I plan to talk more about a recent gathering at Stanford, which was focused on the growth and trends of "machinima law." But for Moviewatch today, I wanted to highlight a small artifact of work that was displayed at Stanford. Specifically, Myndflame created this Best of Myndflame Machinima to help illustrate the power of machinima.

Like many nostalgia or memorial reels, "Best of Myndflame Machinima" recaps several different pieces. You might recognize them all, or you might see a preview of something new. I was definitely inspired to go back and re-watch some old favorites, like the Slim Jim commercial or HMS Theramore.

This video reminded me of the long history machinima has with WoW. While I know many folks haven't "gotten into" the whole machinima thing, it's hard not to discuss the WoW community without eventually talking about videos like Big Blue Dress or Escape from Orgrimmar. It's all linked together in my mind, and Myndflame's highlight reel brings back warm memories of time we've all spent seeing these movies.

Their contribution can't be denied, even if it's not central to our daily gameplay. Machinima brings a rich aspect to the game. Innovators like Myndflame or Baron Soosdon, and even new machinimators just getting started, are part of what makes the World of Warcraft more than "just a game." Their art enriches and adds value to the hobby. I guess that might just be me, but I can't imagine spending so much time with WoW without these guys being part of our collective experience.

Check out the Best of Myndflame here!

Tags: hms-theramore, machinima, moviewatch, mydflame, slim-jim, stanford, wow-moviewatch

Filed under: Analysis / Opinion, Machinima, WoW Moviewatch