Chinese gamers will soon be enjoying Wrath of the Lich King following news that the game has now been approved for the Chinese audience by the General Administration of Press and Publication (GAPP). The game was approved today and the game could be released in China as early as this August, however it still has to be approved by China's Ministry of Culture. The delay for approval has been down to a dispute between the Ministry of Culture and GAPP on who had the right to approve the expansion for the Chinese market. Continue Reading & Comment >>

Some people say better late than never. Blizzard Entertainment will enforce the use of authenticators to log into the forums. If you don't have an authenticator, don't panic. This is only for those who attached an authenticator to their World of Warcraft or Starcraft II game.

Actually, you should panic if you don't have a Blizzard Authenticator or a Mobile Authenticator, because if your account is hacked, you might lose your in-game character, bank and bags items and gold.

The authenticator is used to log into the World of Warcraft and Starcraft II account, and to access the Battle.net Account Page. The forums, however, didn't have this layer of security. This affected some of the players who got their account breached by keyloggers or trojans. Potentially the hijacker could use the forums to spam gold advertisements and get your forum account banned.

With the intro of this feature into the forums, the layer of security offered by the authenticator allows you to protect and keep your forum posting privileges with no worry.

	Blizzard Quote:
	As a part of our ongoing dedication to account security, players who utilize authenticators on their account will now be asked to enter it upon their first time logging into the forums, and then periodically thereafter. By ensuring that, even if their account is compromised, without the attached authenticator their login credentials can’t be used. This additional security layer helps to better protect players in all services accessed by logging in with their account and password. We’d like to urge all players who don’t already use one to please consider attaching an authenticator to help protect themselves and their accounts. Information on how to obtain an authenticator as well as additional account security information can be found at: http://www.battle.net/security/

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Yahoo Movies posted a few screenshots of Costume-dressed fans who attended the San Diego Comic Con 2010. Considering this is a major comic book and sci-fi (i.e. Star Wars, Star Trek, etc.) event, it is great to see at least one World of Warcraft fan had the boldness to dress up as a Tauren Warrior.

Did you take photos or know where to find them of other fellow players dressing like a World of Warcraft, Starcraft II or Diablo III character at the San Diego Comic Con? Post a link to let us know.

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The Dustwallow Marsh is absolutely the less interesting of the regions in terms of changes caused by the Cataclysm. Actually, the only two changes in Dustwallow Marsh are not even due to the Cataclysm itself.

The first notable thing in Dustwallow Marsh is the new bridge that connects Theramore across the Dustwallow Bay to the area of the fallen Zeppelin, and into the path to the Direhorn Post.

The path the Alliance built goes all the way horizontally across Dustwallow Marsh into the entrance of the Southern Barrens.

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Not going to BlizzCon this year? The DirectTV pay per view coverage is now on sale priced £24.95 if you're in the UK and $39.95 if you're in the US. For this you get the show and also a WoW in-game item.

Last year the coverage was criticised for missing some key panels which they hope to address this year. Also, last year I subscribed myself and was badly stung when they took the cash off the credit card and failed to give me access. There was no support at all to call or email.The conduct was pretty shoddy to say the least I ended up having to pay again much to my annoyance. Be warned!. Continue Reading & Comment >>

It's less than 24 hours until StarCraft 2 launches for me and I have my trusty copy all ready to go for the midnight launch. My copy arrived last week, but as most of you know, it is unplayable until Blizzard flick the switch at midnight. Many of you will be gearing up to play the game when it launches so make sure you keep a close eye on StarCraft: IncGamers where it is being covered in-depth before and after launch. Continue Reading & Comment >>

There's a nice column up on Courier-journal.com which tells the story of 53 year old Beth Cox who has become absorbed by the WoW. Cox who suffers from social anxiety has found WoW to be a great release where she feels coomfortable in a "controlled, nonthreatening gathering place". Cos now shares her WoW passion with other members of the family. Continue Reading & Comment >>

The guys at Kotaku have taken a closer look at some of DC's the very cool WoW and StarCraft 2 figures that were on show at this week's ComicCon. There are some cracking shots that show the amazing details on the figures so if you're thinking about snagging one of these figures check out the article. Continue Reading & Comment >>

Feralas is one of the regions deeply affected by Deathwing's emergence into Azeroth bringing in his path a wave of destruction. The Cataclysm literally sunk the Isle of Dread to the bottom of the ocean floor.

When you swim where this isle existed, you can see it underwater, almost unchanged. Only problem is all those wild Chimeras are no more, and that means the Anh'Qiraj Gates questline got severed because that's where you had to kill the Huge Chicken for the crazy gnome off the coast of Tanaris. The Gnome is missing in Cataclysm Beta too.

Let's guide you through the different new changes made to each zone of Feralas with a brief description and screenshots. Check them out below.

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This July 24^th and 25^th, come join the hunt for the greatest game of them all. Cryptozoic Entertainment, home of the World of Warcraft Trading Card Game, will release a streak of Spectral Tigers into the wild. If you want to bag and tag one of these elusive mounts, join the party with fellow World of Warcraft TCG fans at a Spectral Safari near you.

A tournament friendly to players of all experience levels, the Spectral Safari participants will receive -- at random -- one of the 18 Class Starter Decks and compete in a tournament with that deck. The first 25 players to register for the event will pocket a Landro’s Pet Box code. Players who do well will earn Wrath Gate booster packs, and the winner picks up a Blazing Hippogryph Loot card. The Spectral Tiger will be randomly won as a door prize at the end of the event, so every entrant has an equal opportunity to ride home in style!

If you’re ready to play big game hunter, visit the Cryptozoic forums to find a local hobby store near you and join the event page on Facebook. Continue Reading & Comment >>

We have been hammering Logitech for discount deals for all IncGamers readers recently and we have a couple of new corkers starting from today som of you can take advantage of.

The Logitech G Series Bundle which includes the G19 Keyboard for Gaming, G9x Laser Mouse and G13 Advanced Gameboard. Using our super special discount code you can get an additional 30% of the price!

Discount code: GAMERS30

We are also offering the Logitech Gaming Keyboard G110 & MX 518 Optical Mouse Bundle with an additional 20% discount by using the following code:

Discount code: GAMERS30

The offer is open to UK, Germany, Sweden, France and the Netherlands readers so do take advantage of it now while you can. These are massive savings!
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A rumor just took off circulating the web that NetEase might announce the launch date of World of Warcraft: Wrath of the Lich King in China in August at ChinaJoy, the China Digital Entertainment Expo & Conference.

This event is taking place at the Shangai Convention Center through July 28 to August 1st. It's a matter of a few days to find out how much this rumor glues together with reality and truthfulness. Continue Reading & Comment >>

As many of you know if you’re a regular reader , we have been following the progress of the World of Warcraft movie quite closely but the project appears to have just about completely stalled. Speaking at ComicCon today, Chris Metzen commented thay the WoW movie project was still in the “treatment stage”, they’re “still feeling it out” and they’re “getting ducks in a row”. Reading between the lines it looks like not a lot is happening with the project so the WoW movie looks to be a long way off.

Thanks CinemaBlend.

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As my 8-ball predicted, Blizzard Senior VP of Creative Development Chris Metzen and Blizzard Publishing Lead Micky Neilson were at the San Diego Comic Con 2010 to reveal details of the upcoming World of Warcraft Mini-Series and Graphic Novels.

According to Newsarama, World of Warcraft comic editor Hank Kanalz talked about the first World of Warcraft mini-series titled World of Warcraft: The Curse of the Worgen by Micky Neilson and James Wong. This mini-series will flesh out the background of the Gilnean werewolf humans cursed with the Worgen state.

On the other hand, the first new World of Warcraft graphic novel by Mike Costa will focus on the Alliance, with some of the mysterious origins of the Worgen.

The second World of Warcraft graphic novel by Doug Wagner will deal with the Horde. Among the concept art revealed at the San Diego Comic Con were orcs, tauren and there seems to be a mockup about a pandaren character. It's not clear if it is a stand alone mini-series based on the Pandaren. I will see what I can find out.

My 8-ball also hit home with the prediction that Cryptozoic Entertainment would be at the San Diego Comic Con represented by Cory Jones to lay the plans for their upcoming Scourge War TCG expansion in September.

Chris Metzen also talked about the World of Warcraft film.

"Especially in the past month, we've been back and forth on a treatment [Sam Raimi]'s been working on…Hopefully, we'll be moving very very quickly, very soon." -- said Chris Metzen at the San Diego Comic Con 2010.

The man behind the Warcraft lore is giving us a good sign that the 40-pages treatment mentioned recently by Sam Raimi at the Saturn Awards [in an interview with the Collider] might be getting fleshed out into a more stable script fast enough to get the ball rolling next year on 2011.

Of course, it might just be my fanboy mentality at work here, but at least that "soon" doesn't have the old-school-Blizzard [tm] attached to it.

The San Diego Comic Con 2010 isn't over yet as it will run through June 22-25, so I will inform any updates I find online as announcements are made at the show floor.

Are you one of our visitors who have the luck of going to the San Diego Comic Con? Whether you have or not a video camera or able to take photos, send me a private message, post in our forum, or email me to post your coverage on the front page.

• Source: Gamespot

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There will be some considerable changes in the next beta build concerning level 80 mobs stats and some zones and dungeons minimum level requirements.

For example, to enter and quest in Mount Hyjal and Ruins of Vashj'ir now players must be level 80 (previously 78), and to compensate all mobs in those areas have been increased in level too.

Additionally, the hit point values of level 80+ Cataclysm creatures have been increased a 100%..

Level 80 (OLD)
16400

Level 80 (NEW)
31000

Players will also now need to be level 80 in order to use the Dungeon Finder System for Throne of Tides and Blackrock Caverns. Continue Reading & Comment >>

Blizzard Entertainment is bringing the World of Warcraft: Cataclysm and Starcraft II: Wings of Liberty exhibition and hands-on gameplay to Gamescom 2010. You may find them at booth Halle 6, B21 & B31 through August 19-22 in Cologne, Germany

Come to the the biggest trade fair for interactive games and entertainment, enter the computer area to play the games, and talk to the Blizzard representatives who will answer your questions about your favorite games.

Find out more about the show and how to get there here Continue Reading & Comment >>

The Game Hunters online blog, published by the north american national USA Today, has a Cataclysm beta hands-on article describing what the author experienced while visiting several low level areas of Kalimdor and Eastern Kingdoms.

Among these locations are Orgrimmar, Azshara, Barrens, Hillsbrad, and Tirisfal Glades. For those who aren't participating in the beta test, and don't know much about what's going on, this will be a good teaser to read.

Speaking of hidden treasures, players that have only flown over the Ironforge Airport or heard rumors of the place can now see it with their own eyes. Before, a visit here got you an instant ban from the game. But with flying mounts, curious players can explore more freely. Just watch out for the attacking Dark Iron Dwarves.

There are also new ways to travel. On the Horde side, players can travel around the Aszhara zone on a Goblin Rocket Express. There's also a Forsaken Coffin Carrier, a big wagon drawn by Ogres. These will help those low level players get around faster until they get their first land mount.

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The San Diego Comic Con will kick in through June 22-25 at the San Diego Convention Center. No press releases or news have been released obviously as any potential new Blizzard licensed product (if any) will be unveiled at the show floor.

Wildstorm Comics

The World of Warcraft comic book was revealed at the 2007 San Diego Comic Con a few years ago by Chris Metzen, Micky Neilson and Jim Lee. It was yours-truly who published the existence of an upcoming comic book a week before DC Comics unleashed their press release announcing it, by unleashing a leaked World of Warcraft # 0 Sampler.

The World of Warcraft comic book ended with the World of Warcraft Special # 1, but with the promise that Wildstorm would relaunch it in Graphic Novel format. San Diego Comic Con is the perfect platform to make the announcement of a release date and teasers of the upcoming World of WarCraft and StarCraft Graphic Novels.

Sideshow Collectibles

While there haven't been anything showing up in my radar, about a year and a half ago, I asked the Sideshow Collectibles president if there would be any new Warcraft, Starcraft or Diablo dioramas. He said live in the chat that there were plans, but for now they would focus on the Warcraft franchise. It took them about a year to show the painted Diablo III Overthrown Diorama after showing the unpainted version. So, if the calendar schedule is a clue, they should announce something anytime by now. San Diego Comic Con could be a good place to start teasing a new Blizzard licensed product. Time will tell.

J!NX

J!NX announced they will be at San Diego Comic Con. Blizzard folks are likely attending the event as they did in times past. I could foresee the 2010 WoW T-shirts Summer Sale line-up, and to celebrate the StarCraft II release date, a brand-new T-shirt. Only time will tell how close my 8-ball is.

DC Unlimited

These folks unveiled the Arthas the Lich King action figure at the 2010 New York Toy Fair. I attended the place, but too late when they were packing their stuff [smashes forehead into a nearby wall].

The guys didn't want to unpack them for me, but I do know they showed a prototype StarCraft action figures and didn't allow people to take photos of them. That was back on February 2010. Could they unveil the Starcraft II Action Figures and the Lich King one at San Diego Comic Con? [8-ball shake and rub] ... maybe.

Cryptozoic Entertainment

This is a new company that surfaced a few months ago, deeply tied with Blizzard Entertainment and the World of Warcraft TCG after Upper Deck got their license expired.

As you can see at their website, they post updates quite often, and wish to grow the hype. San Diego Comic Con and BlizzCon are two potential targets to make some announcements about future TCG expansions and starter packs. I am not so certain on this one, but it's a possibility.

TOKYOPOP

This company is definitely among my favorites, along with Pocket Books. Both companies are very-very supportive and trigger-happy to provide me with the latest details, preview scans, front covers sneak peek, and interviews, or general information, or to bridge approvals between Blizzard and us.

Tokyopop's latest Blizzard manga were World of Warcraft: Death Knight, World of Warcraft: Mage; and World of Warcraft: Dragons of Outland.

Personally, I would love to see more manga based in the three franchises. Sadly, I haven't heard any announcements about their attendance to the San Diego Comic Con or announcements of any new Blizzard manga. I really hope they show up there. [8-ball shake and rub] ... unlikely. But we still have BlizzCon to hope for, eh?

Stay tuned, for any hot news coming our way because the 2010 San Diego Comic Con starts in less than 18-hours, and many things are possible to happen, such as new Blizzard licensed products. Continue Reading & Comment >>

The NPD Group is charting new terrain by providing a report of the consumer reported sales of digitally distributed PC video games.

The eye-popping figures demonstrate that digital distribution is stepping on the retail distribution's tail. A sign that very soon digital distribution (21.3 million units) will dethrone traditional retail (23.5 million units).

If that is interesting to you, learn who is driving this unstoppable force sales growth ... Blizzard Entertainment.

Out of the top 5 digital distributors, two of them are Blizzard Entertainment's platforms: The Blizzard Store website, and WorldofWarcraft.com

1. Steampowered.com
2. Direct2Drive.com
3. Blizzard.com
4. EA.com
5. Worldofwarcraft.com

I find this very interesting, considering the plans Rob Pardo and Greg Canessa have for the new Battle.net. Some of those plans might yet to be revealed, specially the premium services, and possible digital download distribution sales of upcoming games, expansions, and special content. Continue Reading & Comment >>

Valnoth (alias Lead World Designer Cory Stockton?) informs all Cataclysm Beta testers that Silverpine Forest will be ready for testing in the next build, and wishes beta testers' feedback concerning an elusive bug affecting auto-quest. Any and all bug reports on this matter is very appreciated by the developers as this is a core issue they wish to iron out.

Post your feedback here.

	Blizzard Quote:
	We're trying to pinpoint a bug right now with auto quests sometimes failing to auto-launch the next quest in a series. If you guys experience auto quests failing to auto-launch, please make a post in this thread about the conditions/circumstances around the failure. What were you doing when the quest failed to auto-launch? What UI elements were open? Were you in combat? Mounted? etc... Some zones that make extensive use of auto-quest: Redridge Mountains Silverpine (ready for testing in the next build) Northern Stranglethorn Cape of Stranglethorn Any information you guys can provide will be helpful.

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