccitiello from over at EA had the following to say. "I hate E3 like this" and "Either we need to go back to the old E3, or we'll have to have our own private events." For anyone who saw EA's press conference, you'll totally understand where JR is coming from. It was so tight and charismatic that for a brief second you almost felt like you were at the old E3. They brought out some big names, they showed some great games, and they made a pretty big announcement with the "id software" partnership. They were trying.

Laurent Detoc, the president of Ubisoft NA came right out and said it. "E3 this year is terrible." We were all thinking it, many people said it, but it's totally different when someone at Detoc's level just outright proclaims it. He also stated "The world used to come to E3. Now it's like pipe-fitters show in the basement." We have no clue what the pipefitter thing means, but we do understand the "The world use to come to E3" comment. It's true. At one time you had people actually making the trek from Europe, from Asia, from everywhere to take part in E3. Now, why bother? Yeah you can try out some games, but the payoff just doesn't seem to exist anymore.

While I don't think E3 should get as massive as it was back in 2005 (record setting 70,000 people through the door), I think some adjustments are definitely in order. Bring back the real events and get people excited over hitting the show floor again. Move the show back to a weekend in May. It fit into everyone's schedule, and LA is way too hot in July to be rubbing up against stinky fat guys all day. Lastly, and I absolutely hate to say it, but bring back the public. I know many people won't agree with this, but I think that the more people that are excited about the industry, the better. I know of several people that never followed gaming news, went to E3, experienced the glitz of the gaming industry (no matter how manufactured it was), and started to care about what was going on in it.

So. Where do we go from here? I think there really is only two different paths the ESA can take, and that is either, bring back the old E3 or abolish the show all together. Many companies have stated that they would hold their own events, but is that really good for the industry as a whole? What we have personally loved about E3 is the fact that there are some companies who might not have the money to spend on a lavish booth, but with the show they actually have an outlet to showcase their games. No matter how small the booth, someone, somewhere will stumble in there and get the word out about their title. Take that away and it really does hurt the smaller companies trying to get the word out.

Kim Fidler

Something happened in the last several years. Something that will totally change the way the industry designs and develops games in order to appease the gamers. I'm not talking about the new breed of gamers that think playing "Wii Sports" automatically entitles them to the title. I'm talking about all of us that were there during the Golden Age of gaming. The Super Nintendo/Sega Genesis years. The Arcade years. Even the PSX years. The real gamers that follow the industry and know the names of the actual developers. Something changed to appease us.

In the shadow of the Wii selling a billion units, and Carnival Games being played at family reunions, stands a rabid audience. We are that audience. We're longing for something that brings us back to the days of standing in the arcade waiting for our turn to play Street Fighter II. Waiting to get beat down by that kid that actually knew how to throw fireballs and Dragon Punches. Every single one of us is just waiting for that title to just bring us back to simpler times (Could I be more cliche'?).

Well, it looks like there is a company looking out for us.

This week at E3, Capcom absolutely dominated the competition and took a stand for every real gamer in attendance. Yes, their press conference about the Lost Planet movie was a pretty stupid move, but their booth was a totally different story. They showed off both Bionic Commandos, the retro-tastic Mega Man 9, Super Street Fighter II Turbo HD Remix, Resident Evil 5, and above all else, Street Fighter IV. All games made for the hardcore gamer, all games that I will willingly pay money for.

Street Fighter IV is what really opened my eyes to the direction Capcom has decided to take in this very casual-friendly gaming world. They're not catering to people and making the game easier, they're catering to those that love Street Fighter and making the game impossible to put down. With extensive combo mechanics and a "learn to play" attitude, Street Fighter IV is well on it's way to being a game that will not only satisfy core gamers, but could also signify a change in the direction of the industry as a whole. Yes, it's just a 2D fighter, but why would a company release a 2D fighter in this gaming environment if not to send a message?

Maybe I'm being a little too optimistic, but I really do think that people are going to look back at this E3 and realize that Capcom was one of the only companies willing to go against the norm. They rewarded fans of their blog by inviting them to check out their booth (1up.com), they took a chance and made Megaman 9 one of the most retro new games in years, and most of all, they didn't disappoint.

Well, except for that press conference anyways.



Kim Fidler
InternetPopular.com

John Riccitiello from EA let it drop today that the new Knights of the Old Republic game will in fact be an MMO, delivered straight from Bioware. Riccitiello told Portfolio the following:

"We've got two of the most compelling MMOs in the industry in development," said Riccitiello. The first title, based on the Warhammer property, will launch soon. "And the one that people are dying for us to talk to them about -- in partnership with Lucas, coming out of BioWare, which is, I think, quite possibly the most anticipated game, full stop, for the industry at the point when we get closer to telling you about it."

It's been rumored for quite some time now, and finally we've got confirmation. Will this be the MMO that actually manages to topple Blizzard's juggernaut, "World of Warcraft?" Probably not, but with Bioware's talent, and EA's marketing, I could see them definitely making a dent in it.

EA to Play in Knights of the Old Republic - Portfolio

Kim Fidler
InternetPopular.com

Ubisoft officially blew everyone away today when they showed the debut trailer for "I Am Alive." It was rumored that Assassin's Creed producer Jade Raymond was working on the title last week, but no one really knew what it was.

At the Ubisoft press conference this afternoon they showed off the first media of the game, and this has quickly become one of the best things shown at E3. While no information was released on it, Yves Guillemot, CEO of Ubisoft, promises a brand new experience that will challenge players to make life-changing decisions.

The basic premise of the story revolves around a natural disaster destroying Chicago, and one man's fight to survive.

Strangely, it wasn't revealed if Jade Raymond was in fact tied to the project. We'll keep you posted.



Kim Fidler
InternetPopular.com