Author Archives: Donny Rokk
Blizzard Likes Surprises
Photo by Laughing Squid
Okay, I think I’m done playing the guessing game with these clowns.
As has been stated in various locations across the Internet, Blizzard has thrown out plenty of hints and comments regarding release dates for Patch 4.0.1, as well as Cataclysm itself. Much of that seemed to revolve around Arena Season 8. If that’s the case, then Boubouille believes Cataclysm will be released by December 7(?). He dug up some text that revealed that Season 9 will start on December 14. Zarhym stated in a blue post that Cataclysm will be released a week before the start of the new Arena Season.
It makes sense. Blizzard wanted Cata to drop before the end of Q4. It’d be great if they managed to get it out before Christmas. You know Bobby Kotick would love those Holiday dollars in his sweaty palms. But I know, and those who don’t have their head in the sand know as well, that on release day we’re going to be downloading a big patch. They’re still working on end game mechanics, and probably will be right up until the day Cataclysm goes live.
Patch 4.0 is the one I’m a little more anxious about. It affects how we play, how we make gold, and how we see the game. And by “we” I mean “me and my team of alts”. Early October was supposed to be the day of the Big Patch, but the downloader message has had the date removed. What does this mean?
At this point, I just want the patch to not screw things up when it comes. I don’t want a bunch of broken mechanics and bugs stuffed into my computer, just so they can reach a deadline. I want Patch 4.0, but I want to be able to start working with the content they give me. There will be minor patches of course, but hopefully they’ve got things “right enough” for me to start playing. It looks like they’re done with PTR tests with Patch 4.0.1, so October 5th as a patch day seems as likely as anything.
Whatever. I’m not holding my breath for the patches or expansions anymore. You can hold your breath, or Blizzard will hold it for you.
Photo by lamazone
Not shown: Bobby Kotick and a whole lot of plastic wrap.
This is Herculano. You might as well enjoy the game now. The changes will be here sooner or later.
Patch 4.0.1 – The Cataclysm is Nigh
Blizzard might have pushed back the Cataclysm release date, but Patch 4.0.1 looks about ready to go live.
MMO Champion pointed out two interesting tidbits that would indicate that Azeroth is about to go down the poop-tubes in the very near future.
The first nugget of knowledge was actually dished out by Ghostcrawler himself. GC mentions that the current PVP Season will end just before the patch goes live, and the indication is that Season 8 wraps up around October 12.
The second bit comes from Blizzard. They announced that the streaming client (a function that will allow players to play parts of the game while the client is still downloading content) will be available on October 5.
Streaming trial? Or streaming pile? I smell crashed systems aplenty.
Therefore, it looks like we’ll see the Word (of Warcraft) end as we know it within the next two weeks. From what Ghostcrawler says in a blue post, that may not be so good for Your Truly.
… Off the top of my head, Fury warriors and Feral druid damage seems low. BM hunter damage seems high. There are probably others. You’ll start to see more number tweaks over time, especially as more players get to 85 on the beta that we can compare to our internal testing.
This is Herculano. Hey Blizz, you just take your time and get my damage back up to snuff before you do anything crazy, okay?
