Blizzard Entertainment

Blizzard Entertainment Released “The Tomb of Sargeras” Audio Drama

~ jen

The Tomb of Sargeras logoBlizzard Entertainment is a gaming company best known for their World of Warcraft game. The company has released an audio drama called The Tomb of Sargeras. It is the first time that Blizzard has told a story in this format.

Later this month, Blizzard will release a new World of Warcraft expansion called World of Warcraft: Legion. Those that have played World of Warcraft (WoW) at any time in the past know that there is a whole lot of lore, and background stories, and character development that is part of their game. The thing is, not all of this is shared inside the game itself.

In the past, Blizzard supplemented the story of what happened between one expansion and the next by releasing books that filled in the gaps for players. In addition, they have also released manga and comics that provide interested players with more information about important characters and events that are part of World of Warcraft’s long, detailed, storyline.

The Tomb of Sargeras audio drama is intended to serve as a set up for players as they move from the current expansion to the new one. Those who used to play WoW, and stopped some time ago for whatever reason, could listen to the The Tomb of Sargeras and between now and when World of Warcraft: Legion is released, and start the new expansion with some knowledge about the storyline and some of the important characters. The audio drama includes music and sound effects from the game.

Polygon reported that Blizzard’s director of story and creative development, James Waugh, said that they are excited about The Tomb of Sargeras. If the community likes this audio drama, there is potential that Blizzard Entertainment might create more of them in the future.

World of Warcraft: Legion launches on August 30, 2016. All four episodes (and a trailer episode) of The Tomb of Sargeras have been released. There is time to listen to and enjoy Blizzard Entertainment’s first audio drama podcast before the expansion launches.

World of Podcasts 2014

~ shawn ~ 1 Comment

World of Podcasts logoLast week, I attended the second World of Podcasts event in Anaheim, CA. World of Podcasts is dedicated to shows that cover Blizzard Entertainment and its video game franchises (most notably World of Warcraft). World of Podcasts takes place the night before BlizzCon, an annual convention organized by Blizzard to celebrate its existing games as well as reveal upcoming releases. And while World of Podcasts and BlizzCon do have a similar focus, the two events aren’t officially connected.

World of Podcasts 2014 was held at the Anaheim Hilton, which put the event right in the middle of much of the action that occurs adjacent to the Anaheim Convention Center and BlizzCon itself. At pretty much all hours of the day, conventioneers can be found gathered at the bar and in the lobby of the Hilton. It was the perfect venue for something like World of Podcasts. I also attended the first World of Podcasts in 2013. This year’s event eclipsed last year’s substantially.

In 2013, World of Podcasts was held in one room with a small sound system. The setup was problematic at times, as groups of people would often gather in the back of the room to talk, and those conversations would overpower the speakers at the front of the room. But this year, World of Podcasts spanned several rooms, which gave attendees plenty of space to spread out if they wanted to socialize. There was also a much better sound system, so live panels were more enjoyable for panelists and audience members alike.

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