Computer Gaming Magazine Confirms Draenei as New Alliance Race?

According to Computer Games Magazine February 2006 Issue the Draenei have been confirmed as the new Alliance race. There are some scans of the magazine (here and here) but they are a bit hard to read. For those without 20/10 vision here is the text from the article:

World of Warcraft: Burning Crusade

Developer/Publisher Blizzard Entertainment
Release Date Summer

WHY?
*You've hit that wall known as Level 60, at least once if not multiple times, as WoW has been voted "Easiest MMO to Cap Out Ever"; Blizzard's new level cap of 70 will at least give you something higher to shoot for.

*They're not just upgrading spells and skills (like Conjure Water rank 32, or Kidney Shot rank 19); they're adding brand-new ones, as well as additional tiers in the talent trees.

*The socketed item phenomenon that was sort of "coined" by Diablo will be implemented and Jewelcrafting added to the tradesperson skill set.

*Alliance players will enjoy playing as Draenei, and the new Blood Elf race gives the Horde faction its first exercise in what humans perceive as sex appeal (even though those Troll females are pretty cute).

*If you're bored with the same old continents and dungeons -- which you probably are -- Burning Crusade adds the planet of Outland, formerly Draenor, around which Level 70 characters can fly on Nether Dragon mounts.

WHY NOT?
*You can't fight on your Nether Dragon, nor use it outside of Outland, and it's slower than the current flying contingent of Griffons and Bats.

*They're not planning to add new classes at this juncture, nor will the "hero class" be ready to launch.

*Those of you who've spent the last several hundred game hours getting those epic armor sets and Arathi stuff might be disappointed that they won't be the end-all and be-all anymore.

*And will the current zones all of a sudden become deserted when people flock to the new areas? (Have you been to the n00b zones in EverQuest in the past thousand years? The NPCs are there, but they're awfully lonely.)

Of course I have saying for quite some time that the Draenei are most likely the new Alliance race, so this adds just one more log to the rumor fire. Thanks to Fozzle for this information.

Gaming Steve Episode 32 - 12.27.2005

In the last Gaming Steve of 2005 I sit down with the Vice President of Big Huge Games, Tim Train (Civilization, Master of Orion, Alpha Centauri). Big Huge Games made the excellent Rise of Nations and is hard at work on the upcoming RTS Rise of Legends.

In the interview we cover the game's unique setting, issues we both had with Alpha Centauri, how the RTS genre is evolving, playing Magic: The Gathering, how to balance a complex RTS, the very cool Rise of Legends single-player campaign, the why the director's cut of the movie Aliens really stinks. Oh yeah, and I also go over my best games of 2005. Enjoy!

Gaming Steve Episode 32 Program

• 00:03:14 GameTalk: Interview with Tim Train from Big Huge Games, the makers of the upcoming Rise of Legends.
• 01:13:41 Special Feature: The best games of 2005.
• 01:51:08 Final Thoughts on what 2006 will bring us and farewell until then!

Download the show (113 minutes): Gaming Steve Episode 32 (MP3).

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New Alliance Race Rumor Control Central

As most people know Blizzard has yet to announce the new Alliance race for their upcoming Burning Crusade expansion pack, and rumors are rampant as to what the new Alliance race is going to be and why. Could it be the Murloc? Or the very popular Pandaren? But what about the Draenei?

Well over at wowwiki.com they consolidated all of these rumors into one place along with detailed analysis on each race and their likelihood of being "the new Alliance race". A few tidbits:

• Draenei - Possible. Reasoning: Lore-based hatred of Orcs; Originally from Draenor/Outland; They share a goal similar to the Blood Elves to get to Outland which fits well with expansion.
• Ogre - Possible. Reasoning: Originally from Draenor/Outland; Ogres were touched up a bit with a few of their animations; Laughing Skull Clan allied with Alliance heroes on Draenor.
• Furbolg - Possible. Reasoning: Alliance connection; Connection to the Emerald Dream (which may be in expansion); Have had many emotes added to them along with new animations.
• High Elves - Unlikely. Reasoning: No direct connection with Outland; Extremely doubtful that a second 'elf' model would be selected; Traditional capital of Silvermoon in hands of the Blood Elves.
• Murloc - Unlikely. Reasoning: Currently at war with Alliance; Shamanistic, not Holy; No Obvious Relationship to Outland.
• Mountain Giant - Unlikely. Reasoning: Possible balance issues; Don't wear clothes; Not intelligent, no culture or civilization.
• Tuskarr - Unlikely. Reasoning: Limited lore connections to Alliance; Unlikely to appear without Northrend; No known similar models in-game.
• Centaur - Very Unlikely. Reasoning: They eat sentient races; Xenophobic to Alliance; No Obvious Relationship to Outland.
• Cenarion - Very Unlikely. Reasoning: Connection to the Emerald Dream (which may be in expansion); No Obvious Relationship to Outland; 'Forest Spirits' rather than a true race: they have none of their own architecture.
• Gnolls - Very Unlikely. Reasoning: At war with Alliance; Little evidence of civilization; No Obvious Relationship to Outland.
• Naga - Very Unlikely. Reasoning: No lore connections to Alliance; Unlikely to ally with Alliance against their Blood Elf allies.
• Nerubian - Very Unlikely. Reasoning: No lore connections to Alliance; No Obvious Relationship to Outland; Controlled by Lich King.
• Goblin - Extremely Unlikely. Reasoning: Neutral Race not likely to side with Horde or Alliance; Would require lots of lore changes; How would Neutral cities remain neutral?
• Pandaren - Mostly Debunked by Gamespy [as well as Gaming Steve!]. Reasoning: No Obvious Relationship to Outland, unless their hatred for the Blood Elves abuse of magic counts; Gamespy debunked Pandarens for this expansion pack; The Pandaren Rumor has not been verified by Blizzard.

Who do you think the new Alliance race will be? Personally I think it could be the Draenei, they're from the Outland and they fit the Blizzard rumor that the new Alliance race will be "big" and "ugly". I guess we'll all find out in a few months ... but isn't guessing and speculating more fun?

Megaman vs Ghosts 'n' Goblins?

I just love crazy crossovers. Without crossovers we wouldn't have DC Versus Marvel, Interleague Play, or Battle of the Network Stars ... crossovers are just fun!

And if you're also a fan of crossovers you'll enjoy these gaming gems. It seems that "Staticreator" has a thing for remixing Megaman into different game worlds and then turning them into Flash games. So far he has two games completed and both are pretty fun. Megaman vs Ghosts 'n' Goblins is ... well ... Megaman in the world of Ghosts 'n' Goblins, and just like the original Ghosts 'n' Goblins it's pretty damn hard (but fun).

His other game is Megaman vs Metroid which is Megaman in the world of Samus Aran. Both are very well done and something I would love to see done for popular licensed properties. Metroid vs Solid Snake? GTA vs Mario? Pokemon vs Doom? The mind boggles.

Gaming Steve Episode 31 - 12.19.2005

Happy Holidays everyone! And as my gift to you I give you the biggest damn show I have ever done! Enjoy!

Gaming Steve Episode 31 Program

• 00:05:28 Game News:
• IGF nominees announced.
• EverQuest goes Titanium.
• Working Designs closes up shop.
• Midway closes Aussie and San Diego studios.
• Xbox 360 fails to impress Japan.
• November game sales down 18 percent.
• Activision warns of "significantly lower" earnings.
• NCsoft and Marvel make nice.
• Jamdat investor sues to stop EA purchase.
• Wik swings onto Xbox Live Arcade.
• Civil suit in Alabama goes forward.
• eBayer pays big bucks for photo of Xbox 360.
• 00:47:53 GameTalk: Are we heading towards another video game crash?
• 01:17:07 SporeTalk: A look at my second exclusive Spore artwork and I answer some questions.
• 01:27:30 Game Review: Mario & Luigi: Partners in Time for the Nintendo DS.
• 01:37:47 Game Review: Shadow of the Colossus for the PlayStation 2.
• 01:47:07 RetroReview: Hercules for the arcade.
• 01:52:19 “Name That Game!” contest winner from last week, a new clip, and a mystery prize!
• 01:56:09 Show Mail: I answer your audio and email questions.
• 02:37:42 Final Thoughts on the new T-Shirt designs and the new Gaming Steve Spore website.

Download the show (164 minutes): Gaming Steve Episode 31 (MP3).

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Advance Wars Circa 1991

Turn-based tactical combat fans are a "special" sort of gamer. You are the type of person who just loves Advance Wars, Fire Emblem, Tactics Ogre, Disgaea, and the impossibly-long PS1 Final Fantasy Tactics (has anyone finished this game?). You can pore over the smallest character stats for hours, carefully planning each of your characters development so that they're maximized to the point of perfection. You are the hardest of the hardcore tactical gamer, and you know who you are.

I myself used to be one of these gamers, but with less free time and a biggest selection of quality titles these sorts of games don't quite suck me in like they used to. However of all the turn-based RPSs I have played over the years my absolute favorite is the virtually unknown Warsong for the Sega Genesis. I was always upset that Warsong came and went as I thought it could have made an excellent series if given a chance.

Well, it turns out that Warsong did indeed continue to live a long and prosperous life, just not in the US. Named Lungrisser in Japan it was a massive success and went on to spawn multiple sequels across multiple formats. What made me think of this obscure game? Game import site NTSC-UK recently put up a feature detailing the history of Lungrisser/Warsong. Also make sure to check out Hardcore Gaming 101's excellent synopsis of the Langrisser/Warsong series.

Definitely check out those articles and if you're really adventurous give Warsong a try (if you can find it). Of course the years haven't been kind to this game and most modern games of this genre play better ... but I don't care and I still love this game. Maybe because when it first came out almost fifteen years ago it was one of the only turn-based RPG on the market (the other being the excellent Military Madness for the TurboGrafx-16) so I didn't really have much of a choice back then to scratch my tactical combat itch. So give Warsong a try and witness the great-grandfather of all turn-based tactical combat games.

EVE Online Starting to Look Intriguing

In less than 24 hours I have read about half a dozen stories about the MMO EVE Online and I have to say that this game is starting to pique my interest. First, they have a 14-day free trial, which is always a good thing.

Second, there is the amazing story of how a small "corporation" (AKA player guild) spent months infiltrating another corporation all the way up to the highest levels. And once all operatives were in place, the spy corporation assassinated the leader of the target corporation, stole their extremely rare and valuable spaceships, and then completely liquidated the assets of the target corporation which were valued at around $16,500 in real dollars.

Third, they just released their second huge free expansion pack for the game, which is always a good sign -- it's important to see that the developer is continuously updating and improving their game.

And finally, the next expansion will allow you to own and fly some ridiculously large ships. And when I mean ridiculously large I mean like Super Star Destroyer large. That is just too freaking cool (look at the EVE picture carefully and you'll see the Eiffel tower in the bottom left corner for size comparison).

World of Warcraft Alliance Race Revealed?

This image has been floating around the web and the World of Warcraft forums and it appears that the Murloc might be the new playable Alliance race for The Burning Crusade expansion pack. Of course, who knows if this image is real or fake, and I was hunting around the Korean World of Warcraft web site to find out more, but I couldn't find The Burning Crusade page. UPDATE: It appears that this screenshot was taken from this section of the Korean WOW site, so it appears that this image is probably fake.

Just my two cents, I believe that this image could indeed be "correct", even if the image is fake, as I strongly believe that the new Alliance race be an "ugly" race in order to counterbalance the huge number of Alliance players. I have said this before in both my podcast and this site that the new Alliance race will be an "ugly" race, so the Murloc are as good as any to fill this role. What do you think the new Alliance race will be?

Build a MAME Cabinet in 24 Hours

Ever wanted to have your very own arcade cabinet? Well those of you with some wordworking/electronic skills can do like Chris and build your own game cabinet ... in just 24 hours!

Okay, perhaps not 24 hours, although Chris oulines in great detail how we was able to create his cabinet in 24 hours -- after several months of planning. Chris writes:

Okay, so now I've got your attention - it's true - the cabinet construction was completed in 24 hours, but it took about three months to get around to the last few bits (like decorating the unit), so don't complain if after one day you don't get something that looks like the unit on the left!

Please browse through the links at the top and bottom of each page. They will cover the construction diary (in blow-by-blow detail), the finishing of the unit together with a shopping list, prices and then information on the PC inside the unit. Finally you will be able to download some plans we created after building the device, together with some of the graphics that are on the unit.

Very cool.

Radio Controlled Mario Kart Cars

Can't get enough Mario Kart in your life? Or do you need a really cool present for a huge Nintendo fan? Well now you can recreate the Mario Kart experience at home with these very cool radio controlled Mario Kart cars.

The "MarioKart Advance Mario Bit Char-G Full Function" model is perfect for desktop races as the car is small enough to fit into your hand. The package comes with either Mario or Yoshi as well as five plastic banana peals, two shells, a mushroom, and R/C remote.

The other model, the "Large Turbo Model", is over a foot high and comes with a very cool GameCube R/C controller. There are no bonus items included with this set, but the cars can say "Mario Karty-things" like "mama mia" or "lets go". This model is definitely suited for those outdoor races as it handles like a standard R/C car, and you can select from Mario, Yoshi, or Donkey Kong.

If you are lucky enough to live near Manhattan New York you can pick up the Char-G cars at the Nintendo World store at Rockefeller Center. But for everyone else I would suggest the awesome import store lik-sang.com which has no shortage of very cool video game-related toys.

Needlepoint and Video Games?

Want to hear two phrases that I don't think I have ever heard used together? Needlepoint and video games. No, I'm not talking about a video game based on needle pointing (now that would be a crazy game). I'm talking about creating needlepoints of video games; or rather I'm talking about creating "plastic canvas" video games.

For those unfamiliar with plastic canvas needlepoint it’s a simple technique that is often used to teach beginners how to needlepoint. Instead of using cloth you use a rigid plastic canvas (the large holes allow for simple stitching) and it’s extremely easy to copy a detailed pattern onto the plastic canvas. Also due to its rigidity plastic canvases can be used for creating strong structural objects, such as tissue box covers, handbags, small jewelry boxes, as well as other decorative objects. In fact, I am comfortable enough with my manhood to publicly state that I used to perform plastic canvas needlepoint as a kid and I really enjoyed it!

Well it might be time to break out the needle and thread because I stumbled upon some crazy cool plastic canvas video game patterns for sale on eBay. The seller, "plasticcanvascreations", sells five patterns in total: an upright Pac-man cabinet, a cocktail table Donkey Kong (very cool), an old-fashioned claw machine, a Fireball pinball machine, and a pool table with a removable top. Each pattern can be bought for a mere $3, but you will need to stitch and assemble each item yourself, but that cocktail table Donkey Kong cabinet is just too damn cool. I definitely need to get myself one of those.

Of course your friends will probably make fun of you for doing needlepoint and making these things … and then secretly ask you to make them one I’m sure.

Gaming Steve Episode 30 - 12.10.2005

I'm back from vacation with a monster episode and a little bit of everything. Exclusive Spore design artwork (with more to come!), I take answer your questions, I review the 360 and more!

Gaming Steve Episode 30 Program

• 00:02:35 Game News:
• Xbox 360 has rocky start at retail.
• Revolution to be unveiled in May.
• Ten most violent games named.
• Stainless Steel Studios and Digital Anvil are melted down.
• Xbox 360 lands across the pond.
• Defective 360s? Here comes the lawsuits.
• Illinois game laws overturned.
• ESRB fails the grade.
• EA swallows Jamdat.
• Clinton introducing federal game regulation.
• 00:36:00 GameTalk: The end of games as we know it?
• 00:56:27 SporeTalk: A look at my exclusive Spore artwork and the evolution of design.
• 01:04:43 Game Review: The Xbox 360 system.
• 01:33:42 RetroReview: Coleco Telstar systems.
• 01:43:31 “Name That Game!” contest winner from last week, a new clip, and a mystery prize!
• 01:47:52 Show Mail: I answer your audio questions.
• 02:09:22 Final Thoughts on the T-Shirt design contest and playing games while on vacation.

Download the show (135 minutes): Gaming Steve Episode 30 (MP3).

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Nintendo DS Port of Dragon's Lair

As many people who regularly read this site probably know that Dragon’s Lair is one of my favorite games of all time. I would really love to replay this game every so often, but good luck trying to find this game in your local arcade (yeah, right) and a PC or console version of the original has never been released. Of course you can buy the game as a DVD and play it on your DVD player or console system, but using a crappy DVD controller just doesn’t cut it in my opinion. Plus, your average DVD player responses aren’t nearly fast enough to simulate the arcade game.

I was recently thinking/hoping that someone would port Dragon's Lair onto the PSP as the large screen and excellent controls would probably make for a near perfect port. I have yet to find a homebrew version of Dragon's Lair for the PSP but I was moderately stunned to find that someone is working on a Nintendo DS port of Dragon's Lair. I would have never even thought of porting this game onto the DS, but in retrospect there is no reason not to think that the DS could do as good of a job as the PSP.

So far they only have the first four levels complete and you'll need to use Neoflash in order for it to work on your DS, but the concept is fantastic and I'd definitely go to any length to get a portable version of Dragon's Lair. I just hope that they finish the entire game ... now someone get working on Space Ace!

World of Warcraft: The Board Game Now Shipping

I just got off the phone with the guys at Fantasy Flight games and they have confirmed that the highly anticipated World of Warcraft: The Board Game is now shipping and should arrive in stores as early as this Friday.

For those unfamiliar with Fantasy Flight they released the extremely popular Doom: The Boardgame last year and make some of highest quality boardgames around. The WOW Boardgame looks to impress check out these stats:

• Play as one of 16 heroes from nine classes and eight races, advance your character and gather treasure, battle thirteen different types of monsters, and ultimately challenge one of three invincible Overlords.


• Build your character up from level 1 up to level 5 (the equivalent to level 60 in the online game) all the while increasing your character's stats, abilities, talents, and equipment.


• The game box weights more than 10 pounds(!) and contains nearly 1000 components including 16 sculpted Heroes of the Horde and the Alliance, 120 plastic monsters, and hundreds upon hundreds of cards and cardboard tokens.

Considering the impressive size (did I mention the box weights 10 pounds?) and scope of this game (games are reported to take 3-9 hours to play) I would say that it comes pretty close to convening the MMORPG experience in board game form. The game can be played by 2-6 people and retails for $79.95 ... anyone up for a game?

Xbox 360 Degrees!

Remember all those Xbox 360s Microsoft gave away to celebrities just because, you know, they're cool? Weren't you secretly thinking that after the 360 photo shoot that they just threw it into the closet (or the dumpster?) never to use it again? Well a fake blog which attempts to impersonate Madonna claims that she not only got a free 360, but she tried to play it, without success, and then promptly threw it out! From her "personal" blog:

I received my FREE Xbox 360 yesterday! Too bad though. The thing over-heated and doesn't work. I was going to play a game with my friends in Japan, but it crashed on us. The power supply on this device is HUGE! At least I know why they called it the Xbox 360 and not the Xbox 2. The damn thing gets up to about 360 DEGREES!!!! It's frightening!

Oh well. My Xbox 360 is in a Japanese dumpster. I just don't have time to fool with getting it replaced. I'm not much into TV or video games anyways. My children aren't allowed to play them either. I guess they were dumb to give me one knowing that I don't really have any use for them. I know they gave them to other celebrities as well. Paris Hilton got one. Barf. That's even more reason to trash the glitchy console!

By the way, you realize that this blog is totally fake, right? Still amusing though.

The 1982 Atari Club Christmas Catalog

Can't find an Xbox 360 for the holidays this year? Seventy dollar "special edition" games getting you down? Well let's go back in time to a simpler time in video game history ... back to 1982 when the Atari 2600 ruled supreme!

This 8-page catalog of gaming goodness was bundled inside the September/October 1982 edition of Atari Age Magazine and features some rather odd gift choices. An Atari plastic inflatable kite? An Atari space telescope? An Atari "Super Sports Wallet"? Err ... okay, if you say so.

But check out page four of the catalog which has some "choice" items. A Breakout cap and scarf! The "official" Berzerk T-shirt! An Atari duffel bag! Damn, I wonder if that 1-800 number still works?

Check out the entire catalog after the jump.

Gaming Steve Episode 29 - 12.05.2005

In this special Gaming Steve episode I sit down with Scott Brown and Ryan Seabury from NetDevil, the makers of the upcoming Auto Assault. In the interview we cover the game's setting, the three player races, the character creation process, new features in the public Beta, the crafting, the weapons, the cars, and the oh-so-much-fun mindless destruction. Enjoy!

Gaming Steve Episode 29 Program

• 00:07:04 GameTalk: Interview with Scott Brown and Ryan Seabury from NetDevil, the makers of the upcoming Auto Assault.
• 00:28:52 Show Mail: I answer your gaming questions.
• 00:45:04 Final Thoughts on developing games in chilly Colorado.

Download the show (48 minutes): Gaming Steve Episode 29 (MP3).

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Favorite Video Game of All Time Comment Winners

And we're back to a normally scheduled program! Sorry about that little break last week, but it looks like last week was pretty quiet in the gaming world and I had a much needed vacation. And I have a ton of fun stuff planed for the next few weeks! Lots of podcasts, lots of industry interviews (check back later today for my interview with the guys from NetDevil), and lots of general gaming goodness!

Of course you are probably interested in the results from my little contest from last week. Quick recap: all you had to do was leave a comment stating your favorite video game of all time and why, and then I would randomly select three people who would win one of three amazing prizes!

I have to say that not only were the comments really fantastic but I was genuinely shocked by some of the choices in there. Of course there were a lot of "popular" games like Zelda and Half-Life in there, but I was really surprised to see games like Bruce Lee, Deathtrack, Capitalism Plus, River City Ransom, Codename: Eagle, and Faxanadu. Really surprising choices in there, definitely check it out if you haven't read the entire list already.

Anyhow onto the prizes and the winners!

The third-place winner, who will get an Auto Assault Pre-order CD, who loves to play Master of Orion 2 more than life itself is ... Psilontech!

The second-place winner, who will get a Half Life 2 T-shirt, who can't get enough Total Annihilation is ... Flayum!

And the first-place winner, who will get the freaking huge City of Villains Deluxe Edition for the PC, who went with the bold choice of River City Ransom for the NES is ... Supernoc!

Congratulations to all the winners! I will send you an email to get your information so you can get your prizes (you can also send me an email to get the ball rolling). Oh yeah, and what is my favorite video game of all time? Well, I don't really have one single favorite (I have one for each platform and for different times of my life) but I might just have to say Dragon's Lair for the arcade. Yeah, you can argue that it's not a "true" video game in many regards, but I still love it all the same. I never ever got bored of playing it and getting through that game with dying once was always a challenge. And it was the only video game that people would actually pay me to finish the game just so that they could see the entire game from start to finish. Ah ... good times! Congrats again to all the winners!