This week we have a new comic up for scrutiny concerning Blizzcon, a comic depicting the humorous side of the Midsummer Fire Festival, and some pretty aggressive battle strategy.

1. A new comic has sprung up about the adventures of two 'durids' attempting to get to Blizzcon. It makes use of a bit too much lol-speak for my tastes, but what do you guys think?
2. The fellows of Dark Legacy Comics are going to require a Plan B if they hope to reclaim their place on the top of the hierarchy. Also, I am jealous of their murloc action figure.
3. On LFG, the gnomes are coming to save the day! This episode actually stands well on its own.
4. When stealth goes wrong. NoObz.
5. Episode 21 of The Adventures of Disgraph T. Dwarf is A Midsummer Night's Dream.

Are you ready to vote?

More beta news for everyone to enjoy tonight. Bornakk has posted what Nethaera promised earlier in the day, a Wrath of the Lich King beta opt-in F.A.Q. The complete F.A.Q. is republished here for your convenience, and is definitely something everyone should read and re-read. Some of the key things to come out of the F.A.Q.:

• You are not guaranteed to get into the WotLK beta if you have a BlizzCon or WWI beta keys. These keys might go to another beta (like Diablo III).
• You can opt-in on multiple accounts, but each account can only opt-in once.
• If you get a key with one account, you can use it on another account of your choosing. However the key can only be used once.
• Opting in early does not necessarily mean you will get a beta slot early. Everything is random (as we previous reported).
• If you get a beta key from another source and are selected via the opt-in process, you can give your key to a friend or family member.
  

Full F.A.Q. after the break.

MMO Champion (and a few of our tipsters -- thanks!) is reporting that the European WoW site has opened up registration for the Wrath of the Lich King beta. I wasn't able to sign in with my trial account (created for the Dingstravaganza a while back), but there's no question that the page is up (inside EU players' Account Management menu) and accepting signups. Of course, this still doesn't mean that anyone is playing the beta, only that signups are taking place. We're also being told that it's an open sign-up, so it could be a long time before these signups are actually allowed to play, especially if one of the beta keys from BlizzCon or WWI are used to run a closed beta first.

As for why this isn't happening on the main North American site yet, remember that one of the EU CMs was the one to break the news -- perhaps because WWI was local, they're starting things up early there (or maybe it's just a timezone thing, and the EU site has had more time today to get the signups going). No matter what, the wait is almost over -- there's no question now that we're closer to the Wrath of the Lich King beta than ever.

Update: Eyonix confirms the registration on US side is coming soon.

So it's Monday now, the Worldwide Invitational in Paris is officially over, Diablo 3 has been announced and we've got tons of new info about Wrath of the Lich King -- but where's the cinematic? We know the Wrath cinematic is coming, but there was no sign of it at all at the WWI.

Then again, if you look at the timeframes, it's still a little soon -- the acclaimed Burning Crusade cinematic actually dropped on the Spike Videogame Awards in December of 2006 (just a month before BC was actually released in January of 2007), so since there's still some time until the Wrath release, there will still be some time until the cine shows.

In fact, it's looking more and more like BlizzCon 2008 might be the place to see it. With a rumored release date of sometime in November, Blizzard's big convention in October would probably be the perfect place to show off the next, undoubtedly beautiful chapter in the fall (and maybe even redemption?) of Arthas Menethil. Plus maybe they'll put a Gnome in there this time around.

Blizzard's site is down (and it's killing my daily routine of checking the forums, unfortunately), but there is one consolation -- over on the EU site, which is still up, you can grab a trio of new wallpapers for Wrath of the Lich King, including this handsome shot of the lichy monarch himself (although every time I see this armor, I can't help but think of Private Ownsusohard's "im the lich king lol" silliness back at BlizzCon).

There's also a shot of Arthas rocking Frostmourne, and a screenshot of that big furnace inside Utgarde Keep (which has been around for a while, but still looks cool. If you're looking to adorn your desktop with some cold and snowy images while the weather heats up outside, there you go.

In fact, almost any of these Wrath images might work for you. The sizes aren't actually wallpaper, but with a little tweaking, you could pretend you were in Northrend already.

Just in case you were worried about whether or not you'd see Level 70 Elite Tauren Chieftain live at Blizzard's upcoming Worldwide Invitational event in Paris, worry no more -- they'll be there. Both L70ETC and the Video Games Live orchestra will be performing at WWI, just as they did last year at BlizzCon '07.

Should be a great show on both counts. Does make us wonder, though, what Blizzard is planning for BlizzCon this year -- a repeat of last year's performance would be nice and all (and we have no doubt that no matter who else plays, L70ETC will definitely have to be there, considering that they're made up of Blizzard employees), but maybe we'll get some new blood in the mix? Jonathan Coulton is definitely a name that springs to mind -- even if he's not specifically a Blizzard guy, his music is very familiar to WoW fans of all levels.

Who else could they hire? Nyhm? Felicia Day to host? As fun as Jay Mohr was, seems like after all the taunting last time, he just might be trouble to get again -- Blizzard might as well choose someone that WoW fans want to see.

Boomslang has an interesting point of view on the fact that in the next expansion, Death Knights will start at level 55. We've heard his concerns that there'll be too many Death Knights floating around, but he says that starting them out at level 55 is, in his words, "cheap." Every other class, he says, had to roll up from one, so why should Death Knights be any different?

The given answer is something that we heard at BlizzCon last year: Blizzard wants this Hero class to be epic in a way that no other class has before, so they don't want anyone who can literally command death running around as a level one noob. But does that justify cutting off more than half of the Death Knight's lifespan? Can a class that you started past the halfway point really be as epic as that Hunter or Warlock that you leveled to 80 all the way up from level 1?

Again, we don't yet know exactly how a Death Knight is created -- maybe there's something in the quest to get one that will explain what's going on here. And other people say that just letting the Death Knight start at 55 isn't enough -- if you get a character to level 80, you should be able to get a head start with any class, without having to go back and do all the lowbie quests again. We'll see in the expansion if Blizzard can make a class that you level only 25 levels feel as epic as they say it will.

If you wanted to head to the City of Lights this summer to check out the World Wide Invitational this year, but missed the first round of tickets, you're in luck. Blizzard has announced that they will be selling another round on the official WWI website some time next week. If you're still interested, keep an eye out for it!

The World Wide Invitational will take place in Paris, France on June 28th and 29th, and will include developer panels and multiple contests, including fanart and machinima contests, as well as a playable version of WoTLK -- essentially, it's a European Blizzcon. Be sure to check out all of our previous coverage on the event, and stay tuned for all the latest news as we get closer to the date.

BlizzCon was announced on Monday, and ever since, there's been a question bouncing around the back of my mind: just what is it for? Blizzard doesn't just host an event because they love us or because they feel like it -- they host events to release news. WWI last year was where Starcraft II was announced, and Wrath of the Lich King got announced at the previous BlizzCon.

We do know that we're expecting Wrath in "the second half" of the year, and whatever we see at BlizzCon could depend on when that releases. If Wrath appears in August (before BlizzCon in October), we might be seeing the announcement of the next expansion (probably the Maelstrom or the Emerald Dream, or both) in Anaheim: Blizzard has said that they want to release them faster, and there'd be no time like BlizzCon to get an announcement out. If Wrath doesn't show up until November or December, though, Blizzard could use their convention to announce brand new features we haven't heard about yet -- maybe another Hero class?

Of course, we could be grinding the wrong quest mobs entirely -- remember that BlizzCon is about Blizzard, not just World of Warcraft, so anything they announce might have nothing at all to do with their MMO. Diablo 3, anyone? Or maybe they do just want to hang out with their fans and get some good press before the big release. We won't know for sure until they open the doors at the convention center in October.

We are just about to hit full steam on the convention season, and Blizzard isn't taking any time off this year. Not only did we hear about BlizzCon on Monday, but we already knew that WWI was going to happen in Paris, and then learned that Rob Pardo would be visiting the Paris GDC. And while Blizzard may not be officially a presence at other cons this summer, their presence is going to be felt for sure -- PAX, GenCon, or DragonCon, whereever there are gamers together, there is WoW.

So where are you going to be? Planning on visiting any cons this year? I won't say it's hassle-free -- the crowds, lines, and just plain costs of these things tend to make me avoid them, especially right after I've been to visit one. But then again, every year around this time I start to get excited about maybe going to them again, and while I have no idea what my plans are right now, I can tell you for sure that WoW Insider will have a presence at all kinds of conventions this year.

What about you?

Ah, BlizzCon 2007! So many fond memories! We had the Wrath of the Lich King announcement, developers answering all of our questions, the latest on the World of Warcraft movie, and (of course) L70ETC! While there doesn't seem to be anything yet on Blizzard's website announcing a BlizzCon 2008, Buisiness Wire has a press release announcing BlizzCon 2008 taking place on October 10th and 11th in good old Anaheim California. We've contacted Blizzard to confirm, but in the meantime we're clearing out calendar and making travel arrangements. We hope to see all of you at BlizzCon!

EDIT: Official announcement released.

Just in case you missed it when the news came out a few days ago, Activision Blizzard has apparently announced that they're not showing up at E3 this year. And hot on the heels of that information came the news that both Activision and Vivendi have pulled out of the ESA, an organization that acts as the main trade association for the videogame industry.

What does this mean for us as Blizzard fans? Not much -- not only is Blizzard already running their own E3-like conventions (Blizzcon and WWI), but Activision Blizzard is apparently planning to hold a press conference on the first night of the show anyway. Blizzard's properties have enough gusto on their own to get press with or without inclusion in a big event like E3, and it's Activision's other properties that might have to worry about exposure.

As for the ESA news, who knows -- Activision Blizzard's pullout might mean a big shakeup in the way the videogame industry as a whole is represented, or (if no other companies choose to leave the ESA) it may not mean much at all. Time will tell.

There is probably no name more reviled in the realm of film than Uwe Boll -- he's the man behind such horrible games-to-films as House of the Dead and Alone in the Dark (the latter of which, I am somewhat embarrassed to say, I tried to watch). And while it isn't really news that Uwe Boll isn't directing the World of Warcraft movie (we already knew, from back at Blizzcon, that Legendary Pictures is handling it, and Boll usually uses his own financing and production companies), but this is too great a story to pass up. Apparently when Boll heard that a Warcraft movie was being made, he actually went to Blizzard to try to get it done, and they told him straight up: no, never, not in a million years.

Actually, Boll himself tells the story over on MTV Movies as "we will not sell the movie rights, not to you.... especially not to you." Which is pretty hilarious. He himself also says that "because it's such a big online game success, maybe a bad movie would destroy that ongoing income, what the company has with it." So yes, he pretty much guarantees that any movie he makes would be a bad movie anyway.

So there's at least one great thing we can say about the Warcraft movie so far: Blizzard at least cares enough about the quality of the flick to not let Uwe Boll make it. This doesn't guarantee us a good movie, of course. But it's nice to know that the higher ups at Blizzard know to keep their property away from this nut.

[via Worldofwar.net]

Yeah, it's called the Blizzard Worldwide Invitational, but the more we learn about this Blizzard-hosted gathering, the more it starts looking a bit more like Blizzcon '08. Sure, there's all the tournaments you'd expect, but there's a lot more too. We've already talked about the goody bag, but there's one thing that jumps right off the events page for anyone who's starved for WoTLK news: live discussion panels with Blizzard developers! Says the site, "developers will be discussing such topics as gameplay, lore and art and giving the audience a chance to pose questions and give comments."

Sounds familiar, doesn't it? It also sounds very promising. We got a lot of pretty juicy WoTLK information from the last round of developer panels at Blizzcon, so we can probably expect more of the same at these panels, only moreso, since we'll be that much closer to the release of the expansion. It looks like June 28th and 29th are going to be very good days to be a Blizzard fan. Even if you can't make it to France, be sure keep an eye on WoW Insider. We're sure to have the all the great WoW Information that's sure to come from these panels.

Preparations for the Blizzard Worldwide Invitational are in full swing. Tickets are on sale for the event, which will take place on June 28th and 29th in Paris, France. Of course, your ticket gives you access to both days, but what Blizzard event ticket wouldn't be complete without a good old fashioned goody bag? Blizzard goody bags usually contains some pretty awesome swag (check out the contents of the Blizzcon '07 goody bag if you need a refresher), and it looks like this bag won't be any different.

So far, Blizzard has revealed that you can expect to find a beta key for an upcoming Blizzard game and an exclusive in-game pet for the World of Warcraft in your bag. There's no word on which game the beta will be, which makes me wonder if it might even be an as yet unannounced title. After all, They've told us that Starcraft 2 and Wrath of the Lich King will be playable at the event, so it might be a bit late to hand out beta keys for those games. Then again, perhaps I'm just really, really wishing for a new Diablo game. They're keeping mum on the identity of the in-game pet so far as well. We've already had 2 Murloc-related rewards from the Blizzcons, so with Wrath of the Lich King coming out, perhaps we'll see a pet Gorloc. Then again, Murlocs might be a little played out, so I'm going to root for a penguin, I think. Blizzard's promised to reveal more about the contents of the goody bag as the date of the Invitational draws nearer, so hopefully we'll have more news for you on that front soon.

Of course, if the goody bag alone isn't quite enough, Blizzard's promised that there will be exclusive commemorative swag to win in contests or buy at the event as well, just like at last year's Blizzcon. Be sure to keep your browser tuned right here to WoW Insider, we'll let you in on all future loot announcements and all the Worldwide Invitational news as it happens.