BlizzCon 2007: It's a Wrap - 8/6/2007

The sights, sounds, impressions, and overall experiences resonating throughout the halls of the Anaheim Convention Center the past two days combined to create an event of tremendous excitement, camaraderie, and fun for the BlizzCon attendees, including all of us at Blizzard. Between the entertaining and informative developer panels, the chance to play StarCraft II and the newly announced Wrath of the Lich King expansion, the fast-paced tournament gaming, the imaginative live contest entrants, and the closing-night performances, BlizzCon 2007 proved to be an all-around good time for any Blizzard-gaming enthusiast.

We thank everyone who contributed to the festive atmosphere at BlizzCon 2007. Thanks to Jay Mohr, Video Games Live, and Level 70 Elite Tauren Chieftain for closing the show with style on Saturday night. Thanks also to our many partners and sponsors for helping us put this massive undertaking together. Most of all, thanks to the dedicated gamers whose ongoing support made it all happen in the first place.

Stay tuned for more content from the show floor coming your way on www.blizzcon.com, including contest results, additional pictures, and more!

BlizzCon 2007: Watch the Opening Ceremony - 8/4/2007

Blizzard's president Mike Morhaime was among those who officially kicked things off yesterday for those in attendance in a live opening ceremony. Among the highlights: the official announcement of World of Warcraft's next expansion, Wrath of the Lich King! If you couldn't make it in person, you can watch the video of the opening ceremony now.

BlizzCon: Day Two - 8/4/2007

The last day of BlizzCon is coming to a close, but it's been a great day. Enthusiasm and excitement permeated the Anaheim Convention Center as the attendees filed in this morning, eager to get to any exhibits they might have missed yesterday. Huge crowds amassed in the StarCraft II and Wrath of the Lich King hands-on gaming areas. Others flocked to the jousting pit to do a little real-life PvP or to the Elekk ring to try their hand at staying on the back of the mechanical Elekk.

The developer-discussion panels were again one of the big highlights of day two. Players took advantage of these opportunities to learn more about nearly every aspect of World of Warcraft and StarCraft II, as well as to have their questions answered by members of the different teams at Blizzard. At the World of Warcraft Items and Professions panel, the development team discussed their plans for the Inscription profession and for professions in Wrath of the Lich King in general, which generated a fair amount of applause from the crowd. At the Warcraft Movie panel, representatives from both Blizzard and Legendary Pictures provided some information concerning the moviemaking process and the challenges of bringing the Warcraft game universe to the big screen... and at the end, the audience was treated to a piece of movie-storyboard art depicting Teldrassil.

Throughout the day, players could also explore the World of Warcraft Trading Card Game, not only in a dedicated discussion panel, but in a variety of demos and tournaments. Veteran TCG players offered advice on deck building and general strategies, while tournament winners walked away with prizes ranging from TCG booster packs to brand-new console gaming systems. Speaking of tournaments, the Warcraft III, World of Warcraft, and StarCraft tournaments all wrapped up today, and you can keep an eye out for the latest results on our BlizzCon tournament-bracket pages. With all of these events drawing to an end, attendees retired to their rooms to prepare for tonight's closing celebration featuring Jay Mohr, Level 70 Elite Tauren Chieftain, and Video Games Live.

Blizzard players have come from all over the world to attend BlizzCon, and with so many together in one place, the atmosphere here has been beyond words. Though many have just met each other for the first time in person this weekend, their common passion for gaming has offered a basis for lasting friendships.

BlizzCon: Day One - 8/3/2007

The first day of BlizzCon is reaching its end, and what a day it was. It's hard to put in words the energy that radiated throughout the Anaheim Convention Center this morning as thousands of players walked through the doors of BlizzCon 2007. When the next expansion for World of Warcraft was announced -- and especially when the gameplay trailer for Wrath of the Lich King rolled -- the convention hall erupted with cheers.

And that was only the very beginning of an outstanding first day. Huge crowds watched the StarCraft, Warcraft III, and World of Warcraft tournaments, cheering on their favorite players and carefully following every move of every match. To quote one viewer, "I never played StarCraft before, but watching these pros was awesome. It makes me want to be as good as them, so I can be up there on that stage in that soundproofed booth, with the crowd cheering me on. I literally had goose bumps."

Another unique highlight was the developer panels, which covered material ranging from World of Warcraft class design, to the new single-player campaign in StarCraft II, to what it takes to land a job in the game industry. "During the Raids and Dungeons panel, Tigole fielded a lot of tough questions from players, and it was clear [with every answer] that he's really passionate about the game," said one attendee.

But for some, the best thing about BlizzCon was the atmosphere of being in a huge crowd of fellow gamers. "If you can carry on a conversation with a complete stranger that consists almost entirely of 'Whoa, dude, bam!' then you know you're in the right place. It feels great to be here, with a ton of people who all share the same passion. You just have this total connection with everyone here."

These were just a few quick snapshots of day one at BlizzCon, but we hope this short glimpse can give you some idea of the incredible energy permeating the event, thanks to everyone here sharing their passion for games with us.

BlizzCon Coverage Around the Web - 8/14/2007

Weve seen quite a bit of BlizzCon 2007 coverage around the web, a good amount of which is available via the links below. Much of this coverage was brought to our attention by our readers; if you come across anything weve missed, please send it our way.

General BlizzCon Coverage

StarCraft II

World of Warcraft

World of Warcraft Movie

World of Warcraft: Wrath of the Lich King

World of Warcraft: Wrath of the Lich King announced!

Blizzard is proud to officially announce the next World of Warcraft expansion set, World of Warcraft: Wrath of the Lich King! With the opening of the Dark Portal, and the renewed war to stop the Burning Crusade's destruction of worlds, the heroes of Azeroth have given little thought to the frozen wastes of Northrend - and the terrible, ancient powers that wait there. Yet the brooding evils of the fallen Nerubian empire and their malevolent sovereign have not forgotten Azeroth...

World of Warcraft: Wrath of the Lich King™ will open the forbidding wasteland of Northrend to exploration by the hardiest adventurers. New levels of power, challenging new dungeons and encounters, an exciting new character profession, and the game's first hero class are just some of the new features awaiting players in Wrath of the Lich King.

For more information, make sure to read the official press release and then check out our new expansion site for screenshots, concept art, the new expansion's announcement trailer, and much, much more!

StarCraft II: The Terrans Have Arrived

The first wave of Terran unit and building details are newly revealed on the StarCraft II website. In the aftermath of the Brood War, the resourcefulness, ingenuity, resilience, and sheer grit of the Terrans shows in their new designs and adjustments to existing designs as they adapt to and counter their enemies' strengths and weaknesses.

Detailed profiles on the Marine, Reaper, Ghost, Viking, and Command Center are included in this first update that was revealed at BlizzCon. Like their Protoss counterparts, each website profile includes background information, screenshots, video, and concept art.

BlizzCon Begins!

BlizzCon, the convention celebrating all Blizzard games, has officially begun! Gamers from around the globe are joining us in Anaheim today to take part in developer panels, battle with their fellow players, and indulge in the variety of entertainment available. On top of that, Blizzard announced the next expansion to World of Warcraft: Wrath of the Lich King, and we also revealed a ton of new details about StarCraft II.

We'll continue to post updates from the show floor, share photos, and show replays from the BlizzCon invitational at www.blizzcon.com, so stay tuned!

Goody Bag
Panels
Schedule
BlizzCon Store
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