by Jeff Woleslagle on Oct 15, 2008
Welcome to the 937th Edition of Loading...
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Daily Column
Loading... a purple among grays.
First, you vote with what you view at Ten Ton Hammer, and the result is the Ten Ton Pulse! It's a rough week to be on the Pulse if your game name can't be abbreviated with two "w"s and an "o". The content onslaught from BlizzCon, the largest patch day in the WoW's history yesterday, and the largest paid subscriber base in online games history combined in a sort of perfect storm, and we're still trying to establish radio contact with some of the boats scattered out at sea.
World of Warcraft- 200 BPM Warhammer Online - 80 BPM Age of Conan - 27 BPM Stargate Worlds - 12 BPM Tabula Rasa - 10 BPM Lord of the Rings Online - 9 BPM EVE Online - 6 BPM EverQuest 2 - 6 BPM Atlantica Online - 5 BPM Vanguard: Saga of Heroes - 4 BPMIf the Top 10 isn't enough, we also show the Top 20 and Top 50 lists as well, available to everyone on our homepage. (What is Pulse?)
If you ever want to deliver a serious shock to your system, try attending BlizzCon one weekend and opera the evening after you get home. I'll just go ahead and open myself to ridicule now - I'm as much of an opera buff as someone of my middling earnings and low breeding can be. Wagner's Ring cycle (which, along with the source material - especially the old Norse "Saga of the Volsung" - seriously influenced Tolkien's Middle Earth) will be performed in the spring, and in order to be assured of a good seat (nosebleed section and partially obstructed view seats aren't just the bane of pro sports) and see it in person, you have to buy the season package.
So, Mozart's Don Giovanni it was, and if you aren't familiar, it's a re-telling of the Don Juan myth - a jackass nobleman who beds as many women as he can without regard for their feelings or marital status finally gets his due. Part comedy, part tragedy, part morality play, it's enjoyable and nuanced but not as laugh-out-loud funny like other Mozart operas like The Marriage of Figaro or The Barber of Seville. Last night's performance of Don Giovanni was my first opera in person at the Metropolitan Operahouse in New York City, and Met performances are about as accessible as can be, with full performances (with very high production values) broadcasted each Sunday afternoon on US public television and radio. But, as with any kind of entertainment - sports, music, Jerry Springer - nothing compares to seeing it live.
BlizzCon and other fan events like it serve a similar purpose. It was a window on Blizzard's three worlds, a chance to realize that you're very far from alone in your love of games. You hear that there are millions of others like you, but the odds are against you meeting up with MMOG fans in day-to-day life. In reality, only about 3.2% of the world's population plays online games (617 million of some 6.7 billion) and while it's presumably a much higher percentage in the country you live in, a big chunk of that percentage is casual online games that don't really offer much in the way of community anyway.
For my part, I always feel recharged after attending a fan event... usually just enough to overcome the sleep deprivation. I'm not a huge fan of WoW, but seeing folks of all shapes, colors, and sizes expressing their love for the WoW phenomenon by pairing off as guilds and sharing stories over dinner at the local greasy spoon, putting on costumes, booing the paladin that asks why his class is underpowered, and listening to devs' well-reasoned responses to valid criticisms (realizing that they've thought long and hard about these issues too) - it validates a lot of the creativity, energy, and time we put into these games.
Ever been to a live games event? Share your experiences in the Loading... forums or, as always, feel free to email me directly!
Ten Ton Hammer Epic Thread of the Day13 new MMOG hand-crafted articles today! 158 in October! 2658 in 2008!
New MMOG Articles At Ten Ton Hammer Today [Thanks Phil Comeau for links and Real World News]
BlizzCon 2008
[New!] World of LineCraft [New!] Diablo III Video Q&A Exclusive: The Wizard [New!] Diablo III Video Q&A Exclusive: More on Diablo III Wrath of the Lich King: Jeff Kaplan Explains (Video) Wrath of the Lich King: Expansion Specifics with Jeff Kaplan (Video) Wrath of the Lich King: 10 Best Press Conference Questions Diablo 3: 10 Best Press Conference Questions Diablo 3: Hands-on Preview Diablo 3: Class Panel Discussion Overview Starcraft 2: Hands-on Preview World of Warcraft: Dungeons and Raids PanelImages/Video
Stargate Worlds: Closed Beta Combat Screenshots Lord of the Rings Online: Exclusive Mines of Moria ScreenshotsCommunity
Warhammer Online: Guild of the WeekGuides
Warhammer Online: Public Quest Maps - High Pass World of Warcraft: Patch 3.0.2 Combat Mechanics Changes World of Warcraft: Stormwind Harbor Guide Age of Conan: Guardian Titanic Smash Preset Feat Build Age of Conan: FAQ UpdateHot Content - Or, what I took a fancy to:
World of LineCraft Diablo III Video Q&A Exclusive: The Wizard Diablo III Video Q&A Exclusive: More on Diablo III Wrath of the Lich King: Jeff Kaplan Explains (Video) Wrath of the Lich King: Expansion Specifics with Jeff Kaplan (Video) Diablo 3: Hands-on Preview Diablo 3: Class Panel Discussion Overview Starcraft 2: Hands-on Preview World of Warcraft: Dungeons and Raids Panel Age of Conan: Falling in Love with AoC All Over Again City of Heroes: Issue 13 - Day Jobs Warhammer Online: WAR Torn Issue #6 - Good at Bad 38 Studios' Curt Schilling: What is the Azeroth Advisor? Top 10 Free to Play GamesReal World News
Northern Brit's hands have three times more fecal matter than SouthernThanks again for visiting Ten Ton Hammer!
- Jeff "Ethec" Woleslagle and the Ten Ton Hammer Team