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The European Closed Beta Test of World of Warcraft starts today and European gamers will be able to test the very latest version of the game, which includes the latest content and updates, following the push yesterday in North America and Korea. Moving forward, Beta Testers in Europe, North American and Korea will have access to the same content as future pushes will occur simultaneously in all territories.

The European Beta Test will initially offer the English language version, and in due course the French and German language versions will be introduced to the testing process.

The game will be tested in multiple phases and the first phase of Beta Testers is currently being notified by e-mail. This notification process will continue daily over the next few days. Thereafter, additional testers will be included each time a new phase begins and they will be notified by e-mail accordingly at the time. We intend to do our utmost to include as many players as possible from the pool of those who signed up to join the European Closed Beta Test.

We would like to thank again everyone who has signed up and wish you all the very best of luck in being selected.

May our paths cross in World of Warcraft!

Our team here at Blizzard has been diligently laboring on a new patch for the World of Warcraft beta. This patch is meant to address some outstanding bugs as well as prepare the way for new content. Here are the major features:

Major Changes

* New Model & Animation System
* New Looting Methods
* Warlock Talents Added

You can download the patch by connecting to the game as usual once the servers are available; an automatic update will patch you up to the Beta 6 build. Thank you again for your continuing to test World of Warcraft -- your efforts are appreciated!

There are new patch notes available on Blizzard's World of Warcraft community site. Here's a summary of the juicy bits.

While our Game Master teams will be ready to answer your questions and solve your problems in-game, we also have other teams, but in the shadows, among test computers, heavy manuals and ringing phones: The Technical teams and the Billing Teams!

To contact these, you are now able to use our support web-form. One form to sum them all up: Account problems, Technical problems, billing problems (once relevant), even comments if you want! A special ActiveX file will fill in all the computer specifications for you (regarding the browser you will use), giving you more time to focus on detailing your problem. Pick a category, type in the details and there you go! Once received by our teams, your email will be analysed, investigated, discussed and soon after we will send you our answer.

Remember, while the web-form is nice, simple and efficient, it cannot (yet) guess what problems you are having with World of Warcraft. The best way to get a fast answer is to give us as much details as possible.

Having read some of the submissions for beta impressions over the last week, I felt compelled to write one of my own. I owe a lot to my significant other for this review; she was nice enough to let me have a turn now and then to play! I wanted to come up with a good title, a good way to capsulate my review in a few words. I wanted to avoid "Ten Ways WoW Rocks My Former MMORPG", although very tempting as it was, and passed on "WoW Will Be Better Than [insert upcoming MMO name here]". I hesitated on the otherwise aptly chosen "Ten Ways Blizzard Will Cash the Checks" title, and decided to sum up my beta impressions in ten bullets; one for each day of the stress test.

Our links database has many guilds and resources for you to browse. I wanted to take chance to highlight the activity from the guilds in our Roleplay guild category. There's already forums and chat rooms posted there by guilds that are looking to establish some communication early on. If you would like to add your Roleplay guild please click below.

It's now my pleasure to introduce Ordinn, the latest addition to the World of Warcraft community team. Ordinn will be vigilantly overseeing the forums with Tyren and Caydiem, helping everyone stay informed and up to date on the latest happenings in the game. With our community team fully staffed, we expect to be ramping up our forum coverage heavily now and reporting more community-related information in general. Ordinn, Tyren, and Caydiem are looking forward to continuing to get to know everyone better; thanks again for making them feel welcome!

What did you think about the Stress Test? [742] 60.28% It was amazing and fun! I can't wait until WoW is released! [93] 7.55% It was good, but there were some serious issues. [19] 1.54% Didn't like it at all. [377] 30.63% Didn't participate. Total Votes: 1231 Ended: Wed Sep 22 05:46:12 MDT 2004

Wow.. seems like people thought that "It was amazing and fun! I can't wait until WoW is released!", with a whopping 60.31 percent of the votes! Good news! But.. on to a more negative side, leading to our next poll. We ask readers "What is the most annoying part of the newest patch?". It seems like this is a major issue on the boards at the moment, so we thought we would get your input!

You can also discuss the poll on our boards!

We are introducing a new beta phase with this patch and welcoming another round of testers into the game. A second Player-versus-Environment server has been launched to accommodate the thousands of new testers we are inviting into the beta. Select Beta Server 2 on the realms list to play on this server. These new testers will be selected from the pool of applicants from our initial signup period. Those who have been selected to participate in the beta will receive an email from Blizzard with instructions on how to download the client and connect to the new server. Unfortunately, we will not be able to accommodate everyone. Please do not contact Blizzard directly to inquire about your selection status; those who have been chosen to participate will be contacted by email. Good luck and thank you for helping us test World of Warcraft!

The chat will be held on Wednesday, September 22nd at 8:00 PM EST (if you are in a different time zone, check out World Time Zones to find out what time that is where you are) in #StraticsHoC on the Stratics IRC Servers.

For those with Java installed, Stratics’ IRC HoC Java Chat applet will allow you to automatically join #StraticsHoC by entering a nickname and clicking on the Chat! button. Otherwise, you can connect to the servers by using either mIRC, pirch, Ircle, one of your favorite Linux chat clients, or one of the Java applets listed on the Stratics site and entering one of the following servers:

• irc.frws.com (USA, Colorado)
• irc.glowfish.de (EU, Germany)
• irc2.frws.com (USA, Colorado)
• irc.stratics.com (re-routing to one of the above servers)

We look forward to seeing you there!

As mentioned in the news post below, we are working to try to make the US World of Warcraft beta patch available for download this weekend. The World of Warcraft beta game servers will remain offline for at least 48 hours as discussed in the Emergency Update on WorldofWarcraft.com, but if we are able to provide the patch ahead of time, then when the game servers do eventually come back online, the plan is for players to already be patched up and ready to resume playing.

We will continue working on making the patch available, but we do want to let everyone know that this will not happen tonight. If you haven't checked them out already, the patch notes can be found at the link below. Tomorrow afternoon we will post an update on the status of the beta game servers as well as on the patch. Thank you again for your continued patience and support.

This report provides a snapshot of the race and class distribution during the World of Warcraft Stress Test. The "/who" command was used to accumulate data from all twelve stress test servers. All data was taken within a one hour window between 8pm and 9pm PST on the last Saturday evening of the stress test. 19,180 characters were seen playing across all servers during that time. Charts and some brief analysis are found at the top of the page illustrating the most interesting findings. Complete data is available at the bottom of the page.

The official community site published a new page explaining their goals for player vs. player combat in World of Warcraft. Their use of battlegrounds as a means to focus the population into one area begs for classic MMO zerging, but the game designers at Blizzard have much more goal oriented and reward based PVP in mind. They also mention the ranking system and how Honor is awarded.

Stratics Central is proud to present our latest site, covering the upcoming Star Trek MMO, Star Trek Online Stratics! Our goal is to be your first stop for Star Trek Online news, information, and community interaction! To keep up to date on all the latest STO news, check out the main page. You can see some great info at our mirror of the Official FAQ! And for community interaction, we encourage you to use our forums, the Star Trek Online General Forum, and Star Trek Online Development Discussion. If you're more interested in a direct chat, check out the unofficial STO channel on irc.stratics.com, #startrek!

Special thanks to Prescient for putting this week's Roundup together. He did an awesome job!

Now for the show!

The Official Community site announced the revamping of the Professions system, the 2 winners of the comic contest, released a sneak peak at the new graphics for the Spirit Healer, and released info on a new transit option: The Deeprun Tram

Only WoW posted a new Ask Grishnak, and in their Forums they've posted a deeper look at the new PvP rewards system and the Euro beta.

WoW OGaming got some sneak preview shots of the new zones of Winterspring and Felwood, opened an IRC channel on the irc.gamesurge.net network, and opened a Warcraft Library. You can also get a Free Wolfshead Helm if you collect the required resources and contact Medievaldragon in the forums!

WorldofWar.net posted and updated map of Ironforge with NPC locations in their english translation of their meeting with Blizzard in Europe.

WoW Vault has added new Profession/Crafting Forums, 10 Ways to cop with Post Stress Test Angst, and posted Chapter 2 of their fan fiction story, "Tracks of Pain".

RPGVault got an interview with Lead Designer, Rob Pardo, about the PvP System

Wow, busy week for Warcraft, wasn't it? Thanks again to Prescient for putting together this week's Community Roundup!

Like many gamers, I participated in the World of Warcraft stress test over the past week. After messing around with character generation for a bit, checking out the different races, I decided to go with an undead rogue. After getting my character set up and giving him a name, I jumped into the game ready to see whether Blizzard -- a company whose only previous multiplayer experiences are completely dissimilar to an MMORPG -- had a winner on its hands or not.

The first thing I noticed is that the graphics engine itself is not jaw-dropping. This is pretty standard for MMO games, since they can't exactly push DOOM 3 technology while also supporting thousands of players, but the technical aspects of Blizzard's engine have been surpassed even by some already established games like Asheron's Call 2.

We will also be covering their press events in Copenhagen and Stockholm - which is being held later this week, so be sure to check back for those write ups!

NVIDIA AND BLIZZARD ENTERTAINMENT TEAM UP FOR WORLD OF WARCRAFT
1,000 Beta Accounts for Eagerly Awaited MMORPG Are Up for Grabs Starting Today at www.nzone.com
NVIDIA Corporation (Nasdaq: NVDA), a worldwide leader in graphics and digital media processors, today announced a collaboration with Blizzard Entertainment® for World of Warcraft®, the highly anticipated massively multiplayer online role-playing game (MMORPG) set to release this holiday season.

NVIDIA and Blizzard are working together to ready the game for play on NVIDIA graphics processing units (GPUs), the preferred graphics hardware platform for World of Warcraft. The companies will also engage in strategic co-marketing activities as part of NVIDIA's "The Way It's Meant to Be Played" programme. To celebrate the collaboration, NVIDIA and Blizzard will randomly distribute 1,000 closed beta accounts to eager gamers hoping to be among the first to experience the game. Sign-ups will be held for one week only, starting today at www.nzone.com

"Blizzard is one of the world's most respected game developers, and we're thrilled to be working with them," said Bill Rehbock, general manager of content development at NVIDIA. "The blend of Blizzard's creative talent and NVIDIA graphics processors makes World of Warcraft a sight to behold."

Building on the success of the Warcraft® series, Blizzard hopes to expand the MMORPG genre by creating a deep, immersive, user-friendly experience that will appeal to both veteran gamers and casual players alike. With World of Warcraft, Blizzard is set to deliver a new type of gaming experience that will grow over time with awe-inspiring visuals enabled by NVIDIA's latest-generation graphics technology.

"NVIDIA GPUs enrich the gaming experience with faster frame rates and enhanced visuals," stated Paul Sams, senior vice president of business operations at Blizzard Entertainment. "With a track record of performance, compatibility and reliability, it's easy to recommend NVIDIA GPUs for those about to begin their journey into the World of Warcraft."

As part of NVIDIA's The Way It's Meant to Be Played programme, World of Warcraft will undergo extensive compatibility testing to ensure a "no hassles" install-and-play experience for gamers equipped with NVIDIA GPUs. Blizzard has optimised the game for NVIDIA hardware and is working with NVIDIA to ensure the game plays well across a broad line-up of GPUs, from the brand new GeForceTM 6800 series to the GeForce 2. "The investment we're making with Blizzard in compatibility will pay out in spades as soon as the legions of gamers go from install to play quickly and effortlessly," added Rehbock.

For additional information about NVIDIA's The Way It's Meant to Be Played programme, please visit http://www.nzone.com For more information about World of Warcraft, log on to http://www.blizzard.com/wow

About Blizzard Entertainment®Best known for blockbuster hits including the Warcraft®, StarCraft®, and Diablo® series, Blizzard Entertainment (www.blizzard.com), a division of Vivendi Universal Games, is a premier developer and publisher of entertainment software renowned for creating many of the industry's most critically acclaimed games. Blizzard's track record includes eight no1-selling games and multiple Game of the Year awards*. The company's free Internet gaming service Battle.net® reigns as the largest in the world, with millions of active users.

About NVIDIA
NVIDIA Corporation is a worldwide leader in graphics and digital media processors. The Company's products enhance the end-user experience on consumer and professional computing devices. NVIDIA GPUs (graphics processing units), MCPs (media and communications processors), and WMPs (wireless media processors) have broad market reach and are incorporated into a variety of platforms, including consumer and enterprise PCs, notebooks, workstations, PDAs, mobile phones, and video game consoles. NVIDIA is headquartered in Santa Clara, California and employs more than 2,000 people worldwide. For more information, visit the Company's Web site at www.nvidia.co.uk

Certain statements in this press release, including any statements relating to the Company's performance expectations for NVIDIA's family of products and expectations of continued revenue growth, are forward-looking statements that are subject to risks and uncertainties that could cause results to be materially different than expectations. Such risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to, manufacturing and other delays relating to new products, difficulties in the fabrication process and dependence of the Company on third-party manufacturers, general industry trends including cyclical trends in the PC and semiconductor industries, the impact of competitive products and pricing alternatives, market acceptance of the Company's new products, and the Company's dependence on third-party developers and publishers. Investors are advised to read the Company's Annual Report on Form 10-K and quarterly reports on Form 10-Q filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission, particularly those sections entitled "Certain Business Risks," for a fuller discussion of these and other risks and uncertainties.

*Based on EDI sell-through, internal company records, and reports from key distribution partners around the world.

# # #
Copyright © 2004 NVIDIA Corporation. All rights reserved. All company and/or product names may be trade names, trademarks and/or registered trademarks of the respective owners with which they are associated. Features, pricing, availability, and specifications are subject to change without notice.

Note to editors: If you are interested in viewing additional information on NVIDIA, please visit the NVIDIA Press Room at http://www.nvidia.co.uk/page/press_room.html.

What do you think of the "Hunter" Class? [259] 18.88% It's great! I'm definitely going to be a Hunter on full release! [236] 17.20% It's alright! Fun to try out, but a different class on launch is better for me. [41] 2.99% Don't like it at all. [201] 14.65% Never tried that class yet. [635] 46.28% Can't try it out... I'm not in beta! >:( Total Votes: 1372 Ended: Mon Sep 13 06:04:44 MDT 2004

From this poll we can tell that many people liked the Hunter Class and also that a lot of people aren't in beta;) But the good news is that many of you most likely participated in the Stress Test, which brings us to this weeks poll: What did you think of it? So go vote at the top of this page!

With the stress test nearing completion and almost 600 winners of closed beta about to be announced Blizzard is rapidly approaching their release of World of Warcraft. What else is going on? Check it out:

In the next patch (no ETA as of yet), most trade skills are being renamed to "professions," and the way in which players acquire and learn them is changing. You will no longer learn different professions by paying for them with skill points. You'll still learn them by speaking to the appropriate profession trainer. However, players will now be restricted to learning two professions. We decided to change the skill system to make it simpler, balanced, and more intuitive. The new system should allow everyone to participate in one to two professions, and create a much more vibrant market for goods generated from professions.

We strongly encourage players to choose the two professions (trade skills) they wish to keep before the patch goes live so as to avoid the possibility of losing a hard-earned profession. If you have more than two trade skills known on your character, two will be chosen randomly to be retained as professions. The others will be eliminated from your character. Please unlearn the skills you do not wish to keep, and make sure that you only have two trade skills left on your character. To unlearn a trade skill, open your Skills window by pressing the hotkey “K.” Select the skill you wish to unlearn and click the Unlearn button that appears to the right of the skill.

The professions are: alchemy, blacksmithing, enchanting, engineering, herbalism, mining, leatherworking, skinning, and tailoring.

The secondary skills are: cooking, fishing, and first aid.

Several old trade skills are being turned into secondary skills. These do not count toward your two-profession limit, so players can learn all three secondary skills, in addition to their two professions, without restriction. The survival skill is being removed and campfires have been folded into the cooking profession.

No More Skill Points

With the changes to trade skills, skill points (SP) will be removed from the game, and currency will be used instead to train skills formerly based on SP.

We are extending the stress test beta to this Sunday and adding thousands of additional testers from the group of gamers that are currently on the closed-beta waiting list. Invitation emails have started going out to the new testers already. The stress test beta contest will continue on until the end of the stress test beta, at which time all stress test accounts will expire.

Please do not contact Blizzard to inquire about being added to the stress test beta; all the information needed, such as how to access the stress test beta, will be provided in the email going out to new testers.

Thanks to the stress testers, the development team has gained a great deal of information that is proving to be extremely valuable in the development of World of Warcraft. By extending the stress test beta, we will be able to gather even more useful data, which will help us ensure a smooth launch for World of Warcraft later this year. Thanks again, and we'll see you online!

It is my pleasure to now introduce you to Caydiem, our new assistant community manager. Caydiem will be supporting the community (and the community team) with a regular presence here on the forums, along with Tyren. Like Tyren, she will also be interacting with the development team in order to respond to your inquiries and keep you updated on what’s going on with World of Warcraft. Please help me give Caydiem a warm welcome; she’s looking forward to jumping right in and meeting you all.

If you have played or know of Everquest (I have not played it myself!), then a lot of the comparisons might be familiar with you. It seems that the game was very well liked and recieved by Stratics staffers. So go take a gander at the Stress test Impressions!

In recognition of our stress testers’ dedication, we are increasing the number of closed beta slots that will be awarded for the World of Warcraft stress test competition! Whereas the rules previously stated that we would choose the top 48 characters in the overall stress test, we have now decided to expand the contest to include the same number of winners for each server. The top three players for each Horde class and the top three players for each Alliance class on each server will now win entry into the World of Warcraft closed beta test. That increases our total number of winners to 576! Thanks again to all our testers and good luck!

So, I finally got my hands on the game that I drooled over for months. What do I think about it? Well, I already knew what I was going to be playing, so I went through character creation rather quickly, just touching briefly on looking at the other races and the customization options. The game is definatly not City of Heroes with it's limitless supply of character designs. That being said, the game also is not Lineage 2 (with it's 15 or so available options. It gave me enough options that I was satisfied.)

We are aware that many of you, like us, are eager for the European beta test to begin. We understand and appreciate your interest in World of Warcraft and wanted to update you on exactly where the European beta test currently stands. The European sign-ups were a huge success, thanks to you, and were much bigger than we anticipated. Hence, the process of selecting testers has taken longer than expected, but the good news is that the process is now complete.

Over the past few weeks, our growing European teams have been striving to prepare the technical platform to support the beta test, and we are now in the final stages of implementing the required technology. It is our intention to post an announcement very soon that indicates the specific date in September when the European World of Warcraft closed beta test will start. Under the current schedule, the first wave of selected testers will be notified by e-mail a couple of days before the beta launch. Thank you for your patience, and we hope to have you playing World of Warcraft as soon as possible!

Game Star Live is a big gaming expo based in London, UK. It is a public event, so anyone can go! Click on the picture to see the big version!

The World of Warcraft stress test beta is just a day away. Hundreds of thousands of gamers applied for the stress test this past week, and FilePlanet was up to the task, issuing over 100,000 accounts and providing the stress test beta client for download. With the signups and downloads complete, we are just about ready to welcome these gamers into World of Warcraft for the very first time.

Starting tomorrow, September 2nd at 12:00 noon PDT, stress test beta participants will be able to create their World of Warcraft accounts and begin playing the game. Their participation will help us optimize our account-creation and server infrastructure, and enable us to deliver the best online experience possible when the game launches later this year. We want to thank everyone who applied for the stress test beta, and we look forward to seeing the new testers online tomorrow when the stress test beta starts.

Selected stress test beta participants should keep an eye on their inboxes for an email containing further instructions. For more information on the World of Warcraft stress test beta, please check out our FAQ. To get a head start on learning how to play World of Warcraft, take a look at our beta strategy guide.

http://www.worldofwarcraft.com/misc/stresstest-faq.shtml

http://www.worldofwarcraft.com/info/