I am going to Blizzcon

[Undeadprotoss]

Howdy guys, I'm going to Blizzcon, in fact, I'll be going to my flight tonight, or I guess early next morning. StarCraft has been a huge part of my life, in fact, it's more than that. i remember when I first loaded up SC1 and went to the campaign, I saw the Marine, Hydralisk, and Zealot. I looked over the Zealot, and I felt this unimaginable love for the game, it was fucking awesome. I checked out the Protoss campaign, and I remember literally thinking it was the coolest thing I had ever seen up to that point in my life.

Blizzard has fallen on dark times recently, but with the recent Blitzchung ban, I decided that I needed to go, I'm going to be bringing a Hong Kong shirt and a Hong Kong flag and all of that. Im still undecided as to whether I should try to ask a question and then turn it into an impromptu protest, I don't want to do that to the devs is my problem.

I know that the last major time I was around I promised a Youtube channel, that never really went anywhere, honestly because I felt kind of hopeless in general at the time, not just about the future of Starcraft. But I think that's the wrong way of thinking, like Samwise says we should ABC - Always Be Creating. I'm not hopeless anymore, if anything I want to fight for Blizzard and Starcraft's future.

I'm going to update this thread with pictures form Blizzcon, and just information about what's going on over there. I know there are some organizations that are encouraging a showing at Blizzcon and stuff but to be honest we don't really know how just how many people plan on doing stuff. Panser, a WoW youtuber plans on wearing a Hong Kong shirt, but I don't really know how many people are committed in the broader WoW community, although I hope it's a significant number.

The thing that really made me decide to go was realizing that, if we really believe in the stories told by SC1 and WC3. In Tassadar's sacrifice, Jim Raynor's uprising the Horde's redemption in WC3 which is very dear to me, etc

I was always drawn to the compassion that I think SC1 provided. Where even villians were sympathetic, some people have said that even if they knew Mengsk was in the wrong they still cared about him as a character. I personally always loved Aldaris' voice acting, I think Paul Eiding brought so much nuance to his voice, times when he seems reluctant to cast Tassadar out after he returns, where you can hear, clear as day, he personally is in fear of falling out of the Concalve's graces, and his own ultra-rigid beliefs.

This is personal to me, and I'm sure personal to you all as well. Like I said, I'll update with pictures so long as the forum permits it, and I'll also provide regular updates to this thread about how things are going.

EN TARO ADUN! LOK'TAR OGAR! FOR THE HORDE!

FOR STARCRAFT!

[The_Blade]

I would advice not to be part of the "chaos". Sure take your shirt and the flag. Just take the flag without a pole tho, cause wood and pvc poles have been forbidden since the dawn of time. However, BlizzCon is still an event organized by Blizzard employees at every level except security. So you would be making a lot of regular employees' lives harder. Peacefully walking through the show floor and trying to bomb a camera or two should work best. Just watch what you are doing, I've seen people kicked out of BlizzCon for less (posting fake bids on the auction, dropping a Pizza flat on a counter) and then a lot of people have been taken out for picking up fights or general screaming.

I've heard they are modifying the format for the Q&As this year. They will have casters pull questions from a hat while obviously ignoring the "problematic ones".

Do I believe Blizzard should have BlizzCon disrupted into the ground, yes. Do I believe the Fans should have their convention and/or trips ruined, no. Considering there's more suffering for the fans, I hope BlizzCon is not crashed. I do hope however that there a way for peaceful protesters to coexists somewhere (even if it's outside right by the Westboro Baptist church picketeers ilmao)

[Nissa]

Please don't be rude. Rudeness in the name of a cause is the formula to chaos. The Russians had legitimate complaints against the Czar, but through thoughtless revolution ("Anybody's good as long as they aren't him") they ended up with a government with even more legitimate complaints against it.

I know that's an extreme for this case, but be gracious, and show them that you intend to be a civilized person. Be disappointed, not angry. Go with the motivation for finding a solution, not creating a revolt.

[KaiserStratosTygo]

Rudeness is always used as an excuse to continue the status quo and deflect arguments or issues.

Protest however you want, bud, just don't break the law.

[Visions of Khas]

Sooo how was the Diablo IV reveal, Undead?

[Nissa]

Rudeness is always used as an excuse to continue the status quo and deflect arguments or issues.

*snort* You say to the person making a historical reference, while providing none of your own. Lol.

And no, I didn't mean "rudeness", I meant rudeness. Blizzard is not a tyrannical nation, it's a business run by the clueless (remember, California has its own culture bubble). But no matter who they are, don't demean yourself to offend them.

[Turalyon]

Gotta say, that Diablo IV cinematic has given me genuine chills/a horror vibe I haven't felt from a Diablo cinematic (or the Diablo franchise in general) in a long time.

It kind of highlights the strength of that IP, the reason why it's memorable. It's not the characters, story or lore that people come for (which D3 largely focused on and became forgettable/memorable in the wrong way as a result) with Diablo, it's the atmosphere and aesthetics. I'm surprisingly and quietly optimistic about it.

[sandwich_bird]

Gotta say, that Diablo IV cinematic has given me genuine chills/a horror vibe I haven't felt from a Diablo cinematic (or the Diablo franchise in general) in a long time.

It kind of highlights the strength of that IP, the reason why it's memorable. It's not the characters, story or lore that people come for (which D3 largely focused on and became forgettable/memorable in the wrong way as a result) with Diablo, it's the atmosphere and aesthetics. I'm surprisingly and quietly optimistic about it.

Yes! 100%. I'm happy they finally "get it" again. I was surprised they mentioned Junji Ito in the art panel but looking back at the cinematic, it makes sense.

The fact that it's basically going to be a MMO-lite is worrying though. Horror never matches well with mass MP. I hope there's going to be a way to turn off that aspect even if there's no proper offline.

One thing I hope they consider is camera control/perspective change. Seems like the world is detailed enough for it.

[Visions of Khas]

I am utterly in love with the art direction. The art book depicts paintings reminiscent of Renaissance masters, employing sfumato, caravaggist, and baroque art styles to stunning effect.

However, I'm also wary. Blizzard execs considered D3 a financial failure as it couldn't ensure a continual cashflow. The auction house failed spectacularly for D3. This leads me to suspect D4 will have micro-transactions and will be subscription based.

Anyways, here's the Diablo IV Lore Panel, you nerds.

[The_Blade]

That velvet skin cape. I believe these are the best art direction and art samples we've seen from Blizzard in a long long time.

Despite that VERY optimistic fact, I have two mayor concerns:
1-The game will be in development for at least 3-5 more years and the general game design will suffer.
2-The MMO core design is the largest flaw on the D4 design.

Just like D3, D4 will be finished in a time frame close to a decade. I estimate that they have been working on D4 for at least 4 years now, as this was when Team 3 went secret after Reaper of Souls was finished. During this time there will be a lot of pressure on Blizzard to define a monetization model. Their core philosophy atm is "We will not sell power". I just can't trust them over this empty statements anymore. Somewhere along the road they will start to disguise microtransactions as ways to avoid a heavier grind. The MMO elements are vulnerable spots for this. They can add "premium" areas, events or bosses easily under the excuse that it's DLC, and hook people on that.

Diablo 4 will also be their only mayor game under development for the next 1-3 years. StarCraft and WarCraft are dead on the water with WarCraft Reforged coming up. WoW and Hearthstone are being milked dry. OverWatch... well, was a mayor AAA success but not a very replayable one. And let's call Heroes a niche game being generous.