While at BlizzCon 2009 in Anaheim recently, we had the opportunity to sit down with J Allen Brack, who is currently Director, Production at World of Warcraft. Obviously, given the news that came out of the convention, our conversation focussed largely on the freshly-announced expansion pack for the game, the as-yet undated Cataclysm.

We chatted about the new playable races, the impending Big Bang that's due to hit the game as we know it, a bit about the lore and how they're not messing it up, and we touch briefly on PvP and the prettification of the game, with Brack offering his side of the Australian server debate (he's all for them, by the way).

Will we have StarCraft II by the end of the year?
Sure, if Blizzard CEO Mike Morhaime is to believed. He just made the announcement to a gathering of Activision Blizzard investors and media, as part of the company's pre-E3 press conference.

While the Activision part of the event was understandably dominated by Guitar Hero, DJ Hero and Modern Warfare 2, Mike didn't really make any great announcements about what Blizzard are up to - except the hopeful release date for their next RTS.

Ever wondered just what the Australian gaming public are buying? We've got the latest charts for you that will give you all the details you need to know, for all the major platforms.

This week, we're also wondering if Aussies are bucking the trend, with the latest Grand Theft Auto title topping the DS charts despite reporting lagging sales elsewhere. Overall though, we do still seem to fall into line. The most popular title is one that rewards you for balancing carefully in front of your tv, PC gamers are still exploring Azeroth's second expansion, Xbox 360 prefers more modern combat, and the PS3 has slipped into the underworld. On the other side of things, PS2 gamers prefer to croon along with Freddie, and the PSP is still experiencing some handheld resistance.

Ever wondered just what the Australian gaming public are buying? We've got the latest charts for you that will give you all the details you need to know, for all the major platforms.

This time around, it's good to see some things are a little shaken up, while others have just returned to their old, familiar patterns. Most of the Australian buying public is interested in learning how best to use their Wii-mote, the temptation of Patch 3.1 has seen a large numbers of PC gamers relapsing into their old MMO habits, Xbox 360 gamers are checking out a more modern type of war ahead of the newly-announced sequel's release, PS3 are off battling the Helghast once again, while their PS2 counterparts continue to rock out with Freddie and pals. The DS gamers among us prefer to exercise their grey matter, but the PSP looks like they're jonesin' for some sort of infection. Hmm.

On our way back from GDC, we took a moment to drop in on Blizzard HQ, to find out what they were working on. We weren't quite sure who we'd run into, but were lucky enough to run into World of Warcraft lead game designer Tom Chilton, who had a few moments free. We sat down in a quiet little office for a bit of a chat about the impending 3.1 content patch for Wrath of the Lich King.

While he may be a household name for many World of Warcraft fans, it's important to understand where the designer is coming from, what he's most looking forward to in the upcoming patch, and whether or not Blizzard really do just include things to annoy people.

Not long ago we took a quick look at Sony's mysterious upcoming MMORPG for both PC and PS3, Free Realms. With a strong cartoon influence in the graphics and a focus on family-friendly interaction, it seems uncertain just where this odd title will fit in amongst gamers. Is it World of Warcraft for kids and concerned parents? Is it a solid RPG with a bunch of social networking bells and whistles? Nobody seems to be certain, least of all Sony's marketing, and they're not being very forthcoming, either. At least we can look at this locations trailer and new screens, right?

World of Warcraft fans, your time approaches rapidly! The upcoming Secrets of Ulduar patch (v3.1.0) looms menacingly, as the first content update since the launch of Wrath of the Lich King late last year. Earlier, we brought you all the news that's fit to print about the new dual-spec capabilities, but today we have details on Ulduar itself - complete with a video, to show off just what's in store.

It's worth a warning - if you've recently quit WoW, if you've been trying to resist, to not return to Azeroth, you shouldn't read this story. You shouldn't watch the video. You shouldn't learn more about Ulduar. It might just be your downfall.

Yesterday, we brought you some news about another Blizzard project, but today it's time to step into another world, the World of Warcraft. Patch 3.1.0 is the first major content patch to be released since Wrath of the Lich King launched in November last year. From all accounts, this one'll be a doozy, bringing with it several notable class changes and the eagerly-anticipated Ulduar raid.

We'll have some more details about Ulduar specifically soon - but for now, we have a nice little Q&A with Senior Game Designer Greg "Ghostcrawler" Street, talking all about the pants-wettingly-exciting change to the game - the ability to set up two separate talent sets for your character... that's right, dual spec is here, and we've got all the gossip.

While it feels like we've hardly recovered from the last one, Blizzard have just announced their plans to hold their next BlizzCon gaming convention in August of this year. This will be their fourth such convention - which is marketed as "a celebration of the global player communities" that surround Blizzard's main universes - StarCraft, Diablo and WarCraft.

Proving that the company is, in fact, on track to take over the world, they've also announced that this year's event, to be held as usual in the Anaheim Convention Center, has expanded yet again - from three convention halls to four. Wow. (Pun not intended, honest!)

"Zoooooowch!" A severe pang rang in the minds of many during the big conference call over at Electronic Arts today. In the stifling call bad news struck a chord with announcements ranging from numerous delays, along with more layoffs, and the ugly truth behind the less than stellar subscription numbers for Warhammer Online. As of December 31st, 2008 Warhammer: Age of Reckoning bottomed out at a little over 300k subscribers.

It’s a Lord of the Rings post which means I get to talk about Hobbits. Hobbits are so swell. They aren’t filthy but mostly they are dandy and dapper creatures, some are gregarious and others not so. One common element shared by all Hobbits is their love for scrumptious pastries and hearty spirits. And a little special pipe tobacco shared with friends late into the night, which is also a favorite pastime amongst many The Lord of the Rings Online players. No, I do not play as a Hobbit and I am not a Hobbit lover - are you kidding? I play Dwarf! I eat you Hobbits for breakfast.

Maybe Turbine should be punished for releasing Mines of Moria so close to Wrath of the Lich King. It is a bit reckless to release a first expansion alongside the behemoth's expansion that is crushing every other MMOG out there. If you haven’t played LotRO, or if you have in the past and since abandoned it, maybe the following videos showcasing the mystical linguists, citizen soldiers, an epic raid, and a dev diary with Jeffrey Steefel will entice a return there and back again.

What will you remember 2008 for, in terms of gaming?

We asked some of the game admins and network staff to find out their thoughts, but here's a quick recap of the past 12 months, to refresh your memory.

Non-games dominated this year's charts, with Wii Fit rewarding gamers for standing still. As a country, we were still fans of the music game genre too, finally getting our hands on Rock Band, which seemed to have been pushed onto shelves by the release of Guitar Hero: World Tour a week later. Who knows, the full-band version may even have healed some hurt caused by the "interesting" yet awkward Guitar Hero: On Tour release for DS. There was a new Call of Duty to heed, a new Bond to meet, Marcus and Dom were back, and independent developers twisted our brains with Braid and our rhythm skills with Audiosurf. Red Alert was back, and we revisited the Midnight Club. We also saw the release of the "Three Fs" - Far Cry 2, Fable 2, and Fallout 3, meaning many gamers were a bit strapped for cash by the end of the year.
...and, who could forget? 2008 is the year we met Sackboy!

While the world is currently in the grip of a financial crisis, it looks like it'll take more than that to persuade gamers to give up their beloved MMORPG. More than 11.5 million people around the world are active subscribers to what else but World of Warcraft.

The revelation comes from developers Blizzard Entertainment, who say the new record was reached just a month following the November release of the latest expansion pack, Wrath of the Lich King.

With Christmas rapidly approaching, The Warp Pipe is calling time for 2008. After 45 columns without a break this year, I’m clocking off a little early to read a few books, watch some movies, replay some of 2008’s best games and of course, fly to Queensland to spend Christmas with the family. The Warp Pipe will be back on the 18th of January with a few minor tweaks and a couple of bold predictions for 2009.

Speaking of bold proclamations, The Warp Pipe made a few just before the start of the second, third and final quarters of the year. I thought we’d use the final column of the year evaluating my ability to predict the quality of soon-to-be-released video games.

The headline says it all -- and is it really any surprise? The sequel to the game that sold a bazillion copies has now sold a bazillion copies too. According to the Vice President at Epic Games, Mark Rein, "Microsoft confirmed to me this afternoon that Gears of War 2 sell-through surpassed 3 million units as of last week."

Although we all expected Gears of War 2 to do well in sales this is still an impressive achievement, especially when you consider the game's single-platform availability, and that its only been in stores for a little over a month. It's no Wrath of the Lich King, but what is? If you aren't among the 3 million that have taken home Delta Squad's latest adventure, you can check out our review of the game to see what all the fuss is about.

Is it fair to lump games that harness social networking sites and web technologies like Flash and Java into the MMOG category? Games built on this technology aren’t as robust as your traditional MMORPG but in some cases can be just as popular and profitable. RuneScape is a good example, it’s been around for quite some time and yet it was one of the top ten searches on Yahoo! in 2008 – beating out World of Warcraft.

Gaia Online, an anime-themed social networking site that sees over seven million unique visitors a month is looking to repeat similar success. So far, they are off to a great start with over 500,000 users playing zOMG! So what’s this game like? It’s got action, it has spells and quests, and it’s like an old school Super Nintendo RPG with other players.

It would appear that using games as a potential advertising medium has today gained yet another ally, with Microsoft owned Massive Inc. coming to an agreement to include advertising in tandem with titles produced by Blizzard Entertainment.

Before your anger takes over, fret-not local citizens of Azeroth, as the advertising agreement will not enter the beloved virtual realm of World of Warcraft, but instead be placed on Blizzard's websites and be otherwise limited to BattleNet, which already contains advertisements for other Blizzard products.

Mostly, with these weekly charts, I am the bearer of good news. I bring you information that a great new game has topped the national sales, or that an underdog has made it to #1 despite the odds being stacked against them. This week, I'm afraid I can't do that.

...while I am pleased to see that a certain zombie-huntin' co-op title has made it to #6 and #7 for PC and Xbox 360 respectively, the PS2 game that picks up top honours this week almost makes me ashamed to be a gamer.

In other news - the PC charts are still dominated by a wrathful monarch, the Xbox 360 hears the distant rev of chainsaws and the PS3 is heeding the call of duty once again. While the Wii is again concerned with body image, the DS prefers to train their mental abilities, and the PSP gets in a bit of wrestlin'.

It seems that November is a big month for birthdays, with World of Warcraft receiving four candles on their cake this weekend. To celebrate, they've turned the whole "present-giving" idea on its head - sending out gifts to everybody who logs in during their anniversary celebrations.

While the traditional 4th anniversary gift is flowers, Blizzard aren't much for tradition, instead giving gamers a very cute Baby Blizzard Bear! (If you're not one for 'cute', the cuddly munchkin also brings with it a feat of strength achievement to celebrate the game's four years online.)

So - just in case you spent the weekend without signing in to Azeroth, you might like to hop online very quickly and claim your present...

The ABC's gaming show Good Game is shown on Monday nights @ 9pm on ABC2 with a repeat on ABC1 on Friday nights after triple j TV. As if that wasn't enough, there's always the downloadable vodcast on the website, too!

With only 27 minutes we've tried to tackle the avalanche of games as best we can... and that's as well as our interview with Michael Atkinson, talking about an R18+ rating for Australia.

No real surprises in this week's charts, I'm afraid. Despite the sheer number of awesome titles being released, anybody who thought that we'd see anyone other than Arthas sitting at top spot was really deluding themselves. He did have some unexpected competition though, with a certain music game giving him a bit of a run for his money.

Obviously, PC games rule this week, from a frozen MMO throne. PS3 and Xbox 360 are both facing a world at war, the Wii is dancing to its own tune, the PS2 and its portable cousin are still wresting with this year's release, and the DS has resorted to cranial exercises once again.

(Incidentally - which platform do you think sold the most copies of the latest Guitar Hero? I think you'll be surprised...)

Well, now we know. Blizzard have officially announced that World of Warcraft's second expansion, Wrath of the Lich King is the fastest-selling PC game of all time, chalking up more than 2.8 million copies in its first 24 hours of availability.

If you were curious, the record didn't have to move very far - the former fastest-selling game was of course 2.4 million copies of the first expansion, The Burning Crusade, back in January 2007.

Just a few days after the launch of a certain MMO expansion pack, the Lich King has nearly claimed his first victim. A 15-year-old Swedish boy has collapsed and started convulsing, after playing World of Warcraft for 24 hours straight.

The gamer had invited six of his friends around to his house in Laholm, Western Sweden on Saturday, so they could hook up their computers and check out the new content being offered in the game. By 2pm Sunday, the boy collapsed, suffering what seemed to be an epileptic seizure.

Despite the recent spate of warm weather around the country, we should have known Arthas wouldn't arrive without a fanfare of epic proportions. Blizzard's latest expansion for World of Warcraft, the eagerly-awaited Wrath of the Lich King was launched in Australia last night - and it wasn't just gamers who came out in force to support the various midnight launches around the place, with Mother Nature turning up with some weather better suited to Northrend than Australia.

UgLyPuNk and Jessica headed out in Melbourne, while Timmy Campbell turned up to the festivities in Brisbane, Team Acaila checked out what Adelaide had to offer, and we've also managed to get some photos from Sydney - so we've pretty much got the nation covered.

While we're all waiting (im)patiently for the Wrath of the Lich King launch this evening (UgLyPuNk and I are in Melbourne, Timmy Campbell is in Brisbane and Acaila will be in Adelaide - will you be there - if you see us, say hi!), there's a bunch of gamers who'll be missing out on getting their Blizzard fix any time soon.

As part of a massive crackdown, the publisher has just suspended more than 350,000 StarCraft and Diablo II accounts, due to the use of third-party hacks.

Heart roaring, adrenaline pumping, and stomach churning, the thick breeze howls bringing a bitter chill that chisels away at your bones. Old battles with Onyxia, Ragnaros and Illidan no longer haunt your thoughts. Instead a voice thirsting for hunger continues to cleave your skull open. You must stay focused. Tomorrow you land on the cold, harsh shores of Northrend where the Lich King and the Scourge reside. Their machination is supremacy and destruction too any that stand in the way.

Finally after two years in development, the next installment to Blizzard Entertainment’s highly popular World of Warcraft arrives all over Australia and the servers go live TONIGHT! Before we continue please keep in mind this isn’t a complete review or hands-on of Wrath of the Lich King but instead a small preview covering some of the additions to the game.

The wrath begins – Azeroth is under attack by the Lich King’s scourge! Abominations and Frost Wyrms are assaulting Orgrimmar and Stormwind in massive droves. There's a call to arms and faction leaders have been summoned to help repel the attacks. The dire cause to enter Northrend looms on the minds from both sides.

The event is the prologue to the Wrath of the Lich King which launches in Australia on Friday. The events loop on a 15 minute interval and will likely end very soon. What awaits you...

Just as it looks like things are settling down, they bounce back up again with a vengeance. This week is looking like being far from the relaxing return to "normality" that I may have hoped, instead I've checked my calendar and realised that eGames is on this weekend, plus that pesky little Wrath of the Lich King launch... so I'm busy all over again - and the clock just keeps ticking towards Christmas! Ack!

If you, unlike me, are a little better organised and are scouting out festive gifts for people, perhaps this collection of screens will be like an illustrated shopping list. We've collated them all over the last week and are presenting them to you in one spot, all neat and tidy (unlike my calendar!).

Four years ago it took the world by storm, and in a matter of days the saga continues in Wrath of the Lich King. World of Warcraft is a big deal, so what kind of sales numbers can we expect from the expansion in the first month?

The number-crunchers from Activision Blizzard are predicting five million. Let’s see, the official active subscription count was last at eleven million. If those sales numbers are achieved it will be staggering, perhaps record breaking. In retrospect nearly 2.4 million copies of the Burning Crusade were sold in the 24 hour launch window and 3.5 million at the end of its first month.

Time is running out for millions of World of Warcraft players. In eight days Wrath of the Lich King goes live. For procrastinators it’s a good time to set your house in order. Clear out those quest logs, finish any last-minute achievements, and add to your stockpiled gold and baubles.

Too top it all off the 3.0.3 patch is live on the servers. If you want the no hassle grab the 3.0.2 -> 3.0.3 US/Aus Patch from us. This new patch cleans up after the massive 3.0.2: Echoes of Doom patch. Attention is given to Inscription, tweaks to about every talent tree, and the “Hallowed Be thy Name” will show up over a lot more heads. There’s also a few server-stability fixes. If you need to download older patches or ones in different languages they’re available in our File Library!

(To find out whether or not your class was nerfed, check out the detailed changelog.)

Time is money, friends! Ever shell out real cash for some virtual currency or items? It happens a lot, in fact it's a billion dollar business. Mainland China is one hotspot for companies to run gold farming and virtual sale operations. Several years ago the Chinese government introduced a ban that prevented users from profiting off virtual item sales but enforcement was lax and now the government wants in on the action.

China and the State Administration of Taxation will impose a 20% tax on income earned from trading virtual currencies.

After a sea of laughs from our Seadog Awards, we have decided to bring you more. This time around in the spirit of this month's festivities, we have put together The Games On Net Horrific Awards.

Sure Halloween might not be big in this country, but scary games are and they deserve to be awarded. Will there be zombie ushers at the ceremony or will a Boo try to sneak up on you? Bring your bag and trick or treat your way in, to see which games won our horrific awards!

Blizzard Entertainment announced the milestone today, a jump from 10 million reached back in January. With some rough math the ballpark figure in subscription revenue amounts to 11,000,000 x $14 x 12 months = US$1,848,000,000 a year. That’s a ton of dough but running an empire doesn’t come cheap with all the server maintenance, new WoW translations, and over 1,000 Blizzard employees on payroll. Oh yeah, not to mention the costs associated to Wrath of the Lich King, due out in Australia on November 14th.

There may be a possible discrepancy with active subscribers and the total number of accounts. Blizzard claims these are subscribers but don’t release the details on whether or not that number includes multi-account owners.

Developer versus Developer! A tit for tat by Mythic Entertainment CEO Mark Jacobs continues after various responses and opinions made by Blizzard Entertainment employees during interviews conducted at BlizzCon regarding Warhammer: Age of Reckoning.

The drama first erupted after comments made by Paul Sams, Blizzard Entertainment's COO, that over half of the subscribers who had left World of Warcraft for Warhammer Online had returned. This information comes from the survey results when a user cites their reason for moving on. We've commented about the breakout success for Warhammer Online hitting the 750,000 player count and noted the real numbers wouldn’t solidify until the beginning of next year. Jacobs also stated a similar opinion but added that many people may be playing both MMOGs.

Blizzard Entertainment's one and only live-operating MMOG, World of Warcraft, sports 11 million players worldwide, and while the masses wait for Wrath of the Lich King (due out November 14th in Australia), the live realms were upgraded to the enormous game-changing 3.0.2 patch dubbed Echoes of Doom. (Do not delete your 3.0 patch files you will need them for the WotlK installation.)

So with all that’s going on with WoW it’s easy to forget that Blizzard Entertainment is developing a next-generation MMOG which is in the early stages. The listed employment opportunities for the top-secret project don’t shed any light on what genre or franchise the MMOG will be based on. Nor were any details leaked out at BlizzCon. Considering the lack of new properties in the last decade speculation has run rampant that the next-generation MMOG will be a sequel to World of Warcraft.

As you may know, the brand new World of Warcraft expansion is nearly upon us. To prepare for The Wrath of the Lich King, we have the very shiny Patch 3.0.2: Echoes of Doom, all ready for you to download!

This patch introduces all sorts of changes that will be included in the expansion - with the exception of the new maps, Death Knights and a few other bits and pieces. Depending on which version of the game you have, it can be a little on the large size, with the 3.0.1 -> 3.0.2 US/Aus Patch the smallest, at a little over 365MB. If you're upgrading from v2.4.3, the Burning Crusade version is available - 846MB, and the biggest of all, the Classic 2.4.3 -> 3.0.2 Update coming in at 2.23GB! ...if you want other versions, we've got the whole set in our File Library!

(To celebrate, we've presented the sizeable changelog along with a selection of brand new BlizzCon screenshots - enjoy!)

It turns out Blizzard Entertainment is prepared. With the upcoming World of Warcraft expansion, Wrath of the Lich King set to debut on November 14th in Australia, it’s no surprise Arthas and his cronies in Northrend have hit Golden master.

Blizzard President and co-founder Mike Morhaime confirmed the milestone during BlizzCon and stated the manufacturing process has already begun. It’s quite a daunting endeavor as millions of boxes have to be assembled and shipped out ahead of time for the worldwide launch.

I'm about to spend my weekend surrounded by brand new playable versions of Blizzard games, and while I promise I'll tell you all about them, I know it's not quite the same. Still, while I'm running around playing Diablo 3, StarCraft II and Wrath of the Lich King, you get your own selection of free games, clients and playable demos. It's not all bad, right?

This week, we have for you demos from 3D Backgammon, Astronoid, Bubble Bobble Quest, CellFighter, Crysis Wars, Discovera, Dynasty Warriors 6, Galactic Dream: Rage of War, Haunted House Quest, Jezzball Deluxe, PacShooter 3D, Petank Party, Pro Evolution Soccer 2009, Project Aftermath, James Bond: Quantum of Solace, Silly Balls, Sixty Five Million And One BC, Super Cubes, Teddy Wars, War Leaders: Clash of Nations, Worm 2000

and we also have full games from the IGDA 48 hour Games Competition, Rise & Fall: Civilizations at War.

Well well, here we are at BlizzCon, at the Anaheim Convention Center. Officially starting tomorrow morning, we'll be bringing you all the news from the show floor, including videos, photos, panel details, tournament results and even interviews with suitably important people. I'm not sure how we're going to get the time to do all that though - we've just learned that Diablo 3 will be playable this weekend, so we may be a little ...distracted.

Anyway. This evening, we went and picked up our goody bags from the front desk - and we've brought them back to the hotel to dissect. Live vicariously with us, won't you?

Not all of us keep our computer rigs stuffed with the latest technological wonderment. For some it’s really bad, everything runs fine on low settings until the next shiny must play game comes along and melts your computer into circuitry goop. Consoles offer the ease and accessibility as well as longevity without the need to upgrade hardware, troubleshoot an installation, configuring checks and balances, or fix the graphical bugged apocalypse. The list goes on and that’s why PC gaming is dead! Right?

Hell no. TEN million active World of Warcraft subscribers must prepare for doomsday and help insinuate the death of Console gaming.

Last week WoW players erupted in outrage and also support when Blizzard announced that honor points and battleground tokens were to reset at the launch of the upcoming Wrath of the Lich King expansion. Now, Blizzard has reversed their stance and will forgo resetting honor points and battleground tokens. They will rollover, meaning players will be able stockpile their points, tokens, and spend them on WotlK PvP items.

The decision and consequences of either decision is highly controversial. This was probably the most debated topic among players in the past year because it was so far-reaching. If anything, the rift between PvP players and PvE players is alive and well, but the bigger debate was in regards to an equal footing at the expansion's outset. With all the hoarding taking place before the expansion spending it on those shiny new PvP items will come with a catch.

On November 13th in the US and the 14th in Australia, World of Warcraft expansion Wrath of the Lich King is set to launch adding the Death Knight class, new items, levels, spells, abilities and lots more. Launching a new expansion isn’t uncharted territory for Blizzard Entertainment so it comes as no surprise that changes are taking place behind the scenes to help ease the overall transition process to Wrath of the Lich King.

The Holiday flood begins this Thursday with the release of an ungodly amount of games, including Brothers in Arms: Hell’s Highway, Crysis Warhead and Wipeout HD, and doesn’t stop until the week before Christmas. To save you all a bit of time, I like to run through the release list at the start of a given quarter, and make sweeping generalisations as to the quality of upcoming games.

Last week’s Warp Pipe covered the games of October, so this week we’re looking at November’s big hitters, including Gears of War 2, Left 4 Dead and Mirror’s Edge.

Is it already too late for Funcom’s flagship title Age of Conan: Hyborian Adventures? Tons of players have already left Hyboria as Funcom pushes out patch after patch to fix the woes. Yesterday, we noted the latest developments which contains some fantastic additions but a shakeup at the top among the ranks may bring about the real change that Age of Conan needs.

You'd be forgiven for forgetting about Age of Conan: Hyborian Adventures, which was released released four months ago. Recent commotion being stirred up by the upcoming release of Warhammer Online: Age of Reckoning, and the announcement of a release date for World of Warcraft: Wrath of the Lich King it's easy to see why Hyborian Adventurers have been quiet.

Whilst those who've embarked on their own adventures in Hyboria have been displeased about the state of the game, developers Funcom have repeatedly stated that they are working hard on improving the quality of the game in order to satisfy their subscribers. Today, we've gotten our hands on a developer diary featuring Erling Ellingsen, Product Manager of Age of Conan: Hyborian Adventures, in which he speaks about the numerous changes which are set to send a wave of rejoicing through the fan base.

We mentioned earlier today that fansites have been reporting a rumoured release date for World of Warcraft: Wrath of the Lich King, but now Blizzard have confirmed all the news that's fit to print - including an Australian-specific date!

It's official, on November 14th, Australian gamers
will be given the chance to venture into the Frozen North!

While we've heard absolutely nothing of the sort from our friends at Blizzard, a handful of World of Warcraft fansites around the internet are posting what is rumoured to be the release date for the next expansion, Wrath of the Lich King.

The game, which is currently well into pre-release beta, with the test realms updated last week, definitely is getting closer to hitting shelves - but is November 13th a date to mark in your calendars?

As if you didn't already have enough good reasons to be wishing yourself away to Games Convention, Blizzard are about to give you two more.

They've just announced that both World of Warcraft: Wrath of the Lich King and upcoming RTS StarCraft II are currently playable in Leipzig.

...if you couldn't get to Germany this year, don't worry, we've got the brand new Wrath of the Lich King cinematic trailer, to tide you over.

Yesterday, we told you that the upcoming World of Warcraft expansion had started warming up its new beta. We've had it confirmed that invitations are now being sent out to gamers lucky enough to have been picked from the opt-in program, and we've got some more good news for you, too.

Wrath of the Lich King will improve a number of the features already included in World of Warcraft, but it will also introduce a whole bunch of brand new ones, keeping the game interesting and a bit different.

One of these new features is the introduction of achievements.

While many games on released on Steam are famed for their incredibly short changelogs, in the vast lands of MMOs, lengthy changelogs are a part of everyday life. Following yesterday's truly formidable Wrath of the Lich King change log, the folk behind Lord of the Rings Online have unveiled the client update and changelog for their latest additions.

Not following traditional patch naming conventions, the Book 13 -> Book 14 update adds a bunch of new content and fixes a number of issues. We've got the entire changelog and client available in order to allow you to prepare for when the update goes live on the 22nd of July.

Those of you hanging out for the beta test for the next World of Warcraft expansion, Wrath of the Lich King, your chance is nearly here. We've heard that the beta downloader has started and there are people around the world who've been given access already.

Looks like Blizzard have kicked off the beta testing phase - with sending out invitations one of the next steps!

In case you were interested, we've also found what claims to be the (very long!) patch notes for the WotLK beta, too - check 'em out!

While it almost seems like the latest World of Warcraft expansion pack has been forgotten in all the fuss surrounding Blizzard's more recent announcements, those diehard role-players are about to have something of their own to celebrate.

This week, Blizzard opened the Wrath of the Lich King Beta Opt-In program, giving gamers the opportunity to win their invitation to the upcoming WotLK beta. Any interested players are being asked to sign on to a website and register their interest, with lucky players plucked out of a hat when the Beta opens later this year (no dates have been given yet, so you've got plenty of time to sign up).

While we still haven't seen the announcement for The Lost Rock and Roll World of DiabloCraft V, I'd say that Blizzard Entertainment's Worldwide Invitational, held in Paris over this weekend has been a runaway success.

Obviously the highlight was the announcement of Diablo III in the opening address, but there's been some gems announced for upcoming World of Warcraft expansion, Wrath of the Lich King, as well as some new details revealed for StarCraft II.

We've still got some trained monkeys chained to typewriters in the back room, frantically typing up all our notes from various panels and information we've been given, but for now, our attention is focussed on the Closing Ceremony, just in case there's any new revelations.

Well, the juggernaut that is World of Warcraft shows no signs of stopping - and to illustrate that point (heh), we've got a bunch of new information and screenshots on the upcoming Wrath of the Lich King expansion pack.

You see, the heroes of Azeroth have been pretty busy recently, what with the opening of the Dark Portal, and the renewed war to stop the Burning Crusade's destruction of worlds, so they haven't been paying much attention to the frozen wastes of Northrend - all-but ignoring the ancient terrible powers that lurk there. Unfortunately for them, the brooding evils of the fallen Nerubian empire, and their unpleasant sovereign, the Lich King himself, have not forgotten Azeroth.

With some massive trailers coming out in the last 24 hours, I thought this week would have been a challenge to try and pick out some of the better ones. However when I went over to the file library to see what else was there, it was still jam packed with great videos that now I have too many to choose from.

This week we check out the intro to a blobbing game and the second wave of resistance. We get welcomed into our new company as well as find out what its like to be a ninja the second time round. Then a new mmorpg title that is inline to be released this year. Also we look at what is crying in far away Africa.

Well, it's that time again - the folks at Blizzard have just put the finishing touches on yet another patch for World of Warcraft, bringing the worldwide smash MMORPG up to version 2.4.2.

This new patch is a little bigger than the last one, but will still only set you back 15MB, while it packs a pretty decent punch in terms of what it updates, introduces and fixes. We have the US/AUS 2.4.1 to 2.4.2 patch all ready for you - and if you'd like to check it out in other flavours, feel free to peruse our file library.

As always, we come prepared, changelog in hand, in case you're up for a spot of reading, too.

I know that any World of Warcraft statistics are automatically met with a bit of skepticism. The game passed the 10 million subscriber mark in January, which resulted in gamers everywhere questioning just what a "subscriber" is.

So then, when China makes the statement that more than one million players were logged on to WoW at the same time (the highest concurrent number since the game's launch in the region, in 2005), it's only fair that customers assume that more than a few of those might have been gold farmers. That said, it's still an impressive thing to celebrate, right?

Blizzard Entertainment have unveiled the plans for their fourth Worldwide Invitational. In case you'd forgotten, last year's Invitational in Korea saw StarCraft II be announced, but no word yet on whether or not this year will include a similar bombshell.

2008 sees the Invitational head to Europe for the first time, with the event being held in Paris on June 28th and 29th, bringing the company together with gamers in a convention-style atmosphere to celebrate the games - and communities surrounding those games - that Blizzard have created. The Warcraft, Diablo and StarCraft franchises will all be highlighted - including top eSports gamers from each game showing off their skillz.

There's been some discussion around these here forums about just what will be in the next World of Warcraft patch - v2.4.0.

Well, I'd like to put your minds at rest as best I can, and give you the current, official, patchnotes for the update. I wish I could give you a date of arrival - or even an estimate - but for now, you'd better polish up your glasses, you've got some heavy reading to do.

Rest assured - as soon as the patch is released, we'll have it in our File Library, in as many different languages as you can shake a stick at.

Welcome to the Warp Pipe, a new weekly editorial piece that will grace the pages of the Internode Games Network every Sunday morning. I've got a pretty basic plan in place for what's going to be in the column each week; I rant about something to do with video games, remember old games, make silly predictions and tell you the industry is full of poo, and then you jump onto the Internode forums and rant about how I know nothing and should be shot out of a cannon or be forced to ghost-write John Howard's memoirs.

It's a good day for World of Warcraft. Not only do they have a brand new 2.3.3 patch out, but it's been announced that the game now boasts 10 million subscribers. That number is made up of gamers who have a currently active subscription or pre-paid card, those who've bought the game and are enjoying their free month's access, or people who've accessed the game over the past 30 days. It doesn't count people using free promo subscriptions, expired pre-paid cards, or people whose subscriptions have expired or been cancelled.

Those currently active gamers have a bit of downloading to do, with the bite-sized 2.3.3 patch released today (less than 5MB!). We have the 2.3.2 -> 2.3.3 US/AUS Patch for Windows and now for Mac as well. If you're after the same thing in different languages, we've got plenty to choose from in our File Library, too.

Ever wanted to get behind the scenes at Blizzard? Well, while they're not quite throwing the doors open to you just yet, the guys have decided to share a little of their lives with you, with the launch of BlizzCast, a (hopefully) regular podcast from various Blizzard developers and staff.

Each episode will include bits and pieces about how the games are made, plus discussion of new features and even conversation about future projects like StarCraft II and Wrath of the Lich King.

The first episode's out today, chatting to Samwise Didier and Jeff Kaplan, and we've got a copy for you sitting happily in our File Library.

Blizzard are hard at work creating their upcoming World of Warcraft expansion, The Wrath of the Lich King, due out this year some time. Personally, I was almost expecting to see it in shops within a month or so, keeping it inline with the Burning Crusade release last year, but - alas - it seems a little further off still.

If you, like me, wanted to get your expansion update, I've got a couple of new screens to share with you, and a whole bunch that you may have seen before, and are still worth checking out. Looking at pictures of snow when it's hot outside is somehow relaxing, is it not?

What will you remember 2007 for, in terms of gaming?

We asked some of the game admins and network staff to find out their thoughts, but I'll give you a quick recap first:
Australia got the PS3 in a bit of an anti-climactic launch, bringing with it a bit of resistance, as well as a stormy racer. We got a new Command & Conquer, another episode of Half-Life 2, a final Halo and didn't get the latest Grand Theft Auto. The world was thrown into "what-if?" with a little game from Massive, a motley crew of cartoons finally arrived, making up Team Fortress 2, and the Call of Duty was heard on a more modern battlefield. Ingame physics were turned on their head and flipped inside-out with Valve's puzzling Portal, our favourite four-fingered family arrived on almost every console known to man, first-person shooters got genetically-engineered, and the world was overrun by pocket monsters, both handheld and motion-sensitive. It's also been a big year for a little Italian plumber, who not only took over the soccer field, he also had a party or two and even headed into space, as well as turning somewhat more two-dimensional. Blizzard released their first MMO expansion, announced their second, revealed that 9 million people played World of Warcraft, took the covers off of StarCraft II, and still managed to keep tight-lipped on their new project.

The Games Network has done a whole bunch of work behind the scenes, making things a lot nicer and easier to work with, even if it looks pretty much the same. One of the major changes would be the upgrade to our file mirror, which now boasts 10 terabytes of space, so there's plenty of room for games, demos, screenshots, videos and patches. We also upgraded our staff, getting a whole new person to work for us, as well as a handful of new newsbots to bring you updates and good stories.

As a team, we tended to stay pretty close to home this year (other than sending representatives to eGames in Melbourne, GO3 in Perth, and BlizzCon in LA!), but we took the time to recognise the local guys with a big meetup for our Adelaide members, volunteers and gamers on the Australia Day long weekend last year. We had a whole pub to ourselves!

Overall, we must be doing something right, as every month, it seems we get bigger and bigger, with more visits, downloads and members! ...and, of course, you guys are the most important thing. Thanks for all your support, whether you're a regular visitor, someone who pops in from time to time, or just someone who keeps an eye out for interesting files in our library.

Bring on 2008 - but first, read on to find out what the admins, staff and volunteers have to say about 2007!

Following the recent creation of Activision Blizzard, discussions have re-started on the ongoing topic of "Blizzard's new MMO". Back in April, job listings on the Blizzard website suggested that they were working on a next-gen MMO, but there has still been no real statement from the developer, beyond the fact they are working on a number of varied unannounced projects.

Recently, some more jobs were posted on their website, refueling the debate. Since various Activision franchises have been added to the stable, did this mean we could look forward to World of Tony Hawk? Call of DutyCraft? Azeroth Hero?

Short answer: No. Sorry.

As I sit here, watching the final moments of the BlizzCon Closing Ceremony (the orchestra, Video Games Live, is currently playing music from StarCraft II), I feel it's only fair to bring you the video footage of yesterday's Opening Ceremony.

If you didn't want to wake up so early yesterday, you can grab the 400mb video, and watch Blizzard president Mike Morhaime open the exhibition, as well as the official announcement of the new WoW expansion - the Wrath of the Lich King.

So - in case you missed it - World of Warcraft: The Wrath of the Lich King has been officially announced.

The website for the expansion has gone live - over at WorldofWarcraft.com/Wrath, featuring information on the storyline of the game - as well as the Borean Tundra and Howling Fjord, two environments included in the expansion.

We've got a pile of screenshots, a pile of artwork - and the first trailer video for you from the new expansion - check it out!