Welcome to the 1,127th Edition of Loading...

Loading... is the premier daily MMORPG news and commentary newsletter, only from Ten Ton Hammer.

The World of Warcraft movie, which had almost achieved Duke Nukem Forever status in the great pantheon of lofty, legendary in-development projects that may or may not be, got some concrete attention this week, as Sam Raimi (of Spiderman series fame) was named Director.

With Hollywood, long eclipsed in yearly profits by video games, now serious about wanting its share of the vaunted MMO's success, maybe it's time to take a step back. How have movies impacted games and game IPs in the past and how can a flick (even a good one) potentially punish the MMO ideal? That's today's topic in Loading... MMOvies: Missing the Point.

Play World of Warcraft? Jay "Medeor" Johnson's weekly WoW newsletter "The Overpull" comes out every Tuesday and keeps you entertained and informed on all the latest developments in WoW. Sign up!

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Today's interesting news item: the upcoming (2011?) World of Warcraft movie will have Sam Raimi as Director. Even if you're like me and barely know Tom Cruise from Tom Hanks, you probably know Raimi's work best from the Spiderman movies, but he also directed Army of Darkness and the Evil Dead series (which were good for an intentional or unintentional laugh). If that's still not ringing any bells, he was Exec. Producer for Hercules: The Legendary Journeys and Xena: The Warrior Princess, and that's about all I can do for you. His pedigree is one of over-the-top epic cinematic fun, so he was probably about as good a choice Legendary Pictures could make.

That said, and not to be a wet blanket, but I'm still not sure we need a Hollywood's take on World of Warcraft. WoW is about making individual players feel like skilled heroic raiders bursting with cool gear, and a movie is about developing fictional characters and advancing a storyline. If it were a Warcraft movie, rather than a World of Warcraft movie, I could dig it, even though video games don't have a very good track record with the feature-length transition.

But a WoW movie seems like a mass-market adventure in missing the point, much like how EVE Online game lore specifically omits actual players and corps. In EVE the story is the players and corps, and while I can see why CCP would be sketchy about using players' likeness in the Chronicles or novels, I don't see any problem with including players' stories in the past tense. If people don't agree with or like their characters portrayals, tough. These are characters, not people, just like in a story or movie. And if we aren't creating lasting stories in MMOs that we can happily share with others well after the fact, we might as well be getting our jollies with a single player game.

Of course, I'll go see the World of Warcraft movie when it comes out. You probably will too and, sadly, they know that. Blizzard's stunning CGI work and the IPs widespread appeal and the incredible revenue potential and yadda yadda yadda. I have little doubt that Blizzard and Legendary will make a good flick (Blizzard doesn't make a bad anything) and we'll probably see a surge of WoW interest around the time that the movie launches, then again when the DVD launches. I just don't think it does much for the worldy, adventurous spirit of the MMO, which has been flagging as of late largely due to WoW's dominance. MMOs should be about your epic adventure - the friends you meet, the adventures you have - and that's nothing that even a classic movie could ever compare to.

You probably disagree, ye butterfly-bellied fans that can't wait to see Azeroth gloriously rendered on the big screen. So let's discuss the WoW movie and what it will do for not only WoW but for MMOs in general in the Loading... forum. Or, as always, feel free to email me.

Shayalyn's Epic Thread of the Day

From our WoW: Paladins Forum

Paladins: The Original Hero Class

I need a hero!

Why
are World of Warcraft Paladins the "original hero class" according to
Ten Ton Hammer member ZeroMerc?  There are plenty of reasons,
including this all-important one: "We are not refered to as
'crit chickens.'" To find out the rest of the reasons, you'll have to
check out today's epic thread. Perhaps you'll even add a few reasons of your own.

==============================
Awesome Quotes from the Epic Thread

"I'm getting all teary-eyed. This is the most beautiful post ever. If only we could battle rez it would be a complete sweep."

- Medeor
==============================

Have you spotted an Epic Thread on our forums? Tell us!

5 new MMOG hand-crafted articles today! 71 in July! 836 in 2009!

New MMOG Articles At Ten Ton Hammer Today [Thanks Phil Comeau for links and Real World News]

• Champions Online: Demystifying Micro-Transactions
  
  With the recent announcement that micro-transactions would play a role in the upcoming release of Champions Online, many MMO gamers have expressed concern over just how large a role that might ultimately be. Knowing that this can be a touchy subject for fans, Ten Ton Hammer sat down with Bill Roper for an exclusive interview to help put some of the speculation to rest. Read on to learn more about Cryptic’s take on the business model, what type of items you can expect to find through MTs and how the system will be integrated into CO come launch day.
• Champions Online: Alpha and Omega - A Brief Look at the Champions Universe
  
  For many MMO gamers, the lore and back-story of a given title can be equally as immersive as the game itself. To help you prepare for the September 1st launch of Champions Online, Reuben “Sardu” Waters explores a few of the key locations and Omega-class villains from the Champions universe in this brief overview of the setting.
• World of Warcraft: Rogue Opening Moves
  
  We all know that feeling of getting jumped by a Rogue. Swatting them after the initial impact however can vary greatly depending on what the Rogue did, so know your Rogue openers! In our next World of Warcraft Rogue article, we analyze the openers of choice for every situation! Never be caught with your pants down again and wondering why you're silenced... or be the one doing the garroting!
• Age of Conan: 2009 Update Tour, Part Two
  
  Last week, Ten Ton Hammer was taken on a tour of Age of Conan to highlight some of the changes that have happened since launch, and how Funcom has been putting forth extra effort to try to get players to come back to the game. There's no doubt that a lot has changed. There is new content all over Hyboria, and many old issues have been addressed in an effort to get the game into popularity. But have these changes been enough?
  Today we take a look at Part Two of our three hour tour from last week. The highlights for this portion include the new Tarantia Commons, introduced with Update 1.05 and Ymir's Pass that came with 1.04.
• Aion: Class Preview - The Assassin
  
  Aion beta weekend four turned out three days of gaming fun! For those who are lucky enough to attend, it's a taste of what's to come after launch. For those who haven't been able to get into beta just yet, we have the previews you want to read like this first look at the Assassin!  This class is the brutal damaging force behind any good group or the wave of destruction of any soloer. The Assassin not only does amazing damage, but also has a wide range of skills that make them challenging and interesting to play.

Giveaways:

• The 'Empty the Vault' Giveaway
• Ten Ton Hammer EVE Online Summer Giveaway

Hottest Content:

1. Champions Online: Bill Roper Discusses Online PvP
2. Champions Online: From Azeroth to Millenium City - Transitioning to CO
3. Global Agenda: Preparing for Closed Beta with Hi-Rez's Todd Harris
4. World of Warcraft: Dual Talent Specialization - How Has it Changed the Game?
5. Champions Online: Ten PvP Tips from the Devs
6. New Aion Beta Weekend #4 Screenshots
7. Dungeons & Dragons Online - Ten Facts You Should Know Before Playing
8. Champions Online @ Ten Ton Hammer Goes Live!
9. World of Warcraft - Surviving BlizzCon
10. Lord of the Rings Online - Vol. 2 Book 7: Leaves of Lórien Epic Guide

Real World News

• Walrus mates itself to death
  
  As deaths go, this one gets my seal of approval.
• Man believes he is god, attempts to rape local woman
  
  Claims in his defence that he merely wanted to ensure the Holy Spirit was inside her.
• Hot dogs could cause cancer
  
  I never would have guessed that lips and anuses from the slaughterhouse floor were carcinogenic.
  

Seen news you think I can mangle into a vaguely amusing snippet of text? Send it to me.

Thanks for visiting the Ten Ton Hammer network!

-Jeff "Ethec" Woleslagle and the Ten Ton Hammer team